Sunday Times 2
Gamani Corea and his enduring legacy for the Global South
View(s):By Dr Minna Thaheer
The 100th birth anniversary of Dr Gamani Corea was commemorated on November 4, 2025, by the Gamani Corea Foundation (GCF). The centenary oration was delivered by Dr Carlos María Correa, Executive Director of the South Centre, Geneva, Switzerland. Dr Gamani Corea shaped Sri Lanka’s post-independence development policy framework. Heading the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), he left a lasting legacy, pioneering multiple and wide-ranging development initiatives for developing nations at the time. Dr Corea’s was the pre-eminent voice of the developing world at a time when decolonisation resulted in the emergence of nation states in a bipolar world.
In introductory remarks, Dr Harsha Aturupane, Honorary Chairperson of the GCF and a Lead Economist in the World Bank, stated that Dr Gamani Corea’s insight and commitment have left a profound imprint on international development policy and economic thought. He was a founding member of the Group of 77 (currently grouping 134 member countries), the Third World Forum, and the South Centre, Geneva.
Dr Gamani Corea
Dr Corea’s influence as a visionary in developmental economics spanned the globe, described as a ‘girdle around the earth,’ covering post-colonial emerging nations in Asia, Africa and South and Central America. Dr Corea had his undergraduate studies in Cambridge University and was the first Sri Lankan to obtain a doctorate from Oxford University, in any subject. Dr Corea’s active participation in UNCTAD, the South Commission, and later the South Centre was vital in shaping their institutional values and philosophy. His work addressing sovereign debt of developing countries was another important accomplishment.
Dr Carlos María Correa, who had the privilege of working with him said that Dr Gamani Corea, in retrospect, championed the struggle of the Global South’s quest to transform the international economic order for a better world. In his oration, Dr Carlos Correa emphasised the following landmarks, highlighting Dr Gamani Corea’s contribution to global economic development.
Before launching his international career that influenced the rest of the developing countries, Dr Gamani Corea contributed to Sri Lanka as the architect of the country’s first development plan (10 year); served as Director General of the Planning Secretariat; Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Planning and Economic Affairs; and served as the Senior Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Ceylon, among other key positions he held before becoming Ambassador to the European Economic Community and the Benelux countries.
At the heart of Dr Corea’s work was a commitment to sustainable and equitable growth that was sensitive and respectful of the environment, fair and inclusive. The question was not simply about economic growth and growth rates but about the quality of economic growth, which was a new thinking at the time. Given that the main focus of some developed countries was to simply provide aid to developing countries, with the concept of Official Development Assistance (ODA) set afloat, Dr Corea emphasised the importance of international trade for equitable economic development.
With the changing climate in countries such as South Korea and Singapore, he made a very strong point that they didn’t need aid as charity but opportunities to demonstrate their know-how to use their own resources, on the basis of equity and sustainability, through trade. This was a significant change in the conceptualisation of measures to assist ‘underdeveloped’ countries. Dr Corea was deeply aware of the peripheral status of many countries in the global economy led by a few major powers. It was against this backdrop that he championed for reform of the global economy and promoted a new international economic order. It is in this realm that Dr Corea’s contributions and influence were most keenly felt.
Dr Carlos Correa delivering centenary oration
Vision for development
There was a recognised need to restructure the international order so that developing countries could become full participants in global climate and economic growth. This underscored the necessity of advancing the collective interests of the developing world. Dr Corea became a staunch advocate for the unity of developing countries, believing that their solidarity was essential to reshaping the international order and ensuring that these changes could take place.
One of the very important contributions of Dr Corea, whose indelible legacy is sung today, is the establishment of the Group of 77 (currently grouping 134 developing countries). The Group of 77 was established precisely with the objective of changing the world order for providing a platform for the developing countries to work together to improve their capacity to get better outcomes in international negotiations. It has been tremendously influential in many international negotiations (with a small secretariat in New York). A case in point was a recent treaty on marine genetic resources (part of the High Seas Treaty) to conserve and sustainably use marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction. The Group of 77 significantly influenced both the drafting and the outcomes of this treaty, with the developing countries under Cuba’s leadership steering the agreement.
When the oil crisis of 1973 shocked the global economy and politics, there was an opportunity for the developing countries led by the oil producers to make a very drastic proposal to change the global economic order. Dr Corea’s vision enabled the shaping of the May 1974 reform of the global economic system. It was adopted through a resolution by the United Nations General Assembly, with the declaration of the establishment of the New International Economic Order (NIEO). Interestingly, this declaration did not consist of only principles that were adopted, but had a programme of work annexed to the declaration. A part of the declaration emphasised the following:
Sovereign equality of States, self-determination of all peoples, inadmissibility of the acquisition of territories by force, territorial integrity and noninterference in the internal affairs of other States…to transfer …technology and management skills to developing countries on equitable and favourable terms; to regulate the repatriation of the profits … and to promote reinvestment of their profits in developing countries
An important part of the declaration was the principle of territorial integrity and non-interference in the internal affairs of other states. Although Dr Corea fought for the cause of the Global South, he felt the need to ensure that there was international cooperation, including the countries from the North. He also believed in the “broadest cooperation of all the States members of the international community, based on equity, whereby the prevailing disparities in the world may be banished and prosperity secured for all.” Needless to mention his role as a promoter of the idea of ‘public goods’, that international cooperation should lead to improvement, progress in all countries.
Another area of his keen interest was the asymmetry between developed and developing countries in their capacity to produce science and technology. At the time, developing countries accounted for only about 5% of global research and development, reflecting the dominant hold of the developed world in science and technology, though this balance has begun to shift in recent years.
(The writer is an independent
development consultant).