E N S W - Human Development Reports - United Nations ...

The fast-developing countries chose their
own distinct development pathways. Yet they
share important characteristics, including
effective leadership from governments, open
engagement with the world economy and innovative
social policies addressing domestic human
development needs. They also face many
of the same challenges, from social inequalities
to environmental risks. And they have developed
their own domestic policy approaches
with increasing autonomy, for their own sovereign
national reasons, without the strictures
of enforced conditionality or imposed external
models.
The South’s progress is propelled by interconnections
with developed countries and
increasingly with the developing world. In
fact, economic exchanges are expanding
faster “horizontally”—on a South–South
basis—than on the traditional North–South
axis. People are sharing ideas and experiences
through new communications channels and
seeking greater accountability from governments
and international institutions alike. The
South as a whole is driving global economic
growth and societal change for the first time in
centuries. The South still needs the North, but,
increasingly, the North also needs the South.
Chapter 5 Governance and partnerships for a new era | 123