brics: prospects and challenges - employment news · 2014-03-15 · dedicated brics bank was...

VOL. XXXVIII NO. 50 PAGES 56 NEW DELHI 15 - 21 MARCH 2014 ` 8.00

Disaster Management offers a Promising CareerDr. Ashok G. Matani

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In 2001, Jim O'Neill, ChiefEconomist of the American bank,

Goldman Sachs, in a report "BuildingBetter Global Economic BRIC" firstcoined the phrase 'BRIC' whichstands for Brazil, Russia, India andChina---the four of then fastest-grow-ing emerging economies of the world.Looking at the features like size ofpopulation, demographic dividendand rate of globalization, GoldmanSachs (GS) forecasted that thesefour countries had the growth poten-tial to replace the European economyin terms of market size. GS also pre-dicted that China, India, Brazil andRussia would become the first, third,fifth and sixth largest economiesrespectively, by 2050. However,'BRIC' as an international forum wasformalized with the first meeting ofthe foreign ministers of Brazil,Russia, India and China in New Yorkon the margins of the UN GeneralAssembly in September, 2006. Laterin April 2011 (third BRIC summit),South Africa joined this forum and'BRICS' was formed.The five countries together accountfor 43 percent of the world's popula-tion, 46 percent of the global labourforce, 30 percent of the earth's land-mass and 25 percent of the world's

share of global gross domestic prod-uct (GDP). The BRICS countries,apart from complementing theirrespective economies in terms ofresource exchange, are also themajor resource suppliers to theindustrialized world. However, thesecountries have very little cultural orpolitical similarity; and their levels ofdevelopment differ widely. Given thatthere were no significant prior eco-nomic ties among these countries,the creation of BRICS was a majorstep towards an alternative globaleconomic landscape. The formationof the BRICS was rooted in the long-term common economic interests ofthe member nations, which includereforming global financial and eco-nomic architecture, strengthening theprinciples and standards of interna-tional law and supporting the comple-mentarities of many sectors of theireconomies. ObjectivesThe canvas of the BRICS agenda isvery broad. Though it began with reg-ular and intensive consultations onthe global economic slowdown of2008-09, the agenda incorporatedother concerns such as climatechange and sustainable develop-ment, food and energy security, the

global trading order, MillenniumDevelopment Goals (MDGs), reformsin international economic and finan-cial institutions and international andregional political developments.BRICS SummitsBRICS has been operational as aforum only since 2009 and hasbecome a topic of growing interest indevelopment circles only in the pastyear or two. Regular meetings of for-eign ministers and finance ministersare a feature of the BRICS calendar.In addition, over the years, a numberof mechanisms have been developedfor deepening intra-BRICS coopera-tion e.g. meetings of the ministers oftrade, finance, agriculture, health,science and technology etc. of themember nations.The first BRIC summit took place inYekaterinburg, Russia in 2009. Thesecond summit was held in Brasilia,Brazil in 2010. It is the third BRICSsummit in Sanya, China in 2011,where the forum demanded forreform of international financial insti-tutions and focused on establishinginstitutional mechanisms for collabo-rative work across BRICS throughexchange of information and technol-ogy. The summit also highlightedissues like agriculture and food secu-

rity. The fourth summit was held inNew Delhi in 2012, where the BRICScountries decided to explore the ideaof forming a multi-lateral develop-ment bank for mobilizing resourcesfor infrastructure and sustainabledevelopment projects in BRICS andother emerging economies. The fifthsummit was held in Durban, SouthAfrica in March 2013. The theme ofthe summit was "BRICS and Africa:Partnership for Development,Integration and Industrialization". Thekey decision taken in this summit wasto help African countries in theirindustrialization process by stimulat-ing foreign direct investment, knowl-edge exchange, capacity-buildingand trade diversification. The majorthrust was on stimulating infrastruc-ture investment to support industrialdevelopment, job-creation, skillsdevelopment, food and nutritionsecurity, poverty eradication and sus-tainable development in Africa.BRICS leaders reiterated to worktogether for attaining the MillenniumDevelopment Goals (MDGs) by 2015and also emphasized that post 2015development agenda should build onthe MDG framework, retaining the

February 28, 2013: Kolkata market fire killed 21people and injured six

June 16, 2013: Flash floods left an estimated5700 people dead

August 24, 2013: Vizag HPCL fire claimed lives of24 people

October 14, 2013: Cyclone Phailin washed awaythousands of huts and acres ofcrops

October 31, 2013: 46 people were burnt to deathwhen Haveri Volvo bus caughtfire

These are some of the worst disasters India has wit-nessed in the year 2013. Causalities and loss of propertythat were caused by these catastrophes expose the glar-ing inadequacies in disaster management preparednessin our country. India is densely populated and susceptibleto various kinds of disasters. Given this, disaster man-agement is crucial to safeguard both lives of people andthe social and economic system of the country. So if youhave the yearning to work for the greater cause of thesociety and the country, disaster management is a suit-able career option for you. Disaster Management deals with planning and practice ofhandling disasters. Disasters can be natural, like earth-quakes, droughts and tsunamis, or man-made like wars,bomb blasts and chemical leaks. Whatever the category,they all cause loss of life and property. More importantly,they leave a long-lasting impact, on the lives of the peo-ple in the community. Often, the tangible losses theycause are minute when compared to the intangibleimpression they leave. Therefore, disaster managementhas to be approached with great diligence. It has to be

designed and developed keeping in view multiple facetsof human life. What it is all aboutDisaster management begins at identifying potential dis-asters and developing strategies to avoid them. It coverscontingency plans and procedures to be implemented tocontain damage when and if the disaster erupts; itincludes rehabilitation aftermath. Also known as emer-gency management, it guides how resources and respon-sibilities should be managed in the way to provide thebest possible support to victims in case of a disaster. Disaster management is an elaborate and intensiveprocess that involves numerous activities and steps. So, dis-aster management teams comprise professionals from dif-ferent academic backgrounds and work experience. Forinstance, when a flood is impending, NGOs and governmentofficers, work together to get the area evacuated. Often,defence personnel strive to rescue people caught in floods.Medical and para-medical personnel work towards prevent-ing outbreak of epidemics in the refuge camps. Social work-ers and volunteers ensure supply of basic necessities to res-cued people. Various government and non-governmentorganisations contribute towards rebuilding the communityand rehabilitating the victims. Skill requiredPersonnel working in this field need to possess decent levelof knowledge and skills in multiple domains like logistics andsupply chain, public health, communication and the likewise.Since the job involves co-ordination and collaboration withseveral people, ability to work in teams, interpersonal skills,communication skills and appreciation for contributions ofother professionals are must. Intellectual acumen, empathy,commitment to serve people, ability to survive in severe

Continued on page 56

Continued on page 56

BRICS: Prospects and ChallengesProtiva Kundu

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56 www.employmentnews.gov.in Employment News 15 - 21 March 2014

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main focus on poverty eradicationand human development. However,there are fears that growing tradeand investment links of the BRICSwith poorer developing countriesseek to exploit the natural resourcebase of these countries, siphoningthem off in ways that are ecologicallydamaging, inherently unequal and oflittle benefit to the local people.The discussion on establishing adedicated BRICS bank was contin-ued in the fifth BRICS summit, butthere is doubt on whether BRICS willactually be able to give concreteshape to this idea. As far as invest-ment and business is concerned,there is not much in commonbetween these countries and some ofthe fundamental questions like loca-tion of the secretariat, the subscrip-tion amount, control and ownershipand lending practices are yet to be

settled. BRICS nations aimed toinject an initial $50 billion into thenew development bank, but therewas disagreement over whethereach should contribute equally or ifcontributions should vary correspon-ding to the size of their economies.However, given that the Chineseeconomy is about 20 times the sizeof South Africa and four times as bigas Russia or Indian economy, there isa possibility that the bank would bedominated by China.India's position in BRICSIndia is widely considered as a strongemerging economy given its popula-tion characteristics, strength ofdemocracy, large domestic market,technological acumen and invest-ment potential. However, the coun-try's economic potential should notbe the sole parameter for its compar-ison with other members of BRICS.Though, India shares certain com-mon features with the other BRICS

nations, it is actually an exception inthis group as pointed out by Drezeand Sen (2013). India' s per capitaGDP ( adjusted for PurchasingPower Parity) is less than half ofChina, one third of Brazil and onefourth of Russia. (Dreze and Sen,2013). Every country in this set hasachieved universal or near universaladult literacy rate; the only exceptionis India. Similarly, proportion of fullyimmunized children is lowest in Indiaas compared to other four countries.Though poverty and inequality arecross cutting issues across BRICScountries, India is the poorest, withhigh inequality, low productiveemployment and a large informallabour market.India's role in BRICSThe 6th BRICS summit, which isgoing to take place in Fortaleza,Brazil in 2014 (likely to be held inJuly, this year); will continue with theexisting agenda of reform of the inter-

national financial system and cre-ation of a development bank. Thegroup is also likely to move beyondeconomic cooperation and expandthe range of their discussions. Thecurrent economic situation of Indiais gloomy with the economy grow-ing at less than 5% per annum. Inview of the same, the magnitude ofIndia's financial contribution to theproposed development bank islargely uncertain. Rather, India canderive larger gains for itself (fromthis forum), by raising the issues ofpoverty, inequality, social infrastruc-ture, agriculture and food security.Coordination and cooperationamong the BRICS countries ontheir pressing issues could helpIndia significantly in addressingsome of these challenges.

[The author works with Centre forBudget and GovernanceAccountability (CBGA), New Delhi]

conditions, and willingness towork hard go without saying. Job responsibilitiesJob roles in the field of disas-ter management are diverse.Based on the job, responsi-bilities range from rehabilita-tion of the disaster affectedpeople, to post disaster set-tlement of affected people,policy formulation, fieldtraining, research, consul-tancy, training and capacity-building, assessment oflosses, psycho-social inter-vention, popularisation ofappropriate technology,mobilisation of humanresource, coordination withNGOs and governmentorganisations, and publica-tions and documentation.Students looking forward tocareer in this field can spe-cialise in one of the relevantfields of study. A short-term

course in disaster manage-ment can provide knowledgeand skills specific to the field. Employment opportunities Some of the job roles in thefield of disaster managementinclude project officer, emer-gency response manager,disaster management officer,security officer, social scien-tist, para-medical profession-al, environmentalist and soon. Opportunities are in gov-ernment and private organi-sations. National Institute of DisasterManagement, Indian Instituteof Public Administration,SAARC DisasterManagement Centre, IndianAgriculture ResearchInstitute, Indian Red CrossSociety, India MeteorologicalDepartment and NationalDisaster ManagementAuthority are some organisa-tions that hire disaster man-agement professionals.

Job opportunities in disastermanagement are plenty,lucrative and professionallysatisfying. So what are youwaiting for? If you have theaptitude to work in this fieldand are interested in servingthe society start exploreopportunities in the field rightaway. There are severalopportunities awaiting you.

Colleges and courses:College : Uttarakhand OpenUniversity, UttarakhandCourse : PG Diploma inDisaster ManagementEligibility : GraduationWebsite : www.uou.ac.inCollege : Indira Gandhi

National Open University,DelhiCourse : Post GraduateDiploma in DisasterManagementEligibility : GraduationWebsite : www.ignou.ac.inCollege : Symbiosis Instituteof Geoinformatics, PuneCourse : Post GraduateDiploma in DisasterManagementEligibility : GraduationAdmission : Performance inpersonal interview and groupdiscussionWebsite : www.sig.ac.inCollege : Dr.Bhim RaoAmbedkar University, AgraCourse : Post Graduate

Diploma in DisasterManagementEligibility : GraduationWebsite : www.dbrau.ac.inCollege : SangamUniversity, BhilawarCourse : MBA in DisasterManagementEligibility : Graduation inany discipline with 50 percent marksAdmission : Performance inentrance testWebsite : http://sangamuni-versity.ac.in

[The write up is contributed byTMIE2E Academy CareerCentre, Secunderabad.]

BRICS : Prospects and...Continued from page 1

Disaster management ...Continued from page 1

The Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh attended at the 3rd BIMSTEC Summit in NayPyi Taw, Myanmar on 4th March, 2014. He said India is working with BIMSTEC mem-bers to improve physical connectivity through various projects such as the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway, the Kaladan Multimodal Transit TransportProject, the Asian Highway Network, the ASEAN Master Plan for Connectivity and oth-ers. He also promised to launch a direct shipping line to Myanmar that will enhancethe region's growing maritime links.Since March 1, administration of oral polio vaccine (OPV) six weeks before departurefor all India-bound travelers has become mandatory from seven countries where poliocases are still being reported: Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Syria, Kenya, Somalia, Nigeriaand Pakistan. Indians headed for these countries will also be administered the vac-cine.The Election Commission March set in motion the process for general election 2014.The elections for the 16th Lok Sabha, along with the Assembly polls in AndhraPradesh, Odisha and Sikkim, will be held on nine different dates from April 7 to May12. The entire process will be spread over 73 days. Counting of votes will be held onMay 16. The model code of conduct, a set of legally binding dos and don'ts, became opera-tional with immediate effect with the announcement of the Lok Sabha election sched-ule on 5th March. The code bars Ministers from combining official visits with election-eering work and bans the use of official machinery for electioneering and advertise-ments at the cost of the exchequer. There can be no announcement of financial grantsor promise of roads and water supply. Transfer of officials is also banned.The Rajasthan High Court has annulled the result of Rajasthan Administrative Service-2012 examination by holding as invalid the scaling system adopted by the RajasthanPublic Service Commission (RPSC) and directed the RPSC to declare the resultafresh on the basis of "raw marks", after which the interviews will be conducted. Thejudgment, was delivered at the High Court's principle seat on Jodhpur on 3rd March.Harrowing historical drama '12 Years a Slave' won the coveted best picture Oscar on2nd March, while 3D space thriller Gravity was the top prize winner with seven.Slave's win marks the first time a film directed by a black filmmaker has won best pic-ture. True-life AIDS activist drama Dallas Buyers Club won three Oscars including bestactor for Matthew Mc Conaughey, while Australia's Cate Blanchett won best actressfor Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine.

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