NEW DELHI: India's External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar has said that the world today is facing many challenges which are impacting people's lives and the global south has been a particular victim.

Along with Namibia's deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Netumbo Nandi Ndaitwah, he made this statement on Monday night in Windhoek during the opening remarks of the inaugural India-Namibia joint commission meeting.

We cannot ignore the challenges the international order is facing in various ways as we gather today. The global south has been a particular victim of what has been happening in the world over the past three to four years, and these challenges have an impact on the lives of our people. "The ecological, economic, and social consequences of climate change, in addition to the health, economic, and social issues brought on by the post-pandemic, debt crises with high interest rates, stressful geopolitical scenarios. I believe that these factors have now come together to truly produce a very difficult international situation," Jaishankar said.

Therefore, this is the perfect time for nations like ours to collaborate, think critically, and work together on a global scale. But the greatest way to achieve that is to also create a strong bilateral partnership," he said.

The minister of external affairs hoped that "the joint commission would become a platform for ideas, for innovations, for exchanges of talents and technologies. And because we are also becoming more and more involved in green hydrogen in the digital era, we will see it in a variety of sectors like pharmaceuticals and health, green and clean energy. Jaishankar hailed the launch of the joint commission as a historic event, saying, 

"Today is a unique and momentous occasion because the joint commission would steer our relationship forward, which will obviously review and assess the progress we have made, would come up with new ideas and suggestions. And this system of frequent high-level meetings and open communication, supported by a platform, will undoubtedly aid us in managing our cooperation more effectively in the future. He said, "Our developmental cooperation, our capacity-building activities, and our political solidarity are where India and Namibian ties are forged. And it is crucial that we advance, advance, and prosper together.

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"If you want to debate, do it at home, some things are above politics," Jaishankar said