Coming of Age
by Desmond MacRae
Reprinted by permission from
Global Guardian, June 1990
 |
||
| Page 1 | Next page >> | |
"If this were played upon a stage now, I could condemn it as an improbable fiction." --Twelfth Night
The international economic cooperation that is evident now would have seemed improbable fiction a year ago. But what is being played upon the world stage today is very real. Some of the most influential actors in this unfolding drama are the men and women of the often-cited but little known Group of Thirty.
Founded in 1978, the Group of Thirty describes itself as a "private, independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit body that aims to deepen understanding of international economic and financial issues, to explore the international repercussions of decisions taken in public and private sectors, and to examine the choices available to policy makers." For all that, it is no ivory tower: its output is shaping the way countries interact with one another. It is the world's leading forum for the discussion and implementation
of economic ideas. It is perhaps the single most important influence on national economic policy makers; it was the first to quantify foreign exchange flows, in 1979; it contributed to the stabilization of oil prices in 1981; it established conventions for the examination of LDC debt in 1985; it is presently working to streamline global securities clearance and settlement to allow world capital flows to unencumber themselves from national market idiosyncrasies. Its work has affected the entire world.
Its members, only 27 at present,
come from all over the world. Given its polyglot
character, consensus on almost any
issue is intermittent. "The biggest
problem with the Group has always
been the centrifugal force of its collective
intellect," remarks Edwin Deagle,
a soft-spoken American, now a strategist
for Hughes Aircraft and one of the
Group's architects. But several factors
have helped keep it together, and the
results have been extraordinary.
Noblesse oblige
One reason the Group even exists is
an old-fashioned sense of noblesse
oblige, the obligation of honorable,
generous, and responsible behavior
associated with high political, financial,
or intellectual rank. Group of
Thirty members, and many of the people
who work with them from time to
time, seem to believe in putting time
aside for the greater good. "Among
members, there is an understanding of
what could happen in the international
financial and monetary systems," says Dr. Johannes Witteveen, a Netherlander
who headed the International Monetary Fund and was the Group of Thirty's
first chairman. "So there is a feeling
that one should contribute to the
system."
Members disagree often but manage
to work together. "There's at least a reduction
of opposition to a level of silence,"
says Deagle. Egos do surface,
but apparently not systematically. Most
members were economists, and many
still are. When speaking, they know that
they will be understood. When listening,
they understand what is being said." Members might oppose a certain idea
because of different points of view or beliefs in different policies," says Witteveen," but
the understanding of the
various ideas is high."
The Group's composition is diverse:
central bankers; commercial bankers;
academics; an occasional industrialist." One of the purposes is to bring
together
a group of people with openness
of mind and the intelligence to
understand each other, but with different
points of view," says Witteveen, who
retired in 1985 and is now honorary
chairman. "Each member could share
views and bring up new ideas that others
might be able to use."
Complete Article: Acrobat PDF 2,940 Kb