International Economic and Financial Crisis: Relevance of a Gandhian Approach

Abstract

In business, globalization refers to the process of integrating the economies of the world, which results in the emergence of an interdependent business world. Nations are now living in a globalized business world. The globalization process began in the 1980s, developed rapidly in the context of the Washington Consensus of the 1990s, and entered the new millennium with great fanfare. Booming consumerism, rapid economic growth, rising incomes, and massive financial flows and transactions became the order of the day. Hardware-industrial China and software-service India rode the wave. With a high growth rate, prosperity seemed unending.

Then the anticlimax of 2007–2008 and later occurred. Financial crisis emerged from sub-prime crisis, bank failures, sudden credit collapse, market uncertainties, stock market crash, and the disappearance of business confidence. The crises certainly ushered in a “Great Recession,” which through vigorous international efforts stopped falling short of a “Great Depression.” The focus has again turned on China and India who are expected to lead in the recovery.

Where did the world go wrong? Here comes the Gandhian Thought and Philosophy. The paper seeks to explain how “greed” overtook “need,” “speculation” overtook “sensible thinking,” “self-aggrandizement” overtook “trusteeship,” and “consumerism” overtook “modest consumption.” Business everywhere should have been based on trust, transparency, and truth. But this foundation seems to have disappeared. These facts are analyzed, the relevance of Gandhi is brought out, and future perspectives are discussed.

Citation

Sundaram, S.K.G. (2012), "International Economic and Financial Crisis: Relevance of a Gandhian Approach", Bo, C., Chatterji, M. and Chaoyan, H. (Ed.) Cooperation for a Peaceful and Sustainable World Part 1 (Contributions to Conflict Management, Peace Economics and Development, Vol. 20 Part 1), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 277-291. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1572-8323(2012)0000020015