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"I am confident ethical globalization this time has a human face!"

Professor D.K. Mishra a renowned Indian Economist made this remark at a public lecture he delivered on 4 May 2012 at the Renaissance hall of ECSU's main campus under the theme "Globalization, Yes? Or Globalization, No? -: The New Century's Major Economic Issue with Some Reference to Ethiopia."

Learning from past mistakes, making policy reforms, promoting foreign trade and integrating with the global economy with a small doze of skepticism are the strategies countries need adopt pertaining to globalization, the Professor noted. If countries fail to design appropriate policies on top of good governance, they will be left out he stressed quoting Rabbi Hilell's saying of Herod's time "If I am not for myself then who is for me? But if I am for myself only, what am I?"

The Professor further noted that it is through the right mix of the aforementioned strategies countries, which go by the acronym BRICS, contributed significantly to the changing balance of the world economic power.

He went on to say now globalization is at its third wave and unlike its predecessors two initiated and dominated by a single economy; the third is a multi-polarized order.

As put by The Economist Intelligence Unit, since it has registered a double digit growth for the last 8 consecutive years Ethiopia's turning African Tiger Economy should not come as a surprise. If there is the will and the wish, success will not be long in coming.

Trade brings forth growth and growth in its turn helps alleviate poverty. Asian countries like China and India (CHINDIA as they are now called), he said, have translated this fact into action through a relentless effort. African leaders have to discuss ways how the continent, now being seen as an important economic destination, could materialize growth and poverty reduction, he stressed.

According to him, there is an ironic reversal of attitudes between the rich countries from the global north who now entertain discomfort about globalization in one side and the poor and policy makers from the global south that want to embrace it on the other side. Altruistic hegemony now puts on a red light in the minds of people, he added.

What is needed is a commitment to a set of basic shared principles that does not erode global cooperation and a sense of common global interest, Professor D.K. Mishra concluded.

In a welcoming speech he made prior to the launching of the lecture session, Director of ECSU's School of Graduate Studies Ato TIlahun Fekade, who also moderated the session, noted that the timing of the lecture is special as it is conducted days before The Annual World Economic Forum to be held here in Addis in May2012.

Summarizing the points raised he noted the session, among others, had made clear the emergence of multi-polar global economy, the manifestation of attitudinal changes about globalization, viewing globalization as an international public good, the desire to promote foreign direct investment and the development of new vocabularies such as G7,G8,BRICS and CHINDIA in development discourse.

To reap benefits from globalization there has to be an enabling environment: focus on agricultural development, high level of literacy, investment in higher education, skill and infrastructural development, efficient public service and god governance, he noted.

The lecture session, which is the second of its kind by the School of Graduate Studies, and that brought together M.A and PHD students as well as internationally diverse faculty members had served as a platform for discussing salient issues on globalization and thought provoking topics revolving around it.

If policies are ganged up by international institutional global powers, how could developing countries design policies that help them benefit from globalization? Do emerging powers allow returns to percolate down to their poor citizens? Is embracing globalization a matter of choice? How can we ensure that globalization will not have a negative effect in the absence of strong civil society organs in most developing countries?

The intended and unintended out come of currency devaluation as well as examples to be emulated from CHINDIA were among the questions and points raised for discussion during the course of the lecture session.

The Annual World Economic Forum is hopefully expected to open investment opportunities and sale- de als to Ethiopia, strategically located at the crossroad of Africa.