By Makiza Micheline Latifa
SHANGHAI, CHINA The struggle for liberation did not end with the lowering of colonial flags. Across much of the Global South, the enduring challenge is how to transform political independence into economic sovereignty, people-centred development and the power to determine national priorities without external dictates.
It is this unfinished project of liberation that gives the 2026 Global South Academic Forum (GSAF) its significance, as political leaders, academics and representatives of progressive movements gather in Shanghai, China, to examine the relationship between political parties, governance and modernisation.
Held under the theme “Global South Political Parties: Governance and Modernisation,” the forum seeks to address a fundamental question: how can countries of the Global South build political institutions and development models capable of serving their people while charting independent paths in an unequal international system?
The question extends beyond the mechanics of governance. It concerns who controls a country’s resources, who determines its economic direction, how knowledge and technology are developed, and whose interests shape the policies that govern people’s lives.
For countries whose histories have been marked by colonial domination, struggles for national liberation and continuing development challenges, modernisation cannot be reduced to the pursuit of economic growth or the imitation of models developed elsewhere. It also raises questions about sovereignty, productive capacity, social welfare, institutional strength and the ability of people to participate meaningfully in shaping their collective future.
The forum therefore provides a platform for examining not only how countries are governed, but also the political choices, institutions and forms of cooperation needed to advance development on their own terms.
From liberation to the unfinished struggle for sovereignty
The historical significance of the gathering is inseparable from the struggles that connected Africa, Asia and Latin America in opposition to colonialism and imperialism.
Sixty years after the Tricontinental Conference brought revolutionary movements together in Havana in 1966, the question of collective action among the peoples of the Global South remains relevant. The historical struggle for political freedom established an important foundation, but the pursuit of economic autonomy and a more equitable international order remains a central challenge.
For Africa in particular, the Pan-African vision articulated by leaders such as Kwame Nkrumah placed political independence within a broader project of continental unity and economic transformation. The question confronting subsequent generations is how to advance that project amid contemporary challenges involving development financing, industrialisation, technology and international power.
The 2026 GSAF theme, which places political parties, governance and modernisation at the centre of discussion, invites participants to consider the relationship between political organisation and the capacity of states to deliver meaningful social and economic change.
It also raises a question about the meaning of modernisation itself: must countries follow established development paths, or can they draw on their own histories, social conditions and experiences to chart alternatives?
Leadership addresses governance and collective development
He also highlighted the value of strengthening exchanges in education and scholarship, underscoring the role of academic engagement in enabling countries to share experiences, deepen understanding and explore responses to common challenges.
Ghana’s Vice President, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, placed political parties and other social forces at the centre of how the history of the Global South should be understood, arguing that the story extends far beyond governments and political institutions.
“The history of the Global South must be told not only through the history of governments or precedents, but also through the history of political parties, academia, liberation movements, trade unions, intellectuals, journalists, and many others,” she said.
“Together, they supply the ideas, arguments, and sometimes the moral imagination through which societies understood colonialism, independence, development and modernity.”
Her remarks underscore the importance of recognising the collective intellectual and political struggles that shaped the Global South, including the liberation movements that challenged colonial rule and the ideas that informed visions of post-independence development.
For Africa, this perspective resonates with the Pan-African tradition, in which political leaders, intellectuals, organised labour and liberation movements contributed to debates on sovereignty, continental unity and the meaning of independence. It also reinforces the relevance of examining political parties and other organised social forces in discussions about governance and modernisation today.
The General Secretary of the South African Communist Party (SACP), Solly Mapaila, called for modernisation to be approached as a transformative political and economic agenda, challenging development pathways that deepen dependence on foreign capital.
“Modernisation must become a revolutionary transformation agenda. Our modernisation pathways, therefore, would require mutual rather than greater levels of exploitation by foreign capital,” Mapaila said.
He posed a critical question about the position of Global South economies within the international system: “The critical question is whether integration into the world economy strengthens or weaken productive capabilities.”
His remarks placed productive capacity at the centre of the debate on modernisation, raising questions about whether integration into the global economy enables countries to build their own industries and capabilities or reinforces patterns of economic dependence. This challenge is closely connected to the forum’s wider discussions on self-determination and South-South solidarity, particularly the need for cooperation that strengthens the development capacities of countries across the Global South.
Together, the opening addresses placed governance and modernisation within a wider discussion about political agency, development and the possibilities for stronger cooperation among countries of the Global South.
South-South solidarity as a foundation for an alternative global order
A central question which run through the forum was how countries across the Global South can strengthen their capacity to address shared challenges through cooperation rather than dependence.
South-South solidarity is important in this regard because the countries of Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean possess diverse experiences, resources, institutions and development strategies. Cooperation can create opportunities to exchange knowledge, develop research partnerships, strengthen educational links and explore practical responses to common economic and social challenges.
Such solidarity, however, must extend beyond diplomatic declarations and occasional conferences. Its significance lies in the ability to translate dialogue into sustained collaboration, including in industrial development, science and technology, education, public policy and the production and circulation of knowledge.
It also requires recognising that countries do not have identical circumstances or interests. Meaningful cooperation depends on mutual respect, the willingness to learn from different experiences and the ability to identify shared priorities without assuming that one development model can be applied everywhere.
For Africa, stronger South-South partnerships offer an opportunity to broaden international engagement and expand the range of experiences informing national and continental development strategies. The challenge is to ensure that these relationships strengthen local productive capacity, knowledge systems and the ability of African societies to determine their own priorities.
The broader significance of this cooperation lies in the possibility of building a more democratic international order in which countries of the Global South have a stronger voice in decisions affecting their economies, resources and populations.
An alternative global order cannot be built through declarations alone. It requires institutions, networks of cooperation, independent intellectual traditions and practical arrangements that allow countries to participate in shaping international rules and priorities.
Knowledge Production and the Politics of Development
The reports bring political and socioeconomic analysis of the two countries into a shared space for discussion. Their presentation reflects the importance of examining national developments within their specific historical and social contexts while identifying questions that resonate across the wider Global South.
General Secretary of the Socialist Movement of Ghana, Kwesi Pratt Jnr., highlighted the importance of bringing these analyses together to chart a different path for Africa’s development.
“What this study has done is to enable us to put all of these together in order to determine a new path. A new path that will build an Africa in which no child goes to bed on an empty stomach,” he said.
His remarks brought the purpose of the research into sharp focus: the production of knowledge must go beyond analysing political and socioeconomic realities to inform development pathways that address people’s material needs and aspirations.
The issue also extends to communication: whose experiences are represented in international discussions, whose analysis is heard, and which perspectives shape the global understanding of development?
For a forum bringing together participants from different regions, the exchange of research and ideas can contribute to a broader intellectual community in which countries of the Global South are not merely subjects of analysis but active producers of knowledge about their own realities and the wider world.
The opening programme also featured the award ceremony for the inaugural Global Governance Future Leaders’ Multilingual Speech Contest, providing a platform for emerging voices to engage with questions of international affairs, governance and leadership.
From dialogue to collective action
The discussions continued with sessions examining state capacity and institution-building in the Global South, peace and political responsibility in Asia, anti-militarisation, anti-neocolonialism and the possibilities for a transnational community of peace.
These themes connect governance and modernisation to wider questions about the conditions necessary for development, the responsibilities of political leadership and the role of international cooperation in addressing shared challenges.
For GSAF, the significance of bringing together political leaders, academics and progressive movements lies in the opportunity to compare experiences, test ideas and develop relationships that can continue beyond the conference itself.
The task is to ensure that the exchange of ideas contributes to practical cooperation and a deeper understanding of the political, institutional and economic choices available to countries of the Global South.
As the 2026 Global South Academic Forum concludes, the challenge extends beyond imagining a different international order to considering the institutions, partnerships and collective efforts required to make one possible.
For Africa and the wider Global South, the enduring question remains how to turn the historic achievement of political independence into the capacity to shape development, defend sovereignty and build a future determined by the aspirations of their people.