Seminar BRICs et économies émergentes - 2022-2023 : face à la fragmentation du monde / Seminar BRICs and emerging economies - 2022-2023: facing the fragmentation of the world

L'ARGUMENT DU SEMINAIRE / OUTLINE OF THE SEMINAR

Presentation (in French): Faced with a succession of crises and diverging trajectories for the countries that make it up, the BRICs and emerging economies are sailing at a loss. At the beginning of 2022, just as the "world before" was glimpsing the possibility of a return to a form of normalcy - albeit plagued by environmental issues - after two years of pandemics from China, it was Russia that played the role of global destabilizer, provoking with its invasion of Ukraine the biggest military blast in Europe since the Second World War.

The international system is once again noting its institutional weaknesses in the face of a crisis as brutal as it was unforeseen. The economic shockwave of the conflict spread everywhere, first through the classic channels of the financial markets, then through the regional and global consequences of the war on energy and grain prices and availability. The economic aftershocks of this war will continue to shake the planet in 2022-2023, even if the conflict ends soon - an eventuality that is nothing less than certain.

Absorbed by its internal political deadlines and an economic slowdown that is being confirmed, while its own financial and real estate imbalances are reaching unprecedented levels, China is balancing between diplomatic support for Russia, always welcome when it points to Western responsibilities in the disintegration of global governance, and the need to limit the consequences of the conflict on its economic ties with Europe and the United States, but also on its flagship New Silk Road project.

The positions of India, Brazil and South Africa are equally ambivalent, for different reasons. Their leaders wish to take advantage of the opportunities offered by Russia's all-out search for partnerships with the West, and to express their disapproval of Western diplomacy, which is itself so often contradictory. However, India's fragile energy and food situation means that it fears a surge in raw material prices, while Jair Bolsonaro's Brazil, while voting against Russia at the UN, displays a façade of neutrality, partly intended to preserve its supply of Russian fertilizers. The fragmentation of the world continues, sparing neither the BRICs nor the emerging economies.

At a time when emergencies are spreading in multiple directions - health, military, humanitarian, energy, food, socio-ecological - the BRICs seminar does not intend to abandon structural and historical questioning, nor the mobilization of theoretical approaches inspired by institutionalism, which give full scope to interdisciplinary reflection. In 2022-2023, questions relating to the environment, work, society and demographics will continue to be the focus of our discussions, through the themes addressed by our guests. These issues will not be limited to the BRICs stricto sensu. They will touch on the South and emerging countries on all five continents, which are affected and sometimes impacted by the policies of the BRIC countries.

Continuing a collaboration begun a year ago with the Master Erasmus Mundus EPOG+ (European Policies for the Global Transition, Université Paris Cité), Inalco's BRICs seminar will open special sessions shared with EPOG+ (called BRICs+), outside its usual slots, to be held two Wednesdays a month at 6pm at Inalco's Maison de la Recherche, 2, Rue de Lille (Salle Sylvestre de Sacy, 2nd floor) from October 5, 2022 at 6pm (Inaugural session, François Gipouloux).

Presentation: Faced with the succession of crises and the divergence of the trajectories of the countries that make it up, the BRICs group and the emerging economies are navigating in stormy waters. At the beginning of 2022, when the world was foreseeing the possibility of a return to a form of normality - certainly weighed down by environmental issues -, after two years of a pandemic from China, it was Russia that played the role of global destabilizer by provoking by its invasion of Ukraine the strongest military explosion in Europe since the Second World War.

The international system is once again acknowledging its institutional weaknesses in the face of such a brutal crisis. The shock wave of the conflict on the economy spread everywhere, first through the traditional channels of financial markets, then through the regional and global impacts of the war on prices and on the availability of energy and cereals. The economic aftershocks of this war will continue to shake the planet in 2022-2023, even if the conflict ends soon - an eventuality that is far from certain.

Absorbed by its internal political deadlines and an economic slowdown which is confirmed while its own financial and real estate imbalances reach unprecedented levels, China balances between diplomatic support for Russia - which is always welcome when it makes it possible to point out Western responsibilities in the disintegration governance-, and the need to limit the damages of the conflict on its economic ties with Europe and the United States, but also on its flagship Belt and Road Initiative.

The positions of India, Brazil and South Africa are also ambivalent, for different reasons. Their leaders wish to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the all-out search for partnerships on the part of a Russia which has cut itself off from the West. They are also willing to mark their disapproval of Western diplomacy which is itself so often contradictory. However, India's energy and food vulnerabilities makes it fear the skyrocketting prices of raw materials. Meanwhile, Jair Bolsonaro's Brazil, while voting against Russia at the UN, displays a facade of neutrality, partly intended to preserve its supply of Russian fertilizers. The movement of fragmentation of the world continues and spares neither the BRICs nor the emerging economies.

In these times when the emergency is spreading in multiple directions - health, military, humanitarian, energy, food, socio-ecological -, the BRICs seminar does not intend to abandon structural and historical questions, nor the mobilization of theoretical approaches inspired by institutionalism, which gives full place to interdisciplinary reflection. In 2022-2023, issues relating to the environment, labour, society and demography will continue to be the subject of our discussions, through the topics addressed by our guests. The fields on which these questions will relate will not be limited to the BRICs stricto sensu. They will be also devoted to the South and the emerging countries of the five continents, concerned and sometimes impacted by the policies of the BRIC countries.

Continuing a collaboration begun a year ago with the Erasmus Mundus EPOG+ Master (European Policies for the Global Transition, Paris Cité University), Inlaco's BRICs seminar at will organize special sessions shared with EPOG+ (these sessions will be called BRICs+), outside its usual slots that will be held two Wednesdays a month, at 6 p.m. at the Inalco Maison de la Recherche, 2, Rue de Lille (Salle Sylvestre de Sacy, 3rd floor) starting from October 5, 2022.

LE CALENDRIER DU SEMINAIRE / TIMETABLE OF THE SEMINAR

• MERCREDI 5 OCTOBRE 2022 - Séance 1
  • François Gipouloux (EHESS) : Commerce, argent, pouvoir. L'impossible avènement d'un capitalisme en Chine, XVI-XIX s
    
• WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 19, 2022 - Session 2
  • Buna Zolin (Ca Foscari Venice): Conséquences de la guerre en Ukraine sur les flux agricoles
    
• MERIDAY NOVEMBER 9, 2022 - Session 3
  • Marc Lautier (Université de Rennes) to present the book he co-authored with Jean-Raphaël Chaponnière: "Quelles perspectives d'industrialisation tardive pour l'Afrique?" published at the end of October by AFD éditions
  • The book will be discussed by Alice Sindzingre (CEPN)
    
• WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 23, 2022 - Session 4
  • Manuelle Franck, Elsa Lafaye de Micheaux et alii (Inalco, Univ. Rennes): Chinese Aid and Investment in Southeast Asia
    
• WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2022 - 6:30-8:30 p.m. - EPOG + Special 1 [online]
• Uma Rani (ILO): The Role of Digital Platforms in Transforming th World of Work: A Global South Perspective"
  
• WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 7, 2022 - Session 5
  • Jean-Philippe Eglinger (Inalco) : Vietnamese capitalism and China
    
• WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2023 - Session 6 - [Online]
  • Fazelina Sahul Hamid (Bristol University): Structures and evolutions of Malaysia's monetary and financial system
    
• Gonzalo Ordonez Matamaros (Universidad El Externado - Colombia): Governance and scientific diplomacy: analysis of North-South and South-South cooperation in research and innov
  

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 25, 2023 - Session 7 - [Online]

• Pierre Salama (Professor Emeritus of Universities, Sorbonne Paris Nord University) : Progressive wave in Latin America: Argentina, Brazil Colombia, Mexico, the steep path of structural reforms
  
• WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2023 - Session 8 - [Online]
  • Nicolas Yol : Migrant transfers and Armenia-Russia and Moldova-Russia relations
    
• WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 22, 2023 - Session 9
• Aymeric Mariette (Université Paris Cité, CESSMA and CASE): Chinese special economic zones in Cambodia and Malaysia: Strategies of Chinese and Local Actors
  
• WEDNESDAY MARCH 8, 2023 - Session 10
  • Min-Hua Chiang (NUS Singapore): Foreign Direct Investment in SouthEast Asia: US and China Compared
    
• WEDNESDAY MARCH 22, 2023 - Session 11
  • Mariana Pellegrini (Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento) : Gender inequalities and job quality in Argentina and Latin America (gig economy)
    
• WEDNESDAY APRIL 5, 2023 - Session 12
  • Jean-Philippe Berrou, Alain Piveteau (U Bordeaux), Thibaud Deguilhem (UP Cité): The construction of public policies in Africa and the role of transnational political coalitions: Madagascar and Niger
    
• TUESDAY APRIL 18, 2023 - Session 13
  • Philip Golub (American University of Paris), Slav Afanasiev (Moscow Higher School of Economics and Inalco), Philippe Aguignier (Inalco and Sciences Po) and Julien Vercueil (Inalco): Russia-China, 2022-2023: an assessment, what prospects?
  • Guilhem Fabre will moderate this session.
    
• WEDNESDAY MAY 10, 2023 - Session 14
  • Robert Boyer (Institut des Amériques)and Eric Magnin (UPCité): The rapid transformation of Asian capitalisms calls for an aggiornamento of the analytical framework: towards a regulationist taxonomy
  • Elsa Lafaye de Micheaux (Univ. Rennes) will moderate this session.
    
• WEDNESDAY MAY 17, 2023 - Session 15
  • Jean-Philippe Berrou (LAM, Sciences Po Bordeaux), Thibaud Deguilhem (LADYSS & IFEA, UMIFRE 17, Université Paris Cité) and Alain Piveteau (LAM, IRD/Sciences Po Bordeaux): Who manufactures public action in Africa? The importance of transnational coalitions in public policy-making
    
• WEDNESDAY JUNE 7, 2023 - Session 16
  • Nowmay Opalinsky (IFG, Université Paris 8): Data as a strategic resource for the Chinese economy: The making of Chinese territory through the prism of digital infrastructures

ORGANIZERS

Julien Vercueil (CREE, Inalco), Thibaud Deguilhem (UdP), Jean-Paul Maréchal (UPSud), Guilhem Fabre (emeritus, Université Montpellier), Michel Schiray (emeritus, EHESS).

Scientific contact: julien.vercueil@inalco.fr