There is much that separates Africa and Asia, not least ethnicity, culture and language. But, as the third and final leg of this year’s World Social Forum (WSF) gathers momentum in the Pakistani city of Karachi, the hope is that civic groups will build on common aspirations for the two continents.

“I have confidence that the participants at the Karachi forum will refer to Africa a lot in their deliberations. They will set a firm foundation for our next meeting in Nairobi in January 2007,” Thomas Deve of the Harare-based ‘Mwel-ekeo wa NGO’ (MWENGO) told IPS in an interview from the Zimbabwea. The gathering in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi will mark the second instance in which a WSF is being held in Africa; a forum that took place this year (January 19-23) in Bamako, Mali, was the first.

Now in its sixth year, the WSF has most often been held in the Brazilian town of Porto Alegre. However, the 2006 forum described by organisers as “polycentric” is taking place across three venues: Bamako, the Venezuelan capital of Caracas (January 24- 29), and now Karachi (March 24-29).

The Karachi WSF was initially scheduled to be held at the same time as the Caracas gathering; however, it was postponed after an earthquake that took place in Pakistan on October 8, 2005, killed about 90,000 people and left 3.5 million homeless.

According to Deve, there is no shortage of problems and debates where Africa and Asia can speak with one voice. “Asia and Africa have the same structural causes of poverty. These can possibly drive them to come up with similar solutions,” he noted. “Within the WSF, we share the same big constituency of poor people who, when brought under the same roof, feel equal.” Many across the two continents are distrustful of business, and fear domination by wealthy countries, Deve added. “Their views towards multinational corporations are exactly the same. Their views on genetically modified food and agriculture coincide. Their views on

delivering basic services by the state also coincide.” Both regions are grappling with AIDS pandemics. In addition, “Asia and Africa also share the same experience on rural-urban migration. Given these concerns, Asia and Africa naturally gravitate towards each other,” said Deve.

Zenele Twala, executive director of the South African NGO Coalition (SANGOCO), based in the commercial hub of Johannesburg, said regional cooperation helped in addressing these common problems. Her group is working to link women’s, land and human rights organisations with their counterparts in other regions such as Asia. As part of its campaign to promote inter-regional solidarity, SANGOCO hosted six members of Palestinian civic groups in Johannesburg this month, for three days.

Deve argues that inter-regional links can still be established in other ways: “We can interact through publications and e-mails.” Between 30,000 and 40,000 activists from around the world, particularly India, are expected to attend the Karachi forum.

The WSF began in opposition to the World Economic Forum, which takes place annually in the Swiss town of Davos, and is attended by heads of state, political leaders, and other members of the global elite. By contrast, the WSF attracts mainly civil society groups that

seek an alternative to the current political and economic order. — IPS