COCOMI Rally in Manipur: Absolutely Significant

By – Amar Yumnam
Homi Kharas of the Brookings has identified ten positive economic outcomes for the developing countries in 2025; by the way Kharas is a Co-founder of the World Data Lab and Chief Economist of it. The outcomes are: “1. A growing middle class. In spite of slowing growth, about 108 million additional citizens in EMDEs were able to join the ranks of the middle class in 2025….Most of these new entrants were in South and South East Asia, but Africa and Latin America also saw an increase.…. Globally, the middle class accounted for over half the world’s population for the first time ever….. 2. An expansion of trade. International trade grew strongly in 2025, notwithstanding tariff wars, protectionist measures, and onshoring policies….. 3. Faster green energy transitions. In 2025, low-carbon energy transitions in EMDEs became driven by the private sector—utility-scale firms and individual households—responding to lower prices for solar cells and panels….. 4. Peaking global greenhouse gas emissions. It is still too early to tell, but it is possible that 2025 will mark the year when global greenhouse gas emissions flatten or decline….. 5. Signs that multilateralism can still work. The reports of the death of multilateralism in 2025 were exaggerated. True, some events disappointed, notably the shelving of previously-agreed-upon maritime emissions levies, and the adjournment of talks on a global plastics pollution treaty, but there were examples of success in other areas. 6. Business is still investing in sustainability. Despite reports to the contrary and a clear rollback in public policy requirements in the U.S. and Europe, business is still investing in sustainability. … with particular interest from younger investors….. 7. Inflation and food price increases are being held in check. While negative news on inflation dominated headlines in several advanced economies, EMDE inflation in 2025 was the lowest since the IMF began its tracking in 2016.…. 8. Going digital. After a slow start in building digital infrastructure backbones, developing countries are catching up to the rest of the world…. 9. Better nutrition. School meals have long been recognized as highly impactful for nutrition, learning, and overall child well-being.…. 10. More useful weather forecasting. The Extraordinary World Meteorological Congress in October 2025 reported on its shift to go beyond assessing “what the weather will be” to “what the weather will do to lives, infrastructure and livelihoods,” by integrating AI into its operational forecasts. The Early Warnings for All initiative, aimed at providing coverage of multi-hazard forecasts to all people by 2027, had an “unprecedented pace of progress” in 2025, with new pilots and capacity-building projects aimed at developing countries.”
Reading such global scenarios would naturally make any Manipuri anywhere feel mentally depressed by the news on home-happenings. Compared to the global picture, 2025 was just a continuation of the socio-politico-economic declines in Manipur; it was one more lost year. It is in this background that the COCOMI (Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity) Rally has happened in Manipur. This Rally has rekindled many robust inherited socially shared feelings in Manipur while simultaneously making some significant socio-political issues come to the open. First, it was a Rally for an integrated Manipur in loud voices. Integration despite diversity and resolution of differences in a tolerant way have been the envied qualities of Manipur. There was no focus on issue of ethnicity in the event. Second, for some years, politician-sponsored organisations have been trying to steal the social limelight by pretending to be active civil society organisations while the inner motive is the personal interest of the concerned politician and harvest benefit by alignment. The Rally has nicely exposed such organisations and their social irrelevance. Third, the distrust of the power at the Centre has been taking roots through both the processes of widening and deepening in Manipur. Now this has been made wide and clear. It is a clear message to the Centre to go for clear and socially sincere policies instead of easily visible pretensions. Four, the Rally has put in bold letters the social character of Manipur of speaking out in the open and avoid back-door indulgence; this is an inheritance from the historical past. Fifth, the need for shared social commitment of Manipur for prioritisation of policies and the imperative for implementing them with the clear understanding of the social urgency are also made clear. Sixth, the Rally has made the world aware that creation of inequalities and an atmosphere for social exploitation of these are not familiar features of Manipur.
Now the path ahead for Manipur has been put forth. How these are converted into frameworks for social policy formulation is up to the Government.