Finland’s Alexander Stubb: ‘The global south now doesn’t necessarily need to follow the global west’

President of Finland Alexander Stubb said demographic change, technological development, and competition over critical resources are reshaping the international order during a recent discussion hosted by the Geopolitics and Security Studies Center.

Stubb argued that global influence is increasingly shifting beyond the traditional Western powers. He stated that “the shift of power both economic and demographic” is moving “down south and down east”, pointing to population growth across Africa and Asia alongside expanding economic capabilities.

The Finnish president also said the Global South “doesn’t necessarily need to follow the global west”, adding that China has been “really good” at creating “path dependencies on critical minerals”.

Global projections support the trends referenced in the discussion. The United Nations estimates Africa’s population could rise from around 1.4 billion today to nearly 2.5 billion by 2050, while Asia remains the world’s most populous region at over 4.7 billion.

At the same time, the IMF projects that emerging and developing economies will account for the majority of global GDP growth over the coming decades, reflecting a gradual rebalancing of economic influence alongside established Western economies.

ℹ️ Geopolitics and Security Studies Center