India committed to holding a decisive and action-oriented summit: G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant
There is especially considerable expectation that the discourse on the reform of multilateral development banks (MDBs) held over the past nine months is being considered positively by world leaders
- Sep 8, 2023,
- Updated Sep 8, 2023 9:35 PM IST
In pursuit of India’s stated objective of an inclusive, decisive, ambitious and action-oriented presidency for the G20, the country reiterated prioritising the rollout of sustainable development goals, climate action and finance and the reform of multiralteral development banks (MDBs).
“The focus is on Global South to access long-term financing through new financial instruments to drive climate issues. Other priorities include the use of technology for financial inclusion,” Amitabh Kant, India’s G20 Sherpa said during a briefing on the 18th G20 Summit in New Delhi, Friday.
Given the Modi government’s emphasis on the inclusion of the Global South, Kant noticed with much satisfaction that the meeting would have the highest-ever participation by countries of the African union.
Responding to a question linking tension in Sino-India ties to the absence of Chinese Premier Xi Jinping from the meeting, he said that the G20 was purely a forum for multilateral discussions.
“China is a multilateral player in G20, and these discussions are different from bilateral issues. The challenge on multilateral issues is that a consensus needs to be reached with everyone.”
Without going into the details, Kant also informed that the New Delhi declaration was ready.
Elaborating on the issue of MDB reforms, Ajay Seth, Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, said deliberations were held over 40 meetings involving experts.
“Recommendations under the finance track have also been given to the leaders for discussion over the next two days,” he added.
Speaking to reporters after the briefing, Seth observed, “We are hopeful that the discourse on [MDB reforms] held over the past nine months will be considered positively by the [world] leaders.”
Also speaking on the occasion, Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary, said the two-day summit programme was structured around the sessions on ‘One Earth’, ‘One Family’ and ‘One Future’ over the next two days.
In pursuit of India’s stated objective of an inclusive, decisive, ambitious and action-oriented presidency for the G20, the country reiterated prioritising the rollout of sustainable development goals, climate action and finance and the reform of multiralteral development banks (MDBs).
“The focus is on Global South to access long-term financing through new financial instruments to drive climate issues. Other priorities include the use of technology for financial inclusion,” Amitabh Kant, India’s G20 Sherpa said during a briefing on the 18th G20 Summit in New Delhi, Friday.
Given the Modi government’s emphasis on the inclusion of the Global South, Kant noticed with much satisfaction that the meeting would have the highest-ever participation by countries of the African union.
Responding to a question linking tension in Sino-India ties to the absence of Chinese Premier Xi Jinping from the meeting, he said that the G20 was purely a forum for multilateral discussions.
“China is a multilateral player in G20, and these discussions are different from bilateral issues. The challenge on multilateral issues is that a consensus needs to be reached with everyone.”
Without going into the details, Kant also informed that the New Delhi declaration was ready.
Elaborating on the issue of MDB reforms, Ajay Seth, Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, said deliberations were held over 40 meetings involving experts.
“Recommendations under the finance track have also been given to the leaders for discussion over the next two days,” he added.
Speaking to reporters after the briefing, Seth observed, “We are hopeful that the discourse on [MDB reforms] held over the past nine months will be considered positively by the [world] leaders.”
Also speaking on the occasion, Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary, said the two-day summit programme was structured around the sessions on ‘One Earth’, ‘One Family’ and ‘One Future’ over the next two days.