G20 Summit: Consensus reached on supporting agritech start-ups & MSMEs as they are ‘natural engines for growth’

Adopting the New Delhi Declaration has also brought start-ups and the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises or MSMEs to the forefront. The Declaration called them “natural engines of growth.” It also highlighted how they are the key drivers of innovation and job creation, leading to socio-economic transformation. 

“We welcome the establishment of the Start-up 20 Engagement Group during India’s G20 Presidency and its continuation,” the Declaration read. 

While Brazil taking forward the Start-up20 Engagement Group (originally established under India’s Presidency) in its Presidency next year is being touted as one of the country’s big wins among others, the Declaration also says that the G20 nations will commit to promoting digital technology by farmers and put special emphasis on agritech start-ups and MSMEs. 

India established a start-up task force consisting of stakeholders from the Indian start-up ecosystem to come up with recommendations to be presented at the G20 Summit. The members of the task force came up with several recommendations which were discussed across the country between January and July 2023.

Startup20 is the brainchild of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade and Atal Innovation Mission. It set out to address some key concerns, like the fact that a majority of the value created by these ecosystems is concentrated in the top 10 cities globally and the great regional imbalance in access to services as well as capital. To ensure deep discussions on these issues, it was composed of three task forces—alliances and foundations; finance; and inclusion and sustainability.

The forum called for a global definitional framework for start-ups and a policy framework to strengthen ecosystems within and across G20 nations. Second, it suggested forming global alliances to improve market access and measures to nudge organisations, both government and private, to work with these firms. Third, it asked G20 nations to commit $1 trillion in annual investment for start-ups by 2030 and ease the cross-border flow of capital. Fourth, it urged countries to improve inclusion by providing special attention to start-ups led by entrepreneurs from underrepresented groups. These recommendations were published at Startup20’s final meeting in Gurugram held in July.