The G20 Summit

If you’re a regular flier who landed at either Mumbai, Kolkata, Udaipur, or Pune Airport in the past few weeks, you wouldn’t have missed the grandeur and magnificence surrounding the place.

The Indian Tri-coloured themed banners adorning the great pillars at the entrance and drop-offs, the tall trees that border the premise all wrapped and embellished in alluring lights.

Perhaps the most invitational sight was that of a pop-up that reads “Welcome to the G20!” The G20 logo is inspired by the vibrant Indian flag colours of saffron, white, green, and blue. The earth rings it, and the lotus, which bears the world in this particular symbol, is the national flower of India and represents growth in the face of challenges. Earth displays India's planet-pleasant method of life, in ideal concord with nature Below the G20 logo is the word "Bharat", written in Devanagari. The Maha Upanishad, a prehistoric Sanskrit text, serves as the inspiration for the theme of India's G20 Presidency, "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam," or "One Earth, One Family, One Future.". The theme essentially affirms the value of all life—human, animal, plant, and microorganism—and their interconnectedness on the planet Earth and in the larger universe.

This theme also illuminates LiFE (Lifestyles for the Environment) with relevant environmentally responsible choices, both at the level of individual lifestyles and national development, leading to cleaner futures and sustainable lifestyles, enabled by global transformative action. Both the logo and theme convey a compelling message from India's G20 Presidency. It is about pursuing equitable growth worldwide, as we navigate these riotous times in a sustainable, holistic, accountable, and inclusive way. These represent India's unique approach to its G20 presidency of living in tranquillity with the ecosystem.

And now, for some time travel.

The G20 was established in 1999 after the Asian financial crisis as a conclave for finance ministers and central bank governors to take up global economic and financial concerns.

Following the global financial and economic crisis of 2007, the G20 was elevated to the status of Heads of State or Government, and in 2009 it was named the "premier forum for international economic cooperation.".

Annually, the G20 Summit is held with a rotating Presidency in charge. The G20's agenda has since been expanded to include topics like trade, climate change, sustainable development, health, agriculture, energy, environment, and anti-corruption. The G20's initial focus was primarily on broad macroeconomic issues.

The Group of Twenty (G20) comprises 19 countries (Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Türkiye, United Kingdom and United States) and the European Union. The G20 members represent around 85% of the global GDP, over 75% of the global trade, and about two-thirds of the world population.

The G20 Presidency organizes the Summit and sets the G20 agenda for a year. There are two concurrent tracks at the G20: the Finance Track and the Sherpa Track. Sherpas are in charge of the Sherpa Track after the Finance Track, which is led by central bank executives and finance ministers.

There are working groups with a particular focus on each of the two tracks, in which participants come from the member countries' relevant ministries as well as from invited/guest nations and different international organizations. These hold regular meetings throughout each Presidency to oversee negotiations throughout the year, discuss Summit agenda items, and coordinate the G20's substantive work. There are also Engagement Groups, which bring together individuals from the G20 nations' civil society organizations, legislatures, think tanks, and labour unions.

The Group does not have a permanent secretariat. The Presidency is supported by the Troika – previous, current, and incoming Presidencies. During India’s Presidency, the troika will comprise Indonesia, India, and Brazil, respectively.

Here’s a brief timeline of events that have happened so far, at G20 India’23:

1st Sherpa Meet at Udaipur held from 4th December to 7th December

Highlights: The first day of the meeting saw various activities, interactions, and events including an informal media interaction, a side event on ‘Sustainable Development Goals: Transforming Lives at the Midpoint of the 2030 Agenda’, an exhibit of Jal Sanjhi art, a networking event for delegates, a Desert Music Symphony, and various cultural performances through the day. The second day saw the commencement of two sessions, Technological Transformation and Green Development and Lifestyle for Environment, along with a dialogue on Global & Regional Economy: Prospects & Challenges was held. During an excursion to the historic Manek Chowk in Udaipur, G20 Sherpas gathered together in traditional authentic Rajasthani attire of jackets, Safas/Turban and stoles. Substantive conversations on key global issues of inclusive growth, multilateralism, and women-led development, as well as 3Fs (Food, Fuel, and Fertilizer), tourism, and culture were the highlights of the third day

1st Development Working Group Meeting at Mumbai held from 13th January to 16th January

Highlights: Exchanges of the Development Working Group began with opening reflections by India's Foreign Minister Sri Vinay Mohan Kwatra He underlined India's part as a speaker for the Global South and set out crucial precedences for the working group. G20 partakers welcomed the focus on SDG 12 and LiFE and talked over how to integrate them with original cases and knowledge, identify policy conduct and encourage policy change. During the DWG Meeting in Mumbai, an exhibition of original Maharashtrian crafts and start-ups was also held. G20 delegates also visited pottery- making stall that was set up at the venue. To deliver an Indian experience to G20 delegates, an excursion to the Kanheri Caves in Sanjay Gandhi National Park was also arranged on 16 December 2022

1st Finance-Central Bank Deputies Meeting alongside 1st Framwework Working Group Meeting at Bangalore, from 13th to 17th December.

During the first session on the global economy and Framework Working Group priorities, G20 members discussed global economic challenges, including global inflation, food and energy insecurity and macroeconomic implications of climate change.

In the session on International Financial Architecture, delegates deliberated on various issues, including strengthening Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) and exchanged views on work to be undertaken in 2023 on key topics including global debt distress, capital flows and global financial safety net.

In the infrastructure session, discussions took place on India's priorities for the Infrastructure Working Group 2023 including "Financing Cities of Tomorrow: Inclusive, Resilient and Sustainable".

On Sustainable Finance issues, members exchanged views on financing for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including climate action to facilitate the development of a sustainable and resilient global economy.

Substantive discussions were held during the session on International Taxation on the priority areas for 2023, including monitoring the progress of the Two-Pillar Tax Package being developed under the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework, enhancing tax transparency and multilateral capacity building on taxation.

In the session on Global Health, the G20 Deputies discussed strengthening the coordination arrangement between the Finance and Health Ministries for Pandemic Prevention Preparedness and Response (PPR), including expanding the voice of Low-Income Countries by inviting key Regional Organizations to the discussions.

Financial Sector & Financial Inclusion issues were taken up in the last session of the meeting. The discussions focused on financial sector developments and approaches to advancing Financial Inclusion through a people-centric vision. Delegates also exchanged views on priorities for appropriate financial regulations and ensuring financial stability through a common approach.

1st Meeting for the Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion held at Kolkata, from 9th Jan to 11th Jan'23.

The Exhibition showcased India’s achievements and efforts in advancing digital financial inclusion and innovatively portrayed the financial system infrastructure, emerging technologies, interactive financial literacy awareness videos, digital identification process flow for individuals and digital innovations in financial inclusion. The exhibition showcased innovations/achievements by various stakeholders such as Public Sector Units, Public Sector Banks, Fintech companies, etc. This was accompanied by a Jan Bhagidari (Domestic Outreach) initiative involving a Seminar on Financial Literacy on January 10, 2023. It aimed at educating about 1800 school students on banking, digital payments, insurance, investment, fraud protection and grievance redressal.

The GPFI Plenary sessions scheduled from 10-11 January 2023 with discussions on the role of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) in advancing financial inclusion, reducing the cost of remittances, assessing progress made in the implementation of G20 High-Level Principles for Digital Financial Inclusion and advancing financing for MSMEs. India’s G20 Presidency is committed to leading an agenda that voices the concerns of countries most in need and reflects the concerns and aspirations of developing countries. The Ministry of Finance and the Reserve Bank of India will steer the G20 Finance Track agenda in an inclusive manner aimed at addressing the global economy needs of today as well as preparing for a better tomorrow.

1st Infrastructure Working Group Meeting held at Pune, on 16th and 17th January'23.

The first G20 Infrastructure Working Group meeting under G20 India Presidency concluded on 17th January 2023 in Pune. The meeting was attended by 64 delegates from 18 member countries, 8 guest countries and 8 international organisations. G20 IWG discussed the 2023 Infrastructure Agenda under the Indian G20 Presidency.

The two-day meeting, hosted by the Indian Presidency, discussed the flagship theme of “Financing Cities of Tomorrow- Inclusive, Resilient and Sustainable”, amongst others. The meeting included discussions on various facets of making cities economic centres of growth, financing urban infrastructure, building future-ready urban infrastructure, the role of cities in meeting sustainability targets, directing fiscal investments for unlocking private financing for energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable infrastructure and mitigating social imbalances. The meeting also discussed other important themes, such as exploring ways to collate the data on Infrastructure spending and make the data useful for the private sector.

On the side-lines, the Pune meeting was also complemented by a High-Level Workshop on “Financing of Cities of Tomorrow” wherein over 15 international experts discussed the issues related to the financing of the cities. The Workshop discussed how the cities of tomorrow must tie together their key administrative functions, planning, funding, and financing – to increase private sector participation. Divided into three inter-related sessions, the workshop focused on the infrastructure, and related technical and managerial capacity needs to build the Cities of Tomorrow. The Workshop also discussed how cities and higher governments could prepare themselves to increase private financing for Cities of Tomorrow.

During the IWG meeting, the delegates also had the opportunity to experience the rich cuisine, history and culture of Pune. Overall, the delegates not only had productive meetings but also enjoyed the cultural experiences that Pune had to offer.

1st Health Working Group Meeting held at Thiruvananthapuram, from 18th to 20th January'23.

India plans to host a side event along with each HWG meeting to enrich, supplement and support G20 discussions. These include side events on Medical Value Travel and Digital Health; a workshop on collaborative research on drugs, diagnostics and vaccines; and a co-branded event on Global Centre for Traditional Medicine. The side event on Medical Value Travel was held on the sidelines of the 1st meeting of HWG at Thiruvananthapuram, 18-20 January 2023.

As chair of the G20 Presidency, India aims to continue and consolidate health priorities and key takeaways from previous presidencies while highlighting critical areas that require strengthening. India also aims to achieve convergence in discussions across various multilateral fora engaged in health cooperation and work towards integrated action. To this end, India has identified, the following three priorities for the G20 Health Track:

Priority I: Health Emergencies Prevention, Preparedness and Response (with a focus on One Health & AMR)

Priority II: Strengthening Cooperation in Pharmaceutical Sector with a focus on Access and Availability to safe, effective, quality and Affordable Medical Countermeasures (Vaccines, Therapeutics and Diagnostics)

Priority III: Digital Health Innovations and Solutions to Aid Universal Health Coverage and Improve Healthcare Service Delivery

Article Written By: Anusha Kamtikar, S&P Department Head Article Edited By: Soham Agrawal