Everything you need to know about G20 Summit in New Delhi

This year's G20 Summit, which brings together the leaders of the world's most important countries, is scheduled to take place in New Delhi on September 9 and 10.

 

The summit will come to a close with the approval of the G20 Leaders' Declaration, reaffirming the commitment of participating leaders to the priorities identified throughout various ministerial and working group meetings, as India finishes its year-long presidency.

 

Brief Introduction about G20

 

The twenty largest economies in the world gather frequently to address the most important issues affecting the global economy in the G20 meeting.

 

Together, the G20 countries represent more than 80% of the global GDP, 75% of international trade, and 60% of the world's population. The current members are Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, and the European Union.

 

Following the Asian financial crisis, the G20 was established in 1999 as a platform for the discussion of international financial issues by the finance ministers and central bank governors of the major industrialized and developing nations.

 

It developed into the Leaders' Summit during the 2008 global financial crisis, a venue for presidents and prime ministers to meet for two days in an effort to address the world's economic issues. Following meetings of G20 leaders in Washington, DC in 2008, London in early 2009, and Pittsburgh in late 2009, these gatherings have subsequently established themselves as yearly events.

 

'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam - One Earth, One Family, One Future' is the theme of the G20 Summit in 2023. This topic emphasizes the inherent importance of all life forms, from people and animals to plants and microorganisms, and takes inspiration from the historic Sanskrit literature known as the Maha Upanishad. It emphasizes how related they are to one another on Earth and throughout the cosmos.

 

The topic also highlights "LiFE" (Lifestyle for Environment), emphasizing environmentally sound and responsible decisions on both a personal and a societal level. With this strategy, we hope to catalyze global changes that will lead to a cleaner, greener, and more sustainable future. The G20 Summit will be held in India in 2023. A key component of the G20 dynamics is the choice of the host country, with hosting duties rotating among its members. The group's agenda for the year could be shaped by India's role as host.

 

Why G20 Matters?

 

India's reach is fueled by economic, demographic, and commercial forces. Promoting the Global South agenda could wind up being its lasting legacy.

 

The most important international meeting in India's independent history is going to take place. At the G20 Summit, world leaders will come together for the first time, representing about 80% of the global economy and 60% of the world's population. The summit will include regular delegates, invited guests, and representatives from the European Union (a G20 participant), representing 50 nations that make up 70% of the world's population and almost 90% of the global economy.

 

Some detractors contend that the G20 was doomed from the start since its membership was chosen at the whim of central bankers and Western financial executives.

 

At the London School of Economics, Robert Wade, a professor of political economy, claims that German and American officials "went down the list of countries saying, Canada in, Portugal out, South Africa in, Nigeria and Egypt out, and so on." For instance, Argentina's economy is neither among the 20 largest nor an emerging economy. Many contend that the reason it is a G20 member is because Larry Summers, the U.S. Treasury secretary from 1999 to 2001, shared a Harvard residence with Domingo Cavallo, one of its former ministers of economics.

 

Professor Wade said in an email that there was still a "lack of representational mechanisms" in the organization and that there was no clear procedure for inclusion. He declared, "A particular state is either in or out, permanently."

 

The summits of the organization have also evolved into a platform for those opposing the prevailing post-World War II system. There was more agreement on how to keep the world together when the G20 met. Optimists throughout the world thought that the G20 would result in a wider power base for ailing institutions like the United Nations and the International Monetary Fund because free trade was on the rise and great power competition appeared to be a thing of the past. Few detractors advocate abolishing the G20. With Mr. Xi skipping this year's conference, they fear that it is already waning. (Russian President Vladimir V. Putin will also be absent.)

 

Many foreign policy analysts contend that the G20's shortcomings just demonstrate the necessity for international institutions to be modernized.

 

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How can G20 Help In Economic Stability of India

 

On December 1st, 2022, Prime Minister Modi took over the G20 leadership from his Indonesian counterpart in Bali and held it for a full year. The G20 is particularly significant for a nation that enjoys celebrations and showcasing its cultural diversity on a worldwide scale, such as India, known in Sanskrit as "Utsavdharmita." India will have the chance to influence the global agenda and advance its interests during its G20 leadership. According to Prime Minister Modi, his priorities would include advancing equitable and sustainable growth, enhancing digital access and infrastructure, and bolstering the international trading system.

 

Leaders from the world's biggest economies convene at the Group of Twenty (G20), a prestigious international forum, to discuss and work together on matters pertaining to global economic stability and growth. India has a big part to play in this forum as one of the largest economies that is expanding the fastest.

 

India became a founding member of the G20 Nations in 1999, and over time, the significance of its involvement has increased. India's GDP has been expanding on average between 6 and 7 percent over the past few years, making it one of the fastest-growing in the entire globe. India is becoming a more significant G20 participant as a result of its expanding significance in the world economy. Some of the ways in which G20 can help in economic stability of the county - 

 

 

1.  Domestic Policies 

 

India can help the world economy flourish in part through its own policies. Over the past few years, the Indian government has carried out a number of economic reforms to entice foreign investment, enhance infrastructure, and foster entrepreneurship. 

 

These changes have enhanced economic growth and increased international investment. The "Make in India" project, for instance, aims to boost manufacturing and generate jobs, and the "Digital India" campaign aims to enhance digital infrastructure and access to technology. India can assist other economies in adopting comparable policies that can promote growth and development by exchanging its experiences with other G20 nations.

 

2. International Trade 

 

India may also support global economic growth by cooperating with other G20 nations on matters pertaining to international commerce. Growing protectionism and trade conflicts between major economies are threats to the global trading system. India, a fervent supporter of free trade, can collaborate with the other G20 nations to advance an open and inclusive trading system that is advantageous to all nations, particularly developing economies. 

 

India has participated in discussions on a number of trade issues, including intellectual property rights, services, and agriculture, as a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO). India can contribute to debates at the G20 and advance a trading system based on rules by drawing on its experience in these negotiations.

 

3. Financial Stability 

 

India can be a key player in advancing the global financial system's reform and financial stability. A bankruptcy law was implemented in the Indian banking industry recently, among other key changes that have benefitted the industry's overall health. 

 

India's expertise in these areas can be helpful to other G20 nations, especially those that are having trouble reforming and stabilizing their financial sectors. 

 

4. Global Financial Regulations 

 

In order to guarantee financial stability and avert future financial crises, India can also collaborate with other G20 nations to support the adoption of international financial laws, such as the Basel III framework for banking supervision.

 

In addition, India's expanding renewable energy industry can help sustain and build the world economy. India has high goals for increasing the proportion of renewable energy in its energy mix, and other G20 nations might learn from its experience in this area as they work to switch to more sustainable energy systems.

 

The International Solar Alliance, which intends to mobilize $1 trillion in investment in solar energy by 2030, and the National Clean Energy Fund, which finances clean energy projects, are just two of the measures that India has established to promote renewable energy. India can speed up the switch to a more sustainable energy system and advance environmental sustainability by exchanging its expertise with other G20 nations.

 

India can help other G20 nations by exchanging ideas with them and cooperating on problems pertaining to global commerce, financial stability, and sustainability.

 

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Agenda of G20

 

The G20's early emphasis was mostly on general macroeconomic policy, but it has now broadened its scope.  When U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping formally declared their countries' accession to the Paris Agreement on climate change at the 2016 summit in Hangzhou, China, it set a new precedent.

 

Each summit's agenda continues to be dominated by economic and financial coordination, although topics like the future of labour, climate change, and global health are also frequently on the agenda. In the decade that followed the global financial crisis, when the G20 was able to focus on issues other than managing an immediate economic crisis, broader topics started to become more prevalent. However, as the interests of high- and low-income economies continue to diverge, countries have found it difficult to come to a consensus at recent summits, which was a feature of earlier editions of the conference.

 

For the group, which Patrick has criticized for essentially failing to get past "uncoordinated national strategies," the COVID-19 pandemic provided a significant test. But the G20 nations did agree to stop receiving billions of dollars in debt payments from some of the world's poorest nations.

 

Conclusion

 

To sum up, India, which will host in 2023, is centering the agenda on problems that lower-income nations in the so-called Global South face. These include increasing levels of debt, long-term high inflation, weakening local currencies, food shortages, and an increase in severe weather occurrences linked to climate change. Analysts, however, predict that disagreements over Russia's invasion of Ukraine will keep the group from coming together.

 

A common communiqué, which was a standard outcome of such gatherings before the war, has not been generated at any of the ministerial meetings that precede the G20 leaders' conference. Leaders at the 2022 summit in Indonesia released a united statement condemning the "aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine" in the absence of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin declared he will once again boycott the meeting in August 2023.