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As India takes over the presidency of the G20 bloc, it is hosting a slew of meetings to ensure that its term — ending late in 2023 — is a successful one. Starting from Tuesday, the G20’s Finance Track will kick off meetings on issues pertaining to finance in Bengaluru.
These meetings follow last week’s first round of Sherpa track meetings held in Rajasthan’s Udaipur. New Delhi’s G20 Sherpa, Amitabh Kant, had hosted his counterparts from the other member nations of the bloc as well as representatives of the multilateral organisations for the meeting.
As the delegates meet in Bengaluru, here’s a better understanding of what is expected to be discussed.
Who’s participating in the meet?
The meetings in Bengaluru, scheduled to run until 15 December, will be jointly hosted by the finance ministry and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). It will see a participation of over 180 delegates from all over the world, including senior finance ministry bureaucrats as well as central bank deputies from member countries.
With over 180 delegates from all over the world First Finance & Central Bank Deputies Meeting under #G20India presidency begins today in Bengaluru with discussions on #GlobalEconomy, #InternationalFinancialArchitecture, #Infrastructure, and #SustainableFinance.@g20org pic.twitter.com/zmwmZd8Fsh
— Ministry of Finance (@FinMinIndia) December 13, 2022
According to news reports, the meeting will be hosted by Ajay Seth, secretary at the department of Economic Affairs in the ministry of finance of the Government of India, and Michael D Patra, Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India.
Incidentally, this will be the first meeting of the Finance Track of the G20 after India took over the reins of the G20 on 1 December.
Approximately 40 meetings of the Finance Track will be held in several locations in India, which include meetings of G20 finance ministers and Central Bank governors. The discussions in the G20 Finance Track will ultimately be reflected in the G20 Leaders’ Declaration.
Also read: Why India’s G20 presidency will be inclusive, decisive and action-oriented
What’s on the table?
There are several issues that the Finance Track shall discuss over the next three days. An official from the finance ministry was quoted as saying that as India takes over presidency of the G20 during the Russia-Ukraine war , special focus will be on the matter of disruption of supply chains, its impact on commodity prices and the availability of food, fuel and fertilisers.
In light of the war, which has entered its 293rd day, food security has become a global concern, with many countries, struggling to feed its people.
Another issue that will be discussed at length is the matter of international taxation. India has been repeatedly highlighting the importance of simple international tax laws. According to a report titled The State of Tax Justice 2020, every year the world loses $427 billion due to global tax abuse by multinational companies (MNCs) and evasion by private players.
The ministry of finance also said that a globally coordinated approach to unbacked crypto assets is also on the agenda.
Another issue that will feature prominently in the meet is that of climate financing. India has been pushing for climate financing for a long time.
On the sidelines of the meeting, a panel discussion will be held on ‘Strengthening Multilateral Development Banks to Address Shared Global Challenges of the 21st Century’. Moreover, a seminar on the ‘Role of Central Banks in Green Financing’ will also be held.
In a recorded video message, Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth said, “Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) in his address at the Bali G20 Summit said that the need today is that the benefits of development are universal and all-inclusive. Ministry of Finance has imbibed this idea in the G20 Finance Track agenda.”
India’s G20 presidency
On 1 December, India took over the presidency of the G20 bloc from Indonesia and will hold the reins until 30 November 2023. India’s theme for the G20 is ‘ One Earth, One Family, One Future ’ and the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government is ensuring that no stone be left unturned to make India’s presidency a success .
On the takeover, Prime Minister Modi laid out an optimistic, idealistic vision for India’s G20 presidency. He said that India’s G20 agenda will be inclusive, ambitious, action-oriented and decisive.
However, India’s presidency comes with challenges. The climate crisis and the conflict in Ukraine will cast a long shadow on the G20. Moreover, there’s a clear rift within the G20; India will have to iron out these differences and lead from the front. It will have to build bridges and bring all countries to the table through dialogue.
With inputs from agencies
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