India assumed the G20 Presidency at a time when the global economy was faced with new challenges in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The G20 Leaders' Declaration, under the wise leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is an initiative of the Indian Presidency to promote global cooperation under the G20 India theme of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' or 'One Earth, One Family, One Future'. It represents significant progress in setting new standards. His Business 20 (B20) engagement group of the G20, which represents global companies, developed a range of recommendations for the G20 over the course of a year under the same theme. Organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the B20 platform brought together around 1,500 members from the G20 and invited countries, as well as many other stakeholders from around the world. The RAISE sub-theme 'Responsible, Accelerated, Innovative, Sustainable and Equitable Business' underlines the current and future priorities identified in the B20 deliberations.
The B20 task force focused on industry priorities that align with the larger issues of the G20. Overall, the B20 platform converged on 54 recommendations and 172 policy actions for consideration by the G20. It is very gratifying to note the close synergy between the B20 India proposal and the New Delhi Declaration.
Onefor financing the global economic recovery, The B20 calls for improving access to finance for MSMEs and securing financing for sustainable and resilient infrastructure through alternative financing instruments, blended finance, and the use of technology and digital platforms. G20 trade ministers proposed strengthening the MSME information portal.
twoupon Building resilient and inclusive global value chains, the Forum called for technology-enabled mechanisms for crisis mitigation and early detection of risks. Trade in services was forced into recommendations related to good data, better definition and transparency of compliance information and procedures. Trade facilitation through technology at scale across borders can help improve efficiency. All of this is well addressed in the Trade Ministers' outcome document, with the G20 Declaration highlighting the need to build inclusive, sustainable and resilient global value chains and promote ease of doing business. ing.
three, Financial inclusion priorities Highlighted through ecosystem enablers, financial instruments and legal and regulatory measures. Digital public infrastructure (DPI) enables a unique, single-number digital identity for MSMEs and individuals that is recognized across countries, helping to promote financial inclusion. DPI was a key item in the G20 document and was modeled on India's experience.
fourcan work with G20 Develop skills related to environmental sustainability and climate change adaptation, and the needs of the care economy as well. Facilitating global labor mobility requires the removal of policy barriers and the use of technology to enable cross-border labor mobility. This is reflected in leaders' declarations on well-managed skills-based migration pathways and mapping the global skills gap.
Five, Energy, Climate Change and Resource Efficiency Forum We have proposed industry-specific partnerships, with a focus on driving the achievement of net-zero emissions across a range of industries. The G20 focused on expanding the capacity of multilateral development banks to support energy transitions where concessional financing to emerging economies can work. The document's focus on adaptability and resilience resonated with his B20 perspective on climate change, with a strong emphasis on countries' differentiated actions.
Sixthis group gave high priority to digital conversionThis involves efforts to ensure high-quality, fast, and reliable access to the Internet. Developing global minimum standards for digital literacy will enable international portability, while internationally accepted digital toolkits and frameworks can support the digital transformation of MSMEs. Countries should also work together to foster digital trust by developing harmonized cybersecurity standards and frameworks.
Sevenupon Technology, innovation, research and development, by creating a rich repository of projects that will help G20 countries learn, adopt, scale, and collaborate. The G20 could also consider a common patent protection mechanism and establish a centralized patent management mechanism with one application for all G20 countries. A G20 technology cooperation platform could be established to enable technology transfer and R&D transfer across industry, research institutions, start-ups and civil society.
Eightand ESG The B20 recommended a standard definition/taxonomy to ensure a harmonized and transparent ESG framework for disclosure, reporting and ratings as a key future imperative.
Nineit was very encouraging that India championed this issue. Joining the African Union (AU), ensured that it became a member of the G20. The B20 recommendations also include support for education, agricultural transformation, industrialization, trade facilitation, and infrastructure development. These movements will receive a major boost from the AU's participation in G20 deliberations.
Apart from the inputs for the G20 to consider, B20 India also raised key business actions to strengthen the industry's contribution to global growth.
beginning, B20 India proposed setting up a global body to track recommendations and see through their implementation.This provides continuity across the B20 Presidency.
Number 2B20 India aims to: Tailor sector-specific decarbonization pathways For major sectors.
The thirdB20 India Recommends the establishment of a Global SDG Acceleration Fund to attract private capital to projects aimed at achieving the 2030 goals. It is proposed as a pure credit enhancement fund to bridge the funding gap between developed and developing countries.
the 4ththe forum has summarized the following: An overview of best practices for innovation use cases to launch a continuous portal of technology utilization for development.
The G20 leaders' declaration has many implications, especially for businesses in the Global South, and the B20 will continue to work with them to develop effective policies for inclusive development.
This article first appeared on Mint on September 10, 2023.
