Assam set to host first series of G20 events

GUWAHATI: Assam is all set to host the first set of G20 events, with delegates arriving in the northeastern state for a meeting that will begin later this week, an official release said.

The state will host the first Sustainable Financial Working Group (SFWG) meeting and Youth 20 Inception event in February as part of India's year-long G20 presidency.

The state will also host two events in March and one in April.

The first SFWG meeting will be held at a hotel in the state's largest city Guwahati on February 2-3 and will be attended by 94 delegates from the member countries of G20, guest nations, different international organisations and officials from the Centre, said the statement issued on Monday.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma shared on Twitter a video of a traditional musical performance at Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport here to welcome the delegates and hoped that the guests will enjoy their visit.

“Welcome to India -land of incredible diversity, beauty and glorious past. The G20 delegates are accorded a very warm welcome at the Guwahati airport with a fine display of our local culture. You shall relish your stay at Awesome Assam,” he wrote on the microblogging site.

During the SFWG meeting, four sessions will be held, while the visiting delegates will also be taken on a cruise on the Brahmaputra river and to cultural events.

The Y20 Inception meeting on February 6-8 at a hotel and IIT Guwahati will be attended by 250 delegates, the statement said.

Moreover, 400 students from various educational institutions in Assam will also participate in the Y20 Inception meeting.

It will be the first of such meetings to be held on the five Y20 themes across India in the run-up to the Y20 summit in August this year.

The Y20 meeting will focus on the themes of 'Peace Building and Reconciliation', 'Future of Work Industry', 'Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction', 'Youth in Democracy and Governance' and 'Health Wellbeing and Sports'.

“The state has completed its preparation to welcome the foreign delegates to Assam. Guwahati is adorned with digital wall painting, thematic gates, flags of G20 countries, LED cut-outs, standees, hoarding etc. as part of branding and beautification,” the statement said.

Preparations for the visit by the delegates to places of importance, like Kaziranga National Park, Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary, Gorbhanga Reserve Forest and the sandbar of Brahmaputra, have been completed, it said.

“This meticulously chalked out tour programme will help in promoting the rich bio-diversity and socio-cultural heritage in the international arena,” the statement added.