Prime Minister Narendra Modi to hold virtual G20 Leaders' Summit today
Leaders of all G20 members, including the Chair of the African Union, as well as nine guest countries and heads of 11 international organisations, have been invited.
Narendra Modi (ANI)
NEW DELHI: Under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India is all set to hold the virtual G20 Leaders' Summit on Wednesday evening that will witness a major gathering of world leaders. Leaders of all G20 members, including the Chair of the African Union, as well as nine guest countries and heads of 11 international organisations, have been invited.
On September 10 at the closing ceremony of the G20 Summit, Prime Minister Modi announced that India would be hosting a virtual G20 Leaders' Summit prior to the conclusion of India's G20 Presidency on November 22.
The virtual summit will address key issues, select outcomes and review developments that have taken place since the conclusion of the New Delhi G20 Summit in September. Following the G20 Leaders' Summit that took place here in the national capital on September 9-10 this year, considerable progress on major G20 priorities as well as outcomes have been made.
For instance, the G20 consensus on tripling renewable energy capacity globally by 2030 and doubling the global rate of energy efficiency improvement by 2030, which was committed to by G20 Leaders in Delhi for the first time, are the key expected outcomes of COP28. In the US-China Joint Statement on November 14, both countries supported the G20 Leaders' Declaration to pursue efforts to triple renewable energy capacity globally by 2030 and also agreed that each would undertake five large CCUS projects.
CCUS stands for Carbon capture, usage and storage. Such projects are carried out by employing technology that allows for the reduction of CO2 emissions from big point sources such as power plants, refineries, and other industrial sites.
Another key highlight of India's G20 Presidency is that as a result of India's advocacy, the Global Initiative on Digital Health (GIDH) was able to garner commitment for the contribution of USD 44.5 million. Based on G20 AI Principles (2019), UNESCO's Ethical AI Guidelines and India's Responsible "AI for All" Principle; work on the creation of a framework has been initiated by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), and the co-design process of One Future Alliance (OFA) for DPI has been initiated with interested countries (UK, France, US, EU, Brazil, Canada, Italy) by MeitY. Volume 2 of the report of the Independent Expert Group on Strengthening of MDBs was submitted to and welcomed by the G20 Finance Ministers at the 4th meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) in October this year.
On November 7, the IMF Executive Board proposed a quota increase to the Board of Governors. Furthermore, an action plan on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is being taken forward.
The 2023 G20 New Delhi Update (an Annual G20 Update), was finalised on November 13 this year. It is a comprehensive report on the progress made by G20 with respect to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and the contribution of the Indian Presidency to the process. The Principles on Lifestyles for Sustainable Development (LiFE) are being socialised through international fora such as COP 28 and also among the youth by the IEA.
Another major feat included work on the mentorship platform for promoting women's leadership at all levels. It has been done by enhancing and enabling access to mentorship and capacity-building through an e-platform initiated by the Ministry of Women & Child Development (M/WCD) and it will be hosted by NITI.
Moreover, TechEquity, a digital inclusion platform for women launched during India's Presidency to bridge gender digital divide, to collate best-in-class self-learning courses on Digital literacy, financial literacy, tech skill development and core skill enhancement from across G20 nations and invited guest countries, is under process in M/WCD.
The G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant has said the Virtual G20 Summit will be held under the chairmanship of PM Modi and will take forward the guidance provided by the participating world leaders to give impetus to implementing the Summit's outcome. The G20 Leaders' Summit will be held today from 5:30 pm onwards and will witness a major gathering of world leaders.
"The virtual summit of the G20 being held tomorrow will also be a major gathering of world leaders since the conclusion of the 78th Session of the UN General Assembly high-level week and the SDG Summit," the G20 Sherpa said on Tuesday during a press briefing on the Virtual G20 Leaders' Summit.
