India's presidency will be taking G20 closer to public: MEA

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As India formally assumed the G20 presidency on Thursday, the Ministry of External Affairs said that the key element of it would be taking G20 closer to the public and making it truly a people's G20.

"It is a memorable day. We've formally assumed the presidency today. A key element of our presidency will be taking G20 closer to the public and trying to make our presidency truly a people's G20. We will look for Jan Bhagidari events throughout the year," the official spokesperson of MEA, Arindam Bagchi said during the regular presser.

He further said that numerous activities have been planned under the umbrella of the G20 chairmanship and some of them have already taken place. Earlier in the day, a university event was held which virtually brought together students from 75 universities across the country.

"As today is the first day of our presidency, to mark this, numerous activities have been planned...some of them have already taken place....as you know earlier in the day we had a university connect event which virtually brought together students from 75 universities from across the country," Bagchi said.

He added that students' interests serve us well in our efforts to engage youth in G20 activities. We are also involving students in special G20 sessions held in various schools.

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"The External Affairs Minister along with the Principal Secretary of Prime Minister were among the distinguished speakers. The interests of students bodes well for our efforts at engaging the youth in G20 activities. We are also involving school students through special g20 sessions in various schools. Taking this people's participation concept further, today the hornbill festival in Kohima features a special focus on G20. We will try to do that with other festivals as we go along," the MEA spokesperson said.

"Taking this people's participation concept further. The Hornbill Festival in Kohima features a special focus on G20. 100 monuments, including some UNESCO World Heritage Sites, are being specially illuminated today and citizens have been invited to join a selfie campaign," he added.

During the press briefing, the MEA spokesperson also informed that India assumed the presidency of the United Nations Security Council today for the month of December and this is the second time during the two-year tenure that India has taken over the presidency as an elected member.

Notably, G20 brings together all 20 major economies of the world representing 85 per cent of the global GDP, 75 per cent of international trade and 2/3rd of the world's population. In addition, participants in the group include major international organizations like the UN, the WTO, WHO, World Bank, IMF, ILO, ASEAN, the African Union, the International Solar Alliance, CDRI, etc.

During the G-20 Presidency, India will hold about 200 meetings in 32 different sectors in multiple locations across India. The G-20 Summit to be held next year would be one of the highest-profile international gatherings to be hosted by India, according to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).

As India took over G20 Presidency for the year 2023 from Indonesia, all eyes are set on India as New Delhi would set the agenda that would create an environment of better cooperation between the global south and advanced nations as it stands non-partisan and enjoys the trust of both.

The agenda will likely be cooperation for sustainable and equitable development for shared global peace and prosperity and capacity building to face emerging global challenges.

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