‘G20 declaration in final stages, time to find consensus’

livemint.com:

Narendra Modi, a great believer in the global south, has written to G20 leaders to include the African Union as a member of the grouping. There have been positive responses from G20 leaders, he said, adding that the leaders are expected to take a call soon. The press conference was addressed by India’s G20 sherpa Amitabh Kant, economic affairs secretary Ajay Seth, foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra, and chief G20 Coordinator Harsh Vardhan Shringla.

Kwatra said the concerns of the global south are central to the discussions at G20 under the Indian presidency. Kant said India took over the G20 presidency at Bali last year amid issues of war, slow growth and food security, which have been discussed at great length by G20 members. Key priorities of the Indian presidency include driving sustainable and inclusive growth, accelerated sustainable development growth, climate finance, digital public infrastructure and goods, just energy transition, health, education and employment, as well as international peace and harmony.

“Only 12 of the 169 sustainable development goals (SDGs) are on track, and we are way behind schedule. We are midway at the 2030 Action Point," Kant said. Accelerating SDGs, improving learning outcomes, health outcomes, and nutrition were very critical for India’s presidency, he added.

Kant also said that India’s digital public infrastructure is a great achievement of its presidency. “Few people knew about digital public infrastructure when India took over the G20 Presidency. One of our great achievements, or key takeaways, is that the world acknowledges that India has truly revolutionized digital payments," he added.