India says G20 Summit 'will reflect voice of the Global South'

Setting the stage for the G20 Leaders’ Summit to take place in the national capital over the weekend, India’s G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant on Friday said the declaration will reflect the voice of the Global South.

The draft document is almost ready, he told reporters at a press conference on Friday ahead of the Summit and said that it would now require approval from the Leaders. “The recommendations of the Sherpas have been submitted to their respective leaders and now the G20 Leaders will analyse it,” he said.

Kant, along with Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, G20 chief coordinator Harsh Vardhan Shringla and economic affairs Secretary Ajay Seth, briefed reporters on the eve of the G20 Leaders’ Summit.

The Summit, which will start on September 9, will have three main sessions reflecting India’s theme of "One Earth, One Family, One Future".

The morning session on September 9 is titled One Earth, followed by a session titled One Family in the second half, said foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra. On September 10, a session titled "One Future" is scheduled for the first half. A couple of side events are under planning, he said.

President Droupadi Murmu is scheduled to host a dinner on September 9 for the G20 Leaders, who will also visit Raj Ghat. A programme has also been prepared for the spouses of the leaders who are attending the Summit.

The Leaders’ Declaration is expected by early Sunday afternoon, although there has been no official announcement on this.  

Officials remained tightlipped over what the declaration would include. “We will have to wait for the next few days to see what is decided,” officials said, but they seemed satisfied with the progress achieved so far during India’s year-long G20 presidency

“We are hopeful that the discourse over the past nine months will get positive consideration from the leaders,” said economic affairs secretary Ajay Seth told reporters on the reforms on the multilateral development banks.

India also played down the absence of Chinese President Xi Jinping from the G20 Summit. Kant noted that China is a multilateral player and in a multilateral discussion the issues are different from bilateral issues. “China brings its own perspective on issues of growth and development. However, in such events, there has to be a consensus and everybody has to be onboard, since every nation has a veto power,” he said, stressing that India has managed to bring everybody onboard.

The issue of the Russia- Ukraine war also seems to hang over the G20 meeting although officials hoped for a consensus. “India's expectation is that all G20 members will move towards a consensus and we are hopeful of a consensus on the communique," Kwatra noted.