Towards a Brighter Tomorrow: India's G20 Presidency and the Dawn of a New Multilateralism

Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi

Today marks 365 days since India assumed the G20 Presidency. It is a moment to reflect, recommit, and rejuvenate the spirit of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, 'One Earth, One Family, One Future.'

As we undertook this responsibility last year, the global landscape grappled with multifaceted challenges: recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, looming climate threats, financial instability, and debt distress in developing nations, all amid declining multilateralism. In the midst of conflicts and competition, development cooperation suffered, impeding progress.

Assuming the G20 Chair, India sought to offer the world an alternative to status quo, a shift from a GDP-centric to human-centric progress. India aimed to remind the world of what unites us, rather than what divides us. Finally, the global conversation had to evolve - the interests of the few had to give way to the aspirations of the many. This required a fundamental reform of multilateralism as we knew it.

Inclusive, ambitious, action-oriented, and decisive-these four words defined our approach as G20 president, and the New Delhi Leaders' Declaration (NDLD), unanimously adopted by all G20 members, is testimony to our commitment to deliver on these principles.

Inclusivity has been at the heart of our presidency. The inclusion of the African Union (AU) as a permanent member of the G20 integrated 55 African nations into the forum, expanding it to encompass 80% of the global population. This proactive stance has fostered a more comprehensive dialogue on global challenges and opportunities.

The first-of-its-kind 'Voice of the Global South Summit,' convened by India in two editions, heralded a new dawn of multilateralism. India mainstreamed the Global South's concerns in international discourse and has ushered in an era where developing countries take their rightful place in shaping the global narrative.

Inclusivity also infused India's domestic approach to G20, making it a People's Presidency that befits that world's largest democracy. Through "Jan Bhagidari" (people's participation) events, G20 reached 1.4 billion citizens, involving all states and Union Territories (UTs) as partners. And on substantive elements, India ensured that international attention was directed to broader developmental aims, aligning with G20's mandate.

At the critical midpoint of the 2030 Agenda, India delivered the G20 2023 Action Plan to Accelerate Progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), taking a cross-cutting, action-oriented approach to interconnected issues, including health, education, gender equality and environmental sustainability.

A key area driving this progress is robust Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI). Here, India was decisive in its recommendations, having witnessed the revolutionary impact of digital innovations like Aadhaar, UPI, and Digilocker first-hand. Through G20, we successfully completed the Digital Public Infrastructure Repository, a significant stride in global technological collaboration. This repository, featuring over 50 DPIs from 16 countries, will help the Global South build, adopt, and scale DPI to unlock the power of inclusive growth.

For our One Earth, we introduced ambitious and inclusive aims to create urgent, lasting, and equitable change. The Declaration's 'Green Development Pact' addresses the challenges of choosing between combating hunger and protecting the planet, by outlining a comprehensive roadmap where employment and ecosystems are complimentary, consumption is climate conscious, and production is planet-friendly. In tandem, the G20 Declaration calls for an ambitious tripling of global renewable energy capacity by 2030. Coupled with the establishment of the Global Biofuels Alliance and a concerted push for Green Hydrogen, the G20's ambitions to build a cleaner, greener world is undeniable. This has always been India's ethos, and through Lifestyles for Sustainable Development (LiFE), the world can benefit from our age-old sustainable traditions.

Further, the Declaration underscores our commitment to climate justice and equity, urging substantial financial and technological support from the Global North. For the first time, there was a recognition of the quantum jump needed in the magnitude of development financing, moving from billions to trillions of dollars. G20 acknowledged that developing countries require $5.9 trillion to fulfil their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) by 2030.

Given the monumental resources required, G20 emphasised the importance of better, larger, and more effective Multilateral Development Banks. Concurrently, India is taking a leading role in UN reforms, especially in the restructuring of principal organs like the UN Security Council, that will ensure a more equitable global order.

Gender equality took centre stage in the Declaration, culminating in the formation of a dedicated Working Group on the Empowerment of Women next year. India's Women's Reservation Bill 2023, reserving one-third of India's Parliament and state legislative assembly seats for women epitomizes our commitment to women-led development.

The New Delhi Declaration embodies a renewed spirit of collaboration across these key priorities, focusing on policy coherence, reliable trade, and ambitious climate action. It is a matter of pride that during our Presidency, G20 achieved 87 outcomes and 118 adopted documents, a marked rise from the past.

During our G20 Presidency, India led deliberations on geopolitical issues and their impact on economic growth and development. Terrorism and the senseless killing of civilians is unacceptable, and we must address it with a policy of zero-tolerance. We must embody humanitarianism over hostility and reiterate that this is not an era of war.

I am delighted that during our Presidency India achieved the extraordinary: it revitalised multilateralism, amplified the voice of the Global South, championed development, and fought for the empowerment of women, everywhere.

As we hand over the G20 Presidency to Brazil, we do so with the conviction that our collective steps for people, planet, peace, and prosperity, will resonate for years to come.

***

I Att ao bjartari framtIo

Narendra Modi

eg er Anaegour meo ao I formennskutIo okkar tokst Indlandi hio otrulega: pao endurlIfgaoi fjolpjooahyggju, magnaoi rodd hins hnattraena suours, baroist fyrir proun og valdeflingu kvenna, alls staoar.

I dag eru 365 dagar sIoan Indland tok vio formennsku I G20-samstarfinu. A pessum tImamotum er rett ao skooa Arangurinn, skuldbindinguna og minna A booskap Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, "Ein joro, ein fjolskylda, ein framtIo".

pegar vio tokum petta Abyrgoarhlutverk ao okkur A sIoasta Ari glImdi heimurinn vio margpaettar Askoranir: bata eftir Covid-19-heimsfaraldurinn, yfirvofandi loftslagsognir, fjArmAlaostoougleika og skuldavanda I prounarrIkjum; vio sIpverrandi fjolpjooastefnu. prounarsamvinna varo fyrir baroinu A stoougum Atokum og samkeppni, sem hindraoi framfarir.

I upphafi G20-formennskunnar leitaoist Indland vio ao bjooa heiminum valkost vio obreytt Astand, ao breyta viomioum frA miolaegri landsframleioslu til mannmioaora framfara. Indland vildi minna heiminn A pao sem sameinar okkur, frekar en pao sem sundrar okkur. Loks varo hio alpjoolega samtal ao proast - hagsmunir hinna fAu urou ao vIkja fyrir vonum margra. petta krafoist grundvallarumbota A fjolpjooastefnu eins og vio pekktum hana.

VIotaekt, metnaoarfullt, aogeroamioao og afgerandi - pessi fjogur oro skilgreindu nAlgun okkar I forystu G20, og yfirlysing leiotoga Nyju-DelI (NDLD), sem sampykkt var einroma af ollum G20-meolimunum, er vitnisburour um skuldbindingu okkar til ao standa vio pessar meginreglur.

VIotaekt hefur verio lykiloroio I forsetatIo okkar. Innlimun AfrIkusambandsins (AU) sem fullgilds meolims I G20 sameinaoi 55 AfrIkupjooir A pessum vettvangi pannig ao G20 naer til yfir 80% jaroarbua. pessi fyrirbyggjandi aogero hefur stuolao ao Itarlegri umraeou um alpjoolegar Askoranir og taekifaeri.

Hin fyrsta rAostefna "Voice of the Global South", sem Indverjar boouou til I tveimur hlutum, booaoi nyja dogun I fjolpjooastefnu. Indland hlustaoi og tok alvarlega Ahyggjur hins hnattraena suours I alpjoolegri umraeou og nu er hafio skeio par sem prounarlond fA sinn retta sess I motun hnattraennar prounar.

VIotaekt A einnig vio um innlenda nAlgun Indlands A G20, sem geroi pao ao formennskulyoveldi sem haefir staersta lyoraeoisrIki heims. Meo vioburoum "Jan Bhagidari" (pAtttoku folks) nAoi G20 til 1,4 milljaroa borgara, par sem oll rIki Indlands toku pAtt og alrIkisheruo (Union Territories) A Indlandi (UT) voru samstarfsaoilar. Varoandi efnislega paetti tryggoi Indland ao alpjoolegri athygli vaeri beint ao vIotaekari prounarmarkmioum, I samraemi vio umboo G20.

A mikilvaegum miopunkti 2030-dagskrArinnar afhenti Indland G20 2023-aogeroaAaetlunina til ao flyta fyrir framforum varoandi sjAlfbaeru prounarmarkmioin (SDG), par sem logo var til pverfagleg, aogeroamiouo nAlgun A sameiginleg mAlefni, par A meoal heilsu, menntun, jafnretti kynjanna og sjAlfbaerni I umhverfismAlum.

Lykilatrioio sem knyr pessar framfarir Afram er oflugir stafraenir innvioir hins opinbera (Digital Public Infrastructure, DPI). Her var Indland afgerandi I tilmaelum sInum, eftir ao hafa oroio vitni ao byltingarkenndum Ahrifum stafraenna nyjunga eins og Aadhaar, UPI og Digilocker af eigin raun. I gegnum G20 tokst okkur ao ljuka Digital Public Infrastructure Repository, mikilvaegu skrefi I alpjoolegu taeknisamstarfi. petta rafraena safn, sem inniheldur yfir 50 DPI frA 16 londum, mun hjAlpa hnattraena suorinu ao byggja upp, staofaera og aolaga DPI til ao vaxtarkraftur An aogreiningar geti dafnao.

Fyrir okkar Einu joro kynntum vio metnaoarfull og vIotaek markmio um ao skapa brynar, varanlegar og sanngjarnar breytingar. "Graenn prounarsAttmAli" yfirlysingarinnar tekur A peim Askorunum sem felast I ao velja A milli pess ao berjast gegn hungri og vernda joroina, meo yfirgripsmiklum vegvIsi par sem atvinna og vistkerfi eru okeypis, neysla er loftslagsmeovituo og framleiosla er plAnetuvaen.

Samhlioa pvI kallar G20-yfirlysingin A metnaoarfulla prefoldun endurnyjanlegrar orku A heimsvIsu fyrir Ario 2030. Asamt stofnun Global Biofuels Alliance og samstilltri sokn fyrir graent vetni er metnaour G20 til ao byggja upp hreinni og graenni heim oumdeilanlegur. petta hefur alltaf verio rIkjandi I indversku sioferoi og I gegnum lIfsstIl fyrir sjAlfbaera proun (LiFE), getur heimurinn notio goos af aldagomlum sjAlfbaerum hefoum okkar.

Ennfremur undirstrikar yfirlysingin skuldbindingu okkar vio loftslagsrettlaeti og jofnuo og hvetur til umtalsveros fjArhagslegs og taeknilegs stuonings frA hinu hnattraena norori. I fyrsta skipti var viourkennt pao risaframlag sem skortir I umfang prounarfjArmognunar, sem faerist ur milljoroum I trilljonir dala. G20 viourkenndi ao prounarlond parfnast 5,9 trilljona bandarIkjadala til ao uppfylla landstengd framlog sIn (NDC) fyrir Ario 2030.

I ljosi pess storkostlega fjArmagns sem krafist er lagoi G20 Aherslu A mikilvaegi betri, staerri og skilvirkari fjolpjoolegra prounarbanka. A sama tIma faer Indland leioandi hlutverk I umbotum Sp, serstaklega I endurskipulagningu helstu stofnana eins og oryggisrAos Sp, sem mun tryggja rettlAtara heimsskipulag.

Jafnretti kynjanna var I aoalhlutverki I yfirlysingunni og nAoi hAmarki meo stofnun serstaks vinnuhops um valdeflingu kvenna A naesta Ari. Frumvarp um pAtttoku kvenna A Indlandi 2023, um ao priojungur pingsaeta Indlands og rIkisloggjafarpingsins skuli skipaour konum, synir skuldbindingu okkar til prounar undir forystu kvenna.

Yfirlysingin frA Nyju-DelI felur I ser endurnyjaoan anda samvinnu um pessar lykilAherslur, meo Aherslu A samraemi I stefnu, Areioanlegum vioskiptum og metnaoarfullum loftslagsaogeroum. Vio erum stolt af ao I formennsku okkar nAou G20 niourstoou I 87 mAlum og sampykki 118 skjala, sem er Aberandi aukning frA fyrri tIma.

I formennsku okkar fyrir G20 leiddi Indland umraeour um landfraeoileg mAlefni og Ahrif peirra A hagvoxt og proun. Hryojuverk og tilgangslaus drAp A almennum borgurum eru oviounandi og vio veroum ao taka A peim meo null-umburoarlyndi. Vio veroum ao syna mannuo fram yfir fjandskap og Itreka ao petta er ekki strIostImabil.

eg er Anaegour meo ao I formennskutIo okkar tokst Indlandi hio otrulega: pao endurlIfgaoi fjolpjooahyggju, magnaoi rodd hins hnattraena suours, baroist fyrir proun og valdeflingu kvenna, alls staoar.

Nu, pegar vio afhendum BrasilIu G20-formennskuna, gerum vio pao meo peirri sannfaeringu ao sameiginleg skref okkar fyrir folk, plAnetu, frio og velmegun muni enduroma um okomin Ar.