India officially assumed the G20 Presidency on 01 December 2022 after taking over from Indonesia. As the official G20 dialogue forum for the global business community, B20, during India’s Presidency, led the process of galvanizing global business leaders for their views on issues of global economic and trade governance and speak in a single voice for the entire G20 business community.
Throughout India's G20 Presidency, the B20 India Secretariat, represented by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), led the B20's activities. Under the guidance of Mr N. Chandrasekaran, Chair, B20 India and Executive Chairman, Tata Sons, the Secretariat was responsible for overseeing the development and execution of the B20 process.
The B20 Summit India 2023 is to be held under the theme of R.A.I.S.E (Responsible, Accelerated, Innovative, Sustainable, and Equitable Businesses) from 25-27 August 2023 at New Delhi. It will bring together deliberations on 7 task forces and 2 action councils of B20 India and much more.
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Science20 (S20) Summit successfully concluded at the Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu
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The Science20 (S20) Summit, a significant international gathering of scientific academies from G20 member and invited Countries and International Organizations, lasted for two days and successfully concluded on 22nd July 2023 at Isha Yoga Center, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu.
The S20 Summit meeting featured sessions, dedicated to finalizing text of the Science20 Communique. The draft Communique aims to provide policymakers with valuable science-driven recommendations, emphasizing the importance of collaboration among G20 nations.
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Final Energy Transitions Working Group Meeting under India's G20 Presidency
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The 4th and last Energy Transitions Working Group Meeting, held under India's G20 presidency, concluded in Goa on 20 July 2023. The two-day meeting witnessed proactive engagement from over 115 delegates representing G20 member countries and nine invitee countries. The discussions-centered around critical challenges related to climate change, sustainability, energy security, equitable energy access and financing, in the context of global energy transitions. The meeting emphasized the urgent need for feasible, collaborative, and accountable policy actions to accelerate global energy transitions while ensuring universal energy access and just, affordable, and inclusive energy transitions in line with achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
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The 3rd Culture Working Group Meeting under India’s G20 Presidency
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The Third Culture Working Group (CWG) meeting under India’s G20 Presidency concluded on 12 July in Hampi Karnataka. The final session of the 3rd CWG concluded with updates and development towards the upcoming G20 Culture Ministers’ Meeting in Varanasi, scheduled to be organised on August 26, 2023. The CWG, under India’s G20 presidency, strives to position culture at the heart of policymaking. The 3rd CWG focused on attaining a consensus on the recommendations deliberated in the previous two CWG meetings, which were organised at Khajuraho & Bhubaneswar respectively.
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3rd Sherpa Meeting concluded: Sherpas jointly start work on co-creating the New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration
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The third meeting of G20 Sherpas, chaired by Indian G20 Sherpa Mr Amitabh Kant, concluded in Hampi, Karnataka on 16 July 2023. Over 120 delegates from G20 members, invitee countries, and various international and regional organizations came together to jointly draft and co-create the Leaders Declaration in this historic city and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Spearheaded by the Indian Presidency, the G20 members engaged in 3 days of hard negotiations with the aim to foster transformative, action-oriented initiatives, that is holistic and imbibes the spirit of one world, one family. During these 3 days, Sherpas and Head of Delegations collaboratively worked on the draft of the Leaders Declaration that reflects the collective resolve of G20 nations to drive progress on critical global issues, and commitment to prioritise sustainable development and tackle pressing challenges.
The draft text covers the 6 priorities including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), green development, multilateral development banks (MDBs) reforms, digital public infrastructure, gender equality, and incorporates the outcomes from the various working groups.
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3rd Meeting of G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) under the Indian G20 Presidency in Gandhinagar, Gujarat
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The Third G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting under the Indian Presidency was held during 17–18 July 2023 in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. The meeting was jointly chaired by Hon’ble Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, Ms Nirmala Sitharaman, and Governor, Reserve Bank of India, Mr Shaktikanta Das.
Over 500 delegates, including Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors from G20 member countries, Invitee Countries, and Heads of various International Organizations (IOs)participated in the meeting. The FMCBG meeting was preceded by the Third G20 Finance and Central Bank Deputies (FCBD) meeting during 14–15 July 2023 in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
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Mr Sanjiv Puri, Chair, B20 India Action Council on ESG in Business; Chairman & Managing Director, ITC, India |
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The adoption of ESG practices and principles in business strategy has become undeniable in the recent decade, evident in its steady, but growing, acceptance by corporations. In part, this is in response to mounting pressure from civil society demanding greater accountability, regulators nudging companies towards sustainable pathways and financial institutions focusing on ESG-based investments.
But the major impulse and drive is coming from within the business community itself to counter risks posed by the triple challenges of environmental calamities, rising social inequality and ethical practices. As importantly, there is a budding appreciation of the role ESG plays in identifying material risks to businesses and suitable mitigation measures to remain competitive in the long run.
Given its obvious advantages, the question before the members of the Action Council on ESG in Business (AC) was to understand the reasons why ESG practices are not more widespread and how its adoption could be accelerated by entities regardless of the economic maturity of the country where they are located.
Businesses face three categories of roadblocks in their journey to embed ESG factors in business processes. One, multiple ESG standards and opaque rating systems hinder interoperability, carry the threat of ESG related non-tariff measures, and raise doubts of greenwashing. Two, inadequate regulatory framework and absence of market-driven mechanism either to penalize or reward companies, does not compel or motivate businesses to adopt ESG practices. Three, differing priorities for action can lead to either sub-optimal choices or put firms, especially in the ‘Global South, at a disadvantage in reporting on performance indices that may not be of significance to them.
The AC’s recommendations were guided by the objective of stimulating organisations of diverse sizes and varying maturity levels to embark on sustainable, climate-resilient, and inclusive pathways. The AC members believe that this can be achieved by a) promoting a level playing field through integrative and inclusive standards, transparent disclosure and rating methodologies; b) regulatory, market driven and voluntary pathways aimed at fast-tracking adoption of ESG; and c) prioritizing action on pressing ESG-related societal issues while enhancing business resilience.
The expectation is that such measures will enable acceleration and adoption of high quality ESG processes and responsible conduct by large and small businesses in developed and developing economies alike.
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CII Financial Inclusion & FinTech Summit
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The B20 Financial Inclusion and FinTech Summit was organized on 19 July 2023 in New Delhi to deliberate on how FinTech can help transform the world of finance.
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Conference on Diversity and Inclusion for Sustainable Growth, New York, USA
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B20 India Task Force on Future of Work, Skilling, and Mobility, in partnership with The Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DICCI), the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM), the International Organization of Employers (IOE), the National Minority Supplier Diversity Corporation (NMSDC), and the Employers Federation of India (EFI), organized a Conference on Diversity and Inclusion for Sustainable Growth held on 12 July, 2023, in New York, USA.
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B20 Surat Meet 2023, Surat, Gujarat
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The B20 Surat Meet served as a pivotal platform for collaborative discussions and the formulation of strategies that would shape the global economic landscape.
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“As the official business dialogue platform of the G20, India’s B20 is galvanizing the views and aspirations of the global business community, with the spirit of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.”
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— Sarbananda Sonowal, Union Cabinet Minister, Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways & Ministry of Ayush, Government of India at the B20 Surat Meet
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“Skilling needs to be rural centric. Young population in rural areas needs to be skilled, reducing rural-urban migration and bringing skilling to their doorstep.”
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— Mangal Prabhat Lodha, Hon'ble Minister, Skill, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Tourism and Woman and Child Development, Government of Maharashtra speaking at the B20 India Conference on Building Workforce for Industry 4.0: The Demand Supply Conundrum
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Confederation of Indian Industry
The Mantosh Sondhi Centre,
23, Institutional Area, Lodi Road, New Delhi 110003, India
T: 91-11-45771000 / 24629994-7 • F: 91-11-24626149 • E: info@cii.in
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