Mains Practice Questions

Introduction

The G20, representing 85% of global GDP and two-thirds of the world's population, is a premier platform for economic cooperation and global governance.

• India, as the G20 President in 2023, strategically leveraged the platform to champion its multilateral interests, focusing on inclusive development, climate action, and global South solidarity.
• Despite geopolitical tensions, India secured a consensus on the New Delhi Declaration, emphasizing multilateralism.

Body

India’s Utilization of the G20 Platform to Advance Multilateral Interests:

• Championing the Global South
  • Voice of the Global South Summit: Highlighting the $1.8 trillion climate finance gap for developing nations, India advocated for developing countries’ interests in debt restructuring, climate finance, and technology transfer.
  • African Union Inclusion: India pushed for the African Union's permanent membership in the G20, enhancing representation of the Global South.
• Advancing Technology-Driven Development
  • Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI): India showcased its success with UPI, Aadhaar, and CoWIN to promote scalable, inclusive digital solutions.
    • Launch of the Global Digital Public Infrastructure Repository for knowledge sharing.
• Focus on Sustainable Development and Green Growth
  • Climate Action: India emphasized Lifestyle for Environment (LiFE) principles to promote sustainable consumption.
  • Renewable Energy Transition: Proposed initiatives for solar energy scaling via the One Sun, One World, One Grid vision and Global Biofuel Alliance.
• Regional Connectivity: The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), unveiled during India's G20 presidency, serves as a strategic alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), offering a potential 40% reduction in trade route transit time

India’s Role in Reshaping Global Economic Architectures

• Reforming Multilateral Institutions: India emphasized the need for fairer representation of developing economies in decision-making bodies.
• Debt Relief for Vulnerable Economies: Championed frameworks for restructuring debt in crisis-hit economies like Sri Lanka.
• Leadership in Disaster Resilience and Climate Financing: India called for initiatives to integrate disaster risk reduction into economic policies, focusing on vulnerable regions like island nations.
  • Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) highlighted at the G20.
• Digital Financial Architecture: India's UPI has gained global traction with initiatives in Bhutan, UAE, Malaysia, Singapore, and others and serves as a model for digital financial architecture.

Conclusion

India’s presidency of the G20 demonstrated its capability to steer global discussions toward equity, inclusivity, and sustainability. By championing the Voices of the Global South and advocating reforms in global financial architectures, India positioned itself as a leader in shaping the future of multilateral cooperation..