India's G20

1st Sherpa Meeting

The 1st Sherpa Meeting of India’s G20 Presidency, chaired by G20 Sherpa Shri Amitabh Kant, is commencing today in the historic city of Udaipur. The four-day gathering (04-07 December 2022) of the Sherpas of G20 Members, invited countries and International Organizations, will set the stage for important conversations on some of the most pressing issues of our time, including technological transformation, green development and LiFE, spotlighting women-led development, accelerating implementation of the SDGs, facilitating inclusive and resilient growth, and multilateral reforms.

2. The first G20 Sherpa Meeting under India's Presidency sets the tone and agenda for future meetings, during which, India will have the opportunity to convene discussions on shared global priorities with G20 Members and Guests. The Sherpa meeting in Udaipur will work towards building consensus on a diverse range of global issues in various G20 Workstreams, and bring the focus to key global priorities.

3. The Meeting will kick start on 4 December 2022 with a panel discussion on accelerating implementation of the SDGs. Formal Sherpa discussions will be spread over five sessions and will be held on 5-6 December 2022. During these sessions, India will introduce the broad priorities of all the Working Groups and also hear the views of the G20 countries, guests and International Organizations. An informal session for free-flowing discussions among G20 Sherpas without any set agenda is also being planned.

4. The first Sherpa meeting will also offer the delegates a unique ‘Indian experience’ through cultural performances, art exhibitions, and excursions to various destinations including locations such as the Kumbhalgarh Fort - a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the Ranakpur Temple Complex.

5. In keeping with our G20 Presidency motto "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam" and the theme "One Earth. One Family. One Future", the discussions will focus on finding holistic and harmonious solutions to prevailing challenges. As stated by Hon'ble Prime Minister in Bali last month, our Presidency will be inclusive, ambitious, decisive and action-oriented, and with a focus on collective action

"We are passing through massive geopolitical crisis. We have seen the breakdown of global supply chains, countries suffering from rising debt and the huge crisis of climate action and climate finance," Kant said addressing a side-event on Sustainable Development Goals at the first G20 Sherpa Meeting here.

Earlier, in an informal chat with reporters Kant said the presidency of G20 has given an opportunity to India to place the issues of the developing countries on the agenda of the multilateral forum.

"Earlier, we used to get agenda items from the developed world. Now, we get to set the agenda for the G20 meeting. We will tell the world that we are the mother of democracy," Kant said.

The discussion during the four-day meeting will focus on economics and finance with the International Monetary Fund making a presentation on the global economic scenario, Kant sharing India's priorities before his G20 counterparts, Department of Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth highlighting the priorities of the finance track.

Leaders of G20 member nations, nine guest countries -- Bangladesh, Egypt, Mauritius, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Oman, Singapore, Spain and the UAE -- and representatives of international organisations are attending the four-day meeting in this scenic lake city.

Issues such as technological transformation, green development, spotlighting women-led development, accelerating implementation of SDGs, and facilitating inclusive and resilient growth have been flagged by India as part of its agenda for the G20 presidency.

The Sherpa meetings will work towards building consensus on key cross-cutting issues, which will be discussed in the various G20 work streams for inclusion in the Leaders' Declaration, which will be tabled at the G20 Summit in New Delhi next year, Kant said.

The Sherpas, personal emissaries of the G20 leaders, will oversee the negotiations to arrive at a consensus on key issues facing the world. There are 13 different working groups identified as Sherpa Tracks including the one on Disaster Risk Resilience and Reduction introduced by India for its presidency.