The third meeting of the G20 Development Working Group (DWG) began in Goa on Tuesday with 80 delegates from member countries participating in it. The first two sessions of DWGs were held in Mumbai and Kerala.
The meeting, being held at a resort at Dona Paula near state capital Panaji, will set up developmental outcomes which will be taken up at the final ministerial meet scheduled to be held at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, an official said. “The meeting in Goa is a very important element because we are at that stage of negotiations wherein we are discussing the text (of the earlier discussion) with all the G20 members,” Nagaraj Naidu Kakanur, Joint Secretary (G20), Union Ministry of External Affairs, said on Monday. It is a challenging process and there will be a lot of “give and take” between the countries, “but we are hopeful that DWG will come out with substantiate outcome,” he said.
An exhibition on the sidelines of the G20 meet showcased India’s strength in women-led development. Kakanur inaugurated the exhibition, which has participation of government bodies, NGOs and private companies working towards women empowerment.
The official on Monday said DWG is a fulcrum of G20 as it addresses the development mandate, which is very crucial in the current scenario. “The whole world is looking at accelerating the progress, particularly to achieve the sustainable development goals,” Kakanur said.
India assumed presidency of the G20 for one year from December 1, 2022 to November 30, 2023.The G20, or Group of 20, is an intergovernmental forum of the world’s major developed and developing economies.
It comprises Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the UK, the US, and the European Union (EU).Collectively, the G20 accounts for 85 per cent of the global GDP, 75 per cent of international trade, and two-thirds of the world population, making it the premier forum for international economic cooperation.