Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has called for climate action strategies based on the principles of the Paris Agreement and noted the importance of timely fulfillment of international commitments on climate finance and technology transfer.
Participating via virtual mode at the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting – the third under the Italian presidency – Sitharaman urged G20 countries to align recovery strategies with climate concerns.
Sitharaman mentioned the global risks in the wake of emerging COVID-19 forms and highlighted the need for international coordination and cooperation on this front.
He shared the recent policy responses of the Government of India to strengthen the health system and economy, including efficient application of the CoWIN platform to enhance immunization in India. Sitharaman said that this platform has been made freely available to all countries because in this extraordinary crisis human needs outweigh business considerations.
The two-day meeting, held on July 9-10, discussed a range of issues including global economic risks and health challenges, policies to address the COVID-19 pandemic, international taxation, sustainable finance and financial sector issues.
G20 finance ministers and central bank governors reaffirmed their resolve to use all available policy tools to address the adverse consequences of COVID-19, an official release said.
Sitharaman commended the Italian G20 Presidency for identifying three catalysts for pandemic-resilient economic recovery as digitization, climate action and sustainable infrastructure, and shared the Indian experience of integrating technology with inclusive service delivery during the pandemic. did.
The Finance Minister said that the G20, with the United Kingdom (UK) as co-chair of India’s Framework Working Group, sees digitization as an agenda that will continue to play an important role in promoting economic growth.
The Finance Minister joined other G20 members in welcoming the report of the G20 High-Level Independent Panel on Global Commons’ funding for pandemic preparedness and response, and stressed the urgent need to strengthen multilateralism for global health.
With regard to the “Statement on Two-Pillar Solutions to Address Tax Challenges Arising from the Digitization of the Economy” issued on 1 July by the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Benefit Transfer (BEPS-IF), G20 Finance Minister Called upon the OECD/G20 BEPS-IF for an expeditious resolution of the Sitharaman suggested that more work needs to be done to ensure a fair, sustainable and inclusive tax system, which results in meaningful revenue for developing countries, the release said.
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