Well, India is all geared up and fully decked to host the G-20 Summit this week. The Pragati Maidan ( Bharat Mandapam) and area around it, especially the entrance facing the Bhairon temple have been transformed beyond recognition. With hundreds of fountains in colours, lions, elephants, other animals, Musicians ,beautifully painted metro pillars, bridges and walls reflecting unbelievable diversity of India’s rich cultural heritage, Delhi has never looked more beautiful. The EAM was quoted to have said G 20 Summit isn’t an event, it’s a celebration.
With over 200 meetings in 29 states involving 35+ working groups and imp cabinet Ministers from member countries handling different spheres from Finance and Trade to Health, Agriculture and Culture checking in and out of Delhi for the last 10 months, everything worth discussing seems to have been discussed. In spite of Putin, Xi No show and likely lack of a consensus on Ukraine ,the Summit is all set to produce a bulky report covering green energy, green development, Climate financing, SDGs, trade, reforms of multilateral banks and the UN, crippling indebtedness, women led development, cryptocurrency, cyber crimes, fake news, terrorism and plethora of other issues. In his oped in the HT, Dhruv Jaishankar, Executive Dir of ORF in USA had called it: the most consequential Summit in independent India. However, Some would refer to the NAM Summit of March 1983 in the same category though it was held in a totally different world addressing different issues and only in Delhi.
There are so many Firsts about the Delhi G-20 Summit. Unlike any other Summit, India has organized so many Ministerial meetings in different state capitals. India has not only introduced the participating delegates from the member countries to India’s bewildering diversity and mesmerizing cultural heritage but also showcased India’s progress since independence. It also introduces a sense of involvement in all state Govts many of which aren’t ruled by the BJP. Around 100,000 official and unofficial delegates would have visited India during her Presidency of G-20 giving a huge boost to India’s Tourism.
Even if Putin and Xi were attending the Summit, they won’t have facilitated a consensus on Ukraine in the presence of the US President who had called them names in unflattering terms and hasn’t shown any signs of loosening the US sanctions. But thanks to India’s dialogue driven diplomacy and hard work, there has reportedly been considerable movement towards convergence on several fronts like trade, reforms of the multilateral banks, indebtedness of more than 60 countries, green energy (India has achieved 40 % of it’s energy production from renewable sources 9 years in advance), digital infrastructure ( India has emerged as world’s largest user of digital platforms for payments and so many developed countries have shown interest in India’s UPI ), cooperation in healthcare specialty to cope with pandemics like Covid ( India had provided Covid vaccine & Medicare to over 60 countries), climate financing, cyber security and above all promotion of inclusive and innovative economic progress for all .
Many analysts believe that flagging and drawing attention to issues of importance and priority to vast majority of the Global South will be the lasting contribution of India’s Presidency of G -20. It was the first country and has been vigorously mobilizing support for the inclusion of AU as the new member of G -20 which will be a sensible recognition of the importance of the African continent which has only South Africa as a member while Europe has 5 members besides Spain as the permanent invitee. EAM Jaishankar was reported to have said that India has succeeded in putting the Global South in the “consciousness of the Global North.”
India has invited not only Bangladesh and Mauritius but also Egypt, Nigeria, Oman, Netherland ,Singapore, UAE which reflects her strategic thinking. And the number of the International organizations invited is perhaps the highest ever.
According to Modi, GDP centric order is moving towards people centric order which is the need of the hour to address the problem of the people. ”Irrespective of the size of the GDP, every voice matters”, he recently said. India is playing the role of a catalyst in this direction .PM Modi feels that “India’s G-20 Presidency has sowed the seeds of confidence in the countries of the so called Third World.” Hosting the G- 20 Summit successfully at such a mega scale and highlighting the problems of the countries of the Global South would bolster India’s aspirations to be the leading Voice of the Global South.
Barring Xi and Putin, all other leaders of G-20 will be attending the Summit.PM Modi has met several of them several times and developed a warm personal chemistry with them. The US President Biden is not alone who holds PM Modi in high esteem and strongly supports India’s Presidency; French President Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, British PM Sunak, Australian PM,Anthony Albanese, Japanese PM Fumio Kishida and Brazilian President Lula are also his admirers. While hosting the BRICS summit In Johannesburg when the news of India’s Chandrayaan 3 landed on the moon was broken, the South African President Ramaphosa hailed it as the success of the entire BRICS! That says something about India’s global standing. today. India has seldom enjoyed such Positive international vibes.
One doesn’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that China isn’t too happy about the current positivity surrounding India whose GDP is just 1/4 th of China’s own GDP. There is a lot of speculation about why Xi chose to give Delhi summit a miss. Internal problems, specially the problems of the property sector, his disinclination to face embarrassing moments given china’s current relations with the US & India or just to derail India’s Summit. Prof Srikanth Kondapali of JNU doesn’t rule out some health issues Xi might be facing.
Though the Chinese PM Li Qiang will be attending the Summit, he isn’t likely to work for consensus and a joint communique, he would rather try his best to obstruct it. But I believe, we have already factored in the Chinese obstructions and are not unduly perturbed.
This is the hour of the recognition India’s achievements, capabilities, global leadership and the beacon of her future.
All Indians should rejoice it.
Surendra Kumar was India’s Ambassador to Libya, Mozambique, Democratic Republic of Congo and Eritrea & High Commissioner of India to Kenya, Swaziland and Malta.