G20: How Did India Attain Presidency and What Issues Can It Drive Forward?

The Indonesian president transferred the presidency to India and PM Modi at the 2022 Bali Summit.

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the G20 Summit between 15-16 November in Bali, Indonesia, India has started preparing to chair the 2023 summit.

(Photo: Twitter/NarendraModi)

Indonesian president Joko Widodo officially transferred the G20 presidency to India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Bali summit on Wednesday, 16 November.

India has been preparing to preside over the 2023 summit, including launching a logo for India's G20 presidency.

But how is the president of a G20 summit chosen? And as president, what international issues will India look to focus on?

Choosing the G20 President

The Group of Twenty (G20), one of the world's most important forums for international economic cooperation, consists of 19 member states and the European Union.

The 19 countries are divided into five groups, with four groups having four member states each. They are:

• Australia, Canada, Saudi Arabia, and the United States

• India, Russia, South Africa, and Turkey

• France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom

• China, Indonesia, Japan, and South Korea

The fifth group consists of three member states – Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico.

Not all groups are regionally divided. Three of them are, that is, Latin America, Europe, and East Asia.

The president of the G20 is chosen on a rotational basis. Every year, one of the five groups gets its turn to elect the president after negotiations.

The previous, incumbent, and present presidents form the secretariat of the summit, also known as the troika.

India as G20 President

As the next chair of the G20, India's agenda will include multiple issues on inclusive global economic governance.

Climate change is likely to be the top item on India's agenda. Given that 'Loss and Damage' funding (which Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav had promised to focus on during COP) has officially been tabled at COP27, India may try to bring in private capital for climate financing.

With respect to the global economy, India is likely to prioritise international economic cooperation to benefit the global south, that is, countries in continents like Africa, Latin America, and Asia. India may also look to for a more central role in the gloabl economy of new multilateral financing institutions like the New Development Bank, previously known as the BRICS Development Bank.

An important issue within this is international tax reform. Note that in October last year, a group of 136 countries, including India, set a minimum global tax rate of 15 percent for big companies, with the intention of making it harder for them to avoid taxation.

In the last couple of years, India's agenda with respect to a digital economy agenda has included objectives such as building digital infrastructure, instilling digital skills into its populace, and strengthening supply chains.

In fact, at the G20 Digital Economy Ministers' Meeting, India had asserted that digital platforms needed to built in an equal, inclusive, and sustainable way.

Additionally, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has in the past called on the G20 to ensure transparency and integrity in international economic cooperation.

India is also expected to drive forward global reform on gender equity and women empowerment. Last year, at the first-ever G20 Ministerial Conference on Women's Empowerment in Italy, Union Minister for Women and Child Development Smriti Irani confirmed India's solidarity with partner countries of the G20 for promoting the same across the world.

Pushing these issues forward, India will seek to leave behind a legacy within the G20, that is, to be remembered as a nation that pushed for inclusivity in global economic growth.