Rome, October 31 (Xinhua): The 16th Group of 20 (G20) Leaders’ Summit, which was held both online and offline on Saturday and Sunday in the Italian capital of Rome, has adopted the G20 Rome Leaders’ Declaration.
For similar articles, join our Telegram channel for the latest updates. – click here
The following is a summary of the declaration:
We, the Leaders of the G20, met in Rome on October 30th and 31st, to address today’s most pressing global challenges and to converge upon common efforts to recover better from the COVID-19 crisis and enable sustainable and inclusive growth in our Countries and across the world. We express our profound gratitude to the health and care professionals, frontline workers, international organizations and scientific community for their relentless efforts to cope with COVID-19.
Underlining the crucial role of multilateralism in finding shared, effective solutions, we have agreed to further strengthen our common response to the pandemic, with particular regard to the needs of the most vulnerable. We have taken decisive measures to support Countries most in need, agreed upon a shared vision to combat climate change, and taken important steps towards the achievement of gender equality. We have also further advanced in our common efforts to ensure that the benefits of digitalization are shared broadly.
Over 2021, global economic activity has been recovering at a solid pace, thanks to the roll-out of vaccines and continued policy support. We remain determined to use all available tools for as long as required to address the adverse consequences of the pandemic. We will continue to sustain the recovery, avoiding any premature withdrawal of support measures, while preserving financial stability and long-term fiscal sustainability and safeguarding against downside risks and negative spill-overs. We remain vigilant to the global challenges that are impacting on our economies, such as disruptions in supply chains.
Recognizing that vaccines are among the most important tools against the pandemic, and reaffirming that extensive COVID-19 immunization is a global public good, we will advance our efforts to ensure timely, equitable and universal access to safe, affordable, quality and effective vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics, with particular regard to the needs of low- and middle-income countries. To help advance toward the global goals of vaccinating at least 40 percent of the population in all countries by the end of 2021 and 70 percent by mid-2022, as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO)’s global vaccination strategy, we will take steps to help boost the supply of vaccines and essential medical products and inputs in developing countries and remove relevant supply and financing constraints. In particular, we will support increasing vaccine distribution, administration and local manufacturing capacity in LMICs, including through technology transfer hubs in various regions, and through joint production and processing arrangements. We will work together towards the recognition of COVID-19 vaccines deemed safe and efficacious by the WHO and in accordance with national legislation and circumstances. We commit to substantially increase the provision of and access to vaccines, as well as to therapeutics and diagnostics, enhance our efforts to ensure the transparent, rapid and predictable delivery and uptake of vaccines where they are needed. We call on the private sector and on multilateral financial institutions to contribute to this endeavor.
We remain deeply concerned about the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis, especially in developing countries, and will strengthen our actions to implement the G20 Action Plan on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. We welcome the progress made and reiterate our continued support to African Countries, in particular through the G20 Initiative on Supporting the Industrialization in Africa and LDCs and other relevant initiatives.
We welcome the new general allocation of Special Drawing Rights (SDR), implemented by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which has made available the equivalent of USD 650 billion in additional reserves globally. We welcome the progress achieved under the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI). Preliminary estimates point to at least USD 12.7 billion of total debt service deferred, under this initiative, between May 2020 and December 2021, benefitting 50 countries. We affirm the importance of joint efforts by all actors, including private creditors. We will continue the process of IMF governance reform under the 16th General Review of Quotas, including a new quota formula as a guide, by 15 December 2023.
We commit to strengthen actions to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030 and call on CBD Parties to adopt an ambitious, balanced, practical, effective, robust and transformative post 2020 Global Biodiversity Framework at COP15 in Kunming.
We reaffirm our commitment to the full and effective implementation of the UNFCCC and of the Paris Agreement, taking action across mitigation, adaptation and finance during this critical decade, on the basis of the best available scientific knowledge, reflecting the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, in light of different national circumstances. We remain committed to the Paris Agreement goal to hold the global average temperature increase well below 2 degrees Celsius and to pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, also as a means to enable the achievement of the 2030 Agenda.
We stress the importance of the effective implementation of the global goal on adaptation. We also commit to scale up adaptation finance to address the needs of developing countries. We recall and reaffirm the commitment made by developed countries, to the goal of mobilizing jointly USD 100 billion per year by 2020 and annually through 2025 to address the needs of developing countries, and stress the importance of meeting that goal fully as soon as possible. We encourage International Financial Institutions to step up their efforts to pursue alignment with the Paris Agreement within ambitious timeframes, to support sustainable recovery and transition strategies, NDCs and long-term low greenhouse gas emission development strategies in emerging markets and developing economies, and to set out plans to mobilize private finance, in line with their mandates, while continuing to support the achievement of the UN 2030 Agenda. We commit to significantly reduce our collective greenhouse gas emissions, taking into account national circumstances and respecting our NDCs. we are committed to maintain energy security, while addressing climate change, and guaranteeing just and orderly transitions of our energy systems that ensures affordability, including for the most vulnerable households and businesses.
It is crucial for promoting orderly and just transitions towards green and more sustainable economies and inclusive societies, in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement. We commit to ensure access to quality education for all, with particular attention to women and girls and vulnerable students.
We welcome the FSB final report on the lessons learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic from a financial stability perspective and the proposed next steps. We encourage to continue deepening the analysis on the potential role of central bank digital currencies in enhancing cross-border payments and their wider implications for the international monetary system.
We affirm the important role of open, fair, equitable, sustainable, nondiscriminatory and inclusive rules-based multilateral trade system in restoring growth, job creation and industrial productivity and promoting sustainable development, as well as our commitment to strengthen it with the WTO at its core.
We recognize the critical role of quality infrastructure investments in the recovery phase. We acknowledge that resilient, properly funded, well maintained and optimally managed systems are essential to preserve infrastructure assets over their life-cycles, minimising loss and disruption, and securing the provision of safe, reliable and high-quality infrastructure services.
We recognize the role of technology and innovation as key enablers for the global recovery and sustainable development. We recognize the importance of policies to create an enabling, inclusive, open, fair and non-discriminatory digital economy. We reaffirm our commitment to enhancing digital financial inclusion of vulnerable and underserved segments of society, including micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), carrying forward the work of the Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI) and implementing the G20 2020 Financial Inclusion Action Plan.
Renewing our commitment to zero tolerance for corruption in the public and private sectors and to achieving common goals in the global fight against corruption, we adopt our 2022-2024 Anti-Corruption Action Plan.
We look ahead to Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics 2022, as opportunities for competition for athletes from around the world, which serves as a symbol of humanity’s resilience.
END
