India’s G20 Presidency is a moment that will see us becoming the hub of numerous conversations ranging from finance to equitable and sustainable development, climate-conscious growth and the need to reform multilateralism to benefit those who were left behind. The world is in itself seeing multiple crises erupting, and an inter-connected globe then makes any crisis, anywhere, perpetuate sorrow everywhere. Amidst all these, India’s hosting of this powerful grouping makes developing nations naturally wonder about a favourable global environment going forward. This expectation from India has numerous causes but only one solution: more inter-networked global trading lines and an amicable relationship between the comity of nations to favour the only objective prevalent since centuries of “good trade.” This definitely will result in economic prowess transforming nations and give legroom to policymakers to implement developmental plans.
G20’s dilemma, or for that matter, inaction, results from severe contradictions in the grouping that houses the U.S. along with foes, Russia and China, resulting in only well-scripted notes on various developmental objectives but no substantial work on the ground. This concerns the globe as numerous multi-dimensional problems have made nations entangled in a web of severe economic distress leading to social polarisation & unrest. Thus India’s presidency must tackle this imbroglio. One way of charting a different course for this G20 might begin with convincing U.S. and Europe to support India’s decarbonising path along with significant climate finance and technological muscle. India’s carbon-neutral journey will reduce a quarter of the world’s climate issues and developmental drawbacks. This will serve two purposes: first, if unhinged bilateral finance aiding India’s decarbonisation path opens up from the U.S. & Europe, the Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) can then solely focus on the rest of the developing nations. Developing countries in general and nations around India like Sri Lanka and Pakistan, and even a pre-covid prospering Bangladesh are all experiencing severe economic distress. Both their debt levels and deficit in the budget are enormous. So MDBs can renegotiate debt or lend forward to combat the slowdown in these economies and get them back on track. Failing to do so will only exacerbate the crisis in these nations, resulting in social polarisations and definite churns of de-globalisation in those nation-states.
Once India gets assured climate finance from investment behemoths of the U.S. & Europe along with technological transfers, its relative dependence on China will be done away with. The importance of this act must be realised by the U.S. as it left out India from the Strategic Mineral Partnership. Thus making India’s independence stance in the solar supply chain even more precarious. The energy transition taking place globally makes it imperative for developed nations to support India’s transformation into a self-sufficient renewable energy-powered country. This will ensure India’s weight with western nations and also create a fertile manufacturing base of renewable technology for the rest of the globe.
This will serve two purposes: freeing MDBs to completely focus their attention to solve the debt crisis in many emerging economies, and a greener Indian economic model will attract other developing nations towards a democratic vision of a globalised economy. Globalisation will only cure a lot of ills serving swathes of the globe today, but to legitimise it for developing nations, developed countries need to pick up the mantle of the entire financial transition of the Indian economy.
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