Being in charge of hosting G20 deliberations may sound like routine business for any nation given that this privilege is rotated among member countries. But the conditions under which India had to organise this summit were challenging. Coming close on the back of the pandemic and right in the middle of the Ukraine war, getting countries together to discuss a plethora of issues ranging from global cooperation to climate change was nothing short of an achievement.
This story has been narrated by the Sherpa for this purpose, Amitabh Kant, in this rather comprehensive book on how India successfully managed these challenges by getting everybody on the discussion table. This is why the suffix ‘Mount’ sounds quite appropriate. Kant, who headed the famous NITI Aayog, is known for his prowess in taking on such assignments in the course of his career, being also associated with transforming tourism in Kerala.
The author thanks Prime Minister Narendra Modi for enabling the successful completion of the G20, writing that the PM’s functioning can be a good template for a CEO of an organisation. There are five qualities that need to be mentioned here. The first is taking a long-term perspective of any issue, which means not thinking of today but tomorrow. This quality combines well with empathy for people, which is a potent potion for success.
The second is the art of listening, where leaders need to spend time listening to people. This helps in assimilating multiple views, as a final decision can be taken after weighing all considerations. It reflects humility, because being willing to listen to others requires a different kind of mindset.
The third is remaining calm even under pressure. Losing one’s temper when under pressure can cause hasty decisions to be taken, which is eschewed when one is able to deal with all provocations with equanimity. This is natural in the course of any meeting, especially when there are differing views from countries with varying governance structures. Fourth was the optimistic approach taken, which helped mould mindsets in a positive frame all the time. And last is the emphasis given to physical and mental well-being. These are the lessons in management that the author highlights after successfully completing the assignment as Sherpa for the G20.
The slogan for the G20 meet was ‘one earth, one family, one future’, which is just about what is required to keep global integration alive, such that all can benefit from this collaborative effort. Reiterating this theme throughout the long period of deliberations helped to bring all countries together and there was acceptance that they needed to work together.
The author believes that under the PM’s guidance India was able to position itself as a bridge to promote healing in a world divided by geopolitical differences. This is required to build a more sustainable future. Now strategically the G20 discussions were turned towards the priorities of the global south, which does credit to India. For example, the African Union was given a full membership to the G20, a momentous step in shaping global governance, especially as it covers the voices of 1.4 billion people (which is the size of India).
The author writes that the approach taken by the PM was responsible for building consensus on several issues. One of the examples here is the tryst with creating global climate action. As the world grappled with this subject, we were able to focus on sustainable development and hence strike a balance between economic growth and environmental conundrums. This was necessary because several global agreements put the responsibility on developing nations, which could involve asymmetric sacrifices.
Kant goes into fairly comprehensive details on how his team went around accomplishing the job, starting from the arrangements to steering discussions in the desired manner so as to optimise the time spent on these deliberations. There was clarity of thought, as there were 15 principles drawn up that were the cornerstones of these meetings. These included a wide array of subjects starting with Ukraine to being consistent with the UN charters to war on food and energy security to peace across the world.
One of the interesting issues covered related to a new look for multilateral institutions for the 21st century. Here he speaks of how the global financial infrastructure needed to be overhauled. In particular, the IMF and World Bank have to probably also incorporate climate change and crossborder issues in their mandates. This forum was also used by India to showcase the resounding success of India’s digital public infrastructure. Here, the success of the famous JAM trinity and use of technology for better delivery of direct benefit transfers was the high point.
So how does multilateralism stand after all these talks? This is surely work in progress as there are several changes in the global economic order over the years. The Ukraine war exposed the limited power of the United Nations Security Council, which was unable to broker any kind of peace. Similarly, the US-China economic conflict is just growing by the day, which has taken a serious tone with the new US President specifically targeting the country. WTO has lost steam with most member countries now having their own regional trade agreements.
In this context he also talks of the most recent COP-29 held in Baku where the issue of climate change was the focus. The global south seems to be bearing the brunt of climate impact even though its contribution to greenhouse gas emissions is the least. The crux, according to Kant, of multilateralism surviving is the existence of political will to stay connected.
This book is quite remarkable as it gives a deep understanding of the way in which the global economic order operates. It is also a help book on how to get different entities onto a common platform for successful deliberations. In the end one would say kudos to Kant for such flawless execution of the project.
Book details:
Title: How India Scaled Mt G20: The Inside Story of the G20 Presidency
Author: Amitabh Kant
Publisher: Rupa Publications
Number of pages: 256
Price: Rs 595
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