[Answered]Do you think G20 summits have lost its significance? Critically analyse.

The G20 is an annual meeting of leaders from the countries with the largest and fastest-growing economies. The countries that make up the G-20 (19 nations and the European Union) account for 85% of the world’s nominal GDP.

Its relevance in changing times:

As globalization progresses recent G20 summits have focused not only on macroeconomy and trade, but also on a wide range of global issues which have an immense impact on the global economy, such as development, climate change and energy, health, counter-terrorism, as well as migration and refugees.

Issues and Challenges

1. Grouping and fragmentation- Since 2009, the bloc of European countries has become very fragmented. Suspicions — over the G7 dictating the G20 agenda, the United States using the Trans-Pacific Partnership to contain China and so on — continue to lower cooperative spirit within the G20.
2. Slowing Economies– The slowdown in the pace of global finance reforms is another problem for the G20. Slow economic growth is spreading all around the globe as developing countries have performed relatively poor since 2013. In this environment of sluggish global growth, increasing investments to promote economic growth is an important challenge that the G20 has to address.
3. Socio-economic issues- The G20 focuses mostly on reforming the global financial system to increase global economic growth. But the world is also experiencing severe socio-economic problems such as increasing income inequality, youth unemployment and gender inequality. These problems increase social tensions and undermine democracy.
4. Talk show- G20 is criticised for being just a talk show where countries try to resolve their bilateral issues or do diplomacy with nations.
5. Consensus- Animosity, shifting coalitions and potential blocs within the G20 — such as the G7 and BRICS — affect the likelihood of reaching consensus with in group. It is the major issue wrt G20 where all the big economies do not arrive at same platform on an issue. It is seen that developed countries and developing countries are on opposite sides on major issues especially economic issues. Recent turf between USA and China has further this divide.

Ways ahead

Although G20 has made important progress in reshaping the governance of global finance by implementing macro-prudential policies, G-20 failed to become either the economic or the political “global steering committee” that it wished to be. There is need to facilitate G20’s transition from a crisis-response mechanism to one focusing on long-term governance so as to better lead world economic growth and international economic cooperation. The G-20 is an important platform to discuss pressing issues, and it must not be detracted from its original purpose of promoting sustainable growth and financial stability.