Amitabh Kant: Next India G20 Sherpa

Former CEO of Government’s think tank NITI Aayog, Amitabh Kant, has been selected as the India’s new Sherpa for the G-20.

Key Facts

• He will replace Piyush Goyal as G-20 Sherpa. He was appointed as G-20 Sherpa in September 2021.
• Amitabh Kant has been appointed, as India is scheduled to assume the G-20 presidency in 2022,
• India will take over G20 presidency during December 1, 2022 to November 30, 2023.

Background

In the context of India’s term of G-20 presidency, there was a need for full-time Sherpa. Reason being this, Amitabh Kant has replaced Piyush Goyal. Other Sherpas for G-20 include Shaktikanta Das, Suresh Prabhu and Montek Singh Ahluwalia.

About Amitabh Kant

Extended term of Amitabh Kant as NITI Aayog CEO was completed in June 2022. He heading this position for about six years. He is a retired 1980-batch IAS officer from Kerala cadre. He assumed charges as NITI Aayog CEO in 2016. He has also been the chairman of Empowered Group-3, which is one among the 11 groups set up by central government for controlling the spread of Covid-19 pandemic.

Role of Indian Sherpa

In line with India’s presidency to G20, the Sherpa is likely to provide lot of time to several meetings, which are scheduled to be held in different parts of India.

About G-20

The G-20 forum connects the world’s developed and developing economies together. It accounts for two-third of global population, 75% of international trade and 85% of the global GDP. Thus, it is an influential platform for international economic cooperation.

India’s Presidency at G20

While holding the G-20 presidency, India will prepare agenda for the year. It will identify focus areas & themes, work on outcome documents and conduct discussions. The G-20 Leaders’ Summit is also scheduled to be held in India in 2023, for the first time.

Division of G-20 process

The G-20 process has been categorized into Sherpa track and Finance track. Under the Sherpa track, around 100 official meetings will be held in the areas related to health, employment, trade, digital economy, energy, investment & industry, agriculture, environment & climate, anti-corruption, culture, tourism, education, socio-economic development, and women empowerment. On the other hand, under Finance track, 40 meetings will be held in areas of international financial architecture, financing for infrastructure, financial inclusion & sustainable finance, tax matters and climate finance.

Month: Current Affairs - July, 2022

Category: International / World Current Affairs