India Engages in Bilateral Talks at G20 Agriculture Meeting

September 16, 2024

During the G20 Agriculture Ministerial Meeting held in Cuiabá, Brazil, on 12-13 September 2024, India participated in a series of important meetings with key global partners. These discussions focused on improving cooperation in agriculture, dealing with the challenges of climate change, and reducing trade barriers between countries.

Key Participants and Topics

India’s Agriculture Minister, Ram Nath Thakur, led the delegation and met with US, Brazil, Japan, Germany, the UK, Spain, and the UAE officials. The main topics of discussion included:

Climate-smart agriculture: Ways to make farming more adaptable to climate change.
Food processing: Sharing and improving methods to process food.
Trade negotiations: Talking about the exchange of goods between countries.
Technological advancements: Exploring new technologies to help farming.

India-Brazil Collaboration: ICAR-EMBRAPA Agreement

One of the important outcomes of the meetings was progress toward finalizing an agreement between India’s agricultural research body, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), and Brazil’s agricultural research company, EMBRAPA. This agreement, called a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), will help both countries share ideas and innovations in agriculture. It is expected to be completed before the G20 Leaders’ Summit in November 2024.

Trade Discussions

India and Brazil also discussed ways to improve trade. India wants to sell more products like sorghum (a grain) and rapeseed (used for oil) in Brazil, while Brazil wants to sell more citrus fruits (like oranges) in India. These talks aim to make it easier for both countries to trade agricultural products.

Focus on Climate-Smart Agriculture

The topic of climate-smart agriculture was very important during the meetings. Both India and the US agreed that working together on new agricultural innovations and creating better crop insurance systems could help farmers adapt to climate change.

Technological Collaboration

The meetings highlighted the need for countries to work together on agricultural technology:

India and Germany agreed to collaborate on using artificial intelligence (AI) in farming.
India and the UK discussed precision breeding and gene-editing technologies to improve crops.
Japan showed interest in learning from India’s food processing techniques.

Future Collaborations with the UAE and Spain

The UAE expressed interest in working with India on sustainable agriculture and vertical farming (growing crops in layers).

With Spain, the talks focused on resolving issues related to veterinary certificates (important for trading animal products) and exploring new genomic techniques to help farmers grow crops that can handle climate challenges.

Importance of the G20 Summit

The G20 Leaders’ Summit in November 2024 will be an important event where global leaders can discuss key issues like economic growth, trade, and financial systems. The meetings in Brazil were a step toward improving international cooperation, particularly in agriculture.

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