Development agenda will remain at the core of G20

Washington, Sept 24: Finance Ministers of the G-20 group of nations have reaffirmed that development agenda will remain at the core of their priorities, and development and global economic issues can no longer be treated in isolation.

In a joint communique issued by their finance ministers, including those from the US, China and India, said that G20 will work to promote a strong, balanced and sustainable growth to narrow gaps in levels of prosperity, to foster a shared and inclusive growth, to further reduce poverty, promote gender equality and contribute to job creation.

The First G-20 ministerial was held in Washington Friday at the invitation of France.

Observing that the global economic crisis affected disproportionately the most vulnerable people, the communique said, in the context of global risks, there is a growing need to develop mechanisms to offer better protection and ensure a more inclusive growth path.

The statement said, "In that perspective, we welcome proposals to implement and expand national social protection floors defined by the countries themselves according to their individual circumstances, to reduce the cost of remittances transfer, to promote private investment, job creation and human resource development, to enhance domestic resource mobilisation and to enable a growth- enhancing regional and global trade environment."

PTI