iNDICA NEWS BUREAU-
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will attend a string of meetings in Washington DC with G20 Finance Ministers, Central Bank Governors, IMF, World Bank, investors and bilateral meetings with many countries.
Sitharaman will embark on an official visit to the US, from April 10-16, 2023. During the visit she will attend the 2023 Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group (WBG) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), along with G20 meetings, Investor, and Bilateral meetings. The events are scheduled to be held in the WBG and IMF Headquarters in Washington DC. The Spring Meetings will be attended by Finance Ministers and Central Bankers from across the world.
Sitharaman will lead an Indian Finance Ministry delegation that will consist of the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs and officials from the Ministry of Finance, and RBI officials.
Sitharaman and Governor, Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Shri Shaktikanta Das, will jointly chair the 2nd G20 FMCBG meeting on April 12-13, 2023 which will be attended by 350 delegates from G20 nations, 13 invitee countries, and various international and regional organizations.
During her visit, the minister will also participate in a fireside chat at the Peterson Institute of International Economics (PIIE) on April 10, 2023. On April 11, 2023, the she will meet the US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to discuss issues of mutual interest. She is scheduled to attend a meeting of the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable, co-chaired by India, International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank on April 12, 2023, to discuss the current global debt landscape and ways to address existing challenges in debt restructuring.
On April 14, 2023, a high-level seminar on “Macro-financial implications of Crypto assets” will be held to review the macro-financial implications of Crypto Assets and discuss policies to leverage benefits and contain risks. Smt. Sitharaman will also meet the G20 Expert Group on strengthening MDBs on April 15, 2023, to discuss the need for an updated MDBs ecosystem for the 21st century towards financing sustainable development goals and transboundary challenges.
Besides these, Sitharaman will also participate in a seminar on ‘Stacking up the benefits of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI)’ organized by the IMF on April 14, 2023. The Seminar aims to discuss lessons from India and other countries on the transformational power of DPI and ways to maximize its potential.
Other side events that will be held on the margins of the IMF-WB Spring Meetings include an event on ‘Enhancing the Economic Empowerment of Women as Entrepreneurs and Leaders’ (April 13, 2023), ‘LiFE (Lifestyle for Enviornment) event on Behavioral Change to Tackle Climate Change’ (April 14, 2023), and ‘Launch of debt restructuring negotiation process on Sri Lanka’ (April 13, 2023).
The 2nd G20 FMCBG meeting will comprise of three sessions – Global Economy and International Financial Architecture; Sustainable Finance, Financial Sector and Financial Inclusion; and International Taxation.
The focus of these sessions will be to address food and energy insecurity, managing global debt vulnerabilities, strengthening Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs), mobilizing finance for climate action, advancing financial inclusion, and accelerating progress on International Tax and Financial Sector issues. The meeting will take stock of the progress made on outcomes envisaged under India’s G20 Finance Track agenda.
The 2nd G20 FMCBG meeting will advance efforts towards the preparation of G20 India Finance Track deliverables for the 3rd G20 FMCBG meeting to be held in Gandhinagar, India, in July 2023. These meetings are expected to provide informed Finance Track contributions to the Leaders Declaration set for adoption in the New Delhi Summit in September 2023.
On the sidelines of the Spring Annual Meetings, Sitharaman will take part in bilateral engagements with her counterparts from G20 countries and heads of other delegations, including major international organizations, to discuss issues and areas of mutual interest and cooperation under India’s G20 Presidency.
Key engagements of Sitharaman:
Spring Meetings of IMF-WB;
Hosting the Second G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting under India’s G20 Presidency and G20-related side events;
World Bank Development Committee and IMF Committee Plenaries
Interaction with Global Economists and Think-Tanks,
Bilateral engagements with countries and international organizations;
Interaction with global business leaders and investors in roundtables; and
Engagement with Indian Diaspora.
