1. India’s G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant chairs inter-ministerial meeting to review G20 preparations
Tags: Summits Person in news
India’s G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant on 24 September 2022 chaired an inter-ministerial meeting with the chairpersons of all Working Groups under India’s upcoming G20 Presidency and discussed substantive and logistical aspects of the preparations for it.
This year, the G20 Summit will be hosted by Indonesia in Bali in the month of November. India will assume the Presidency of the G20 for one year from December 1, 2022, to 30 November 2023.
G 20 Sherpa and its work
The Government of India appointed former NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant as the Sherpa of G-20 in July this year. He will be responsible for conducting and coordinating the Sherpa track meetings of the forthcoming G-20 Summit to be hosted by India.
With the G-20 presidency coming to India in November 2022, India will set the agenda of G-20 for the year, identify the themes and focus areas, conduct discussions and work out outcome documents. To prepare for this the G20 process has been divided into the Sherpa track and the Finance track.
Sherpa Track
Under the Sherpa track, about 100 official meetings are expected to be organized in the areas of employment, health, digital economy, trade, investment & industry, environment & climate, energy, anti-corruption, agriculture, tourism, culture, and socio-economic development, education, and women empowerment.
Finance Track
Under the Finance track, about 40 meetings are expected to be organized including those in the areas of international financial architecture, financial inclusion and sustainable finance, financing for infrastructure, climate finance and tax matters.
G-20 is a group of 19 countries and the European Union.
2. Piyush Goel attends G 20 ministers WTO Dispute Settlement reforms meeting in Bali
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The Indian Commerce minister Piyush Goel in a tweet said that he participated in a discussion on WTO’s Dispute Settlement Reform that was convened by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai on the sidelines of the G20 ministerial meeting in Bali, Indonesia on 21 September 2022.
The 12th World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial conference held in Geneva, Switzerland from 12-17 June 2022, had promised to revive the dispute settlement body in the next two years.
WTO Dispute Settlement System
WTO is a global body which was set up in 1995 to promote rule based trading systems in the world and it also settles trade related disputes between the member countries.
A member country can complain against another member country to the WTO if it believes that the country is not following WTO rules regarding trade.
The Dispute Settlement Mechanism is a two tier process in the WTO.
First, the member countries are encouraged to settle their dispute through consultation.
If this fails then the WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body appoints a panel to look into the dispute.
The countries have the right to appeal against the ruling of the panel to an Appellate Body set up by the Dispute Settlement Body. The ruling of the Appellate body is binding on the countries of WTO.
Objection of the United States to the Dispute Settlement System
The United States government has blocked the appointment of members to the Appellate Body since 2019. The Appellate body structure is at present not working but the panel system is still functioning.
The United States wants to abolish the Appellate system of the WTO as it believes that it has become synonymous with litigation and has become prolonged, complicated and expensive.
However the developing countries are of the view that a two tier dispute settlement system is essential for the functioning of the WTO dispute settlement system.
World Trade Organisation (WTO)
- It was set up on 1st January 1995 replacing the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT).
- Its main purpose is to promote rule based trading systems in the world and it also settles trade related disputes between the member countries.
- The headquarters of WTO is in Geneva, Switzerland.
- There are 164 member countries.
- Director General of WTO : Dr Ngozi -Okonjo-Iweala of of Nigeria
- Report released by WTO : World Trade Report
3. First India-Australia-Indonesia foreign minister’s trilateral meeting held in New York
Tags: place in news Summits Person in news International News
External Affairs Minister S.Jaishanker held the first trilateral meeting of the foreign ministers of India, Indonesia and Australia in New York on 23 September 2022.
IMPORTANT FACTS -
- In a tweet the minister said that he discussed the maritime issue, blue water economy with the Indonesian foreign minister Retno Marsudi and the Australian foreign minister Penny Wong and emphasized the centrality of ASEAN in the Indo-Pacific region.
- World leaders are in New York to participate in the High Level Week at the 77th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
4. Foreign Minister Jaishankar attends high level L-69 group meeting in New York
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External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar attended the High Level Meeting of the L.69 Group on "Reinvigorating Multilateralism and Achieving Comprehensive Reform of the UN Security Council” in New York, United States of America on 23 September 2022.
IMPORTANT FACTS -
- The L.69 Group consists of developing countries from Asia, Africa, Latin America, Caribbean and Small Island Developing States, focused on reforms of the UN Security Council.
- Dr S. Jaishankar is on an official visit to the United States from 18-28 September 2022. He is leading the India delegation for the High Level Week at the 77th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
5. First ‘Global Clean Energy Action Forum -2022’ starts at Pittsburgh, United States
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The three day (21-23 September) ‘Global Clean Energy Action Forum -2022 organised by the United States government’s Department of Energy and Carnegie Mellon University, started on 21 September 2022 at Pittsburgh, United States .
Under the Global Clean Energy Action Forum a joint meeting of the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM13) and Mission Innovation (MI-7) are being held.
It is being attended by energy and science ministers from 31 countries to discuss ways to achieve a net zero carbon target for the world.
India is being led by Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh.
He met US Energy Minister Jennifer Granholm and other important dignitaries.
The theme for CEM13/MI-7 is Rapid Innovation and Deployment.
IMPORTANT FACTS -
- Pittsburgh is also known both as "the Steel City" and as the "City of Bridges".
- Jamshedpur in India is also called as Pittsburgh of India.
6. 10th IBSA Trilateral Ministerial Commission meeting held in New York
Tags: International Relations Summits International News
The 10th India-Brazil-South Africa Dialogue Forum (IBSA) Trilateral Ministerial Commission meeting was held in New York on 21 September.
IMPORTANT FACTS -
- The meeting was chaired by External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar.
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Brazil Carlos Alberto Franco França and Minister of Health of South Africa Dr Joe Phaahla were also present during the meeting.
The Ministers reviewed the entire gamut of IBSA cooperation.
The aspirations of African countries to have a permanent presence on the UN Security Council were endorsed by the ministers.
They also supported the efforts of India and Brazil to obtain permanent membership in the Security Council.
India will host the sixth IBSA summit on the sidelines of the G20 summit in November this year.
Agenda of the meeting :
The agenda of the meeting was on mutual interests including cooperation in multilateral organizations, South-South cooperation, UNSC reform, 2030 agenda, Sustainable Development Goals, climate change, countering terrorism, and financing for developmental activities.
They held discussions on regional issues like the African Union, the Middle East peace process, and the situation in Ukraine.
About IBSA Trilateral Ministerial Commission :
It is a trilateral, developmental initiative between India, Brazil and South Africa to promote South-South cooperation and exchange.
This grouping was formally renamed the IBSA Dialogue Forum when the foreign ministers of the three countries met in Brasilia (Brazil) on 6 June 2003 and issued the Brasilia Declaration.
7. National Conference of Environment Ministers to be held in Gujarat
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The two day (23-24 September) National Conference of Environment Ministers will be held in Ekta Nagar, Gujarat.
The conference will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 23 September 2022 virtually.
The two-day conference is being held to create a synergy among the central and state governments in formulating better policies on issues such as the elimination of plastic pollution through a multi-pronged approach.
It will also focus on increasing the forest cover with special emphasis on restoration of degraded land and wildlife conservation.
IMPORTANT FACTS -
Theme of the conference :
- The conference will have six thematic sessions with topics focusing on LiFE, Combating Climate Change (Updating State Action Plans on Climate Change for Mitigation of Emissions and Adaptation to Climate Impacts) ; PARIVESH (Single Window System for Integrated Green Clearances) ; Forestry Management ; Prevention and Control of Pollution; Wildlife Management ; Plastics and Waste Management.
8. External Affairs Minister Jaishankar hold first trilateral ministerial meeting with France and UAE
Tags: Summits
Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar , who is on a 11 day (18-28 September) visit to the United States ,participated in the first trilateral Ministerial meeting of India-UAE-France in New York, United States.
IMPORTANT FACTS -
- The meeting was also attended by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) foreign minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan and the French foreign minister Catherine Colonna.
- World leaders are gathering in New York to attend the 77 United Nation General Assembly meeting in New York.
9. Indian Presidency of ‘AIBD’ extended by one more year
Tags: Summits
India has been again chosen as the President of the Asia-Pacific Institute of Broadcasting Development (AIBD) for the next one year. Currently, Chief Executive Officer, Prasar Bharati and Director General, Doordarshan, Mayank Kumar Agrawal is the President of AIBD.
The decision to extend India’s Presidency was taken at the two day (19-20 September) 47th Annual General Conference of the AIBD held in New Delhi on 20 September.
The Conference was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur.
IMPORTANT FACTS -
Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) :
- The Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) was established in August 1977 under the auspices of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).
- The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) are the founding organisations of the Institute.
- At present 26 countries are its members.
- Headquarters : Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
10. Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Tomar inaugurates the 9th Session of Governing Body of the ITPGRFA
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Union Agriculture and Farmer Welfare minister Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurated the 9th Session of the Governing Body (GB9) of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) in New Delhi on 19 September 2022. The 9th session will be held from 19-24th September, 2022.
IMPORTANT FACTS -
- The 8th Session of the Governing Body (GB9) of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) was held in Rome, Italy in 2019.
- The theme of the 9th Session of the Governing Body (GB9) of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture: Celebrating the Guardians of Crop Diversity: Towards an Inclusive Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework”.
- Kindly also see 16 September 2022 post
