Indonesia’s Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati delivers a speech during the opening of the Group of 20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in Nusa Dua, on the Indonesian resort island of Bali, on July 15, 2022.
Done Nagi | AFP | Getty Images
BALI, Indonesia — Finance chiefs at the Group of 20 meeting in Bali “strongly condemned” the war in Ukraine and expressed concern about the “alarming increase in food and energy insecurity.”
This was said in a statement released by G20 host Indonesia on Sunday.
The group, which met for two days in the island resort of Bali, failed to reach consensus on several issues and did not issue a joint statement. The previous meeting of G20 financial leaders in Washington in April also ended without the publication of a joint communique.
Instead, a statement released by Bank Indonesia on Sunday summarized the main discussion points from several rounds of private meetings. In particular, the group’s finance chiefs and central bank leaders pledged to tackle food insecurity and high prices, which continue to “disproportionately” affect vulnerable countries.
“Many members agreed that the recovery of the global economy has been delayed and faces a serious setback as a result of Russia’s war against Ukraine, which has been strongly condemned, and called for an end to the war,” Indonesia’s headquarters said in a statement. said the bank.
Many members are ready to take swift collective action on food security, including by working with other initiatives.
Bank of Indonesia
host of the G20
“Members noted that existing challenges have intensified, including supply-demand mismatches, supply disruptions, and increased commodity and energy prices, which have contributed to rising inflationary pressures and contributed to the growing risk of food insecurity.”
“Many members noted the importance of continued action on climate change as well as addressing debt vulnerabilities,” it said.
All members of the meeting – including Russia and Ukraine, in effect – pledged to use all available political tools to address the food crisis. However, there is no indication that any commitments have been made to ensure that future sanctions against Russia involving food and key supplies are avoided.
The upheaval of supply chains during the pandemic — now exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine crisis — has slowed and limited the delivery of food, fertilizer and fuel to many parts of the world, including countries in Africa and the Middle East.
“Many members are ready to take swift collective action on food security, including by working with other initiatives,” the statement said.
In general, all G20 central banks agreed to tackle inflation and calibrate monetary policies to rein in rising prices.
From climate change to digital currencies
Central bank governors and finance ministers also reaffirmed their commitment to bringing the Covid-19 pandemic under control.
“We welcome the establishment of the Financial Intermediary Fund (FIF) for Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response, developed by the G20 Joint Task Force on Finance and Health and hosted by the World Bank,” Indonesia’s statement said.
The FIF — funded voluntarily by members — will provide adequate, sustainable and better coordinated funding for the pandemic response.
Climate change was discussed and members committed to meeting their COP26 commitments to achieve carbon neutrality and zero targets.
The group pledged to phase out and rationalize over the medium term “inefficient fossil fuel subsidies that encourage wasteful consumption”.
“We continue to recall and reaffirm the commitment made by developed countries to the goal of jointly mobilizing $100 billion in climate finance annually by 2020 and annually by 2025 to meet the needs of developing countries, in the context of meaningful mitigation actions,” the statement said.
The group acknowledged progress in the use of digitization in financial transactions worldwide and agreed to step up efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.
“We welcome continued discussions on central bank digital currencies as they may be designed to facilitate cross-border payments while preserving the stability of the international monetary and financial system,” the statement said.
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