Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman participated virtually in the First G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting under the Italian Presidency here today to discuss policy actions for transformative and equitable recovery along with other issues on the agenda including global economic outlook, financial sector issues, financial inclusion and sustainable finance.

Smt. Sitharaman spoke about India’s policy response to the pandemic. The Finance Minister said that India’s domestic policies have been based broadly on supporting citizens through measures such as credit guarantees, direct transfers, food guarantees, economic stimulus packages and accelerating structural reform. Smt. Sitharaman also spoke about India’s vaccination programme, which is the world’s largest and the most ambitious vaccination drive. The Finance Minister also mentioned that India has extended vaccine support to several countries.

During this meeting, G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors also discussed the implications of climate change on global growth and financial stability. Speaking on the Presidency’s proposal to undertake systematic policy dialogue on climate risk and environment taxation, Smt. Sitharaman suggested that these conversations should remain within the ambit of Paris Agreement and should be based on the principles of common but differentiated responsibility, respective capability, and the voluntary nature of the commitments. The Finance Minister also stressed the importance of transfer of green technologies and scaling up of climate finance.

Climate policy dialogue must stay within Paris Agreement principles and emphasise green technology transfer and scaled climate finance. India outlined pandemic-response fiscal measures-direct transfers, food support, credit guarantees, stimulus and reforms-and stated that multilateral dialogue on climate risk and environment taxation must remain within the framework of the Paris Agreement, follow the principles of common but differentiated responsibility and respective capability, and prioritise transfer of green technologies and scaling up climate finance.