G20 Summit 'fruitful' in addressing issues of global importance: PM Modi

Rome: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has described the outcome of the G20 Summit here as "fruitful" and said world leaders had elaborate deliberations on issues of global importance such as fighting the pandemic, improving health infrastructure, boosting economic cooperation and furthering innovation.

The G-20 leaders during their two-day summit that concluded on Sunday, adopted the 'Rome Declaration' which gives a very strong message under the health section with the countries agreeing that the COVID-19 immunisation is a global public good.

"Leaving for Glasgow after a fruitful @g20org Summit in Rome. During the Summit, we were able to have elaborate deliberations on issues of global importance such as fighting the pandemic, improving health infrastructure, boosting economic cooperation and furthering innovation," Modi tweeted.

Commenting on the outcome of the summit, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi said: "It wasn't easy to reach this agreement, it is a success. Over recent years, #G20 countries' capacity to work together had diminished, but something changed at this summit: #G20 countries were once again able to tackle global challenges together."

"Under the #G20Italy presidency, we reformed the international tax system, overcame health protectionism, secured more vaccines for the world's poorest, laid the foundations for a more equitable recovery, and found new ways to support the world's poorest," Draghi tweeted.

The G-20 leaders have agreed that the World Health Organisation would be strengthened to fast-track the process for emergency use authorisation for Covid-19 vaccines, India's G-20 Sherpa Piyush Goyal said on Sunday.

Noting that energy and climate were the centre of the discussions at the G-20, Goyal said India and many other developing countries pushed for safeguarding the interest of the developing world.

"We were also joined by the developed countries to increase the ambition from the current levels of commitment and active interest that the developed world has shown in terms of providing technology and affordable finance,'' he said.

"We have really got into the text the language that confirms that the developed world has acknowledged that they have not done enough in terms of meeting their commitments and that they will have to be more forthcoming in providing finance in providing technology and (be) the enablers to make the transition to a clean energy world in the future," he said.

Goyal said it was also decided that the recognition of Covid vaccines which are deemed to be safe and efficacious by the WHO will be mutually accepted subject to national and privacy laws that the countries may have.

Reacting to the G20 Declaration, the Director General of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted that the G20RomeSummit Declaration recognised WHO's central role in the ongoing response to the COVID19 crisis and in protecting the world from future pandemics.

"Vaccines will help to end the #COVID19 pandemic, but the ultimate vaccine against pandemics and all health threats is leadership. The world needs @g20org leadership, now more than ever," he tweeted.

"I thank @g20org Leaders for agreeing to scale up global action to ensure #VaccineEquity by meeting @WHO vaccination targets in all countries," he said in another tweet.

"To help advance toward the global goals of vaccinating at least 40 per cent of the population in all countries by the end of 2021 and 70 per cent by mid-2022, as recommended by the World Health Organisation's (WHO) global vaccination strategy, we will take steps to help boost the supply of vaccines and essential medical products and inputs in developing countries and remove relevant supply and financing constraints," the G20 leaders said in their Declaration on Sunday.

But the WHO chief said "urgent, unprecedented action" is needed now by the countries manufacturing the vaccines against the deadly pandemic.

According to Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 tracker, more than 246,713,600 confirmed cases and over 4,999,900 deaths have been reported from across the world.