New Delhi [India]: Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has said that the P20 Summit, which will be held in the national capital on October 13 and 14, will give a new perspective to the world like the historic success of G20 Summit hosted by India last month in which the Leaders’ Declaration “gave a new direction to the global outlook”.
In an exclusive interview with media, Om Birla said that India is the oldest democracy and the aspirations of the last person of the society reach the government through the Parliament.
“After the historic success of the G20 Summit and the adoption of the New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration, we are going to organize the P20 Summit where the presiding officers of both the Houses will be present,” he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the P20 on October 13 in the national capital.
Birla said that there was consensus for the New Delhi G20 Leader’s Declaration and the P20 Summit will also deliberate how global challenges can be addressed through the Declaration.
“In a democracy, discussion, debate, working through collaboration…on this basis in the coming time the P20 Summit also will provide a new approach to the world,” he said.
The Speaker said there will be a discussion on ways to speed up progress on Sustainable Development Goals during the P20 Summit.
“India is the world’s biggest democracy. Issues of the world and current national issues will be discussed at the P20 Summit. Discussions on SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) will be done in the P20 Summit,” he said.
“There was a consensus in the UN that all the countries should work equitably on the Sustainable Development Goals and also make action plans based on their physical and economic resources so that in the coming time, all the countries can achieve the 17 goals regarding poverty, education, health and how we can achieve our goals with a holistic approach to achieve these goals by 2030,” he added.
The Speaker said that there will also be a discussion on challenges like climate change.
“India is the oldest democracy and today we can proudly say that we have adopted the parliamentary democracy system, where the aspirations of the last person of the society reach the government through the Parliament.
In the P20 Summit, there will also be a discussion on climate change and how a developing country like India has given a basic new approach regarding climate change. Our women fought the freedom movement before independence and after independence. Women are leading in every field today. We will present this global perspective on the platform of P20,” he said.
Om Birla said there will be an increase in the representation of women in legislatures in the coming years.
“In the coming times, with the increase in the percentage of women in the Legislative Assembly, their participation will increase further, which will bring better results. There will be discussions on this topic in the P20 Summit,” he said.
The Speaker said there will also be a comprehensive discussion on “digital” transformation.
“The theme of the P20 Summit is One Earth, One Family, One Future and how the parliaments of G20 and the invited countries of G20 will discuss these topics.
We will discuss, communicate and create consensus within our MPs, give a new perspective, and if necessary, make laws so that we can fulfil the vision of a better future that we have imagined and for this, the MPs of the country have an important contribution.
There is going to be a comprehensive discussion on the subject of ‘Digital’ in our P20.
Today you can see the transparency in the government. To bring accountability, we have implemented DBT and while making many laws, we have used digital as much as possible. The more digital is used, the more transparency will be achieved,” he said.
Apart from G-20 countries, 10 other countries and international organizations will participate in the Summit.
There will be four high-level sessions during the P20 Summit: Accelerating SDGs, Sustainable Energy Transition, Women-led Development and Transformation in People’s Lives through Public Digital Platforms.
These sessions will bring together G-20 members and guest countries for wide-ranging discussions on “how Parliaments can effectively advance the objectives of the P-20”.
The Summit will conclude with a joint statement urging G-20 governments to provide solutions to the major global challenges based on equality, inclusivity and peace.
A Parliamentary Forum on LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) will be organized before the Summit on October 12.
An exhibition ‘Mother of Democracy’ will also be organized during the summit to highlight India’s ancient and participatory democratic traditions.
The summit will be held in the newly-constructed India International Convention and Expo Center (IICC), Yashobhoomi, Dwarka in the national capital.
