Bengaluru, 24-25 May 2023: Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) Senior Policy Advisor Anita Prakash represented ERIA at the second G20 Trade and Investment Working Group (TIWG) Meeting under India’s presidency. Deliberations during the conference included the World Trade Organization (WTO) reforms, the 5th Priority Issue under India’s G20 Presidency, and the agreed conclusions from the 1st TIWG meeting held in Mumbai earlier this year.

ERIA joined the technical session on resilient global value chains (GVCs). 

Shri Sunil Barthwal, Secretary, Department of Commerce, and TIWG chair led discussions on the critical role of the WTO in promoting economic growth and sustainable development. The working group meeting deliberated on transparent, inclusive and development-oriented reforms which safeguard the interests of all members, particularly those of developing and least developed countries.

Continuing the discussions from the first TIWG, five technical sessions were organised during the three-day event on: the high-level principles of digitalisation of trade documents; an action plan to create a meta information portal for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs); a framework for mapping GVCs; a compendium of best practices on mutual recognition agreements; and G20 regulatory dialogue. 

For the high-level principles on digitalisation of trade documents, a joint presentation on bringing forth the potential benefit of paperless systems was made by the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

The TIWG meeting collectively recognised the challenges faced by MSMEs across member countries with respect to access to information, and agreed to develop an action plan to put in place a meta information portal for MSMEs. A joint presentation was made by the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER) and the International Trade Centre (ITC) on this issue. Many countries supported India’s initiatives to address this challenge, and there emerged a broad consensus that G20 offers a remarkable opportunity for accelerating the integration of MSMEs in global trade by addressing the information asymmetry faced by them. 

The G20 members appreciated a presentation on India’s efforts toward developing the mapping framework for GVCs. Delegates collectively agreed G20 offers a meaningful platform for improving the resilience of GVCs in the face of disruptions and future pandemics. Member countries broadly expressed their willingness to share experiences and best practices on mutual recognition arrangements (MRAs) in professional services.

Over 75 delegates from G20 member countries, invitee countries, regional groupings, and international organisations participated in the meeting.