ANTARA
The third Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting within the framework of Indonesia’s G20 Presidency kicked off in Nusa Dua, Badung, Bali, on July 15, 2022.
The meeting aimed to seek ways to promote better global economic recovery amid the issues or challenges that have become more apparent nowadays.
“G20 needs to (apply more measures) by taking real actions based on the spirit of coordination, collaboration, and consensus in order to solve global issues,” Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati delivered the statement during the opening of the meeting on Friday.
At the third FMCBG meeting, several delegations were physically present, thereby making it the one with the most number of physical attendees during the course of Indonesia’s presidency.
In total, 407 delegates were physically present in Bali, and 120 attended the event through virtual means. Some 19 finance ministers and 11 governors of Central Banks were also physically present.
The 19 finance ministers were from South Africa, the United States, Saudi Arabia, Australia, India, Indonesia, Italy, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Canada, France, Russia, Turkey, the European Union, the Netherlands, Senegal, Switzerland, and Ukraine.
The 11 governors of central banks that were invited were from South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Australia, the Netherlands, India, Indonesia, the United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, South Korea, and France.
The Indonesian G20 Presidency once more invited the finance minister of Ukraine, which is not a member of G20, to attend the meeting through virtual means.
Minister Indrawati stated that the presence of majority of the delegations from G20 member countries, guest nations, and international organizations demonstrated global commitment and willingness to support the Indonesian G20 Presidency as well as promote a sustainable economy, especially in the midst of global challenges.
Support recovery
Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor Perry Warjiyo urged all G20 members to commit to work together to support global economic recovery in order to realize sustainable, balanced and inclusive world economy.
“It is important for us to stay focused on what we have planned to achieve this year,” Warjiyo remarked.
Such a focus, according to Warjiyo, will send a positive message to global community about the role and efforts of G20 to support recovery.
At the meeting, the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors discussed five main topics, namely COVID-19 exit strategies for financial stability, climate-related financial risks, crypto assets, financial inclusion and digitization, and initiatives to address new data gaps.
On the issue of COVID-19 exit strategy for financial stability, Warjiyo said that the Financial Stability Board (FSB) continues to coordinate in dealing with financial regulatory and supervisory matters through COVID-19 response measures and monitoring developments to support global recovery and maintain financial stability.
“As mandated by the FMCBG meeting in February, the FSB has submitted an interim report on the COVID-19 exit strategy and setbacks in the financial sector. The report is outlining effective practices and providing policy recommendations in the financial sector to achieve a sustainable and inclusive equitable distribution of recovery,” he said.
Moreover, regarding climate-related financial risks, Warjiyo said that the G20 finance ministers and central bank heads were asked to provide views to accelerate the implementation of the roadmap that has been prepared by the FSB in order to overcome the financial risks of climate change.
On the issue of crypto assets, the G20 ministers and central bank heads were encouraged to seek strategies to promote a consistent regulatory and supervisory approach to crypto asset activities, which will be important as part of maintaining global financial stability.
Regarding financial inclusion and digitization, the G20 members discussed efforts on accelerating MSMEs access to financing through digital financial services that will encourage inclusive recovery and sustainable growth.
Warjiyo also pointed out a need for ways to overcome the risk of financial exclusion, especially for vulnerable and underserved groups.
Lastly, on the topic of initiatives to address new data gaps, the G20 members discussed efforts to increase data availability which covers environmental issues and the use of digitization.
