The G20 Steering Committee for the UAE’s participation in the G20 group held its second meeting chaired by Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, to review the priorities and objectives of the UAE’s participation in the G20 Summit to be held in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, 21 and 22 November.
The G20 Steering Committee
In his speech during the meeting, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan stressed the importance of the UAE’s participation in the work of the G20, noting that this second participation is gaining more significance as it comes in light of the world being affected by the pandemic of the emerging Coronavirus.
Abdullah bin Zayed chairs the 2nd meeting of the G20 Steering Committee
He said that the participation of Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, in the extraordinary virtual G20 Steering Committee leaders’ summit held last March, confirms the importance of this event and the great attention that the responsible leadership attaches to participating in it.
He added, “On this occasion, I am pleased to welcome my fellow government members who have enjoyed the confidence of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President of the UAE and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, praising the efforts of all ministers and relevant work teams during this meeting.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan thanked Saudi Arabia for cooperation and their strong desire to participate the Emirates as a guest in the work of the Group of Twenty, indicating that we are looking through this membership to double our expertise and knowledge in many areas and to enhance the Emirates’s confidence, appreciation and international respect.
The UAE and the G20 Steering Committee .. Important participation in difficult times
The meeting discussed the updated strategy for the UAE’s participation in the G20 Steering Committee, which the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation is constantly updating in light of the recent rapid changes in the world and the repercussions of the pandemic “COVID-19” and the subsequent changes to the agenda of the Group of Twenty, and the priorities of the UAE’s participation in Group business.
Ahmed bin Ali Al Sayegh, Minister of State and President of the Emirati Sherpa of the G20 Steering Committee confirmed in an intervention during the meeting that the “COVID-19” pandemic had fundamentally affected the group’s activities and the result of which a group of extraordinary meetings were held, led by the extraordinary virtual summit held by the leaders of the G20 with the participation of Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces in March 2020.
Ahmed bin Ali Al-Sayegh emphasized that the UAE’s participation in the Sherpa track has achieved remarkable, noting that the UAE participated in almost all the Sherpa path meetings and the participating Emirati entities contributed significantly in formulating the outputs of the meetings and events of the Group of Twenty.
UAE priorities in the G20
The ministers participating in the G20 Steering Committee meeting discussed ways to enhance Emirati participation in the work of the G20 during the remainder of the year, noting the importance of the role played by the state through the representation of small and less represented countries in the activities of the Group of Twenty, including the main summit of leaders of the group and expected to be held in November This year.
The meeting also included a review of UAE priorities within the second extraordinary Sherpa meeting of the Group of Twenty, scheduled for July 24, 2020.
During the meeting, Obaid Humaid Al Tayer, UAE Minister of State for Financial Affairs, reviewed the most prominent outputs and recommendations presented by the Emirates represented by the Ministry of Finance during her participation in the financial track meetings of the G20 Steering Committee.
He pointed out that the Ministry of Finance has participated in all 36 meetings of the financial track for the G20 Steering Committee, since Saudi Arabia assumed the presidency of the G20 in December 2019, and the Ministry of Finance is working in cooperation with 21 ministries and federal and local destinations to build UAE policy on the topics of the group’s financial path The twentieth and display the UAE best practices on this global platform, which enhances the country’s competitive position and leadership at the global level.
He reviewed the work of the Ministry of Finance in the Global Partnership Program for Financial Inclusion in the G20 and issues related to digital financial inclusion for youth, women and small and medium-sized companies, in addition to the latest developments on the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development project on the axes 1 and 2 of international tax policies and combating the erosion of the tax base and the transfer of profits.
Axis 1 concerns the creation of the right to impose a tax on companies operating in the digital economy and companies facing the consumer based on the place of residence of the final consumer, and the axis 2 regarding the adoption of a minimum tax imposed on companies regardless of the company’s headquarters.
He also reviewed the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development’s initiative to postpone the payment of debts owed to developing countries and companies benefiting from the Fund’s loans during the year 2020 to help them overcome the economic repercussions of the emerging epidemic of the Corona epidemic “Covid-19”.
The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development initiative is in line with the position of the UAE government in support of the G20 decision within the initiative launched by the World Bank within the International Financial Structure Working Group aimed at suspending debt payments due to developing countries to help them meet their development needs and reduce their debt burdens and enable them to address the effects of COVID-19 without Financial pressures.
It is noteworthy that in December of 2019, Saudi Arabia extended an invitation to the UAE to participate in the work of the G20 in 2020, in light of the UAE taking over the presidency of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf. The first meeting of the steering committee for the UAE’s participation in the G20 Steering Committee was held on February 18.
