The Business 20 (B20) - Russia Business Dialogue took place on 7 September. The dialogue was titled “The contribution of global governance institutions to post-crisis development.”
Excerpts from the transcript:
Alexei Overchuk: Colleagues,
On behalf of the Government, I would like to welcome the participants of the Business 20 (B20) – Russia Business Dialogue, in particular, Chair of the B20 Emma Marcegaglia, Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in the G20 (Russia’s G20 Sherpa) Svetlana Lukash and President of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs Alexander Shokhin, and all colleagues present here.
I had a chance to speak at a traditional B20 Regional Consultation Forum hosted by the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs and the B20 Chair, at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum this year. It focused on issues such as energy and resource efficiency, trade and investment, and education and employment. Today's event is its logical continuation.
Of course, financing and infrastructure, digital transformation, healthcare and natural sciences are also among the priorities of our country’s cooperation with international partners. The importance of formats such as today's dialogue for raising the awareness of Russian and Eurasian authorities and the public about the progress of work, priorities and recommendations of the B20 cannot be overestimated. In this regard, I would like to express support for the work of my colleagues from the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, who, alongside the B20 Chair, regularly hold such events.
International multilateral cooperation is a necessary mechanism for maintaining the sustainable development of the global economy and national economies.
The multilateral formats of cooperation make it possible to develop comprehensive and mutually acceptable decisions on key international matters, thus significantly reducing transaction costs for their participants.
The Russian Federation is a member of many key multilateral institutions of international economic cooperation, including the EAEU, the WTO, the EEC and the UN. We strive to actively engage with the UN, and, of course, the G20.
Today, the G20 is one of the most influential multilateral institutions of international cooperation uniting leading economies, on the platforms of which decisions on the most important international issues are being developed.
At the same time, interaction groups, the key of which is B20, not only contribute to the cooperation processes as a source of expertise, but also contribute to understanding and public support for the G20 decisions as they promote the comprehensive, inclusive and synergistic interaction in various areas of international cooperation.
An important and notable aspect of the G20's activities is the desire to reflect the national specifics and development goals in the implementation of the decisions. The one-size-fits-all approach has repeatedly proved its ineffectiveness. For this reason, the adaptive and flexible nature of the proposed B20 solutions makes it possible to significantly improve efficiency when implementing them in practice.
Many B20 recommendations are based on a multisectoral approach, addressing not only individual target groups, but system-wide issues as well, thus contributing to building a holistic picture of cooperation
I cannot but note that cooperation within the G20 and interaction groups impacts Eurasian integration as well. I believe it is promising to use in Eurasian economic integration the key recommendations and approaches to development that are put forward within the G20 framework.
The agenda of our work at the G20 and EAEU institutions is closely interconnected. In December 2020, the leaders of the EAEU countries adopted the Strategic Areas for Eurasian Economic Integration to 2025. An action plan for their implementation was approved in April. Many areas of cooperation in these documents directly intersect with areas of interaction within the G20 and B20.
Key intersections in relation to the agenda that is being discussed today include areas of the EAEU's work such as creating the digital space of the union, digital infrastructure and ecosystems; building an effective system for managing joint cooperation projects and financing them; creating and developing highly productive economic sectors; developing and implementing major infrastructure projects; developing flexible mechanisms for targeted assistance to economic development; developing economic cooperation in the field of healthcare; and much more.
It is important for us that Russian business, coordinated by the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, is actively working in the B20. I’m sure that many ideas and business proposals will be further developed in the G20 documents and the corresponding obligations of its participants. In this regard, I would like to thank the Italian side for organising high-quality work and the opportunity to get acquainted with the recommendations before the summit. For the Russian Government, this is very important, since we will be implementing the decisions adopted at the G20 leaders’ summit.
Thank you.
