‘The G-20 summit sans America’

This is apropos two back-to-back letters to the Editor from this writer carried by the newspaper on Thursday and yesterday. The G-20 summit also produced a roadmap to reduce global tariffs — a direct counterpoint to Donald Trump’s aggressive tariff wars. Leaders agreed that escalating tariffs undermine supply chains, inflate consumer prices, suffocate export markets, and weaken global economic stability.

By committing to reduce trade barriers and revive the core principles of the World Trade Organization, the G-20 openly challenged the direction of US trade policy and reaffirmed that globalisation, though evolving, is far from dead.

Food security emerged as another defining pillar. The G-20 endorsed a multi-continental fertilizer and grain corridor network that would ensure developing nations have the ability not only to access essential agricultural inputs but also to build their own production capacity. The initiative aims to strengthen local seed development, introduce climate-resilient crops, and reduce dependency on vulnerable supply chains. It was a reminder that global hunger is not caused by scarcity, but by inequity, mismanagement, and geopolitics — and that collective action remains the only antidote.

Pandemic preparedness also received unprecedented attention. The G-20 agreed on a universal pathogen-sharing system, vaccine production guarantees for countries that cannot afford them, and the creation of global emergency stockpiles. COVID-19 had exposed the brutal reality that the world was divided between vaccine “haves” and “have-nots.” This summit promised not to repeat that inequality, committing to a global health shield that can activate instantly in the face of new threats.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025