India's leadership needed to keep G-20 together, quicken SDG agenda: UN official

Affirming support for India's G20 presidency, UN's deputy secretary general Amina J Mohammed on Tuesday said the country's leadership can help keep the grouping together and speed up work on green goals.

Delivering a video message at the G20 development group meet here, Mohammed welcomed that three developing countries – India, Brazil and South Africa - are presiding over the grouping in three consecutive terms, and affirmed the UN's support.

"We need India's leadership in this pivotal historic moment to keep the G20 together and fulfill its promise of delivering a stable and equal world for all,” Mohammed said.

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"We are midway through the sustainable development goals (SDG) target for 2030 and there is a need for doubling down on efforts to put the ambitious back on track”.

This can be done by arranging sustainable finance solutions, she said, hoping that India's G-20 presidency will find right solutions for the same.

"The time has come to infuse new energies into green development. The UN stands ready to support India's G-20 presidency to this end and through this, see the G-20's collective actions on sustainable development rise to new heights,” she said.

Speaking at the event, India's G20 sherpa Amitabh Kant said the meeting is happening in a time of “global tumult”, amid economic recession, and crisis in global debt and global finance.

"India is a bright spot in this gloomy scenario and we will provide action oriented solutions as part of the G20 presidency,” he said, delivering a talk earlier in the day at a session on 'data for development' organized in collaboration with the Observer Research Foundation.