The Group of 20: The premier forum for international economic cooperation
The President of Mexico will host the next G20 Summit in Los Cabos, Baja California, in June 2012. www.g20.org
Origins of the G20
The Group of 20 (G20) was first established in the wake of the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s as a meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors. Its goals were to bring stability to financial markets and to promote economic cooperation. Membership consists of advanced and emerging economies from all regions of the globe.
With the onset of the global financial crisis in 2008, the G20 was seen as the most effective forum to lead global efforts to stem the crisis and mitigate its effects. At separate summits in Washington, London and Pittsburgh, G20 leaders gathered to stabilize the financial system, coordinate national economic policies to steer the world towards recovery and ensure that the international financial institutions were provided with the right underpinnings and adequate resources.
Leaders’ Summits
The first meeting of G20 leaders took place in Washington, D.C., on November 14-15, 2008, where leaders agreed to an action plan to stabilize the global economy and prevent future crises. G20 leaders underscored the critical importance of rejecting protectionism and introduced coordinated stimulus packages. Taken together, these actions constituted the largest fiscal and monetary stimulus and the most comprehensive support program for the financial sector in modern times.
Leaders met a second time in London on April 1-2, 2009. At the London Summit, leaders continued the work that had begun in Washington and announced a historic pledge of US$1.1 trillion to restore credit, growth and jobs in the world economy. This included $750 billion in new resources for the International Monetary Fund, as well as $100 billion in new lending by the Multilateral Development Banks and $250 billion to support trade financing.
Following up on the measures taken in London, G20 leaders met for a third time in Pittsburgh on September 24-25, 2009. The Pittsburgh Summit established the G20 as the premier forum for our international economic cooperation, giving the group a mandate to continue beyond the current economic crisis. Leaders deepened their cooperation by agreeing to increase the voice of emerging economies in the international financial institutions, while establishing principles for responsible economic activity in the Framework for Strong, Sustainable, and Balanced Growth.
Leaders agreed to meet again in Canada and Korea in 2010. The G20 Toronto Summit took place on June 26-27, and the G20 Seoul Summit took place on November 11-12, 2010.
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