At the recent 2013 G20 summit in St. Petersburg, Russia, the NGO alliance “InterAction” urged leaders to include the world’s poor in their plans to establish a more stable and stronger global economy.
A whole range of different issues were brought up at the G20 summit, including the situation in Syria, different means of promoting economic growth and generating more jobs, and ways of tackling public debt.
InterAction is an alliance of over 180 different U.S.-based nongovernmental international organizations working together to tackle poverty and improve quality of life.
Samuel A. Worthington, president and CEO of InterAction, said that one of the best ways of addressing poverty is by improving nutrition and access to finance:
“InterAction welcomes the G20’s increasing recognition this year that economic growth needs to be inclusive. To reach this goal, plans must tackle the underlying causes of poverty and not rely on trickle-down economics.
Improving nutrition for mothers and children, providing access to financial services for the rural poor, and reducing bank charges for immigrants sending remittances home to their families are all ways to speed growth and ensure the most vulnerable do not fall further behind.”
A group of leading economists published a report revealing that for each dollar invested in nutrition, $138 is generated in improved health and productivity.
The G20 nations adopted a number of different new measures this year:
- Including more small farms and family farmers
- Promoting comprehensive rural development
- Establish food reserves and improved access to humanitarian food supplies
- Promoting jobs
- Strengthening dialogue with civil society and academia
Worthington concluded:
“We look forward to taking advantage of the accountability report to follow the progress on the G20 commitments and make sure promises are honored.”
Click here for more information on the main economic challenges the G20 is currently facing.