23-May-2023: G20 India’s 3rd Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group (ECSWG) meeting concludes today in Mumbai with a commitment to facilitate tangible outcomes through a consensus driven approach

The 3rd Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group (ECSWG) meeting under India’s G20 Presidency concluded in Mumbai today.

The three day meeting witnessed a participation of 141 delegates from G20 countries and 10 invitee countries. The representatives of 14 international and regional organisations also attended deliberations conducted over the 3 days.

The 3 priories outlined for the ECSWG were arresting land degradation, promoting circular economy and giving impetus to blue economy. All meetings focused on specific theme out of these three themes. The  3rd ECSWG,  focussed on Blue Economy and was supported by two side events – Mega Beach Clean Up Event and the Ocean 20 Dialogue on Day 1 of the meeting.

The Mega Beach Clean Up Event at Juhu in Mumbai was a successful event which saw participation of 20 countries and 37 Indian beaches from the coastal states and Union Territories. The massive drive organized to sensitize people and create awareness is in alignment with the Prime Minister’s message on ‘Swachhta’ and ‘Jan Bhagidari’ and highlights the significance of ‘Lifestyle for Environment’ (LiFE) concept and the the importance of individual actions in tackling the menace of marine pollution. With a pledge to keep the beaches clean, the message sent out was that the beach cleaning event was not only a manifestation of sustainable coastal management and ocean economy but is very closely connected to the larger issue of marine pollution and the fact that our own behaviour has an impact on the environment. The event in India saw an participation of close to 16,000 enthusiastic volunteers.

The Ocean 20 Dialogue brought together international experts, innovators, community representatives, policymakers, and industry leaders, to facilitate discussions on aspects related to emerging science-technology-innovation driven solutions, challenges associated with effective and inclusive policy and governance, and avenues for establishing finance mechanisms to support national and regional Blue Economy endeavors.

The second day started with inaugural address by Shri Kapil M Patil,  Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj, who congratulated the Working Group on the resounding success of the Mega Beach Clean Up Event and appreciated the hard work done by the ECSWG in the area of climate change and environment issues. This was followed by opening remarks for the day by Ms. Leena Nandan, G20 India Chair and Secretary, MoEFCC, who expressed her gratitude to the delegates for engaging actively in the first two ECSWG meetings. She appreciated that participation from countries had followed a constructive process and made the discussions so far, fruitful. Further, she urged the G20 countries for their continued participation in the Communique discussion to ensure inclusive, ambitious, action-oriented, and decisive outcomes as the Working Group moves closer towards the last leg of the proceedings under the India Presidency.

The primary agenda of the 3rd ECSWG meeting was the detailed discussions on the draft Ministerial Communique and entailed constructive discussions and deliberations on priority areas. Picking up the thread from the Focus Group Discussions which had been conducted by the Indian Presidency over the past three weeks across all the three thematic priorities, the discussions were conducted with a steadfast resolve of being collaborative and inclusive. The outcome documents were discussed line-by-line and the member countries presented their respective viewpoints.

The 3rd ECSWG meeting ended on a discussion mode on the Communique, to be further deliberated upon and refined in the virtual meetings scheduled over the next few weeks, as a run up to the 4th  and final ECSWG meeting to be held in Chennai from 26th to 27th July, with the Minister’s meet on 28th July, 2023.

20-May-2023: G20's Third Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group (ECSWG) Meeting to be held in Mumbai from May 21-23, 2023

The 3rd Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group (ECSWG) meeting will be held in Mumbai from May 21-23, 2023. The main focus of this meeting will be on steering the discussions around Communique with a more outcome driven approach.

The three-day event will commence with a side event on Beach Clean Up in Juhu, Mumbai, which would be followed by the side event, the Ocean 20 Dialogue. The beach clean-up is an initiative aimed at enhancing awareness and to sensitize citizens on the role of community participation in safeguarding our coasts and oceans. The Ocean 20 platform, launched during the Indonesia Presidency Dialogue, was aimed to advance ideation and action for ocean solutions. To ensure continuity and build on the initiative, the Indian Presidency is demonstrating active leadership by anchoring the Ocean 20 Dialogue in the 3rd ECSWG which will focus on three significant pillars of the Blue Economy. Both the side events are aimed at promoting a sustainable and climate resilient Blue Economy.

The sessions on the first Day of the meeting will cover various aspects of Blue Economy. The first session of the day will be on science, technology and innovation for a Blue Economy. The subsequent session will be on policy, governance and participation, with the concluding session on establishing blue finance mechanisms for Blue Economy. The sessions have been designed to have a panel discussion followed by engaging discussions with the audience. The deliberations will be aimed at working towards well-being of the oceans and the need to make conscious efforts towards reversing damage to them and protecting our marine resources.

The next two days of the 3rd ECSWG will involve discussions on the draft Ministerial Communique with deliberations tuned towards achieving a consensus amongst the G20 countries. The closed-door sessions will conclude on a way forward note for the fourth ECSWG.

The Environment and Climate Sustainability Group (ECSWG) under India’s G20 Presidency aims to enhance cooperation among the G20 nations to develop state of the art solutions for sustainable management of oceans and marine biodiversity conservation. The need for concerted global efforts and immediate action to address the current scenario has been consistently underscored in the meetings.

The third ECSWG meeting is a critical step in fostering the efforts of the G20 countries, invitee countries, and international organizations towards a sustainable and resilient future. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change is committed to working with all stakeholders to drive outcomes under each of the priority areas, and to achieve a sustainable and resilient future for all.

A Curtain raiser Press Conference was chaired by Additional Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Ms. Richa Sharma to brief the media regarding the third Environment and Climate Sustainability Group (ECSWG) Meeting commencing in Mumbai. She announced the above at the Press Conference here today at the Jio Convention Centre, BKC, Mumbai.