India will be holding the third edition of the Voice of Global South Summit today, an event underpinned by India’s philosophy of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam‘. The summit is as an extension of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas aur Sabka Prayas’, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement earlier this week.
It envisages bringing together countries of the Global South to share their perspectives and priorities on a common platform across a whole range of issues. The 3rd Voice of Global South Summit (VOGSS) with the overarching theme of “An Empowered Global South for a Sustainable Future”, will act as a platform to expand discussions held in the previous Summits on a range of complex challenges that continue to affect the world, such as conflicts, food and energy security crises, climate change – all of which disproportionately affect developing countries in a severe manner, the MEA stated.
Yesterday, the Ministry of External Affairs in its weekly briefing stated that all countries from the Global South have been invited for the summit. At the Summit, the countries of the Global South would continue deliberations on challenges, priorities, and solutions for the Global South, particularly in the developmental domain. The 3rd VOGSS will be held in a virtual format and is structured into Leaders’ Session and Ministerial sessions.
The inaugural session at the Head of State/Government level will be hosted by Prime Minister Modi. The theme of the Leaders’ Session is the same as the overarching theme of the Summit, i.e., “An Empowered Global South for a Sustainable Future”.
In addition, there will be 10 Ministerial Sessions namely; Foreign Ministers’ Session on “Charting a Unique Paradigm for Global South”, Health Ministers’ Session on “One World-One Health”, Youth Ministers’ Session on “Youth Engagement for a Better Future”, Commerce/Trade Ministers’ Session on “Trade for Development- Perspectives from Global South”, Information & Technology Ministers’ Session on “DPIs for Development- A Global South Approach”, Finance Ministers’ Session on “People-Centric Approach to Global Finance”, 2nd Foreign Ministers’ Session on “Global South and Global Governance”, Energy Ministers’ Session on “Sustainable Energy Solutions for a Sustainable Future”, Education Ministers’ Session on “Prioritising Human Resource Development: A Global South Perspective”, Environment Ministers’ Session on “Pathways for Progress- A Global South Perspective on Mitigating Climate Change”
India hosted the 1st Voice of Global South Summit (VOGSS) on January 12-13, 2023, and the second Voice of Global South Summit on November 17, 2023, both in virtual format.
Both the previous editions of the Summit saw the participation of over 100 countries from the Global South. The inputs and feedback received from the leaders of the developing countries in these two Summits were appropriately reflected in the agenda and discussions of the G-20 Summit under India’s Presidency last year, including in the G-20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration.
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