Foreign and Development Ministers’ Meeting and Ministerial Event on Humanitarian Assistance

On 29 June, the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and, for the first time in the G20 history, a joint session of the Foreign and Development Ministers will take place in Matera.

The Foreign Ministers’ Meeting will feature two sessions. The first one will focus on global governance and multilateralism as a key tool to address major global challenges and promote a sustainable and resilient recovery. At the heart of the debate there will be the need to strengthen international cooperation and multilateral institutions in key areas such as global health, sustainable development, climate action, and international trade.

Session two will be devoted to the relations with the African continent, with a specific focus on sustainable development. The meeting will discuss the most appropriate policy measures in a range of important areas, such as the inclusion of young people and women, trade, fight against climate change, and energy transition. Both topics on the agenda have been developed along the lines of the three pillars of the G20 Italian Presidency, “People, Planet, Prosperity”, and in line with the “build back better” common thread aimed at promoting a sustainable, inclusive and resilient recovery.

Through the G20 joint Foreign and Development Ministerial Meeting, the Italian Presidency intends to bring to the forefront of the international political agenda the issue of global food security and nutrition, thus providing the political impetus needed to achieve the Zero Hunger goal by 2030. The Matera Ministerial Declaration, which enhances the role of the Food Coalition launched by Italy within the FAO, will reiterate the G20 commitment to building resilient and sustainable food chains.

In the afternoon, a specific Development Ministers’ Meeting will be held for the first time, focusing on Financing Sustainable Development and Territorial Development and Localizing the SDGs. The Ministers will reiterate their commitment to supporting a strong, inclusive and sustainable post-pandemic recovery in developing countries.

On 30 June, the Ministerial event on Humanitarian Assistance will take place at the UN Humanitarian Response Depot (UNHRD) in Brindisi, operated by the World Food Programme. The meeting, chaired by Minister Di Maio and WFP Executive Director Beasley, will discuss the role played by logistics in the global response to future humanitarian and health crises and will be an opportunity to share the “lessons learned” in the fight against the pandemic. This will lead to strengthening the capacity of humanitarian preparedness and response. The event will result in a Presidency report that will be forwarded to G20 Leaders ahead of the October Summit.