Former Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant will be the new Sherpa of G-20, replacing Union Minister Piyush Goyal, as full-time sherpa is required for India’s presidency.
India will assume G20 presidency from December 1 this year and will convene the G20 Leaders’ Summit in 2023 for the first time.
With the G-20 presidency coming to India, the Sherpa would need to devote a lot of time to numerous meetings that will be held in different parts of the country. Union Minister Piyush Goyal holds the charge of multiple portfolios in the Narendra Modi Cabinet which consumes a lot of his time.
Kant was the Niti Aayog CEO for almost six years and completed his extended term last month. Prior to that, the Kerala-cadre IAS officer was the Secretary in the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion.
G20 brings together 19 of the world’s major economies and the European Union, accounting for more than 80 pc of global GDP, 75 pc of trade and 60 pc of population. India has been a member of G20 since its inception.
