G20 Seoul summit to focus on finance, reforms: Envoy Friday, 05 November 2010 04:53

Doha: The exchange rate, trade deficit, possible overhaul of the IMF structure and the agenda of development are the among most urgent and important topics that will be taken up during the upcoming G20 Summit in Seoul, according to South Korean ambassador to Qatar, Chang See-jeong.

“For example, the exchange rate – among the super powers, the interest is very much high so we hope for some sort of mechanism should be set-up on the occasion of the G20 meeting,” he said at a press briefing yesterday.

The G20 summit, to be held on November 11 and 12, is one of the largest gatherings of world leaders and was established following the 1997 Asian Financial crisis in order to link developed and emerging economies to stabilise the global financial market.

This year’s G20 Seoul Summit will focus on creating a framework to reform international financial regulations as well as to take steps to bring market stability as the global economy recovers from the effects of the financial crisis.

Aside from this, the Summit will also discuss the agenda of development plans to reduce global poverty and the development gap, which South Korea is especially interested.

“In terms of development, Korea is a very unique country in a sense that it has already developed from a pure agrarian country to a donor country now,” Chang said.

“As a member of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) under the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), South Korea is part of the committee responsible for providing official development assistance to developing countries.

“Our direct experience in the process of development is very useful for the developing countries now. We can convey our direct experience – how we overcame the poverty and the under-development status during the last decade. We’d like to share that kind of experience in the G20 Summit and we’d like to have some initiatives for the realisation of the Millennium Development Goals by introducing a more detailed mechanism,” he added.

The much-anticipated G20 Seoul Summit is a summit of firsts as it is the first summit to be hosted and chaired by a non-G8 member country.

It is also the first time the summit has been designed concurrently with the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders’ meeting, which takes place immediately after the Seoul Summit in Japan.

The Peninsula