Canada and the G20

The Group of Twenty (G20) is a group of the world's major economies. The G20 represents all inhabited continents, 80% of world GDP, 75% of global trade and 60% of the world's population.

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Overview

The G20 is the primary forum for international economic cooperation among the world’s leading developed and emerging economies. It was formed in 1999 amidst the Asian Financial Crisis to coordinate macroeconomic policy and financial responses among member states. In 2008, the G20 Summit was elevated to the leaders’ level in response to the 2008 Financial Crisis. Since then, G20 leaders have met yearly to discuss pressing and financial issues, with dedicated tracks related to issues such as trade, sustainable development, health, agriculture, energy, and climate change.

Membership

The G20 comprises nineteen countries and the European Union (EU). It represents all inhabited continents, 80% of world GDP, 75% of global trade and 60% of the world's population. The twenty (20) members are:

• Argentina
• Australia
• Brazil
• Canada
• China
• European Union
• Germany
• France
• India
• Indonesia
• Italy
• Japan
• Mexico
• Russia
• Saudi Arabia
• South Africa
• South Korea
• Türkiye
• United Kingdom
• United States of America

The G20 presidency rotates annually among member states. India is hosting the G20 in 2023, followed by Brazil and South Africa in 2024 and 2025, respectively. 

Our participation

The G20 is an important platform for Canada to influence global economic, financial, and trade policy issues. Canada’s participation provides an opportunity to build consensus with members on matters related to economic stability and growth in Canada and globally. This includes supporting sustainable growth through support for the international financial architecture and open, rules-based trade and investment.

At the G20, Canada continues to:

• Address Russia’s war in Ukraine and the global impacts
• Champion the SDGs, with a focus on increasing access to development finance, MDB modernization, and debt sustainability.
• Push for increased ambition around climate mitigation, biodiversity and pollution and the clean energy transition.
• Advance gender equality and women’s empowerment.
• Promote global health, including pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.

Canada and most G20 members condemn Russia’s illegal war of aggression against Ukraine and its far reaching impact across the G20 agenda on global economic stability, including food and energy security.

Work process

The G20 has no permanent secretariat, and the presidency of the G20 rotates every year among its members. Summit hosts are responsible for preparing leaders’ summits during their presidency. Summit hosts also organize a series of preparatory meetings that advance G20 work throughout the year.

Much of the preparation for the summit is completed by G20 leaders’ personal representatives, known as sherpas. Canada’s Personal Representative to the Prime Minister for the G20 Summit (Sherpa) is Christopher MacLennan. With finance ministers and their deputies, sherpas are a recurring feature of summits. These officials stay in contact with each other during the course of the year. They discuss agenda items for the summit and coordinate the work of the G20.

The work of the G20 culminates each cycle with a communiqué expressing members’ commitments and vision for the future. Chosen recommendations and deliverables from ministerial meetings and other work streams also reach sherpas and deputies of finance ministers. Ministerial recommendations and deliverables are also incorporated in the communiqué for leaders’ endorsements.

Work streams and ministerial meetings

The G20 working process changes from year to year. Ministerial meetings, working groups, and other experts’ groups are added or removed by the presidency based on the host’s priorities that year.

Working group meetings develop deliverables for ministers. Some of these deliverables reach leaders via their personal representatives (sherpas). Leaders are also informed by meetings of finance ministers and central bank governors.

G20 policy-making is also supported by the participation of key international organizations that are invited to G20 meetings.

Policy making is also supported by the participation of guest countries (invited at the host’s discretion), and engagement groups comprising different sectors of civil society.

Engagement groups

G20 members have made a commitment to consult relevant stakeholder communities. G20 thematic engagement groups, comprising participants from each G20 member, provides a vehicle for such dialogue. These groups meet annually and often draft recommendations for G20 governments. While these recommendations are non-binding, they are taken into account by the G20 and contribute to the policy-making process.

There are currently eleven (11) formal engagement groups. Each engagement group is chaired by organizations or individuals designated by the G20 host country:

• Business 20 (B20)
• Civil 20 (C20)
• Labour 20 (L20)
• Parliament 20 (P20)
• Science 20 (S20)
• Supreme Audit Institutions 20 (SAI 20)
• Startup 20
• Think 20 (T20)
• Urban 20 (U20)
• Women 20 (W20)
• Youth 20 (Y20)

Declarations and statements

Latest declarations, statements and announcements endorsed by the Prime Minister or Global Affairs Canada Ministers.