House Speaker Dr. (H.C) Puan Maharani accepts the P20 Presidency from Italy at the conclusion of the Seventh Group of 20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit (P20) in Rome, Italy, on Friday (8/10/2021). Photo: Ist/Man

House Speaker Dr. (H.C) Puan Maharani said on Friday (8/10/2021) at the conclusion of the Seventh Group of 20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit (P20) in Rome, Italy, that the Indonesian House is ready to host the 2022 P20 summit next year. She also officially invited the G20 parliamentary speakers to attend the event.

“We would like to express our sincere appreciation for the leadership and achievement made by Italy during its presidency, including this P20 summit event,” Maharani said at the handover ceremony of the P20 presidency. The forthcoming annual meeting of the G20 members will be held in Indonesia in September 2022.

The G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit or P20 will be held concurrently with the G20 Summit organized by the Indonesian government. President Joko Widodo is expected to take the G20 presidency from Italy at the end of October.

“Starting 1 December 2021, Indonesia will hold the G20 presidency. We are ready to continue the success of Italy’s G20 Presidency,” said Maharani. To address the global challenges, Indonesia’s G20 Presidency will raise a theme of “Recover Together, Recover Stronger”. She also pointed out some main issues to be discussed during Indonesia’s G20 presidency.

“Those are increasing productivity, building a strong and stable global economy, promoting inclusive and sustainable growth, providing a favorable environment for multi-stakeholders partnership, and strengthening global collective leadership,” she said.

She also stressed that the world needs to work together to address global challenges. Hence, Indonesia will emphasize the importance of partnership and inclusiveness during its presidency. “Indonesia will not only put the interests of the G20 members first, but also the interests of the developing countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America, including small island nations in the Pacific and Caribbean,” she asserted.

For the P20 forum, Indonesia will explore the theme of ‘The Role of Parliament in Promoting Higher Growth and Healthy Society’. Maharani said the main agenda proposed by Indonesia will include sustainable development and green economy, health, human empowerment, and capacity building.

“We want to increase P20’s contribution to the pandemic recovery efforts in the scheme of G20 partnership. This requires the role of parliaments as government’s strategic partners to discuss the G20 agenda,” said the former Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Cultural Affairs.

At the P20 summit in Italy, Maharani officially invited the G20 parliament leaders to come visit Indonesia to attend the 2022 P20. The granddaughter of Indonesia’s first President Soekarno also had a chance to invite them personally.

“We do need your support for the success of Indonesia’s G20 Presidency. Thank you. See you next year in Indonesia,” said the first female House speaker. (sf-mutt)