UNDESA’s Assistant Secretary-General Lenni Montiel was recently appointed UN Sherpa to the G-20, following the tradition that the ASG for Economic Development support the UN’s participation in the G-20. In this role, Mr. Montiel attended the first G20 Sherpa''s Meeting under the Chinese Presidency held in Beijing from January 13-15.

The G20 Sherpa''s meeting is the first in a series of four conferences leading up to the G20 summit in Hangzhou, in September 2016 themed: “Towards an Innovative, Invigorated, Interconnected and Inclusive World Economy". The G20 under the Chinese presidency will focus on four priorities: “breaking a new path for growth”, “more effective and efficient global economic and financial governance”, “robust international trade and investment” and “inclusive and interconnected development”. This week’s meeting welcomes over 400 delegates, including Sherpas of G20 member countries, as well as representatives of other nations and international organizations.

The G20 composed of the 20 largest economies and is widely regarded as the world’s key forum for international economic cooperation, is a powerful platform to gain momentum and share ideas and best practices on global development.

By supporting the G20 as well as events including the ECOSOC Forum on Financing for Development Forum in April, and the High-Level Political Forum in July the United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs will continue to employ every effort to encourage debate and collaboration, and gather the necessary steam for the successful implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.