Global Governance and Open Economy: 2015 G20 Think Tank Summit Joint Statement

1. We, experts from think tanks in G20 members, held the "Global Governance and Open Economy: 2015 G20 Think Tank Summit" in Beijing on July 30th-August 1st, 2015. Building upon the statements from the 2013 and 2014 G20 Think Tank Summits, we have explored ways for think tanks to cooperatively support the 2015 G20 Antalya Summit in Turkey and the 2016 G20 Summit in China. Our efforts will be inspired by the important priorities of inclusiveness, implementation and investment for growth and build on the advances made by previous summits.

2. The global economy is recovering, but recovery is uneven and proceeding at a slow pace and its sustainability is uncertain. It is crucial to study and facilitate coordination of macroeconomic and related policies while guarding against negative spillovers. Coordination can promote sustainable growth, wellbeing and quality employment worldwide. We are willing to enhance research cooperation to help fulfill the goal of making the collective gross domestic product of the G20 grow by at least an additional 2% by 2018. We will also work to secure the implementation of the Brisbane Action Plan.

3. We regard unemployment as one of the most important issues on the G20 agenda. The efforts of G20 members to create jobs are worthy of further study. We are willing to conduct research on increasing global employment, international human resources, youth employment, gender equality in employment and quality employment, and international labor mobility.

4. As the global economy becomes more open, the world is ever more interdependent. We recognize we share a common global future and destiny. We believe that continuous trade liberalization and facilitation can sustain global economic growth. We firmly oppose all forms of trade protectionism, and we champion multilateralism as the main channel for international trade liberalization.

5. We will research ways to ensure our bilateral, regional and plurilateral agreements complement one another, are transparent and contribute to a stronger multilateral trading system. Developing countries should have the opportunity to be more deeply engaged in global value chains. We should promote the harmonization of trade and trade related rules. We will explore ways to enhance the G20’s role in advancing cooperation in a comprehensive and systematic manner, and including liberalizing environmental goods and services to promote strong, sustainable and inclusive growth.

6. We will continue to promote through research the reform of the current global financial governance model, and the improvement of the international monetary system including the internationalization of the RMB. We hope that the global financial system can be directed towards reducing systemic risk, building better bank capital and liquidity, and making derivatives markets safer and more sound. We would like to strengthen ties among think tanks with a view to building a stronger, more resilient financial system, global safety nets and reducing risk transmission channels.

7. We hope to identify ways for think tanks to engage in research for a monetary and financial system that serves the real economy and improves international economic governance.

8. Infrastructure investment is one key engine for sustainable global economic growth. We are willing to research the Global Infrastructure Initiative that was released at the 2014 G20 Brisbane Summit and to help support G20 efforts in this field.

9. We are willing to do more case studies regarding best practices in investment and financing, including public private partnerships (PPPs). We will also promote success stories to improve the quality of investment, in particular infrastructure investment. We are willing to build databases and optimize information channels in this regard. We are also willing to explore enhanced ways of cooperation among international development institutions, with a view to facilitating infrastructure.

10. Innovation is fundamental for sustainable and green growth. For a fair open economy, innovation should be promoted worldwide. Any country can make a difference in global growth through innovation and international cooperation. In light of this, a global innovation system is even more necessary. We are willing to work together to upgrade the global innovation environment and innovation infrastructure. We are also willing to study policies regarding entrepreneurship and innovation, including efforts to lower thresholds for start-ups and to facilitate financing support to small and medium sized enterprises.

11. We note that international energy market fluctuations, climate change and international emergencies, such as the Ebola outbreak, will increasingly affect the global economy. To address this, we hope to do research on how to build the G20's capacity to deal with increasingly diverse challenges. We hope to strengthen research on how to fulfill the G20's leadership role in a responsible and inclusive way as a global steering committee, and how to support the United Nations system. There is a need to modernize the institutions for international energy cooperation, including the International Energy Agency.

12. The overall growth target of the G20 calls for a comprehensive policy framework. To this end, we are willing to collaborate on researching how to establish a global economic coordination system.

13. A strong G20 is crucial for improving global governance. The G20 needs to move further towards building a cooperative framework to address global systemic problems.

14. The following topics require further research:

A) Strengthening the contributions of think tanks, civil society, intergovernmental organizations and G20 engagement groups;

B) Encouraging public diplomacy about G20; and

C) Recommending options for adjusting and improving the G20 agenda.

15. Inequality of income and opportunities within and between countries is a particular concern. In addition, issues such as poverty, ageing, cross-border organized crime and corruption are also gaining importance on the G20 agenda, which calls for increased research collaboration.

16. We believe that the G20 needs to pay more attention to the special development challenges and opportunities of such regions as Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia.

17. We are ready to collaborate on research on the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the role of the G20 in contributing to this by promoting global sustainable development .

18. We understand that the environment has become one of the priority issues on the global agenda, including initiatives such as “ecological civilization”. Ecological civilization considers the global ecology and environment as one system, requiring global governance that addresses each economic link from production to consumption to achieve sustainable development. Ecological civilization is a worthy topic for research with a focus on low carbon innovation, green finance and sustainable infrastructure.

19. To build a strong system for global governance, we need a vibrant network of think tanks. By promoting exchange visits, building research project pools, developing cooperative databases and establishing regular meeting and information sharing mechanisms, we can boost coordination among think tanks. We encourage more involvement of think tanks in assessing the relevance, implementation and impacts of G20 commitments.