G20 finance leaders seek exit strategies for economic recovery in Jakarta meetin

The finance leaders from G20 members on Thursday discussed exit strategies to address the global economic slowdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic on the first day of the two-day G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) Meeting held in Jakarta, capital of Indonesia.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo urged all the G20 members to focus on synergy and collaboration to seek concrete and measurable outcomes in order to help all countries, particularly the developing countries, to early recover from the pandemic.

In his speech delivered virtually welcoming the FMCBG meeting participants, President Widodo highlighted the importance of keeping the rising global inflation under control as well as food security in helping recover the global economy.

"We must also overcome container scarcity and other logistics chain problems, prevent starvation, and accelerate the transition process towards the new economy. We must expedite equal and affordable digital transformations," he added.

Widodo said he expects that the G20 FMCBG meeting could formulate fiscal and monetary measures acceptable to all members.

Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said that the surging price of food, inflation and climate change are among challenges with which the world is confronted currently.

"The inflation risk remains skewed to the upside, driven by the supply chain disruption, labor market mismatches, wage pressure, and higher energy prices," she noted.

The G20 FMCBG meeting is held in a hybrid format of in-person and online participation over COVID-19 concerns.