BRISBANE, Australia - Leaders of G20 economies on Sunday endorsed Global Infrastructure Initiative, a multi-year work program to spur quality public and private infrastructure investment.
They committed in a joint communique to tackling global investment and infrastructure shortfalls, which is crucial to boosting growth, job creation and productivity.
"We have agreed on a set of voluntary leading practices to promote and prioritize quality investment, particularly in infrastructure," reads the communique.
To support implementation of the initiative, the G20 leaders pledged to establish a Global Infrastructure Hub with a four-year mandate, contributing to developing a knowledge-sharing platform and network between governments, development banks and other international organizations.
The launch of the World Bank Group's Infrastructure Facility was welcomed to reinforce infrastructure and attract more private sector investment in developing countries.
The leaders reaffirmed their agreement to facilitate trade by lowering costs, streamlining customs procedures, reducing regulatory burdens and strengthening trade-enabling services through reforms and promote competition, entrepreneurship and innovation and resist protectionism.
"We must do more to address unemployment, raise participation and create quality jobs," they stressed.
Consensus has been reached in reducing the gap in participation rates between men and women in G20 countries by 25 percent by 2025, in reducing youth unemployment and in addressing informality.
"We are committed to poverty eradication and development and to ensure our actions contribute to inclusive and sustainable growth in low-income and developing countries," reads the communique.
The policy-makers also pledged to take strong practical measures to reduce the global average cost of transferring remittances to 5 percent and to enhance financial inclusion as a priority.
The communique was issued on Sunday afternoon following the conclusion of a two-day G20 summit against the backdrop of a modest and uneven global economic recovery.(Xinhua)