Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi's video message at the Development Ministers' Meeting in Varanasi

The article is a speech by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcoming G20 development ministers to Varanasi (Kashi), described as the oldest living city and a center of knowledge, debate, culture, and spirituality, symbolizing India's diverse heritage. Modi emphasizes development as a core issue for the Global South, severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent food, fuel, and fertilizer crises due to geopolitical tensions. He stresses the collective responsibility to prevent the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) from falling behind, ensuring no one is left behind, and calls for a strong global action plan. Key recommendations include comprehensive, fair, and sustainable efforts to increase SDG investments, address debt risks, and reform multilateral financial institutions for broader access to finance. Modi highlights India's success in transforming over 100 aspirational districts from underdevelopment to growth catalysts, urging ministers to study this model for accelerating Agenda 2030. He addresses the growing data divide, underscoring high-quality data's role in policy-making and resource allocation, and promotes democratizing technology; India offers to share its digitalization experiences for data accessibility, inclusivity, and 'data for development, discourse, and delivery.' Environmentally, Modi references India's traditional pro-planet lifestyle and the launch of Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) with the UN Secretary-General, supporting the group's work on high-level principles for climate action. On gender equality, he advocates for women-led development in India, where women drive growth and change, and urges a game-changing action plan. Finally, Modi encourages delegates to explore Kashi's spirit, including the Ganga Aarti and Sarnath, for inspiration, while wishing success in promoting Agenda 2030 and Global South aspirations.