President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated this Monday (18) that the taxation of the super-rich, the main proposal of the Brazilian presidency at the G20, also depends on the reformulation of global institutions.
“It is urgent to review financial rules and policies that disproportionately affect developing countries. The external debt service of African countries is greater than the resources they have to finance their infrastructure, health and education”, he declared when opening the second session of the G20 Leaders Summit, which discusses global governance reform.
Lula cited estimates from the Ministry of Finance, according to which a 2% tax on the assets of super-rich individuals could generate US$250 billion per year to be invested in combating inequality and financing the ecological transition.
The Brazilian president recalled that the history of the G20 is linked to the global economic crises of recent decades. Lula criticized the management of the 2008 crisis, which, in his words, helped the private sector and was insufficient to correct the excesses of market deregulation and the support for the minimum state. For the president, the failure to resolve global inequalities contributes to the strengthening of political hatred on the planet.
“At one point, we chose to help banks instead of helping people. The decision was made to help the private sector instead of strengthening the State. It was decided to prioritize core economies over helping developing countries. The world grew again, but the wealth generated did not reach those most in need. It is no surprise that inequality fuels hatred, extremism and violence, nor that democracy is under threat”, said the president.
Artificial intelligence
The president ended his speech by asking for the reform of global institutions to reduce the risks of artificial intelligence and cited an excerpt from a poem by Carlos Drummond de Andrade. “In 1940, the Brazilian poet Carlos Drummond de Andrade wrote a poem called International Fear Congresswhich reflected the prevailing feeling in the midst of the Second World War. To prevent the title of this poem from once again describing global governance, we cannot let the fear of dialogue triumph”, concluded Lula.
Scheduled to start at 2:30 pm, the session that discussed global governance reform began at around 4:10 pm. Only Lula’s speech was broadcast. At this moment, the presidents and prime ministers of the G20 and the Russian Foreign Minister, who replaces President Vladimir Putin, are discussing the proposal for a Brazilian presidency in the group.
