As G20 president, Brazil plans to make progress on taxing the richest

Brazil will use its position as president of the G20 to make progress on taxing the richest, reforming multilateral financial institutions, and pursuing sustainable development, said Finance Minister Fernando Haddad. He gave a speech in Marrakech, Morocco, at an event held on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

“We urgently need to improve our international financial institutions, make the richest pay their fair share of taxes, deal with the debt problem facing a growing number of countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and efficiently mobilize public and private resources for a greener and more sustainable global economy,” he said during the session of G20 finance ministers and central bank heads.

Haddad highlighted five pillars of Brazil’s G20 presidency: effective global coordination between economic and financial policies; reforming international financial institutions; correcting inequalities in international taxation and combating tax evasion; investments in concessions in low- and middle-income countries and renegotiation of these governments’ large debts; and partnerships between public and private capital for equitable ecological transformations.

“The Brazilian presidency of the G20 will soon propose articulated priorities for each of the working groups and task forces on the financial track, with a view to turning this agenda into concrete policies and results as agreed on by all G20 members,” said Haddad. The minister refuted allegations that the plans are difficult to implement. “Failing to present an agenda like this would be unrealistic, because it would mean compromising the legitimate aspirations of future generations,” he declared.