India’s invitation to Egypt “reflects the historic relations between the governments and peoples of the two countries and embodies Egypt’s regional and international position and influential role regarding the main international economic issues and files,” the foreign ministry said.

Ambassador Ragy El-Etreby, assistant minister of foreign affairs for international and regional multilateral economic affairs, will be the personal representative of President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi at the meetings, the ministry said.

The first meeting of the G20 leaders’ personal representatives will be held early in December, said the ministry.

"Egypt is determined to actively and effectively participate in the various G20 meetings in order to enhance global joint action regarding issues listed on the group’s agenda," the statement quoted El-Etreby as saying.

According to El-Etreby, the G20 meetings will discuss issues of immediate priority for Egypt, Africa, and the developing countries, such as food, energy, climate, development finance, and global economic system reform.

The ambassador said that the G20 currently faces great challenges in light of the global economic crisis, the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

He noted that the G20 countries represent 80 percent of the gross world product (GWP), 75 percent of the global trade volume, and 60 percent of the world’s population.

This makes the G20 one of the most important frameworks for economic decision making around the world, he added.

El-Etreby acted as the personal representative of El-Sisi during the G20 ministerial-level meetings in 2016.

He has represented Egypt and the Arab countries in the Board of Directors of the World Bank Group in Washington for several years.

President El-Sisi took part in the G20 summit in the city Hangzhou, China in September 2016 and in the  G20 summit in Osaka, Japan in June 2019.

Last week, the two-day G20 summit that was held in Bali tackled a number of key issues, especially the repercussions of the Ukraine war and the need to reduce global warming by 1.5 degrees Celsius.

India hosts the G20

India will officially assume the G20 presidency from 1 December to 30 November 2023 after Indonesia.

According to local reports, India will host more than 200 G20 meetings across the country starting December.

The G20 summit in India is set to take place on 9-10 September next year.

Since the launch of the G20 in 1999, finance ministers and central bank governors from the world's top 20 economies have been meeting annually to discuss economic cooperation.

However, the first G20 leaders' summit was not held until 2008 following the world financial crisis.

The countries comprising the G20 group are Saudi Arabia, Russia, the United States, the United Kingdom, China, the European Union, Argentina, Brazil, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Turkey, and South Africa.