JEDDAH: The G20’s Employment Working Group (EWG) met for the first time under Saudi Arabia’s presidency of the G20.
Building on its target of reducing youth unemployment by 15 percent by 2025, the group of representatives from the G20 member countries discussed youth unemployment and data-driven policymaking.
In 2020, the EWG will focus on three key priorities: Youth unemployment, transitional social protection and behavioral insights for a transitioning labor market, it was announced by the Saudi chair Ahmed Alzahrani during Thursday’s meeting.
Discussions will continue at the next meeting in April ahead of the Employment Ministers’ Meeting in September 2020.
Elsewhere on Thursday, the G20’s group for anti-corruption met in the capital of Riyadh to assess the challenges in reducing the impact of corruption on global gross domestic product.
The Anti-Corruption Working Group (ACWG)’s chair, Dr. Nassar Abaalkhail, highlighted the importance of continuing to address corruption and promoting integrity and accountability in order to foster growth.
He also asserted that the ACWG will continue to pursue international cooperation on many global anti-corruption challenges including asset recovery, foreign bribery, and beneficial ownership transparency.
The G20 agreed on the Anti-Corruption 2019-2021 Action Plan in Buenos Aires in 2018. In the framework of this plan, G20 members will also look forward to developing targeted actions where the G20 can best add value in promoting international efforts in the fight against corruption.
Saudi Control and Anti-Corruption Authority (NAZAHA) president Mazen Al-Kahmous said the Kingdom has held many discussions on anti-corruption, with the participation of international experts from the public and private sectors and civil society institutions, to enrich knowledge on these issues, in preparation for setting higher principles to be approved by the ministers concerned with fighting corruption in the G20.
