Saudi Arabia is hosting the G20 summit on Saturday in a first for an Arab nation, where the two-day meeting of the world's wealthiest nations discuss global issues – from climate change, growing inequality and the coronavirus global pandemic.
Online sessions between the G20 member countries are expected to be dominated by the implications of the pandemic and steps for reviving the global economy, which voters of an Arab News Twitter poll say should be the focus.
With over 40 percent of the vote, an overwhelming majority of over 10 thousand voters say that “eradicating COVID-19” should be the main challenge the G20 summit should discuss.
New vaccine breakthroughs have raised hopes of containing the virus, which has infected 55 million people globally and left 1.3 million dead.
G20 nations have contributed more than $21 billion to combat the pandemic, including production of vaccines, and injected $11 trillion to "safeguard" the virus-battered world economy, organizers said.
Many voters also believed that reviving the global economy should be a prime focus of discussions, with over 23 percent of the vote.
#POLL What is the biggest challenge #G20RiyadhSummit should focus on?
— Arab News (@arabnews) November 16, 2020
The spread of the coronavirus has left businesses around the world counting costs and wondering what recovery could look like.
To avoid possible credit defaults due to COVID pressures across developing nations, G20 finance ministers declared a “common framework” for an extended debt restructuring plan for virus-ravaged countries.
Meanwhile the third most voted for topic in the poll was empowering women with 18.7 percent, while fighting terrorism received over 17 percent.
