Thaindian News

Cannes, Nov 3 (IANS) As G20 leaders struggled to find ways to resolve the Eurozone crisis, business leaders of these developed and developing economies, led by India Inc. called for a stable regulatory environment to push recovery, growth and job creation.

To push economic recovery and growth, it is imperative to encourage policymakers to create a stable and predictable regulatory framework that will promote competition and investments from the private sector, the parallel B20 global business leaders said.

Their recommendations were formally presented to the G20 Summit by the working group on ICT and Innovation, co-chaired by Infosys executive co-chairman and vice president of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) S. Gopalakrishnan.

Similar suggestions were also made by another B20 group on financial regulation, co-chaired by B. Muthuraman, president of the leading industry lobby and vice chairman of Tata Steel.

“Innovation is critical for growth, employment and economic recovery. ICT and the internet are key enablers of this innovation and can help connect the 7 billion people of the world and level the playing field,” Gopalakrishnan said.

Among the other recommendations, the B210 leaders wanted active promotion of Internet usage to create economically and socially valuable products and services, as also privacy protection and for a level playing field among players.

“The internet can enable small businesses to deliver products and services anywhere in the world and can allow small and medium enterprises to compete with large incumbents, on an equal footing,” Gopalakrishnan said.

“It is important to lower barriers of entry for entrepreneurs by harmonizing regulations.”

According to Muthuraman, government must provide all participants in the financial market clear information on their policies, while allowing them to function within the parameters set to bring resilience into the system.

“Before any new changes are made, it is important to take stock of the current regulatory agenda and set up a structured roadmap for reform,” the top corporate executive said.

Among other leaders, the B20 groups interacted with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Nado and their host, French President Nicholas Sarkozy. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is heading the Indian delegation at the G20 Summit.

The other topics covered by the B20 include international monetary systems, commodities and raw materials, development, employment and social dimensions, anti-corruption, and trade and Investment.