India Rising: PM Modi’s G20 Vision in Johannesburg Signals New Leadership Role in a Transforming Global Order

At the inaugural session of the G20 Summit in Johannesburg—historic as the first-ever G20 hosted on African soil—Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered a powerful message that underscored not just India’s priorities, but its ascendant leadership in a rapidly shifting global order. In a world grappling with fractured supply chains, widening developmental inequalities, climate disruptions, and volatile geopolitics, PM Modi used the platform to put forth an ambitious, values-driven framework for global development—one rooted in India’s civilisational ethos and tailored for the challenges of the 21st century.

Speaking at the session on ‘Inclusive and Sustainable Economic Growth Leaving No One Behind’, PM Modi emphasised that while the G20 has historically shaped global finance and growth, current development models have failed to uplift vast sections of humanity. Instead, they have often led to resource deprivation, environmental strain, and entrenched inequities—issues particularly acute across Africa. “With Africa hosting the G20 Summit for the first time, NOW is the right moment for us to revisit our development parameters and focus on growth that is inclusive and sustainable,” he asserted.

This was more than a policy recommendation—it was a statement of intent. It signaled India’s rising role as a bridge-builder, consensus-shaper, and civilisational voice capable of offering alternative pathways for human-centric development in a fragmented world.

India’s Civilisational Lens: A New Guide for Global Development

Prime Minister Modi invoked India’s timeless philosophy of Integral Humanism, a guiding principle that emphasises harmony between human welfare, societal progress, and ecological balance. By spotlighting this framework on a global stage, PM Modi positioned India as a nation capable of contributing not only technological and economic solutions but also philosophical and ethical direction to the global community.

His central message on G20 Summit was clear: the world requires developmental models that prioritise people, planet, and shared prosperity over narrow economic metrics.

Three Major Proposals Showcasing India’s Global Leadership

PM Modi unveiled a suite of forward-looking proposals designed to foster “all-round growth,” each reflecting India’s evolving identity as a country that takes initiative, provides frameworks, and steps into leadership roles expected of major global powers. 

**1. G20 Global Traditional Knowledge Repository:

India as the Custodian of Sustainable Wisdom**

Recognising the wealth of traditional ecological knowledge across cultures, PM Modi proposed the creation of a Global Traditional Knowledge Repository. Based on India’s Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS) initiative, this repository will document, preserve, and share indigenous, eco-friendly, and culturally rooted practices of living.

This was a subtle yet powerful assertion: India is not just a beneficiary of global systems—it is a contributor of global wisdom.

In a time when climate change and environmental degradation threaten planetary stability, India’s push for civilisational knowledge as a global asset marks a significant shift in development thinking. 

**2. G20–Africa Skills Multiplier:

India as a Champion of the Global South**

PM Modi underscored the centrality of Africa’s rise to global progress. His proposal—the G20–Africa Skills Multiplier Initiative—put India at the forefront of a major capacity-building effort.

With support from all G20 nations, the initiative aims to train one million certified trainers in Africa over the next decade, who will then skill millions more across diverse sectors. This builds on India’s instrumental role in securing permanent G20 membership for the African Union during its 2023 presidency.

This is a diplomatic message with enormous significance: India is positioning itself as the voice, partner, and advocate of the Global South, reinforcing trust among developing nations and challenging older power hierarchies dominated by Western nations and China. 

**3. G20 Global Healthcare Response Team:

India as the First Responder for the World**

PM Modi proposed the formation of a G20 Global Healthcare Response Team, composed of trained medical professionals from member nations who can be rapidly deployed during pandemics, earthquakes, cyclones, or other crises.

This proposal reflects India’s own global conduct during COVID-19—through Vaccine Maitri, medical supply assistance, and humanitarian deployments. It also positions India as a country willing to take real responsibility for global resilience.

“We are stronger when we work together in the face of emergencies,” he said, underlining the spirit of global solidarity that India continues to champion. 

**Countering the Drug–Terror Nexus:

India as a Security Stabiliser**

In a crucial intervention, PM Modi addressed a grave threat to global security—the expanding nexus between synthetic narcotics and terrorism. Citing the dangers of substances like fentanyl, he proposed a dedicated G20 Initiative on Countering the Drug–Terror Nexus.

This initiative will integrate financial tracking, governance mechanisms, intelligence-sharing, and security operations to dismantle trafficking networks and choke off terrorism financing. It reflects India’s expanding role as a security provider, especially in regions vulnerable to narco-terror and extremist networks.  

India Rising in the Global Order

Taken together, PM Modi’s proposals reflect a confident, forward-looking India—an India ready to shape conversations, lead initiatives, and inject human-centric values into global decision-making. At a time of geopolitical polarisation, economic uncertainties, and civilisational flux, India’s credibility stems from:

• Its successful digital governance models
• Its balanced foreign policy
• Its democratic demographic dividend
• Its leadership during the 2023 G20 Presidency
• Its proven capacity for humanitarian outreach

More importantly, India represents a moral centrepoint through G20 International Summit amid competing global power blocs—a nation that speaks not only for itself but for the aspirations of the developing world.

The G20 Summit in Johannesburg offered more than a diplomatic forum—it offered the world a clear view of India’s emerging role as a global leader. PM Modi’s vision, rooted in ancient wisdom yet sharply attuned to contemporary needs, showcased a rising India ready to drive the global development agenda, uplift the Global South, and strengthen global security and cooperation.

In a world searching for direction, India is unmistakably stepping forward.