16 January 2009
The G8 stands for the 'Group of Eight' nations and represents the world's major industrialised democracies.
It was formed in 1975 when the leaders of Japan, the USA, Germany, France, the UK and Italy met in Rambouillet, near Paris, to discuss the economic problems of the day. Canada joined in 1976, creating the G7. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia was invited to join in 1998, bringing the number up to eight.
The European Commission is also represented at all G8 meetings.
G8 Summits
Every year there is one summit meeting attended by the leaders of the eight nations. The last summit took place in Hokkaido, Japan, in July 2008. For details of what was agreed, the communiqué texts and related papers, go to the Japan G8 website.
Italy assumed the presidency of the G8 in January 2009 and will host the next summit in July 2009. More information about what they have planned can be found on the Italian G8 website.
At the summits the leaders discuss major issues of the day. In the lead-up to each summit there is a series of preparatory meetings at government, official and ministerial level. At the summit itself the leaders reach informal agreements on measures that they can take individually, but in cooperation, to achieve their goals more effectively. At each summit leaders agree upon certain initiatives. There are then follow-up meetings throughout the year to make sure commitments are being honoured.
In recent years leaders of other countries have been invited to 'outreach' sessions at the summits. The choice of countries usually depends on the issues being discussed. For example, at the 2005 G8 summit in Gleneagles, the UK invited the heads of state of Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa to discuss climate change, and leaders from Algeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Tanzania to discuss issues surrounding Africa.
In 2008 invitations were also extended to the UN, the World Bank and the IMF to join discussions on global issues.
DFID and the G8
G8 summits are important if we are to manage the effects of globalisation and climate change and to make progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The G8 can secure significant political commitment to action on these key global issues. Recently the G8 summits have focused on three main areas:
- the world economy
- climate change
- development in Africa.
DFID is the lead ministry responsible for UK policy on development and also contributes to policy-making on climate change and the world economy. In preparation for each summit DFID not only briefs the Prime Minister and his officials on key development issues but maintains a dialogue with our opposite numbers at the development ministries of the other seven countries, discussing how the G8 can best work together to achieve our development targets and the MDGs.
Recent G8 summits have achieved many concrete results, such as:
- Setting up the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
- Establishing a new working relationship with Africa via the G8 Africa Action Plan. This was a response to the African-led New Partnership for Africa's Development.
- Launching the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative, a process for cancelling the debt of the world's poorest countries.
- Agreement that all G8 countries will consider halving emissions by 2050 and that all major emitters should be involved in a comprehensive, global post-2012 Kyoto framework to tackle global warming through the UN by 2009.
- Agreement to spend $10 billion on food security to meet not just short-term humanitarian needs - including increases in food aid - but to improve food security and agricultural productivity over the longer term.