The G20 Interfaith Forum is an annual platform which brings together religious leaders, policymakers, and diverse faith actors to collaborate on global agendas, within the broad framework of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This year’s agenda will address some of the world’s most pressing humanitarian and development issues such as the COVID-19 pandemic, poverty, migration, conflict, gender equality, and climate change. The Forum ensures that religious voices are integral partners in global relief efforts. These discussions contribute to the annual G20 Leaders’ Summit, which is the premier forum for international economic cooperation.
The G20 presidency rotates between member countries each year, with Saudi Arabia assuming the rotating presidency on December 1, 2019. This year’s Interfaith Forum will also be held in partnership by KAICIID, the United Nations Alliance of Civilisations (UNAOC), the G20 Interfaith Forum Association, and Saudi Arabia’s National Dialogue Committee.
KAICIID has been closely involved with the Interfaith Forum since 2017, providing support for past summits in Germany, Japan and Argentina, and with further plans to support the 2021 summit in Italy. The annual event is closely tied to KAICIID’s mandate, which promotes dialogue and cooperation between religious leaders and policymakers on the world’s most pressing humanitarian and development issues.
Throughout the G20I process religious and political leadership, experts and organizations identified global issues and shared their recommendations to be addressed at the G20 Interfaith Forum and later the G20 Forum. Following the G20 Interfaith Forum, policy briefs on each of the thematic areas were produced and can be found below.
Established in 2005, the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) is mandated by the UN to improve relations between societies and communities of diverse cultural and religious backgrounds. Through its various programmes and activities around the world, UNAOC works to foster intercultural and interreligious dialogue to bridge divides and overcome prejudice, misconceptions, misperceptions, and polarization.
The G20 Interfaith Forum Association offers an annual platform where a network of religiously linked institutions and initiatives engage on global agendas (primarily and including the Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs). The annual G20 Summits are a critical time and place where priority global issues are considered. Our goal is to contribute meaningful insight and recommendations that respond to and help shape the G20 and thus global policy agendas. The G20 Interfaith Forum builds on the vital roles that religious institutions and beliefs play in world affairs, reflecting their rich diversity of institutions, ideas, and values. These include interfaith and intercultural organizations, religious leaders, scholars, development and humanitarian entities, and business and civil society actors.
The National Committee for Interfaith and Intercultural Dialogue is a government entity in Saudi Arabia that was established in 2016. Its mandate includes planning and designing programmes that aim at enhancing the Kingdom's initiatives for interfaith and intercultural dialogue. Members of the committee include representatives from various government ministries and dialogue institutions based both in Saudi Arabia and around the world.
The G20 Interfaith Forum will be held from the 13-17 of October 2020 and will be hosted by Saudi Arabia. Currently, Forum organizers are working to adjust the format of the event due to the COVID-19 crisis. Please check our registration page for additional information.
The Interfaith Forum welcomes some of the most prominent thought leaders and dignitaries as well as key policymakers and religious leaders. It also welcomes young people and grassroots dialogue advocates who are leading the way in creating a more peaceful and sustainable future through interreligious cooperation.
This year’s agenda will build on the goals of social cohesion, equity, and sustainability which have formed the foundation of the Forum’s goals since its inception. Additionally, the host country can also select themes in line with these topics. Themes for 2020 include empowering women and youth, fostering collective efforts to respond to climate change, and shaping new technological frontiers.
This year’s agenda will also include a response to COVID-19. Religious leaders and policymakers are at the center of global action to address the global and national social, economic, and political consequences of the pandemic. The crisis puts in stark relief both the central roles that religious institutions can play in a public health emergency and in ensuring compassionate and effective support to populations.
The Interfaith Forum’s goal is to draw on the analysis and experience of diverse religious and cultural communities regarding the implementation of the global goals, as well as providing a platform for religious communities to contribute to global policy. It also aims to support the process of formalizing the G20 Interfaith Forums into a sustainable and lasting framework whereby recommendations and inputs of religious actors are reaching and being considered at the highest levels of policymaking around the world.
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