Report

The role of the G7 in mobilizing for a global recovery

This report from UK think tank Chatham House looks at the Build Back Better World (B3W) partnership launched at the June 2021 G7 Leaders’ Summit.

The Build Back Better World (B3W) partnership was launched at the June 2021 G7 Leaders’ Summit. The partnership was aimed at mobilizing an international response to immediate and long-term challenges such as the global infrastructure gap, economic recovery post-COVID-19 and the need to counter China’s economic and political influence in the developing economies. Despite a promising set of initial commitments, B3W and other related development initiatives so far have failed to match that ambition. In this paper, the authors detail the three main new initiatives announced since the 2021 summit – the US-led B3W; the EU’s Global Gateway; and the UK’s revamped development policy – and measure progress and action against promises and pledges. They also outline current global challenges that threaten to undermine G7 development policy – including changing priorities among donor countries, amid events in Ukraine and concerns about inflation – before recommending actions to achieve the ‘better world’ the G7 envisaged in June 2021. The paper is the first publication in a year-long, high-level project that aims to provide vital context for the G7’s efforts to assist governments and societies in the Global South, as they confront long-term development challenges in the context of climate change and other international crises.