U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated that it was time to update both the Security Council and Bretton Woods to reflect the “realities of today’s world”.

The Group of Seven summit meeting was held at Hiroshima, Japan, where Guterres argued both institutions needed to be upgraded because they still reflected the power dynamics of 1945.

“The global financial architecture became outdated, dysfunctional and unfair,” he said. “In the face of the economic shocks from the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of

Ukraine, it has failed to fulfil its core function as a global safety net.”

Guterres also spoke of how he felt that at the G7 summit there was a growing consciousness among developing countries that not enough was being done to reform outdated institutions or “remove the frustrations” of the Global South.

India’s economy will grow over 6% this year and next, the International Monetary Fund said in its World Economic Outlook this January.

China and India together will account for about 50% of world growth in 2023, IMF chief economist and director of the research department Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said at the time.

The wealthy G7’s economic clout has also shrunk in the past 30 years, accounting for 29.9% of global GDP in 2023 compared to 50.7% in 1980, according to the IMF.

“We will see now what is the impact of the discussions that were held here in Hiroshima,” Guterres said. “The G7 members were able to discuss with some of the most important emerging economies in the world.”

G7 host Japan made a point of inviting figures from the so-called Global South to Hiroshima for talks. Invitees included Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Indonesian President Joko Widodo.