At the coming G20 summit in London, India and the UK would press for reforms in the World Bank and IMF to strengthen the new global financial system in the face of the worst downturn since the 1930s.
Sharing a dais at the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Partnership Summit on Monday, both External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and UK Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Peter Mandelson underscored the need for proactive and ambitious agenda for the G20 Summit in April.
"India must be a part of the solution and need to have a greater role in the global financial architecture," Mukherjee said, adding the "archaic" institutions created to rebuild economies after the World War-II need reform.
He said emerging economies such as India should have a greater role and say in the global financial matters to "reflect contemporary realities".
India and China are the world's fastest growing economies even in the midst of downturn. A trillion dollar Indian economy would retain seven per cent growth rate this fiscal, after three years of nine per cent expansion.
Mandelson said the highlight of November G20 Summit in Washington was the participation by India and China, which the US and Europe thought may change global "political subtext".
He said as the chair of the G20 group for 2009, UK would be ambitious. "At the London summit in April, we want to win agreement on the principles, priorities and process for an ambitious agenda to strengthen the global financial system, reform the World Bank and the IMF, and ensure that the global trading system remains open."
Mandelson, who has brought with him a team of UK's best civil nuclear technology experts for interacting with their Indian counterparts, said the British companies need to engage with Indian entrepreneurs well beyond the metro cities.