At a virtual meeting of G20 nations, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday underlined the need for making Covid-19 vaccines easily accessible across the world. She said ensuring vaccine equity would be the key to recovery of the global economy.

She also highlighted concerns about the possible emergence of new variants of Covid-19, the finance ministry said in a series of tweets. Sitharaman said it was crucial to address the gaps in preparedness to tackle the pandemic at a global level and suggested that the G20 Joint Finance and Health Task Force should work towards that.

G20 is an intergovernmental forum comprising 19 countries and the European Union. Sitharaman is participating in the first G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting.

Sitharaman flagged inflation and disruptions in supply chains as risks for the global economic outlook. She said “structural bottlenecks” must be addressed to reduce the effects of the pandemic and build resilience.

With India set to hold the presidency of the G20 for one year starting December 1, the Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved the constitution of a secretariat for the purpose, reported NDTV. The presidency rotates for a one-year term among the member nations.