The 2025 edition of Chief Science Advisers’ Roundtable (CSAR), convened under the South Africa’s Group-20 (G20) Presidency, was held in Pretoria, South Africa (SA) from September 21 to 22, 2025.
- The two-day conference was held under the theme ‘Equity-based Science, Technology and Innovation for Inclusive Human Development and Global Sustainability’.
- The Indian delegation, led by Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Advisor (PSA), and including Dr. Parvinder Maini, Scientific Secretary, Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (OPSA), and Dr. B. Chagun Basha, Chief Policy Adviser, OPSA, participated at the G20-CSAR 2025.
Exam Hints:
- Event: 2025 Chief Science Advisers’ Roundtable (CSAR)
- Convened under: South Africa
- Where: Pretoria, South Africa
- Theme: Equity-based Science, Technology and Innovation for Inclusive Human Development and Global Sustainability
- Launched in: 2023 by OPSA to the GoI
- Participating Countries: 17 including India
- Indian Delegation:Led by Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, PSA
- Participating Organisations: EC and AU
- Knowledge Partner: UNESCO
- Highlights: Adoption of the Outcome Statement of G20-CSAR 2025.
About G20 CSAR:
Objective: The CSAR is a forum where G20 and guest countries’ chief scientific advisors discuss shared priorities and collaborate on urgent global challenges, including climate change, inequality, and slow progress on the United Nations (UN)’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Background: The initiative was originally conceptualized by the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (OPSA) to the Government of India (GoI), during India’s G20 Presidency in 2023.
Previous Edition: The 2024 edition was hosted by OPSA in collaboration with United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in Paris, France.
About 2025 G20 CSAR:
Hosted by: The G20 CSAR 2025 was hosted by South Africa’s Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) in collaboration with its entity, the National Advisory Council on Innovation (NACI).
Chair: The G20 CSAR 2025 roundtable was chaired by Anneline Morgan, acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of NACI.
Priority Areas: This year’s roundtable was focused on 3 key priority areas:
- Advancing the SDGs through a fair and inclusive international STI agenda.
- Creating a global, accessible knowledge system.
- Strengthening STI capacity in Africa and developing nations via G20 initiatives.
Key Participants: This latest edition of G20 CSAR was attended by member and guest countries/international organisations including, the African Union (AU); Canada; China; the European Commission (EC); France; Germany; India; Italy; Japan; the Republic of Korea; Russia; Saudi Arabia; South Africa; Turkiye; the United Kingdom (UK); the Netherlands; Norway; Singapore; and Spain.
- While, UNESCO participated at the roundtable as the official knowledge partner.
Key Outcome:
Statement: The main highlight of the roundtable was the adoption of the Outcome Statement of G20-CSAR 2025.
Key Focus Areas: The Statement urged leveraging global STI partnerships to tackle societal and planetary challenges, like climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution, and energy access, particularly in Africa and developing countries.
Other Key Highlights:
Open Knowledge-Sharing Session: India’s PSA Prof. Sood joined a G20-CSAR panel on developing STI advisory platforms and capacity-building programs for Africa and developing countries, focusing on STI mechanisms across nations and organizations.
UNESCO MOST Forum 2025: On September 22, 2025, Prof. Sood participated in the Ministerial Panel on ‘AI for Social Impact and Public Policy’ at the MOST Forum 2025, a UNESCO platform for science-policy discussions on social transformation.
- Theme: ‘Technology and Innovation for Solidarity, Equality, and Sustainability’.
Bilateral Engagements: Also, Prof. Sood and Dr. Maini, Scientific Secretary held bilateral meetings with Prof. Dame Angela McLean and Prof. Sir John Edmunds (the UK); Prof. Antonio Zoccoli(Italy); and Dr. Sabine Henzler and Dr. Liliana from the EU’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) , on the sidelines of CSAR 2025.
Recent Related News:
The 56th Directors General (DG)-level Border Coordination Conference between the Border Security Force (BSF) of India and the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) was held in Dhaka, Bangladesh, from August 25–28, 2025, with a focus on enhancing cooperation in border management and security matters.
- The Indian delegation was headed by Daljit Singh Chawdhary, Director General (DG) of BSF, while Major General Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Siddiqui, DG of BGB, led Bangladesh side.
