Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Friday the Group of 20 (G20) now had an exceptional role to fulfil in the new economic world order.

According to Lula, who attended the G20 summit in Pittsburgh, the United States, the G20 was fast supplanting the G8 as the most important forum for the world's main economic issues. While the G8 only comprises of developed countries, the G20 also includes large emerging economies.

Brazil's President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva addresses the general debate at the UN headquarters in New York, September 23, 2009. [Xinhua]

Brazilian media quoted Lula as saying that he believed the G20 summit in Pittsburgh was the most important ever held by the G20.

The president added that when the last summit was held in London last April, there was still skepticism about the G20, but now the group had firmly established itself as the leading forum to discuss the global economy.

G20 leaders have announced their decision to transfer at least five percent of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)'s participation shares to emerging and developing countries, in recognition of their importance in the new economic scenario.

The leaders also committed themselves to making reforms, including tightening regulations on banks, allowing a sustainable economic growth and preventing global financial crashes.

(Xinhua News Agency September 26, 2009)