The message from the second Voice of Global South summit is that the Global South wants its "autonomy" and is ready to take big responsibilities in world affairs, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday while reaffirming India's strong commitment towards developing countries.

Modi made the remarks at the concluding session of the second virtual summit of the developing countries that was hosted by India. The prime minister announced the start of an annual international conference in India from next year that will focus on the development priorities of the Global South.

"Its main objective will be to identify practical solutions to the development problems of the Global South," he said.

Talking about participation of leaders from around 130 countries in the summit, Modi said the message that came out from it is that the Global South is ready to take big responsibilities in global affairs and that it wants autonomy.

"I am happy that today around 130 countries from Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, Asia and the Pacific Islands have participated in this day-long summit," he said.

"Having two summits of the Global South within a year, and a large number of you participating in them is in itself a big message for the world," he said.

"This message is that the Global South wants its autonomy. The message is that the Global South wants its voice in global governance. The message is that the Global South is ready to take greater responsibility in global affairs," Modi said.

In the last few years, India has been positioning itself as a leading voice flagging concerns, challenges and aspirations of the Global South.

As the G20 president, India has been focusing on issues like inclusive growth, digital innovation, climate resilience, and equitable global health access with an aim to benefit the Global South or the developing countries.

The prime minister said India is proud to have the opportunity to put the voice of Global South on the agenda of a forum like G20.

"India is proud that we got the opportunity to put the voice of the Global South on the agenda in an important forum like G-20. The credit for this goes to your strong support and your strong belief in India," he said.

"I am confident that the echo of the voice raised at the G-20 Summit will continue to be heard on other global forums in the times to come," he said.

The prime minister said the Global South Center of Excellence named "Dakshin" was launched this morning and that it will focus on research related to developmental issues of developing countries.

"Through this initiative, practical solutions to problems in the Global South will also be found," he said.

India hosted the first Voice of Global South Summit in January.

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.