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With the African Union (AU) getting a permanent seat at the G20, South Africa said that going ahead it will bring to the table the need for reform in multilateral institutions, and equitable support towards climate change and development financing, among other issues.
“We would like to see more reform in multilateral institutions, equitable development financing, and a fairer approach in the support the developed world gives to developing economies to help mitigate climate change. These are some of the issues we will advocate,” South African President’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya told Moneycontrol in an interview.
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The African Union, on September 9, joined the G20 after all member countries accepted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposal to include this key bloc of the global South in this grouping of world’s top economies.
“Such a premier platform for international economic cooperation cannot exclude a continent of 1.4 billion people. Africa is an integral part of the global economy. We face challenges similar to the rest of the world vis a vis climate change, a stagnant economy post-Covid, security challenges, etc. We are equally impacted by geopolitical conflicts like Russia-Ukraine in terms of food insecurity. It is important that its economic agenda is on-boarded when making decisions that impact the continent,” he said.
The AU is a body of 55 member states. It now has the same status as the European Union — the only regional bloc with a full membership of the G20. Hereon, the AU will no longer be designated as an ‘invited international organisation’.
Modi said the move to include the AU as a permanent member of the G20 family will strengthen the G20 and also the voice of the global South.
“India has done a great deal to ensure that the global South is sufficiently represented during this summit and going forward. India has laid a fair foundation and set a high bar. I do not imagine any future summit will exclude any other major part of the world. We applaud Modi and the Indian government for a well organised summit, but more for a summit which has achieved the objectives that South Africa is aligned with. Our position in various multilateral platforms has been inclusivity, which has been achieved in this summit,” Magwenya explained.
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Members of the G20 reached a consensus on a joint statement, with Modi announcing on September 9 the adoption of the New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration. The agreement was reached halfway through the first day itself of the two-day G20 Leaders’ Summit being held in New Delhi.
The Leaders’ Declaration did not carry the much expected dissent and divergence over Ukraine, the most contested issue on the table. During the previous Indonesian Presidency, there was a sense of outrage over the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Now, it is about the global economic impact of the war.
“We were reasonably confident that this Summit will reach a consensus, even though Bali was faced with similar challenges last year (and hence was unable to reach a consensus for a summit declaration). This year there is positive development as G20 members are focussed on a peace process for the Russia-Ukraine conflict,’’ Magwenya said.
Commending India on a successful Summit, he said that South Africa, which will be holding the G20 Presidency in 2025, has been taking notes.
“South Africa will be hosting the G20 Summit in 2025, so we are frantically taking notes and learning from what India has put together. From President Cyril Ramaphosa to junior officials, all are taking notes. We will engage with the Indian government for the learnings and experiences that have led to such a successful summit,” he said.
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