President Cyril Ramaphosa says South Africa now follows G20 proceedings “by rumour”, having been excluded from the key global economic discussions.
Speaking at the Public Global Inequality Dialogue on Friday, Ramaphosa made the comment while reflecting on the outcomes of last year’s G20 leaders’ summit in Johannesburg and the broader global response to inequality.
“As you well know, we now, as South Africa, attend the G20 meetings just by rumour, having been completely excluded,” he said.
The remark was delivered partly in a humorous tone, accompanied by an anecdote about a student who attended lectures from outside a classroom.
US President Donald Trump had sought to exclude South Africa from the upcoming G20 summit in Miami, US, this year. The move was recently criticised by Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who publicly defended South Africa’s participation in the grouping.
South Africa is a member of the G20, a grouping of the world’s largest economies that plays a central role in shaping global economic policy.
Gap widens between rich and poor
The president’s comments came as he focused largely on the global inequality crisis.
“Inequality is one of the greatest threats to human progress,” Ramaphosa said, saying it limits opportunity, entrenches poverty and slows development.
Citing findings from a global panel of experts, he highlighted the widening gap between rich and poor: between 2000 and 2024, the richest 1% captured 41% of all new wealth, while the poorest half of the global population accounted for just 1%.
Ramaphosa was speaking in support of the proposed International Panel on Inequality, an initiative emerging from South Africa’s G20 presidency.
The panel aims to provide research, data and policy guidance to help countries tackle inequality.
He said growing inequality poses risks beyond economics, warning that it contributes to political instability.
“Persistent inequality, social and economic exclusion and lack of opportunity create fertile ground for extremism, polarisation and the erosion of democracy,” he said.
The president also reiterated calls for reforms to global institutions, including financial bodies and the UN system, to better reflect the needs of developing economies.
“We have been quite vocal in calling for the reform of multilateral institutions, including the UN Security Council,” he said.
Ramaphosa added that addressing inequality would require co-ordinated global action, including fairer taxation, stronger social protections and increased investment in public services such as health and education.
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