President Cyril Ramaphosa says South Africa will promote the interests of Africa and the Global South during its G20 presidency.
“We, as the incoming president of the G20, have selected a theme that talks to solidarity, equality and sustainable development,” he told parliament.
“Embedded in this theme is the equal treatment of all nations in the world and particularly the equal treatment for our continent which has for the longest time been excluded from key positions where decisions affecting the world are made.”
“So we will be arguing and putting forward very strong views which hopefully will be adopted in the declaration that we will put forward in the G20 that the reform of the UN Security Council, and indeed various other global institutions, should take into account the views of those countries that have been excluded for the longest time in participating meaningfully in such structures.”
South Africa will assume the G20 presidency from December.
The G20 is an international forum to discuss a range of issues including macroeconomic, trade, sustainable development, health, agriculture, energy, environment, climate change and anticorruption. Last year, the AU was included as a permanent member of the G20, which also includes the EU.
G20 members represent about 85% of global GDP, more than 75% of global trade and about two-thirds of the world’s population.
The G20 presidency is responsible for bringing together the forum’s agenda in consultation with other members and in response to developments in the global economy.
Ramaphosa was answering MPs’ questions in the National Assembly on Thursday.
The ANC’s Supra Mahumapelo had asked the president with the need for the urgent reform of the UN Security Council to include African representation, what measures would he be putting in place to ensure the reform is urgently advanced.
“The issue of representativity in global institutions is going to be quite prominent.
“We are rather pleased that what we have been advocating for, for years now, in various platforms around the world is beginning to gain traction and we are hoping that with a further push at the forthcoming events or summits, such as the one that we will be going to next week in Russia, the Brics summit, followed by the G20 in Brazil, we will advance the argument for the representation of those countries that have been excluded.”
The G20 for us is going to be a key moment and it’s a moment that we would like to mobilise our nation around
— President Cyril Ramaphosa
Ramaphosa said the G20, which will be held in Africa for the first time, will be a great platform for South Africa to promote the interest of the continent and the Global South.
“The G20 for us is going to be a key moment and it’s a moment that we would like to mobilise our nation around, so that all formations in our nation should see the G20 as being a national project, having a national interest and objectives, so that we are able to advance the interests of our nation and the Global South.”
Ramaphosa said South Africa’s support for Africa’s representation on the UN Security Council and on many other structures that involve global governance was based on the principles that have been adopted by the UN and the principles that have been adopted by the AU and the Southern African Development Community.
These three organisations, and a few others in which South Africa holds membership, have adopted principles that speak to governance and human rights and the country also based its approach on its constitution that guides it in terms of what to do globally to promote a better world and a better Africa.
“Our participation and our argument for Africa to be included clearly is going to be in accordance with those principles. In the end, it’s the AU that is going to take a decision as set out in the Ezulwini Consensus on which countries should be represented on the UN Security Council.”
Ramaphosa said the Ezulwini Consensus was clear that at the very least, Africa wants two representatives on the UN Security Council. The decision about which African countries this will be, will be taken by the AU on the basis of representativity and capacity.
In its call for the urgent reform of the Security Council, the African continent wants at least two permanent seats and five non-permanent seats.
It also wants the abolishment of the veto, but says for as long as the veto exists, it is a privilege which should be extended to all new permanent members.
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