What will the first African G20 presidency look like?

As the G20 summit came to an end on Tuesday, South Africa became the first African nation to assume the presidency of the Group of 20 major economies — a year-long term that will officially begin on Dec. 1, 2024. “We will use this moment to bring the development priorities of the African continent and the global south more firmly onto the agenda of the G20,” said South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, after the head of the G20’s current presidency, Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, symbolically handed over the role in Rio de Janeiro. Ramaphosa then announced South Africa’s G20 theme: solidarity, equality and sustainability. Beneath that umbrella, the country will prioritize inclusive economic growth, food security, and artificial intelligence, he added — not just through the G20 summit, but through 130 meetings in South Africa throughout next year. “This will probably be the biggest international event in Africa’s history,” said Daniel Bradlow, a professor of international development law and African economic relations at the University of Pretoria. “It’s a huge undertaking, and it will be both a challenge and an opportunity for the country.” South Africa is the fourth global south nation in a row to take the helm of the influential group, which consists of 19 countries plus the European and African unions. The G20 presidency rotates every year, charging one nation with guiding the agenda, priorities, and outcomes of the group. It’s an influential role among influential players, with G20 nations representing both two-thirds of the world’s population and 85% of its gross domestic product. For more than two decades, the group has worked as a deliberative body, attempting to foster consensus amidst the world’s largest economies. And now, South Africa will become the first African nation to make its mark. “We seek to make this G20 an Africa-focused G20, as well as a global south-focused G20,” said Ramaphosa, speaking at a press conference in Rio de Janeiro this week. “That’s what we want the G20 to focus on: the needs and challenges that the African continent faces.” The South Africa Department of International Relations and Cooperation could not be reached for comment on this story. The context The South African presidency follows those of Indonesia, India, and Brazil, which have all propelled the global south’s priorities to the global stage. But it also precedes the G20 presidency of the United States, a country that is likely to approach the forum in a very different way. Donald Trump — who will be returning to the White House in January — has expressed skepticism for multilateralism, emphasizing an “America First” approach throughout his previous term as president. Last time around, he also pulled the U.S. from many of the agreements world leaders recommitted to this week, including the Paris Agreement to limit global warming. “Even if South Africa succeeds with putting something on the agenda, how do we know that the next G20 presidency will not just tear that up and move to something else?” said Jayati Ghosh, a professor of economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Despite that, Ramaphosa seemed unfazed at a press conference this Tuesday. He told journalists he was looking forward to engaging with Trump, and said he’d already invited the president-elect to South Africa. “We’re joined at the hip … for a solid two years,” Ramaphosa said. “So, I’m hoping that diplomacy, and observing the various protocols that exist among global leaders as well as countries, are going to underpin the way that we work.” Without naming names, Ramaphosa used the example of Argentina. During this week’s G20 summit, the country resisted several of the decisions leaders tried to push in their final declaration. But ultimately, Argentina decided not to block the consensus, instead opting to detail where they disagreed on the country’s official channels. “What we established at this summit is that even if one member, or one country, dissents, it will not stop the show. It will not stop forward movement,” said Ramaphosa. “Once there is sufficient consensus, we move on.” South Africa has the largest economy on the African continent, but the smallest within the G20, according to data from the International Monetary Fund. That rank may actually prove useful within its G20 presidency, debt researcher Kamal Ramburuth explained, along with its membership in the African Union and BRICS, a group of emerging economies including Russia, China, India, and Brazil. The AU is, as of last year, the newest G20 member — a presence that will undoubtedly give weight to South Africa’s steer, and amplify Africa’s voice in deliberations. “Because South Africa isn’t a world power, and because the country doesn’t have enemies in the same way that a lot of the larger ones do, it positions South Africa very well,” said Ramburuth, who works at the Johannesburg-based Institute For Economic Justice. “It can play the role of an honest broker, and of a mediator. The lack of power itself is also a negotiating strength.” The priorities South Africa has made it clear: Next year, Africa will be the focus. The country has also emphasized the Sustainable Development Goals, with Ramaphosa stating that for the next five years, each G20 presidency must prioritize their achievement. Ten years after the world committed to those goals — which focus on addressing poverty, inequality, climate change, and other social issues — less than one-fifth of those targets are on track. Now, there are just five years left until the deadline, and South Africa hopes driving attention toward solidarity, equality, and sustainability will help the world get there. In his speech at the summit, Ramaphosa defined solidarity as standing with those “who are facing hardship and suffering,” highlighting Gaza, Sudan, and Ukraine. He also noted countries most at risk of global health emergencies, such as m-pox and pandemics. Then, there’s equality — something both Brazil and South Africa have chosen to elevate. It’s a wide, complicated issue with a myriad of societal implications. But in his speech to world leaders this week, Ramaphosa emphasized both wealth disparities and debt. “The disparities in wealth and development within and between countries is unjust and unsustainable,” he said. “Inequality is manifested in the crippling debt that has forced many countries to forgo their developmental programs to service exorbitant debt.” Though the issue affects countries everywhere, it’s exacerbated in the global south. Last year, 3.3 billion people were living in countries that spend more on their interest payments than they do on education or health, and low- and middle-income countries owed $29 trillion in debt in 2023 alone, according to the latest figures from the United Nations Trade and Development organization. It’s even more of a pressing problem in Africa, as this year alone, African nations are estimated to be spending at least 18.5% of their budgets on debt servicing. Brazil tried to push the conversation on debt forward this past year. While there was a strong consensus on the need to deal with debt, there was little action toward doing so, explained Eric LeCompte, the executive director of the nonprofit group Jubilee USA Network. “While there have been some big plans, big proposals, and big initiatives put forward by the Brazilian government, we're not seeing a lot of definitive action and implementation — even on some of the things that were low-hanging fruit,” LeCompte told Devex. Still, there was some progress: Leaders agreed on the need to tax the superrich, which could provide countries with more revenue for social programs and debt relief; they also laid out a road map for reforming the multilateral development banks, following a call from the India G20 presidency to make such institutions better, bigger, and more effective. And now that those agreements are on the table, it’s up to South Africa to move them forward. South Africa is likely to do just that. But it only has one year to steer the G20 ship — and one year to turn declarations into real, concrete action. “Debt vulnerabilities will be on the main stage,” LeCompte told Devex. “But anything that moves forward in South Africa will only be implemented during the U.S. presidency.” The extras South Africa is also planning to highlight three high-level topics: economic growth, food security, and artificial intelligence. While not mentioned in Ramaphosa’s remarks, another theme has come up repeatedly throughout the country’s engagements with the G20: climate finance, and the need to ensure a just energy transition. “Africa is well endowed with sun and wind, and that can be utilized to grow our economies,” said Ramaphosa, speaking at a G20 side event earlier this week. “But of course, this does not come as cheap as one would think. It requires finance, it requires clear decisions by leaders not only on the African continent, but globally.” South African officials have also said the country is considering launching a review of past commitments made by the G20, and possibly, a review of the G20 overall. And, the country has committed to hosting the second G20 social summit, an initiative created by the Brazilian presidency that sought to bring civil society organizations into the G20 fold. This year, the Brazilian government estimated the social summit brought 50,000 people to Rio de Janeiro, including activists, representatives of civil society organizations, and government officials. “How development occurs matters greatly, and the current global governance and financial architecture has been shown to perpetuate inequality both within and between countries,” said Vuyiswa Sidzumo, the director of the Ford Foundation’s southern Africa office, in an email to Devex. “With key proposals now on the table, they could gain increased prominence during South Africa’s presidency.