G20 Africa Summit: How India's 2023 Priorities Shaped Historic Declaration

The Leaders' Declaration was adopted despite the United States boycotting the key summit featuring several top world leaders, accusing the host nation of mistreating its minority white farmers.

"The G20 underscores the value and relevance of multilateralism. It recognises that the challenges we all face can only be resolved through cooperation, collaboration and partnership. The adoption of the declaration from the summit sends an important signal to the world that multilateralism can and does deliver. It sends a message of hope and solidarity. It tells the world that as the leaders of the G20, we will keep fast to our solemn pledge to leave no person, no community and no country behind," said South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa at the opening of the Summit on Saturday.

Ahead of the Summit, Ramaphosa had insisted that South Africa will not be "bullied by anyone" and the G20 declaration will proceed, with or without the United States.

"The talks are going extremely well. I am confident we are moving towards the declaration, and they are now just dotting the I’s and crossing the T's," Ramaphosa said on the sidelines of the closing ceremony of the G20 Social Summit in Boksburg on Thursday.

The declaration adopted on Saturday took forward the priorities set by India during its highly successful presidency in 2023. India has been pushing for a collective resolve to prioritise the development imperatives of the world through the grouping which features the most powerful economies of the world.

"For the first time, G20 Leaders have convened in Africa. In the spirit of Ubuntu, we recognise that individual nations cannot thrive in isolation. The African philosophy of Ubuntu, often translated as “I am because we are”, emphasises the interconnectedness of individuals within a broader communal, societal, economic, and environmental context. We understand our interconnectedness as a global community of nations and reaffirm our commitment to ensure that no one is left behind through multilateral cooperation, macro policy coordination, global partnerships for sustainable development and solidarity," read the South Africa Leaders' Declaration.

It highlighted that, in the face of a challenging political and socio-economic environment, the G20 leaders underscore belief in multilateral cooperation to collectively address shared challenges.

"We further reaffirm that, in line with the UN Charter, all states must refrain from the threat or use of force to seek territorial acquisition against the territorial integrity and sovereignty or political independence of any state and that states should develop friendly relations among nations, including by promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion," it stated.

Condemning terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, the G20 leaders also backed the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and FATF-style regional bodies in overseeing the effective implementation of the FATF standards to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing across the global network.

"We emphasise the need to intensify global efforts to prevent the misuse of legal entities, foster increased asset recovery, facilitate rapid, constructive, inclusive and effective international cooperation enhance payments transparency, and promote responsible innovation within the virtual assets sector while mitigating illicit finance involving virtual assets," they vowed.

Earlier in the day, in his address at the session titled 'Inclusive and sustainable economic growth leaving no one behind', Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the idea of 'Integral Humanism' based on India's civilizational wisdom, to bring harmony between progress and planet. He also noted that some of the historic decisions taken during the New Delhi Summit have been carried forward.

He also appreciated the work done under the South African presidency in the areas of skilled migration, tourism, food security, AI, digital economy, innovation and women empowerment, calling for giving greater voice to the Global South in global governance structures.

Giving shape to the vision of 'One Earth, One Family, One Future' towards inclusive and sustainable economic growth and leaving no one behind, Prime Minister Modi made four proposals during his remarks at the first session.

It included the setting up of a 'Global Traditional Knowledge Repository' under the G20; a 'G20-Africa Skills Multiplier Initiative'; a 'G20 Global Healthcare Response Team'; and, a G20 initiative on 'Countering the Drug–Terror Nexus'.

- IANS