The pivotal role of partnering for the G20 South Africa presidency

On 1 December 2024, our country assumed the Group of 20 (G20) presidency. It comes just five years before the 2030 deadline for the UN’s SDGs and is the fourth consecutive year that a developing nation has led the G20.

South Africa’s presidency, focused on “fostering solidarity, equality, and sustainable development” is an opportunity to advocate for Africa’s agenda and the interests the Global South in addressing inequality, climate change, and economic injustice.

For South Africa to effectively drive this agenda, balancing immediate priorities with long-term global goals, partnering principles and collaborative and adaptive governance capabilities are essential.

Adaptive governance for lasting impact Integrating adaptive governance principles into its presidency of the G20 will ensure South Africa effectively foregrounds Global South priorities within this global forum.

As points are raised about the potential of this moment for South Africa to advance everything from human and environmental rights protections to bioenvironmental economic development; I see a common thread emerge. That is, this presidency is a moment to demonstrate how adaptive, collaborative governance capabilities can support systems change.

Collective sense-making and mutual accountability

Through its G20 presidency, South Africa can use collective sense-making to align G20 stakeholders around shared goals that elevate Africa’s voice. This includes learning from the outgoing president, Brazil, that laid the foundation for inclusive dialogue by championing the Global Hunger and Poverty Alliance.

The G20 has been criticised for its perceived exclusive nature. By building in mechanisms to foster mutual accountability, South Africa will work to ensure that commitments made toward equality are transparently upheld.

Support climate action and address debt challenges

As a representative of the Global South, South Africa has a unique opportunity to spotlight Africa’s specific challenges on the global stage and work to shape G20 priorities and policies to support the continent’s needs.

Partnering through integrated planning and resourcing will provide member nations with a concrete opportunity to coordinate their resources in response to African development priorities. This approach can maximise the impact of initiatives on climate resilience, debt relief, and economic policy.

South Africa should use the opportunity of the G20 presidency to coordinate concrete commitments from members towards addressing the challenges faced by Africa.

South Africa’s presidency can also get creative in its approach to debt discussions argues Professor Danny Bradlow, a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Advancement of Scholarship at the University of Pretoria. Collaborative implementation can take the form of South Africa calling for “commitments that support regional integration, in close coordination with the relevant AU organs and knowledge partners”. These commitments from G20 members could help ensure that climate and debt financing solutions benefit all nations equitably.

Build trust and sustain partnerships beyond the summit

South Africa can foster sustainable partnerships and engage stakeholders meaningfully through leveraging transparency. Setting up frameworks for mutual accountability will assist the G20 to continue building trust in its commitments to an agenda that benefits Africa, other developing regions and the world.

This capability of adaptive and collaborative governance allows nations to hold one another accountable. Transparency within the G20 and among its engagement groups will enhance the inclusivity of the forum and support this. Transparency with groups dedicated to thematic areas like Youth 20, Business 20, or Women 20 will enhance accountability in high-stakes, cross-cutting areas like development financing and climate justice. As a capability of adaptive and collaborative governance, transparency will bolster the credibility of the G20’s actions on the world stage.

The G20 presidency can set a foundation for lasting partnerships that continue beyond South Africa’s term, supporting African priorities even as leadership shifts to developed nations. This is already evident in the way South Africa’s presidency of the group plans to build on the issues tabled by outgoing president Brazil.

Ensuring that the voice of the developing world continues to be heard and represented within the G20 fosters an inclusive governance structure that reflects the aspirations of the whole world, beyond G20 members.

Sustaining the G20 as a platform for inclusive global governance

The G20 serves as a critical platform for international cooperation, enabling major economies to engage in dialogue, align on global priorities, and coordinate responses to pressing challenges. Without it, the risk of fragmentation in global governance increases, reducing the ability of nations to collaboratively address crises as they emerge. For South Africa, maintaining the G20’s effectiveness through adaptive and collaborative governance will be essential to ensuring that Africa’s priorities remain at the forefront beyond its presidency.

By embedding partnering principles into its leadership, South Africa can strengthen the G20’s credibility and legitimacy. Leveraging collective sense-making and mutual accountability will ensure that commitments to economic justice, sustainable development, and climate action translate into tangible outcomes. Without these mechanisms, the G20 risks becoming an ineffective forum that fails to reflect the voices of developing nations.

The stakes are high—fostering an inclusive and transparent G20 during South Africa’s presidency is not just about shaping its term in office, but about securing a governance structure that works for all in the long run.

This blog post is subject to the following disclaimer.