Africa steps into its new global role: the significance of the 2025 G20 Declaration

The 2025 G20 Summit held in Johannesburg will be remembered as far more than a diplomatic first. It marked a profound shift in the global balance of moral and political authority.

For the first time, the G20 gathered on African soil, and under South Africa’s stewardship, the Summit embraced a distinctly African worldview rooted in the philosophy of Ubuntu - the understanding that “I am because we are.”

This foundational principle set the tone for a Declaration that is not only ambitious but deeply human. It signals that the global governance system is beginning to recognise Africa not as a passive recipient of global policy but as a co-author of solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges.

The G20 Declaration is framed by a clear moral imperative: peace is the foundation upon which all development and sustainability depend. In an era marked by rising geo-political tensions and humanitarian crises, the Declaration issues an unequivocal call to uphold international humanitarian law and protect civilian life.

In naming conflicts such as those in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Ukraine, the Declaration demonstrates an honest reckoning with the suffering and instability that continue to strain global security.

South Africa’s influence is unmistakable here. Drawing on its own history of conflict resolution and its constitutional commitment to human dignity, the country has steered the G20 towards a more principled and compassionate stance on global peace.

Equally significant is the Declaration’s progressive response to climate change and disaster preparedness.

Africa is at the frontline of climate vulnerability, with communities across the continent facing floods, droughts, heatwaves and cyclones that destroy livelihoods and deepen poverty. The commitment to universal early warning systems by 2027 is not merely a technical goal; it is a life-saving intervention.

This is complemented by a shift toward anticipatory planning, innovative risk financing and nature-based solutions that align with local knowledge systems. What distinguishes this approach is its recognition that climate resilience is at its core a matter of justice: those least responsible for global emissions are disproportionately bearing the consequences.

South Africa’s leadership in launching the first national Early Warning Roadmap under the UN initiative demonstrates Africa’s readiness not only to articulate needs but also to pioneer solutions.

The Declaration also confronts a long-standing global injustice that has strangled the aspirations of developing economies for decades: the debt crisis. Many African and low-income countries are burdened by unsustainable debt that diverts scarce resources away from essential services such as health, education and infrastructure. The G20’s commitment  to debt transparency, reforming the IMF–World Bank debt sustainability frameworks, advancing the Common Framework and exploring debt-for-climate and debt-for-

development swaps signals a welcome departure from the past. It acknowledges that debt is not merely an economic calculation but a structural impediment to human progress. If these reforms are carried through with integrity, they may finally offer the fiscal space many countries need to invest in their developmental priorities.

Energy access, one of the most urgent challenges facing the African continent, features prominently in the Declaration.

The statistics are stark: nearly 600 million Africans still lack electricity, and over one billion do not have access to clean cooking technologies - a reality that leads to two million deaths annually from smoke inhalation and associated illnesses.

The G20’s commitment to tripling renewable energy capacity, doubling energy efficiency rates and supporting clean cooking solutions marks a turning point.

The Mission 300 initiative, which aims to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030, captures the scale and urgency of the task. What is particularly noteworthy is that the Declaration frames energy not only as a climate issue, but as a matter of human dignity, opportunity and sovereignty.

A further breakthrough lies in the adoption of the new Critical Minerals Framework.

Africa is home to a significant portion of the world’s critical minerals that power global technological advances, including renewable energy systems, electric vehicles and digital infrastructure.

Yet historically, the continent has benefited little from this wealth, trapped in a cycle of resource extraction without industrialisation.

The G20 now acknowledges that this model is neither fair nor sustainable. The new Framework supports local beneficiation, value addition, community participation, transparent governance and the sovereign right ofAfrican nations to manage their mineral resources for inclusive development. This signals the end of the old extractive model and the beginning of a new era in which Africa demands - and receives - equitable participation in global value chains.

The Declaration also recognises that the digital revolution will define the winners and losers of the future global economy. The launch of the AI for Africa Initiative is particularly significant.

By focusing on access to computing power, data sovereignty, talent development and responsible AI governance, the Initiative ensures that Africa is not left behind as artificial intelligence reshapes industries, governance systems and daily life. AI developed without African participation risks replicating global inequities; AI developed with African leadership offers the possibility of innovation rooted in ethics, cultural nuance and community well-being.Another central achievement of the Declaration is its call for transformative reform of theUnited Nations, especially the UN Security Council. The existing global governance architecture reflects the geopolitical landscape of 1945, not the realities of today. Africa, home to 1.4 billion people, still lacks permanent representation on the Security Council. TheG20’s explicit support for expanding and democratising the Council - and for addressing the structural underrepresentation of Africa, Latin America and Asia-Pacific - is long overdue. This is not just a political issue; it is a matter of legitimacy. A global governance system that fails to reflect global demographics cannot claim to speak for humanity.

Taken together, the commitments outlined in the 2025 G20 Declaration represent aprofound shift in how the world approaches global cooperation. While implementation remains the ultimate test, the Declaration is infused with a moral clarity and human-centre division that reflect Africa’s growing influence on the world stage. It affirms solidarity as a global value, equality as a universal right and sustainability as a shared responsibility. If the spirit of Ubuntu that guided this Summit continues to shape global policy, the JohannesburgDeclaration will be remembered not simply as a document, but as the beginning of a new chapter in multilateralism - one in which Africa stands not at the periphery, but at the centre of global transformation.

Dr Govender is a Commissioner in the Cultural, Religious and Linguistic RightsCommission; Board member of the Pan South African Language Board, Researcher andSocial Anthropologist.

He writes in his personal capacity.

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