International Sharp Review | What will the African Union's accession to the G20 bring to the world?
Becoming a member of the G20 will significantly enhance Africa's voice, visibility, and influence. Over the past 24 hours, there has been a wave of joy in African politics and public opinion.
The G20 New Delhi Summit concluded on the 10th. As one of the important outcomes of the meeting, all parties unanimously agreed to invite the African Union to become a formal member of the G20. This ends the history of only South Africa coming from Africa in this mechanism. The African Union has also become the second regional organization to join the G20 after the European Union. This is the result of long-term efforts by the African Union and African countries, and is closely related to the evolution of the world pattern and external forces.
The African Union was established in 2002 and is composed of 55 African countries, with broad representativeness. According to the African Union Charter, it is an important responsibility of the African Union to "uphold the common position and interests of Africa" and "create conditions for Africa to play its due role in global affairs". In recent years, the African Union has made efforts to represent the overall interests of Africa on the international stage, seeking to join the G20, an important platform for global economic governance, and has been working towards this goal for seven years.
From an external perspective, as African economies continue to integrate into the world, Africa's participation in global affairs has significantly increased. It is widely believed that China has played a crucial role in promoting the African Union's accession to the G20 process.
As a good friend of African countries, China has always supported African countries and the African Union to play a greater role in international and regional affairs. It advocates prioritizing the resolution of Africa's demands in the reform of the United Nations Security Council and is the first to express its clear support for the African Union's accession to the G20. Not long ago, at the China Africa Leaders' Dialogue held in South Africa, China once again emphasized that it will actively promote the African Union to become a member of the G20. Relevant experts told the International Review that China firmly supports the African Union's accession to the G20. On the one hand, this is because China and Africa have long had strong political mutual trust and are good partners on the path of common development; On the one hand, Africa is an important pole of international power and a crucial force in maintaining international fairness and justice. The accession of the African Union to the G20 is a victory for true multilateralism.
For the support provided by China, the rotating Chairman of the African Union and President of Comoros, Azali Asumani, expressed gratitude and looked forward to strengthening cooperation with China and achieving win-win results in the future. Senegal's President Saleh pointed out that China is a loyal and steadfast friend of African countries, and thanks China for being the first to publicly support the African Union's accession to the G20 initiative.
The G20 is the main forum for international economic cooperation. What will the accession of the African Union, representing 55 countries and covering a population of over 1.4 billion, bring to Africa and the world?
Africa is the continent with the highest concentration of developing countries and holds enormous development potential. At present, the African continent is accelerating the construction of free trade zones. After joining the G20, Africa as a whole has gained an important channel to communicate and coordinate macroeconomic policies with the world's major economies. This is beneficial for African countries to address the current challenges of rising debt risks, climate change, and food security.
In the long run, Africa has enormous resources, population, and market advantages. Once better integrated into the global economy, it will unleash more development potential and promote the African continent to achieve the African Union's 2063 Agenda as soon as possible. African Union Commission Chairman Faki pointed out that joining the G20 is conducive to building a new architecture that better amplifies African ideas and increases Africa's contribution to addressing global challenges.
From a larger perspective, following the expansion of the BRICS cooperation mechanism, the G20's inclusion of the African Union is another landmark event in the development and growth of the "global southern" forces. Some analysts believe that the pursuit of strategic autonomy by African countries and their active participation in global governance is beneficial for the international community to address peace, development, and security deficits. At the same time, in the turbulent and intertwined world pattern, the discourse power of "global southern" countries has increased, strengthening the power of multilateralism, which will have a restraining effect on hegemonism and power politics.
In today's world, whether it is achieving peace and tranquility or pursuing inclusive development, Africa is a stakeholder and should no longer be the "overlooked majority". Western countries that only focus on Africa from a geopolitical perspective should show genuine willingness and resources to support Africa's development. Africa today does not need "colonizers" or "teachers", but rather requires more equality, respect, and cooperation. In this sense, the African Union's accession to the G20 is just the beginning.
