WATCH | Joburg becomes global diplomatic capital as South Africa opens landmark G20 Leaders' Summit
The G20 Leaders Summit has started at Nasrec, Johannesburg with attendance of world leaders.
Image: Screengrab
South Africa stepped into the global spotlight on Saturday as the G20 Leaders’ Summit officially got under way at the Nasrec Expo Centre, marking the first time the gathering has been held on African soil.
The summit brings together the world’s major economies under the theme “Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability”, with the host city dressed in banners, tightened security, and major routes cordoned off to accommodate convoys.
By 9 am on Saturday, Deputy President Paul Mashatile had arrived at the Nasrec Expo Centre, followed by the arrival of various heads of state and leaders of international organisations.
IOL has recently reported that authorities confirmed the deployment of more than 3,500 police officers, with facial-recognition systems and controlled protest zones in place around the precinct.
This week, Johannesburg has welcomed several high-profile arrivals. United Kingdom's Prime Minister Keir Starmer touched down ahead of schedule, while China’s Premier Li Qiang arrived from Lusaka after a state visit to Zambia. Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is also attending, underscoring a strong Global South presence at this year’s gathering.
On Friday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also landed in Johannesburg for the G20 Leaders' Summit, and he said he was looking forward to productive discussions with world leaders on key global issues.
"Our focus will be on strengthening cooperation, advancing development priorities and ensuring a better future for all," he said.
However, the United States is not sending its president or a senior representative from Washington, opting instead to send its chargé d’affaires to the handover scheduled for Sunday. The last-minute shift has fuelled a diplomatic stand-off between Pretoria and Washington, with President Cyril Ramaphosa making it clear he will not preside over the ceremonial handover of the G20 presidency to a junior envoy.
The summit opens at a time when South Africa faces deep domestic challenges, including unemployment, service delivery shortfalls and high levels of crime.
Despite this, Pretoria is using its presidency to push a hard Global South agenda, including debt relief for developing nations, climate-finance reform, and strengthening Africa’s position in global value chains. Ramaphosa has also linked the summit to urgent national issues, recently declaring gender-based violence a crisis as civil-society groups plan symbolic protests outside the summit.
South Africa has confirmed the participation of around 42 countries and organisations, including G20 members, guest nations and regional blocs.
For now, Johannesburg is the centre of the diplomatic world. Whether the summit delivers substantive outcomes or becomes overshadowed by the geopolitical tensions behind it will become clear as leaders enter a packed two-day programme of plenaries and negotiations.
jonisayi.maromo@iol.co.za
IOL News