Assessing South Africa’s G20 Presidency at a time of geo-political turbulence

27 January 2026 – This paper reviews South Africa’s 2025 G20 Presidency and assesses how it advanced a Global South–led development agenda amid global geopolitical fragmentation and constrained cooperation. 

Continuity & Progress for Africa and the Global South cover

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This report from the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) examines South Africa’s performance as G20 President under the theme ‘Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability’. It assesses progress across four priorities: disaster resilience and response; debt sustainability for low-income countries; mobilising finance for a just energy transition; and harnessing critical minerals for inclusive growth. 

The paper analyses the frameworks, action plans and policy tools launched during the Presidency, alongside the structural and geopolitical constraints that shaped outcomes. It also situates South Africa’s term within the continuity established by Brazil’s 2024 G20 Presidency, highlighting the consolidation of an equity- and development-focused agenda within the G20. 

Drawing on taskforces, ministerial processes and the final Leaders’ Declaration, the report evaluates what was achieved, where progress stalled, and what will be required to translate political commitments into durable impact for Africa and the wider Global South. 

Key insights 

  • South Africa successfully elevated African and Global South priorities within G20 economic governance, reflected across multiple workstreams and the Leaders’ Declaration. 
  • The Presidency delivered concrete policy outputs, including a Ministerial Statement on Debt, tools for disaster-risk reduction, just transition frameworks and the foundations of a G20 Critical Minerals Framework. 
  • Debt sustainability remains a binding constraint, with slow restructuring processes, high borrowing costs and limited fiscal space undermining development progress. 
  • Finance for climate adaptation, energy access and transition remains insufficient, despite political consensus on ambition. 
  • Critical minerals were reframed as a development opportunity, with emphasis on value addition, beneficiation and inclusive growth. 
  • Geopolitical tensions tested multilateralism, yet consensus on a Leaders’ Declaration demonstrated continued space for Global South leadership within the G20. 
  • Continuity with Brazil’s 2024 Presidency strengthened the G20’s equity and sustainability narrative, but implementation now depends on sustained political commitment beyond 2025. 

This work contributes to CISL Africa’s efforts to strengthen leadership for resilient, inclusive and sustainable economic systems, and to advance African influence in global economic policymaking. 

Citing this report 

University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership. (2026). Continuity & Progress for Africa and the Global South: Assessing South Africa’s G20 Presidency at a time of geo-political turbulence (Cambridge, UK: University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership).