EMPOWERING WOMEN GOVERNANCE
Interview with Elizabeth Sidiropoulos , chief executive, ńƙƊėƈûŲěΰĸƈFĸŷƊěƊƙƊäƈńûƈFĸƊäŲĸ°Ɗěńĸ°īƈü°ěŲŷ
Taking the G20 helm: prioritising social issues
combating illicit financial flows. It has been very involved in the Inclusive Framework on base erosion and profit shifting and the regulations that have emerged. South Africa has pushed for mispricing and mis-invoicing by companies – other examples of illicit financial flows – to be on the G20 agenda. It secured a decision for the World Customs Organization to submit a report on this to the Development Working Group. South Africa also advocated for increasing African representation on the IMF and World Bank boards; in the latter case, an additional seat for sub-Saharan Africa was secured in 2010. In the case of the IMF, it took a little longer, with the additional seat agreed upon in April 2024. In 2020, before the first G20 meeting convened by Saudi Arabia after the Covid-19 pandemic erupted, South Africa, as chair of the African Union, brought together the African Centres for Disease Control, regional representatives and the AU bureau to coordinate Africa’s demands, addressing not only health but also debt. South Africa, among others, had long pushed for a seat for the AU at the G20. The AU and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development Agency have had observer seats at the G20 since 2010. Now, the AU has a full seat and is building up its capacity to influence the agenda.
As South Africa assumes the G20 presidency for 2025, it will focus on issues including poverty, inequality and climate change in order to foster solidarity, equality and sustainable development
How has South Africa contributed to G20 governance since the finance ministers and central bank governors first started meeting in 1999? South Africa’s transformation into a democracy in 1994 saw it become a very active global player in various forums. In 1999, when the G20 was established, we had a finance minister – Trevor Manuel – and president, Thabo Mbeki, who wanted to make an impact on the international financial system to help Africa and the developing world. Minister Manuel and successive reserve bank governors were very active in the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and G20 in promoting Africa’s and South Africa’s case to build more proactive African engagement. The 2008 global financial crisis originated in the North in a particular context, and the responses devised were not necessarily applicable to African circumstances. South Africa contended that regulatory changes introduced in response, such as the Basel rules on correspondent banking, had unintended consequences for Africa and the developing world. When G20 leaders started meeting in 2008, South Africa emphasised developmental issues. It was very involved in the Seoul Development Consensus and in creating the Development Working Group in 2010. Some of the issues South Africa promoted included infrastructure development, financial inclusion and
ELIZABETH SIDIROPOULOS Elizabeth Sidiropoulos has been chief executive of the South African Institute of FĹƋåųűƋĜŅűĬeý±ĜųŸ since 2005. She is co-convenor, together with the Institute for Development and Sustainability, of the Think20 Africa Standing Group, established in 2017 during the German G20 presidency. She has served as co-chair of various task forces
in the T20 engagement group and is coordinator of the General Secretariat of the T20 Brazil International Advisory Council. She has served on the United Nations Under-Secretary-General’s High-Level Advisory Board on )ÏŅĹŅĵĜϱĹÚŅÏĜ±Ĭeý±ĜųŸŸĜĹÏåƖLjƖLjţ
@siderop : saiia.org.za
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G20 BRAZIL: THE RIO SUMMIT — 2024
globalgovernanceproject.org
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