GUEST LEADERS’ VIEWS A s one of the world’s ancient serving as a relentless broker of peace and promoter of humanitarian responses to the multifaceted crises that plague our world. The regrettable outbreak of the war on Gaza, its continuation for over a year and its catastrophic consequences leave no doubt there can be no alternative to achieving shared prosperity other than through achieving peace. That horrifying war is a clear manifestation of the international community’s inability to end the most prolonged conflict in the world. Agreement on an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, which paves the way for a civilizations, Egypt honours its tradition of providing an anchor of stability in the region, and comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian question, would benefit all parties. I salute President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil for joining my call for an immediate ceasefire, unimpeded access for humanitarian aid and the restoration of the path towards the implementation of the two-state solution. I further call upon G20 leaders to extend their collective support to the imperative demand for peace and a viable post-conflict reconstruction plan. Risks to political stability and territorial integrity have repercussions for affected countries and also their neighbourhood. The conflict and humanitarian catastrophe in the Sudan have forced 1.2 million individuals to seek refuge in Egypt, in addition to over four million Sudanese citizens already there. We welcome our sisters and brothers, but cannot ignore the fact that this situation poses economic and social challenges, which neighbouring countries share. An even larger population of 10 million internally displaced Sudanese citizens will likely seek safe haven in neighbouring countries. I therefore echo the concern of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees that international commitments are falling short. The international community must fulfill its duties and responsibilities towards Sudanese refugees and not abandon neighbouring countries, facing this task on behalf of the global community. With approximately 75% of the world’s refugees hosted in low- and middle-income countries, developing economies are disproportionally affected by geopolitical risks, while they struggle with their own
Abdel Fattah El-Sisi President, Egypt
Peace, stability and development in a challenging world
developmental and economic challenges. Is official development assistance well suited to respond to an increasingly tense geopolitical climate, with increased demand for humanitarian assistance and refugee resettlement? True, multiple crises are squeezing donors’ budgets; however, it is of utmost importance for global stability to demonstrate solidarity with countries and peoples facing such crises. I urge G20 leaders to call for elevating developmental and humanitarian considerations in allocating humanitarian aid and development finance. Moreover, some African states suffer from water scarcity, aggravated by climate change, and this has exacerbated political and economic instability. Water scarcity poses an existential threat to Egypt, among the most hyper-arid countries in the world. It depends on the Nile and struggles to meet the needs of its population with annual water per capita far below the water poverty line – expected to fall below the absolute water poverty line by the end of 2025 ... Egypt thus reaffirms its unwavering commitment to work with others to preserve water security for all, in tandem with endeavours to realise the Sustainable Development Goals for our region. I call on my fellow leaders to spare no effort to assist and support African states, specifically those of the Nile basin, through genuine cooperation and respect for the sacrosanct principles of no harm, based on best practices and the sound, non-selective application of international law. The global trend of decreasing ODA, coupled with high debt burdens, leaving states to face the consequences of high borrowing costs and debt servicing, jeopardises African countries’ efforts to achieve the SDGs. Their borrowing costs are four times higher than those for the United States and eight times higher than for the wealthiest European economies. This stresses the dire need for a holistic approach to end this vicious cycle. Equally important, there remains an urgent need to reform the global financial
architecture to be fit for purpose, equitable and responsive to the financing priorities of developing countries, including middle-income countries. It is critical to reform the multilateral development banks to increase their support and lending capacities, improve developing countries’ access to concessional finance and other non-debt instruments, and unlock investment opportunities for a just, sustainable transition. There is an imperative need to explore innovative instruments to alleviate debt burdens, including debt swaps for nature. Egypt counts on the G20 to play a crucial role in improving the global financial architecture so it can better support developing countries in addressing these challenges and building resilience to withstand future ones. Egypt is implementing an ambitious economic and social reform programme, with a vision of long-term inclusive economic and social development. ‘Egypt Vision 2030’ aims at maintaining considerable economic growth rates and enabling Egypt to remain resilient in the face of challenges posed by current risks and global uncertainties. Egypt, a voice from Africa, the Mediterranean and the Middle East, brings to G20 meetings critical political and economic considerations that profoundly affect macroeconomic stability in multiple developing regions. Cross-border spillovers from zones of vulnerability, conflict and violence, combined with tepid international solidarity and cooperation, overburden already overstretched resources and affect investor sentiment. I unequivocally urge the G20, and the international community at large, to understand that our collective failure to resolve these conflicts is a looming threat to our dream for a prosperous world free of poverty. Note: This article, which was written in September 2024, has been edited due to space limitations. The full-length version is available at globalgovernanceproject.org.
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G20 BRAZIL: THE RIO SUMMIT — 2024
globalgovernanceproject.org
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