Trevor Manuel to chair G20 expert panel on Africa

Source: Presidency of the Republic of South Africa. President Cyril Ramaphosa received the United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres at Mahlamba Ndlopfu, the president’s official residence in Pretoria on Wednesday, 11 December 2024.

Comprising leading African economists, development specialists, and finance experts from the public sector, think tanks, academia, and international financial institutions, the panel's mission is to drive political and public support for effective debt policy solutions across the continent.

This initiative seeks to address critical challenges in Africa’s economic landscape and strengthen its global financial positioning.

Announcing the appointment on Thursday, 12 December 2024, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana emphasised that Manuel’s role would bridge efforts between the UN and the G20 to tackle the escalating debt crisis affecting developing nations. This comes shortly after Manuel's selection to a UN expert group focused on mobilising global action to address this critical issue.

Godongwana highlighted that this synergy would support discussions during South Africa's G20 Presidency, coinciding with the 5th Finance in Common Summit, scheduled to take place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre from Wednesday, 26 February, to Friday, 28 February 2025.

It will also contribute to the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development, set to be held in Spain in June 2025.

Global financial focus

Godongwana was addressing delegates at the two-day G20 Finance Track meeting held in Johannesburg this week. The Minister emphasised that the focus is now on implementing agreements from last month’s G20 Summit in Brazil.

These agreements, part of the G20 Rio de Janeiro Leaders’ Declaration, commit to accelerating reforms of the international financial system.

South Africa makes historic leap as first African nation to head the G20

Katja Hamilton  3 Dec 2024

“The G20 Roadmap towards Better, Bigger and More Efficient [Multilateral Development Banks] was a milestone achievement under Brazil’s Presidency. Now the focus turns to implementation and monitoring," he said.

The aim is to address urgent global challenges, including sustainable development, climate change, and poverty eradication. This highlights the G20’s intention to modernise financial institutions to better align with today’s needs, he said.

Debt sustainability focus

Godongwana emphasised that SA will keep its focus on enhancing debt sustainability, through improving the implementation of the Common Framework: "We are aware that there are countries whose debt is sustainable, but which are facing acute liquidity challenges, which, if not addressed, could result in solvency challenges.

"These challenges necessitate a comprehensive approach towards debt sustainability, which means there is no one size fits all approach.

“It also forces us to acknowledge that debt sustainability cannot be solved through the Common Framework alone but must be solved through a focus on putting in place the measures for countries to make the right investments and undertake appropriate reforms to support sustainable and inclusive economic growth."

Accelerate SDG action

Godongwana stressed that the G20 Africa Expert Panel - led by Trevor Manuel - will provide a critical opportunity to advance an African agenda and strengthen the manner in which the G20 responds to the social and economic needs of the continent.

“One of the areas we will request the G20 Africa Expert Panel to advise us on is how we can ensure that the various African initiatives, including the compact with Africa, can be strengthened to the benefit of the continent,” he said.

Meanwhile, Lesetja Kganyago, Governor of the South African Reserve Bank, emphasised the importance that Trevor Manuel prioritise action and agreements to speed up progress toward the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - a set of 17 global objectives established by the United Nations as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

He called for modernising and strengthening the Bretton Woods institutions to address today’s challenges effectively.

Kganyago concluded his remarks by underscoring the challenges South Africa has faced with cross-border payment systems and fast payment infrastructures, suggesting these issues need attention to ensure smoother and more efficient financial transactions across borders.

He highlighted that the issue of payments is particularly significant for the African continent, where it faces one of the most expensive remittance corridors globally—specifically between Harare and Johannesburg. "Given their importance to the continent, we have raised this as one of our flagship priorities."