G20 Presidency
By Mpho Moloi
National Treasury Director-General, Dr Duncan Pieterse, has called for large-scale and sustainable investments to ensure the global community meets its commitments to end poverty, protect the planet, and build prosperous societies.
Speaking at the two-day Group of Twenty (G20) Joint Sherpa and Finance Track meeting in Johannesburg, Dr Pieterse highlighted the growing financing gaps for sustainable development, estimated at $4 trillion annually for developing countries. 
The United Nations warns that the world may miss many Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targets by 2030 due to delays in development progress, exacerbated by climate disasters, conflicts, economic downturns, and the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The SDGs are a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and improve lives globally.
Dr Pieterse emphasised the urgency of large-scale, sustainable investments to achieve the SDGs by the 2030 deadline. He noted that South Africa’s G20 Presidency will focus on challenges facing emerging markets and developing countries, particularly in Africa. This includes addressing insufficient growth to reduce poverty, tough financing conditions, and high public debt levels that hinder development spending.
To enhance debt sustainability, Dr Pieterse outlined a comprehensive approach involving improved debt structuring, support for countries with liquidity challenges, and the development of local currency markets to attract domestic savings and improve debt transparency. South Africa plans to gather borrower country perspectives on debt through an African outreach event with broad participation.
Assuming the G20 Presidency on 1 December 2024, South Africa leads a group comprising many of the world’s largest developing and developed economies. The global economy has faced significant challenges over the past four years, including a pandemic, geopolitical conflicts, and extreme weather events disrupting supply chains. The International Monetary Fund’s assessment that global growth is expected to remain stable yet underwhelming is concerning, as higher growth is essential for improving prosperity, reducing debt, and creating policy space to tackle spending pressures.
In 2025, South Africa’s G20 Presidency will focus on strengthening macroeconomic fundamentals, accelerating climate transition, and boosting productivity growth. Upcoming events include the 5th Finance in Common Summit in Cape Town in February 2025 and the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development in Spain in June 2025. These events are seen as opportunities to strengthen the development finance ecosystem, scale up and redirect financing to meet global sustainable challenges, and bring impactful changes related to climate and biodiversity needs.
As South Africa prepares to submit its Nationally Determined Contribution in 2025, Dr Pieterse acknowledged that ambitious climate action goals require unlocking a similarly ambitious set of climate instruments. He urged the G20 to continue playing a leading role in addressing critical issues to achieve global sustainable development that is inclusive, equitable, and leaves no one behind.
South Africa’s G20 Presidency is the fourth consecutive emerging market Presidency and the first African Presidency, following the admission of the African Union as the second permanent African member. Established to tackle pressing global economic and financial issues, G20 members account for around 85% of global GDP and 75% of international trade, playing a critical role in influencing global policymaking and fostering economic stability.
In related developments, South Africa aims to attract more private investment into infrastructure by transforming its approach to public-sector projects and creating conditions conducive to private-sector participation. The government is developing a blended finance risk-sharing platform, including a credit guarantee vehicle expected to be operational by the end of 2025, to help de-risk public sector projects for private developers and lenders. This initiative will initially focus on independent transmission projects, with the option to include other sectors over the medium term. 
Additionally, the G20 has welcomed recommendations to unlock climate funds and will monitor their implementation. An independent review authorised by the G20 noted that current mechanisms present fragmented and time-consuming pathways for accessing resources. The review recommended measures to enhance efficiency, including streamlining accreditation processes, shortening project approval times, and accelerating disbursements. Monitoring of the effective implementation of these recommendations will be conducted over the next G20 presidencies. 
These initiatives align with South Africa’s commitment to fostering sustainable and inclusive economic growth, stabilising debt, investing in infrastructure, and supporting vulnerable households. The government’s strategy relies on a clear and stable macroeconomic framework, implementing structural reforms, and investing in infrastructure to boost growth and set the economy on a more sustainable trajectory.
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