Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday departed for Johannesburg, South Africa, to participate in the historic G20 summit— the first to be held on the African continent. During the three-day summit from November 21 to 23, the Prime Minister is expected to engage in key discussions shaping India’s role in the Global South and strengthening multilateral cooperation.
This year’s summit marks the fourth consecutive G20 presidency led by a Global South nation, with South Africa following Indonesia (2022), India (2023), and Brazil (2024). PM Modi’s visit is significant as it will be his fourth trip to South Africa, following his 2016 bilateral visit and participation in the BRICS summits of 2018 and 2023.
Addressing the media ahead of the summit, Sudhakar Dalela, Secretary (Economic Relations) in the Ministry of External Affairs, underscored the importance of the forum and its continuity of themes that matter to emerging economies.
“We are very happy that these discussions have carried forward under the presidency of Brazil and, of course, in South Africa under four verticals that South Africa has outlined for their own presidency. A number of achievements have been made throughout the year across various tracks in these areas. So we are very happy that the issues of importance to the Global South are at the centre of discussion and are being highlighted,” Dalela said.
He added that previous G20 sessions successfully worked toward reaching a consensus declaration and piloting new initiatives impacting developing nations.
Under South Africa’s presidency theme of ‘Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability’, the G20—comprising major global economies that account for 85% of the world’s GDP and 75% of global trade—has identified key priority areas and policy tracks for the year.
