African Union Membership in G20 Signals Rise of the Continent, Observers Say

Body is joining an economic bloc whose relevance has been questioned amid rise of new multilateral institutions that claim to be more representative.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomes leaders during the opening session of the G20 Leaders' Summit in New Delhi on Sept. 9, 2023. Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

The African Union’s (AU) admission to the G20—a group of 19 of the world’s leading economies and the European Union—after nearly a decade of lobbying for full membership signals the rise of a continent whose young population of roughly 1.3 billion is set to double by 2050 and make up a quarter of the planet’s people, observers say.

The union’s Sept. 9 admission at the end of the Group of 20’s annual forum comes amid concerns about the relevance of the multinational bloc for global economic and financial cooperation in a fracturing geopolitical landscape and the rise of new multilateral institutions that claim to be more representative of previously marginalized nations.

The AU’s 55 member states—which include the disputed Western Sahara—have over the years pressed for meaningful roles in the global bodies that long represented a now-faded post-World War II order, including the United Nations Security Council.

The G20’s diverse membership—which includes global superpowers the United States, China, and the European Union (EU)—represents about 85 percent of global gross domestic product, more than 75 percent of global trade, and about two-thirds of the world’s population.

With full G20 membership, the AU can represent a continent that’s home to the world’s largest free trade area, constitutes 60 percent of the world’s renewable energy assets, and possesses more than 30 percent of the minerals key to renewable and low-carbon technologies.

The African Union now has the same status as the European Union—the only regional bloc with a full membership. Until now, South Africa was the bloc’s only G20 member.

African Leaders Welcome Admission

African countries’ admission into the G20—just like their desire to join BRICS and other alternative multilateral organizations such as the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Boao Forum, and New Development Bank—could be explained by four main reasons, says Paul Nantulya, research associate and China specialist at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies.

“First, they want to expand platforms that can amplify Africa’s voice and influence at the global level over and above pre-existing institutions,” Mr. Nantulya told The Epoch Times in an email.

The second reason, the researcher says, is Africa’s quest for alternative sources of loan finance and instruments to support key priorities such as energy and infrastructure.

“Third, they want to continue forging newfound South-South solidarity in an environment where global tensions and rivalries are increasingly escalating.

Saudi Arabian Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman (L), Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (C), and U.S. President Joe Biden attend a session as part of the G20 Leaders' Summit at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on Sept. 9, 2023. Evelyn Hockstein/AFP via Getty Images

“Fourth, they are seeking new markets and new forms of economic intercourse in light of the establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Area.”

Several African leaders have welcomed the G20 permanent membership.

Moussa Faki Mahamat, chairperson of the African Union Commission, says membership in the G20 will help to “amplify” the continent’s voice in global affairs.

It will “increase Africa’s voice, visibility, and influence” on the global stage while also providing a platform to advance the common interest of Africans, Kenyan President William Ruto said.

Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema said the invitation means that Africa has been recognized as “a key player” on the world economic landscape.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa also welcomed it, saying developing economies are “bearing the brunt of climate change,” despite carrying the least responsibility for this crisis.

Africa Courting New Global Powers

However, the AU’s member states have long advocated for reforms to a global financial system—including the World Bank and other entities—that forces African countries to pay more than others to borrow money, deepening their debt.

African leaders have impatiently challenged the framing of the continent as a passive victim of war, extremism, hunger, and disaster that’s pressured to take one side or another among global powers.

Ivory Kairo, a policy analyst at consultancy firm Development Reimagined, says the AU’s admission into the G20 is overdue, given that Africa has repeatedly proven to have solutions to global challenges.

“Africa faces the same challenges that the G20 members face, yet we have not been included in the discussions that seek to get solutions,” she told The Epoch Times.

“Africa brings a wealth of solutions to challenges facing the world: Challenges such as debt—the G20’s Common Framework that was started during COVID-19 due to the tight fiscal space countries found themselves in; the Common Framework has been criticized for being slow—but Africa will have speedy, long-lasting solutions given that most low and middle-income countries are on the continent.”

Africa is increasingly courting investment and political interest from a new generation of global powers beyond the United States and the continent’s former European colonizers.

Russia is Africa’s leading arms provider. Gulf nations have become some of the continent’s biggest investors.

U.S. President Joe Biden last year called for the AU’s permanent membership in the G20, saying it’s been “a long time in coming.”

China, currently Africa’s largest trading partner and one of its largest lenders, was the first country to explicitly express its support for AU membership.

The U.S., China, and the other G20 members that supported the inclusion of the African Union recognize that they need Africa as much as Africa needs them, said David McNair, executive director at ONE.org and a founding executive board member of the Africa Europe Foundation.

“With a burgeoning youth population, 70 percent of the world’s solar potential and as a major source of critical minerals for the energy transition ... institutions that claim to represent the global economy [while] excluding 18 percent of the world’s population will quickly lose legitimacy,” Mr. McNair, who’s also a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations, told The Epoch Times in an email.

The de facto coordinating body for the global economy has excluded representation for the 1.4 billion people in Africa “for too long,” he said.

“As a result, decisions that are made about the management of debt, the IMF and World Bank and other important bodies leave out those important perspectives. And these decisions have tangible impacts on people’s lives—health services, education, salaries.

“Now that the African Union has a seat, it is important that the right structures are put in place to organize common positions and negotiate them at the G20 table.”

‘Unsurprising’ Admission 

His view is shared by Joseph Siegle, director of research at the Washington-based Africa Center for Strategic Studies, who believes that a permanent AU presence within the G20 will facilitate stronger relationships that can lead to more collaborative action on a host of transnational challenges.

“The admission of the African Union to the G20 helps institutionalize a seat at the table for Africa when policies about global economic priorities are debated,” Mr. Siegle told The Epoch Times, noting that this can help to ensure that African interests are represented and considered.

“This benefits both African countries and the G20 by building more African ownership over initiatives that affect the continent, improving the likelihood of their positive and sustainable impact.

“It also helps facilitate a more equitable and just international community, which is in all countries’ interests.”

He said China’s quick endorsement of AU admission is “unsurprising” because the communist state has long postured its foreign policy as aligned with the Global South and has used multilateral institutions as a means of advancing its interests.

The United States, meanwhile, has long-standing and multifaceted ties to Africa as a leading source of investment, trade, and development assistance.

“Under the Biden administration, there has been a renewed emphasis on strengthening African partnerships. So, the United States support for the AU fulfills a pledge from the Africa Leaders Summit in Washington in December 2022,” Mr. Siegle said.

Ms. Kairo said she didn’t find it surprising that the United States and China were amenable to the AU joining the G20.

“The multilateral system is shifting and becoming more inclusive than ever,” she said.

“The other narrative out there is that both countries have vested interests in Africa, but what we believe at Development Reimagined is that this support will bring them closer to the continent.

“Remember, Africa intends to be the largest manufacturing hub, and this is an opportunity for them to work closer with each other for Africa’s benefit.”

No one will be fighting for Africa’s voice at the G21—Africa has a voice and it will be heard, she said.

“African voices propelled the discussion and did all the legwork. Africa is capable of speaking for itself and fully representing itself in such fora,” she said.

One Voice, Multiple Interests! 

Another question that clouds the AU’s admission into the G20 is how challenging it may be to find a common position among its member states—from the economic powers of Nigeria and Ethiopia to some of the world’s poorest nations such as Burundi and Somalia.

But Mr. Nantulya says it’s normal for African countries to always differ on priorities at a national level based on their unique conditions, political systems, historical evolution, and overall culture.

Nonetheless, he said that when it comes to common positions on international issues, or on issues affecting the continent as a whole, the picture is “very different.”

“African countries since independence have an in-built tradition and culture of negotiating and coming up with common positions at the multilateral level. These positions are properly codified and socialized at the national level,” Mr. Nantulya said.

As examples, he cited the common African position on the U.N. and international system reform enunciated in the 2005 Ezulwini Consensus, on energy access and just transition negotiated and adopted in 2022; and on humanitarian effectiveness that was approved in 2016.

“Given this proven track record in developing unified positions on global issues, I do not believe African countries will have great difficulty in coming up with common positions that the AU can champion and pursue within the G20.”