Unparalleled level
The great efforts China has made to push development issues will further upgrade the G20 from a crisis response mechanism to a platform for global governance. During its presidency of the G20, China’s initiatives and proposed measures are vital to different countries’ cooperation with and their policies toward Africa, while Africa is expected to benefit from the Hangzhou G20 Summit.
2015 was a “Great Year” for international development cooperation, most notably in Africa.
In January, African leaders adopted Agenda 2063 as the continent’s new long-term vision for the next 50 years. In July, the Third International Conference on Financing for Development took place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and adopted the Addis Ababa Action Agenda. In December, China-africa relations were lifted to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership at the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-africa Cooperation (FOCAC). In addition, China put forward 10 major plans to boost cooperation with Africa over the next three years, backed by a $60 billion investment package to finance initiatives. Development financing, sustainable development and climate change are all crucial to African development.
The G20 Summit this September is not only dedicated to addressing the major development issues raised in 2015, but puts development issues for Africa on the agenda in an unprecedented scale. It will be the first time in G20 Summit history that development is being given priority in a global macro-policy framework, the first time to incorporate steps to implement the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the first time to incorporate Africa’s industrialization into the G20 agenda. China is also working with Germany to ensure that development issues, especially those related to Africa, will continue to be focuses of the G20 Summit during Germany’s presidency in 2017.
In response to the demands of the African countries and other developing countries, China, as a host country, incorporates Africa’s development issues into the G20 agenda. It therefore helps enhance Africa’s status and representation in the international arena, which is expected to bring long-term benefits to the continent that has yet to have a bigger say in the international issues.
It is regrettable that the G20 has just one member - South Africa - from the African continent, which has the largest number of least developed countries (LDCS). However, the situation is expected to improve, as China has invited more developing countries to the G20 Summit in Hangzhou for greater representation on global economic growth discussions.