Source: President of South Africa –
Programme Directors, Mr. Ndlelantle Pinyana and Ms. Yonela Tukwayo;
Vice-Chancellor Professor Rushiella Nolundi Songca and Members of the Executive Management of Walter Sisulu University;
The Executive Mayor of OR Tambo District Municipality, Councillor Mesuli Ngqondwana;
The Executive Mayor of King Sabata Dalindyebo Local Municipality, Councillor Nyaniso Nelani;
Representatives of the Mthatha Business Chamber, including Mr. Wellington Mbalo;
Student leaders and representatives of the Walter Sisulu University community;
Distinguished guests, faculty members, and most importantly, the student body of Walter Sisulu University;
Good afternoon,
It is a great honour to stand before you today at this esteemed institution, named after one of our greatest liberation leaders, Walter Sisulu. His legacy reminds us that education and activism must always go hand in hand and that knowledge is not only for personal advancement, but for the upliftment of communities and the pursuit of justice.
We meet here at an exciting and historic moment for our country. For the first time, South Africa and indeed Africa holds the Presidency of the G20. From December last year until November 2025, we carry the responsibility of leading one of the most influential gatherings in the world.
Why is the G20 important? The G20 represents 85% of global GDP, 75% of global trade, and two-thirds of the world’s population.
The decisions taken within this forum reverberate in every corner of the globe, including right here in Mthatha. From the jobs we seek, to the cost of food, to the technologies shaping our future global choices matter, and the G20 is where many of those choices are debated and decided.
This year’s theme is Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability. These three words capture the vision we want to see for the world and for our people.
• Solidarity means working together across nations and communities, because the crises of today whether climate change, pandemics, or economic shocks cannot be solved by one country alone.
• Equality reminds us that fairness and justice must underpin our economic systems, so that the accident of where you are born, your gender, or your race does not limit your life chances.
• Sustainability is about securing our planet for future generations by using our resources wisely and ensuring development does not destroy the environment we depend on.
But as important as the G20 is, let me be clear: the G20 cannot be a meeting of leaders alone.
It must be a People’s G20. It is for this reason that government is engaging across the country, ensuring that the voices of ordinary South Africans are heard as we prepare to host the G20 Summit in Johannesburg this November.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said we must take the G20 to all corners of our country. Over 134 G20 Ministerial and Technical Meetings have taken place in various parts of our country since December 2024. These meetings will continue until South Africa hosts the Leader’s Summit on 22nd to 23rd November 2025.
The Eastern Cape Province hosted, among others, the First Employment Group Working Group Meeting and the Second Digital Economy Working Group Meetings. The province will, on 10th to 11th of October host the Fourth Trade and Investment Working Group Meeting. These meetings provide an opportunity to showcase South Africa to world and for G20 delegates to engage with South Africans in finding solutions to key issues facing the world.
And it is also the reason I am here today – Because you, the students of Walter Sisulu University, must not stand aside from these conversations. Your ideas, your innovations, and your perspectives matter. When we talk about the future of work, about Artificial Intelligence, about sustainable growth, about tackling inequality – We are talking about your future.
We have just hosted the Y20, the official youth engagement group of the G20. It brought together young leaders from across the world to debate solutions and to feed their recommendations into the G20 Leaders’ Summit.
The Y20 showed us the power of youth voices in shaping global policy. I want to encourage each of you here to follow the work of the Y20, to join the debates, and to add your voice. Because if we are to build a fairer, greener and more equal world, your generation must be at the table.
South Africa’s G20 Presidency is also about unlocking opportunities for you. We are using this platform to push for inclusive growth, industrialisation, youth employment, closing the gender gap, and harnessing the potential of technology. The message we are taking to the world is that South Africa is open for business, rich in talent, and determined to reduce inequality while building prosperity.
I know that for many students, the question is: how does this affect me directly? The answer is simple by participating, you shape the future that will affect your lives. The policies agreed at the G20 on trade, jobs, food security, and climate will filter down into the opportunities available in South Africa. When you engage, you make sure that these policies reflect your realities and aspirations.
Walter Sisulu once said, “It is a law of life that problems arise when conditions are there for their solution.”
We are living in a time of global challenges, but also in a time of unprecedented possibility. As young people of South Africa, you are not only witnesses to these changes, you are leaders in shaping the solutions.
So my call to you today is simple:
• See yourselves as part of the global conversation.
• Take up the opportunities to engage through platforms like the Y20.
• Challenge us as leaders to ensure that this G20 is truly a People’s G20 — one that does not speak over you, but speaks with you.
Fellow compatriots,
South Africa’s Presidency of the G20 is first and foremost about advancing our national interests in a rapidly changing global environment. By chairing this powerful grouping, we are placing inclusive and sustainable economic growth at the centre of the global agenda, while ensuring that the benefits flow to our own citizens.
South Africa’s G20 Presidency also comes with distinct advantages as an attractive investment destination. Our business services sector is globally competitive, and our digital infrastructure is among the most sophisticated on the continent.
With widespread mobile networks and rapidly expanding high-speed broadband, we are well-positioned to take advantage of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
By presenting these strengths to the G20 community, we can deepen trade partnerships, attract technology investment, and further establish South Africa as a hub for innovation and digital services.
Food security and hunger remain global challenges that directly affect millions of households across our continent. South Africa is therefore using its G20 Presidency to push for collective solutions that strengthen food systems, stabilise agricultural markets, and promote resilience against climate shocks. Ensuring that people have access to affordable and nutritious food is not only a moral imperative, but also a cornerstone of stability and economic progress.
Our Presidency further seeks to unlock new possibilities in Artificial Intelligence and digital transformation. We are engaging G20 partners to ensure that AI becomes a tool for inclusive development driving economic growth, creating jobs, and providing solutions to social challenges.
By positioning ourselves at the forefront of these discussions, we aim to harness technology not as a threat but as a powerful enabler of opportunity for South Africans.
Colleagues,
Our government is determined that South Africa’s G20 Presidency is not be an elite exercise, but one that includes the voices of ordinary citizens.
That is why we are hosting outreach engagements across the country to bring the G20 closer to the people. These dialogues ensure that our Presidency is informed by the perspectives and concerns of South Africans in all provinces, not just by policy-makers in Pretoria.
Such outreach events are vital in fostering public dialogue and encouraging participation in our G20 Presidency. They allow communities, businesses, youth, and civil society to engage with global issues in a local context, ensuring that the benefits of international cooperation translate into opportunities that people can feel in their daily lives.
They also help strengthen partnerships across sectors and deepen collaboration between government, industry, and civil society.
By building these relationships, South Africa ensures that the G20’s outcomes are not abstract global statements, but practical commitments that support national development goals.
Before I conclude, let me give you a glimpse of the work that we have done as a country since taking over the Presidency of the G20 in December last year.
South Africa has convened a series of high-level G20 meetings in preparation for the Summit in November. These meetings have enabled us to reach consensus on key issues and ensure that our proposals are well represented in G20 Working Documents.
Several of our proposals have already been reflected in the discussions on inclusive growth, sustainable development, and equitable trade. This shows that South Africa is not just hosting, but actively shaping the agenda in ways that matter for us and for the wider Global South.
The meetings we have hosted span a broad range of issues:
– Sherpa meetings on Summit readiness;
– The Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group on poverty, employment, and sustainable goals;
– The Framework Working Group on the global economic outlook and fiscal risks;
– The Digital Economy Working Group on AI;
– The Employment Working Group on gender disparities and labour income;
– The Development Working Group on inequality and partnerships; and
– The Trade and Investment Working Group on inclusive growth, green industrialisation, and trade reform.
Each of these discussions has been crucial in laying the groundwork for a strong Leaders’ Declaration in November.
Through these engagements, we are ensuring that South Africa’s Presidency leaves a lasting mark. They demonstrate our capacity to convene, to lead, and to influence global decision-making in ways that resonate with our national priorities. The G20 Summit itself will be the culmination of this process, but the legacy will be in the policies and practices that endure long after the Summit has concluded.
As we move towards the G20 Summit in November, let us do so with the spirit of solidarity, with the fight for equality in our hearts, and with the vision of a sustainable world for generations to come.
I thank you.
