South Africa to host first G20 trade and investment meeting

<p>Johannesburg, Mar 13 (PTI): South Africa will host the the first G20 Trade and Investment Working Group (TIWG) meeting under its presidency from March 18 to March 20, the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) announced here on Wednesday.</p><p>South Africa officially assumed the presidency of the G20 in December 2024 for the year 2025 under the theme “Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability”.</p><p>The TIWG meeting, which will be held virtually, will bring together senior officials from G20 member countries as well as the European Union (EU) and the African Union (AU).</p><p>The deputy director-general of trade at the DTIC, Ambassador Xolelwa Mlumbi-Peter, said this would be the first of the four proposed meetings of the TIWG, which will culminate in the G20 trade ministers’ meeting to be hosted by South Africa in October.</p><p>Mlumbi-Peter said the first session will also be attended by international organisations, such as the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the United Nations Trade and Development (UNTAD), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and African regional communities.</p><p>”We have identified four focus areas for the TIWG. The first is trade and inclusive growth, with an outcome being principles to promote trade and inclusive growth that aim to address common or shared challenges resulting from distributive effects of trade with adverse outcomes for economically-vulnerable regions, both within and between countries,” she said.</p><p>”The second focus area will be looking at the responsive trade and investment agenda to address the challenge of global commons,” Mlumbi-Peters added.</p><p>She said other critical areas of focus are the G20 framework on green industrialisation and investments, with a view to promoting value addition of critical minerals close to the source as well as the development of low-carbon manufacturing value chains to support global decarbonisation and industrial adaptation.</p><p>The WTO’s reform and development will also come under the spotlight at the TIWG meeting.</p><p>The G20 provides an essential platform for dialogue and action aimed at mitigating environmental, social and economic risks while strengthening global economic resilience. Inclusive economic growth, industrialisation, employment and reduced inequality are some of the high-level deliverables for South Africa during its year-long presidency of the bloc.</p><p>The G20 members include the world’s major economies, representing 85 per cent of global GDP, 75 per cent of international trade and two-thirds of the world’s population. It comprises 19 developed and developing countries as well as continental bodies, such as the EU and the AU.</p><p>The G20 plays an important role in shaping and strengthening global architecture and governance on all major international economic issues and aims to foster cooperation to address global challenges. PTI FH RC</p><p><i>(This story is published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. No editing has been done in the headline or the body by ABP Live.)</i></p>