Knowledge Nugget: What happened at G20 Summit in South Africa? Here are the key takeaways

Why in the news?

Leaders at the G20 summit in South Africa agreed on a joint declaration on Saturday (22nd November) , even though the United States boycotted the meeting and did not take part in drafting the final text.  A spokesperson for South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said the document “cannot be renegotiated”, noting it was prepared after months of work and an intense final week. The spokesperson also said there had been “overwhelming consensus” among other members. In this context, let’s know the key highlights of the G20 summit 2025. 

Key Takeaways:

The 122-paragraph G20 declaration was adopted by world leaders, including PM Narendra Modi, who gathered in South Africa for the first time in the African region. Officials said India managed to echo the key outcomes of the Indian G20 presidency in the G20 South African Summit, where the leaders’ declaration ensured that the issues and priorities of the Global South are reflected.

Highlights of G20 Declaration

1. Spirit of Ubuntu and emphasis on multilateral cooperation: The declaration, which was adopted by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, said, “We, Leaders of the G20, who gathered in Johannesburg, South Africa… for the first time, G20 Leaders have convened in Africa. In the spirit of Ubuntu, we recognise that individual nations cannot thrive in isolation. The African philosophy of ‘Ubuntu’, often translated as ‘I am because we are’, emphasises the interconnectedness of individuals within a broader communal, societal, economic, and environmental context.”

— Obliquely referring to the US tariff wars imposed by President Donald Trump and his disruptive moves, it said, “In the face of this challenging political and socio-economic environment, we underscore our belief in multilateral cooperation to collectively address shared challenges. We note with distress the immense human suffering and the adverse impact of wars and conflicts around the world”.

2. Call for reform in United Nations Security Council: India pushed for a call to reform the UN Security Council that improves its representation. The G20 declaration said, “We pledge to reform the Security Council through a transformative reform that aligns it with the realities and demands of the 21st century… We call for an enlarged Security Council composition that improves the representation of the underrepresented and unrepresented regions and groups, such as Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin America and the Caribbean.”

3. Terrorism Condemned: From India’s point of view, terrorism in all its forms and manifestations has also been condemned. “We condemn terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,” the one-line sixth paragraph said.

4. Focus on empowerment of women and girls: On the empowerment of women and girls and in this regard, one of the key outcomes of India’s G20 presidency are carried forward, the declaration said, “We reaffirm our full commitment to the empowerment of women and girls and to urgently remove social and economic barriers to achieve gender equality. We encourage women-led development and ensure women’s full, equal and meaningful participation and leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life. We condemn all forms of discrimination against women and girls… We also recognise the role of women as agents of peace.”

Initiatives Proposed by India in G20 Summit 2025

In the G20 Summit this year, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, elaborating India’s approach to growth, development, and well-being for all, proposed six ideas for the G20 to consider.

1. G20 Initiative on Countering the Drug-Terror Nexus: Flagging the issue of drug trafficking including that of fentanyl, Prime Minister Modi told the G20 leaders’ summit Saturday (22nd November) that this poses a serious challenge to global security and is a major means of financing terrorism. To effectively address this global threat, he proposed the “G20 Initiative on Countering the Drug-Terror Nexus” to “weaken” the “drug-terror economy”.

2. G20-Africa Skills Multiplier initiative: PM Modi proposed a G20-Africa Skills Multiplier initiative that will train one million certified trainers in Africa over the next 10 years.

3. Other Initiatives: He also proposed formation of a G20 Global Healthcare Response Team, creation of a Global Traditional Knowledge Repository, an Open Satellite Data Partnership and a Critical Minerals Circularity Initiative. 

4. Underlining that India’s approach to Artificial Intelligence (AI) is anchored on access, skilling and responsible deployment, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Sunday that the world needs a “global compact on AI”, which should include effective “human oversight, safety-by-design, transparency”, and strict prohibitions on the use of AI for “deepfakes, crime, and terrorist activities”.

5. Addressing G20 leaders during a session on “A Fair and a Just Future for All – Critical Minerals; Decent Work; Artificial Intelligence” on the second day of the summit in Johannesburg, PM Modi also extended an invitation to all G20 countries to participate in the AI Impact summit to be held in India in February 2026.

BEYOND THE NUGGET: About Group of Twenty 

1. The G20, or the Group of Twenty, is an informal grouping of 19 countries (Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom, and the United States) and the European Union and African Union.

2. These members represent around 85 per cent of the global GDP, over 75 per cent of global trade, and about two-thirds of the world population. As a forum for international economic cooperation, it plays an important role in shaping and strengthening global architecture and governance on all major international economic issues. 

3. Unlike the United Nations (UN), G20 does not have a permanent secretariat or staff. Rather, the G20 presidency rotates annually among the members and is responsible for bringing together the G20 agenda, organising its workings and hosting summits.

4. The presidency is supported by the “troika” – previous, current and incoming presidencies. During South Africa’s Presidency, the members of the G20 troika are Brazil, South Africa and the United States.

Post Read Questions

(1) With reference to the “G20 Common Framework”, consider the following statements (UPSC CSE 2022)

1. It is an initiative endorsed by the G20 together with the Paris Club.

2. It is an initiative to support Low Income Countries with unsustainable debt.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

(2) In which one of the following groups are all the four countries members of G20? (UPSC CSE 2020)

(a) Argentina, Mexico, South Africa and Turkey

(b) Australia, Canada, Malaysia and New Zealand

(c) Brazil, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam

(d) Indonesia, Japan, Singapore and South Korea

(Sources: G20 summit in South Africa adopts declaration without US input, G20 declaration barely mentions Ukraine, terrorism, skips Gaza plan, Drug-terror nexus a global threat, act now: PM to G20)

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