Address by President Cyril Ramaphosa at the G20 Social Summit, Birchwood Conference Centre, Ekurhuleni
Programme Director, Minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni,
Former Deputy President of South Africa, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka,
Minister of Human Rights of the Federative Republic of Brazil, Ms Macaé Evaristo,
Ministers, Deputy Ministers and Members of Parliament,
Delegates from the G20 member states,
Representatives of international organisations,
Co-Convenors of the Social Summit and Sherpas of the G20,
Members of the diplomatic corps,
Heads of delegation,
Representatives of religious and traditional leadership,
Delegates,
Guests,
Friends,
Good Morning.
Sanibonani. Dumelang. Avuxeni. Goeie môre. Molweni. Ndi Matsheloni. Lotjhani.
I greet you all in some of South Africa’s beautiful languages.
One of these greetings, Sanibonani, is in the Zulu language. It literally means, ‘we see each other’.
We are acknowledging the personhood, value and dignity of the one we are greeting. We are affirming the cherished principle of Ubuntu: I am because we are.
This is the spirit in which this G20 Social Summit is being held.
Seventy years ago, in 1955, two seminal events took place that would be pivotal in defining human relations in our country and across the world.
The first was the Asian-African Conference in Indonesia, also known as the Bandung Conference.
At the time, a wave of independence was reshaping Africa and Asia. This conference has been described as the moment the Global South began to speak for itself.
The delegates to the Bandung Conference made a commitment to advancing peace and equality, to solidarity, and to economic and political cooperation rooted in mutual respect.
The second seminal event of 1955 was the Conference of the People here in Johannesburg, in a place called Kliptown.
It was the height of apartheid rule. Repression was rife.
It was at the Congress of the People that South Africans of all races, all faiths and all creeds gathered to adopt the Freedom Charter, which would be the forerunner to South Africa’s democratic constitution.
The Freedom Charter boldly declares that ‘There shall be Peace and Friendship’, and that this shall be secured by upholding the equal rights, opportunities and status of all.
History too will record this year as a milestone for global cooperation.
We affirm the historic nature not only of the first summit of the G20 to take place on African soil, but also of this Social Summit, a gathering of peoples from across the world.
We meet at a time of great uncertainty.
Political polarisation, global poverty, conflict and war, and the growing impact of climate change are threatening global development.
Inequality in wealth distribution, imbalances in international development financing, and disparities in access to financial resources are holding back our ability to meet the aspirations of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
As a continent we are in tandem striving to realise the aspirations of the African Union’s Agenda 2063: The Africa we Want.
This is the second G20 Social Summit to take place since the concept was inaugurated by the Brazilian Presidency last year.
The breadth of representation and the depth of engagement is most impressive.
It is here, in this room, where we lay the groundwork for global action on the G20 priorities.
We know that global action will be credible because it is informed by the voices of the people.
South Africa’s G20 Presidency has been premised on ensuring the interests of developing economy countries are elevated on the G20 agenda.
We have sought to address poverty, inequality and underdevelopment.
We have worked to strengthen and reform the international financial architecture, to democratise the systems of global governance, and to promote the right of all nations to development, equality and dignity.
We have used our G20 Presidency to reiterate the call for the world’s leading economies to invest in sustainable development and in the conservation of the planet for future generations.
But for the decisions taken at the upcoming G20 Leaders’ Summit to stand tall, to grow, to have credibility and legitimacy, they have to be nourished by strong roots.
These roots are our civil society and community organisations, women’s organisations, youth formations, academia and think-tanks, business, labour and other grassroots formations.
We are fortunate to have secured the full and meaningful participation of all the formations in this Summit, including Women20, Youth20, Business20, Civil20, Labour20, Parliament20, Media20 and others.
There has been broad and far-reaching consultation over the last year.
There have been dialogues on issues as diverse as digital inclusion, equitable transformation and climate justice.
There have been discussions on just and sustainable finance, on media freedom, on strengthening democracy, and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Delegates to this Summit have recognised the need to build resilience and inclusive value chains to protect vulnerable countries from increased volatility in global trade.
The Social Summit has reaffirmed the importance of an inclusive transition to a low-carbon, climate resilient economy that is guided by those most affected.
Delegates are calling on the G20 Leaders’ Summit to demonstrate leadership in scaling up global water investment for the benefit of all.
The G20 Social Summit has sought to ensure that global leadership protects society’s most vulnerable.
Today is World Children’s Day, when we commemorate the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
This was the first global UN convention ratified by the newly democratic South Africa.
This Social Summit has called for more resources to be devoted to eliminating child poverty and hunger and to ensure that children are protected.
The progressive deliberations at this Social Summit have culminated in calls for greater political commitment to advancing young people’s access to opportunities.
It has called for the health and wellbeing of women and children to be prioritised and for greater representation of women in all facets of society.
As South Africa, we have lent our support to the Global Leaders Network for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health.
As the Global Leaders Network, we are deeply concerned by the effects of the withdrawal of overseas development assistance on initiatives supporting health service delivery and health systems.
We are committed to work together to mobilise global health financing so that the most vulnerable are not further deprived of their rights to care.
It was the great African revolutionary Thomas Sankara who said there is no true social revolution without the liberation of women.
He said: “May my eyes never see, and my feet never take me to a society where half the people are held in silence.”
We cannot build societies rooted in equality unless those societies uphold the rights of women and girls.
Sustainable societies are those that recognise, value and compensate the labour and economic contribution of women.
No society can thrive for as long as gender-based violence and femicide continues and the agency of women is denied.
The violence perpetrated by men against women erodes the social fabric of nations.
It imposes a heavy burden that constrains development and weakens inclusive growth.
Men and boys are critical partners in transforming harmful norms and advancing gender justice.
They must be actively involved in challenging inherited attitudes, power imbalances and social structures that normalise violence and silence survivors.
Here in South Africa, we have declared gender-based violence and femicide a national crisis.
We have agreed, among all social partners, that we need to take extraordinary and concerted action – using every means at our disposal – to end this crisis.
The collective perspectives that have been expressed at this summit on all these issues and more will enable governments and decision-makers to better understand people’s practical, lived experiences.
They will be able to better understand what works and what doesn’t – and to better understand what must change.
Collectively, the members of the G20 represent 85 percent of global GDP, 75 percent of global trade and two-thirds of the global population.
For the G20 to fully live up to its mission of promoting international financial stability and deepening global economic cooperation there should be no unwritten rules about those who feast and those who must settle for scraps.
It cannot be that a country’s geographical location or income or army determines who has a voice and who is spoken down to.
In choosing the theme for our G20 Presidency, South Africa sought to advance a vision of meaningful, credible global cooperation.
It is our expectation that this Social Summit will be remembered for being far more than a marketplace of ideas.
Just as the Bandung Conference elevated the voice of the Global South and just as the Conference of the People harnessed global solidarity against apartheid, this year’s G20 Social Summit must be remembered for having given practical meaning to global solidarity.
Thank you to all who have been part of making this summit a success.
We commend the delegates from various civil society organisations present here for shaping the agenda and direction of the G20 Social Summit.
These efforts will foster ongoing cooperation between governments and civil society in advancing sustainable global development.
For millennia, our forebears were guided by the sun by day and the stars by night.
They relied on nature to show them the way as they traversed the ancient trading routes of Timbuktu, as they navigated the mighty Congo River, and as they made their way across the vast expanses of the Kalahari.
Today, we are counting on this Social Summit to guide the G20.
We are relying on this Social Summit to be the reliable, trustworthy compass that ensures the G20 agenda takes the needs and aspirations of all the countries and all the peoples of the world into account.
It is our collective wish that this Social Summit will guide us along the path of solidarity, equality and sustainability.
No matter the headwinds, no matter the geopolitical shifts, no matter the challenges, we will keep our eyes fixed on the horizon of progress and shared prosperity.
We will set a new course for the world, and we will create a new future for its people.
I thank you.
#GovZAUpdates
