By Simon Nare
President Cyril Ramaphosa has set out clear and actionable priorities for the G20 Presidency for the country when it hosts the premier forum for international economic cooperation under the theme: solidarity, equality and sustainability.
The president tabled these priorities during the first meeting of the newly appointed Presidential Economic Advisory Council for the 7th administration.
In a statement released after the meeting, The Presidency said the priorities for the G20 Presidency included mobilising finance to support a just transition and addressing the unsustainable debt burden on developing countries.
They would also include strengthening disaster resilience and response and harnessing critical minerals for inclusive growth and sustainable development.
The statement said the meeting discussed proposals to advance these priorities, building on the progress made on issues such as international taxation, reform of multilateral development banks and climate finance.
“The Presidential Economic Advisory Council will play an important role in providing independent advice as we seek to ensure that our economic policy is informed by sound evidence, by innovation and by a diversity of views and opinions,” Ramaphosa said in the statement.
He highlighted the important role that the council would play as the Government of National Unity looked to reignite economic growth and tackle poverty and inequality.
“The meeting reaffirmed the necessity of structural transformation and economic reforms to accelerate economic growth and discussed forward-looking policy proposals in areas such as green industrial policy, skills development and macroeconomic policy.
“Members of the council discussed the need to position South Africa for growth in a rapidly changing global environment, in which technological advances in artificial intelligence and the imperative of tackling climate change will lead to structural changes in economies,” the statement said.
However, it emphasised that the key topic of discussion was South Africa’s role in advancing the global economic policy agenda as it assumed the Presidency of the G20.
The council members were appointed in November 2024 to serve in the non-statutory and independent body chaired by the president. It brings together prominent economists and technical experts drawn from academia, the private sector, labour, community, think-tanks and other constituencies.
The council comprises expertise in international economics, macroeconomics, labour economics, economics of education and the economics of poverty and inequality and urban development.
Other areas of insights entail microeconomics with a focus on network industries, regulation and competition, trade, energy and climate change.
INSIDE POLITICS
