It’s official: G20 will now be G21

New Delhi: The African Union, which represents 55 countries, was admitted as a new member of the G20 on Saturday, three months after India proposed its inclusion.

The idea was floated in June this year, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote to G20 leaders to propose that the African Union be given “full membership at the upcoming Delhi Summit of G20, as requested by them”. The US and France had affirmed their support.

In his inaugural address on Saturday, Modi said: “It was in the spirit of ‘sabka saath’ that India proposed permanent membership for the African Union in the G20. I believe that we all agree on this proposal.”

He then invited the Chairperson of the African Union, Azali Assoumani, to join the other G20 leaders at the high table. “Honoured to welcome the African Union as a permanent member of the G20 Family. This will strengthen the G20 and also strengthen the voice of the Global South,” Modi tweeted later.

According to sources, the idea germinated after the ‘Voice of the Global South’ Summit in January this year, in which most of the African Union’s 55 countries had participated. The discussions were carried forward in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia, which houses the headquarters of the African Union.

So far, only one country from the grouping — South Africa – was part of the G20. Many African leaders had argued that Europe is represented by five countries as well as the European Union (EU), and the African Union merits similar representation as well.

Officials said the move was a “right step” towards a “just, fair, more inclusive and representative global architecture and governance”.

As part of India’s G20 Presidency, India has particularly focused on incorporating the priorities of the African countries in the G20 agenda

Sources

The move is a reflection of the intensity of India’s engagement with Africa, which got a fillip when over 40 heads of state and government came for the 3rd India-Africa Forum Summit in October 2015.

Under the Africa Outreach initiative, India has sent ministerial-level delegations to all the African countries. Modi himself has visited at least 10 countries in Africa in the last nine years.

While India’s structured outreach to Africa began in 2008, China stole the march as it first held its outreach in 2000. The Forum on China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) process began in 2000, under then President Jiang Zemin, when the first ministerial meeting was held in Beijing. It has come a long way since then, as a show of evolving Chinese interests in the African continent.

But, with this move of including the African Union in the G20 grouping, India has pitched itself as a leader of the developing and underdeveloped countries. This is also in sync with India’s aspiration for permanent membership of the UNSC, for which Delhi is keen to garner the support of the African Union which has 55 votes.