Africa: South Africa Hosts First G20 Africa Summit

The iconic Brixton Tower in Johannesburg lit up on Wednesday night with messaging calling for an end to exploitative debt in poor countries. World leaders will be gathering in the city this weekend for the G20 summit. The action was done by South African artists who teamed up with activists from the Glasgow Actions Team (GAT).

Johannesburg, South Africa — Debt High on G20 Agenda as Faith Leaders Call for Debt Relief and Aid for Developing Countries

This weekend, G20 presidents and prime ministers meet on debt, development and the global economy, chaired by South Africa. The meetings take place for the first time in Africa.

"South Africa made debt a key focus of this year's G20," said Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of the religious development organization Jubilee USA Network. LeCompte is in Johannesburg for the meetings. "Debt is the only issue that the G20 reached some consensus on this year."

In October, G20 finance ministers met in Washington during the IMF meetings and adopted a consensus declaration on debt. Not since 2020 had the group of wealthy countries achieved a single separate statement on debt.

South Africa's G20 Presidency unveils a report on debt and global economic challenges that impact development. Former South African Finance Minister Trevor Manuel led an expert group to create the report for the G20.

"The Manuel report raises concerns about how debt and a lack of fairness in the global economy hurt Africa," noted LeCompte. "Faith leaders from around the world and across Africa are descending on Johannesburg to press the G20 for greater action on debt and development."

The Johannesburg summit coincides with the holy Jubilee 2025 Year. Last December 23rd and 24th at the Vatican, Pope Francis, interfaith leaders, Jubilee USA, Caritas and South Africa's Foreign Minister launched five years of campaigns to address current debt crises and prevent future crises.

Last month the IMF characterized global economic prospects as "dim," with global debt continuing to rise.

Jubilee USA Network is an alliance of more than 75 US organizations and 750 faith communities working with 50 Jubilee global partners. Jubilee USA builds an economy that serves, protects and promotes the participation of the most vulnerable. Jubilee USA wins critical global financial reforms and won more than $130 billion in debt relief to benefit the world's poorest people. www.jubileeusa.org

Copyright © 2025 Jubilee USA Network. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.