CIVICUS discusses the recent G20 summit with Yanga Malotana, project manager of the Emerging Scholars Initiative at the University of Pretoria and South Africa’s network coordinator for the Indian Ocean Rim Association Academic Group. At the G20, Yanga represented South Africa as an early career ocean professional.
The G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil highlighted geopolitical divisions but made progress on some areas. Host President Lula da Silva launched a global alliance against poverty and hunger, bringing together 82 countries and aiming to reach 500 million people by 2030. A Brazilian proposal to tax the super-rich to tackle inequality also gained traction. But the outcomes on climate change were disappointing, with leaders stressing the need to increase funding but failing to specify contributions or commit to a transition away from fossil fuels. The summit also called for ceasefires and increased humanitarian aid in Gaza and Ukraine, but there was no consensus on condemning Russian aggression.