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The South African Civil Society met and deliberated in 2024 on the approach towards the leadership of C20 after those who were entrusted with this responsibility failed to finalise the process in November 2024 to take over from the C20 Brazil. These deliberations that included the participation of the International Advisory Committee of C20 (IAC) culminated in the meeting that took place on the 20th December 2024 where the leadership comprised of NEDLAC Community Constituency, SANAC Civil Society Forum, South African National Civic Organisation (SANAC), Show Me Your Number and WACI Health was agreed. At the same meeting, a grouping led by Oxfam, Afrodad and Environmental Justice Network withdrew from the processes that sought to bring the two groupings together.
The withdrawal from the C20 processes was accepted by this meeting that was attended by over 180 civil society organisations that were present where the IAC was the facilitator.
In this regard and as per the outcomes of the meeting of 20 December 2024, the following leadership collective was put in place and is henceforth in charge of the C20 Presidency in South Africa:
The above leadership is now in charge of the C20 South Africa processes and will be engaging with the relevant stakeholders to lead civil society to play its meaningful role in this important and historic process. Thulani Tshefuta said “Our leadership collective will be guided by the independence of civil society to advocate for a better world that is possible when governments of the world govern in the interest of the whole of humanity. Through consultation and based on the work done in Brazil and other G20 processes, we will ensure an inclusive process that will provide a robust, radical and progressive voice of civil society that will culminate in the C20 Policy Pack that will be presented to President Ramaphosa and other global leaders in November 2025. This process will be local through voices of the diverse civil society in South Africa, the rest of Africa and globally.” As at the moment, the C20 Civil Society Council which is all the organisations that have registered and will continue to register on the database put in place stands at over 400 organisations from South Africa, the rest of Africa and globally.
This meeting of the 20th December 2024 concluded that the IAC would in the new year of 2025 the IAC would as a formality provide communication to inform the South African government and other stakeholders. To our surprise, the IAC engaged in a separate process exclusive of civil society in South Africa and decided to endorse Oxfam, Afrodad and Environmental Justice Network to lead civil society after they had publicly withdrawn in a process that was democratic and transparent as per the meeting of 20 December 2024. We reject with contempt the attempt to force feed a leadership of globe-trotters who are unaccountable and who are not bona fide civil society organisations to lead the C20 in South Africa through the backdoor. We will not have leadership who withdrew from the process publicly. The IAC can be led by these organisations, but they will not lead the C20 in South Africa and we reject their leadership. The door remains open for them to contribute in the working groups that will be established where other global, African and local organisations like them will be provided with space to participate. If you want to lead, you must be prepared to be led. In this case, the Oxfam, Afrodad and EJN will be led by the leadership outlined above.
We refuse to be side-tracked by the side deals of friends that go against the principles of the C20 which guides the conduct of the IAC, which principles include Global Character, Transparency, Independence & Collaboration. Afterall, the IAC’s role is to provide advise the Chair, the Sherpa and the Steering Committee on strategic decision-making and contribute to disseminating C20 recommendations among key stakeholders. It is not the place or the responsibility of the IAC to decide on the leadership of C20 for the host country. South African civil Society has decided, and the IAC must respect this decision. We will be engaging with the IAC to express our displeasure on how they have conducted themselves in this matter. We see their role as divisive and against their own principles. In the engagements we will have with these fellow civil society leaders, we will remind them of the principles they disregarded.
As the C20 South Africa leadership, we will heed the call made by President Ramaphosa in his G20 acceptance speech on the 3rd of December 2024 where he said “It is important for South Africa that our G20 Presidency is inclusive. Dialogue with civil society and other non-government institutions will be conducted through various engagement groups… South Africa firmly believes that civil society serves as a bridge between the G20 leaders and the people who have the greatest interest in their deliberations.” The stage has been set and our role as the C20 working in tandem with other G20 engagement groups will ensure that a strong bridge is built to carry heavy loads and people whose sole aim is to make the world a better place for all. This better world includes decisions that will alter the current global financial architecture and propel global leaders to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals, climate action and other commitments.
In the next few days, the following actions will inform the work of the new C20 South Africa as we race against time to catch-up since we just started with discharding our responsibilities:
Issued by the C20 South Africa Leadership
For more information, contact:
Thulani Tshefuta: C20 South Africa Chairperson
+27720157957
Mabalane Mfundisi: c20 South Africa Sherpa
+27734813939
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