African Union’s inclusion in G20 receives broad support at India meeting

There has been no disagreement thus far among various Group of 20 (G20) nations over India’s proposal to include the African Union (AU) into the global group, with the United States saying it will work closely with the Indian presidency on a joint communique at the 3rd Sherpa Meeting in Hampi, India.

Since Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in mid June proposed his counterparts the AU be given full membership of the grouping at its September summit in New Delhi, Modi’s government has been pushing hard for this to happen. The push for AU’s inclusion has received significant momentum after India hosted the ‘Voice of the Global South Summit’ earlier this year to ascertain the needs of developing nations that it could pitch to leading countries during its G20 presidency. The US also backs India’s G20 proposal, its G20 sherpa Mike Pyle said, adding that “President (Joe) Biden was one of the first ones to support the idea of the African Union joining the G20 formally.”

The third sherpa meeting in Hampi discussed the first revised draft declaration and, according to officials familiar with the deliberations at the meeting, the proposal has received support across all members. “The inclusion of the AU in the G20 would benefit the entire world,” Senegal’s President Macky Sall wrote a year ago in an op-ed published in French daily Le Monde, while expressing his regret that “South Africa is the continent’s only member of an economic forum of international importance.” The AU is made up of 55 countries from the African continent, and a G20 membership will give the union voting rights within the bloc.”