G-20 Summit 2014: SAIIA materials

From the facts about the G-20, to the issues likely to arise at the Summit, the experts and resources below can assist journalists, commentators and researchers prepare to follow the event.

G-20 Commentary

Read a scene-setting SAIIA op-ed on the issues likely to arise at the Summit, ‘The 2014 G-20 Summit: Maximising growth, revenue and stability.’

Key G-20 resources

The updated G20 and Africa Monitor (hosted on the GEG-Africa website)
The G-20 and Africa: A Critical Assessment (2013), Daniel Bradlow
The G20 and Financial Regulation in Africa (2013), Peter Wolff
A Critical Assessment of the G-20 Food Security Agenda (2013), Cerkia Bramley
The Reflection of African Concerns in the G-20 Financial Regulation and Financial Development Agenda (2014), Peter Wolff
The Burdens of Multilateral Engagement And Club Diplomacy for Middle-Income Countries: The Case of South Africa in the BRICS and the G20 (2013), Mzukisi Qobo and Memory Dube
The Green Economy in the G-20, a series of papers (2013)

SAIIA Expertise available

Peter Draper (G-20 growth targets, G-20 trade, SA’s role in G-20)
Wolfe Braude (G-20 growth targets, G-20 and tax reforms)
Catherine Grant Makokera (G-20 and Africa, G-20 and infrastructure, G-20 and development)
Christopher Wood (G-20 and Africa, Financial regulation)
SAIIA will also have a presence at the Summit in Brisbane, and limited interviews will be possible by email.

For more information or to arrange for interviews please contact Ms. Kelly Davids on +27 11 339 2021 ext 121 or media@saiia.org.za.

Key issues ahead of the G20 Summit:

Employment: The International Labour Organization estimates that 62 million more workers would be employed if the world economy had continued on its pre-Global Financial Crisis path. In September the G20 agreed to develop actions to boost employment, lift workforce participation and help long-term and youth unemployment.

Economic Growth: Earlier this year, G20 members committed to new measures aimed at raising their output by at least an additional 2% in the next five years. This could boost global GDP by over $2 trillion and create millions of additional jobs.

Development: This is an issue directly relevant to the group, as two thirds of the world’s poor live in G20 countries. It is also very relevant to South Africa, with its extremely high levels of inequality and the underdevelopment which exists in parallel to high levels of development.

Tax: The G20 is strongly committed to protecting the integrity of national tax systems. It also wants to ensure that developing countries benefit from its G20’s tax agenda. It is expected that the 2014 G20 Summit will outline implementation plans for the automatic exchange of tax information.

South Africa set a valuable precedent for including the voices of other African countries during its hosting of the BRICS Summit in 2013. Extending this to the G20 is of relevance to South Africa in that it would assist South Africa to balance its national and continental G20 related interests.

Quick Facts on the G-20

G20 members represent almost:

85% of global GDP
75% of international global-trade
Two-thirds of the world’s population
84% of all fossil fuel emissions are produced by G-20 countries

South Africa is the only permanent African member of the G-20.

Who are the G-20?
The G-20 brings together 20 members: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union. Representatives from the African Union and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (Nepad) are also invited to participate.

G-20 Meetings with Heads of State since inception: