Ramaphosa Calls for Bold Global Financial Reforms at UNGA Foreign Ministers’ Meeting

The President highlighted that despite pockets of resilience in the global economy, key threats remain—low growth, unsustainable debt burdens, tightened financing conditions, and shrinking fiscal space.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has urged the world’s leading multilateral institutions to embrace meaningful reforms to strengthen the global financial system and provide tangible support to developing economies. Addressing the Foreign Ministers’ meeting alongside the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, Ramaphosa emphasized that the current international financial architecture is ill-equipped to respond to mounting global challenges.

Urgent Call for Reform

The President highlighted that despite pockets of resilience in the global economy, key threats remain—low growth, unsustainable debt burdens, tightened financing conditions, and shrinking fiscal space. These challenges, he warned, disproportionately affect developing nations and deepen inequalities.

To counter these pressures, Ramaphosa called for:

• An increase in grant and concessional financing for vulnerable economies.

• Enhanced multilateral coordination on debt restructuring and sustainability.

• Greater private sector engagement in development financing.

• Equal participation in decision-making within global economic governance structures.

Seville Commitment and G20 Priorities

Ramaphosa welcomed the adoption of the Seville Commitment, a blueprint aimed at addressing the global sustainable development financing gap. He emphasized that this framework should reshape how the global financial system operates, particularly for countries in the Global South.

As part of South Africa’s G20 Presidency, Ramaphosa underscored three central priorities:

1. Supporting low-income and developing countries in achieving debt sustainability.

2. Reducing the cost of capital for African and other emerging economies.

3. Driving global consensus on wealth inequality and inclusive growth.

He noted that South Africa had launched the G20 Extraordinary Committee of Independent Experts on Global Wealth Inequality, tasked with producing the first-ever G20 paper on global inequality. In addition, an African Panel of Experts has been appointed to recommend solutions for structural impediments to growth, particularly the high cost of borrowing in Africa.

Global Challenges and Development Setbacks

The President sounded the alarm on the slow progress toward the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, warning that over 85% of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are off track. The most severe setbacks are seen in combating hunger, eradicating extreme poverty, and addressing rising inequality.

Adding to these pressures is the worsening climate crisis, with extreme weather events disproportionately devastating African economies. Ramaphosa also pointed to ongoing wars and conflicts, which he said are fueling humanitarian catastrophes, displacing millions, and eroding global stability.

Strengthening Multilateralism

Ramaphosa cautioned that these overlapping crises are undermining societal resilience and eroding trust in multilateral institutions. To restore confidence, he called on the G20—the premier forum for global economic cooperation—to provide decisive leadership in tackling systemic challenges.

He stressed that South Africa has placed Solidarity, Equality, and Sustainability at the heart of its G20 Presidency agenda. “Global challenges can only be resolved through cooperation, collaboration, and partnership,” Ramaphosa declared, underscoring the urgent need for a more just and inclusive financial order.

Ramaphosa’s intervention at the UNGA Foreign Ministers’ meeting reflects South Africa’s ambition to reshape global financial governance during its G20 Presidency. His proposals—centered on fairness, sustainability, and inclusivity—aim to rebalance a system that many developing countries argue has long been skewed against them.