African Union’s G20 inclusion to help meet aspirations of 1.43 billion people living in one of world’s most underdeveloped regions

Speaking in Adis Ababa in 1953, revolutionary and political theorist Kwame Nkrumah, who later went on to become the prime minister and president of independent Ghana, famously observed, “Yet all stock exchanges in the world are preoccupied with Africa’s gold, diamonds, uranium, platinum, copper and iron ore. We have been too busy nursing our separate states to understand fully the basic need of our union, rooted in common purpose, common planning and common endeavour.”

Seventy years later, Nkrumah’s vision for an Africa that is part of the global mainstream is closer to becoming a reality with Prime Minister Narendra Modi successfully proposing the induction of the 55-member African Union (AU) on the opening day of the G20 Summit in New Delhi, Saturday.

“In keeping with the sentiment of sabka saath (with everyone), India has proposed that the African Union should be given permanent membership of the G20. I believe we are all in agreement on this proposal,” Prime Minister Modi declared before banging the gavel thrice at the ongoing Summit.

The inclusion of the AU, which is a grouping of countries like the EU, will go a long way in fulfilling the aspirations of 1.43 billion people who reside in its member states. Even before the summit got underway, speculation was rife on AU’s inclusion into the intergovernmental forum.

The tone was, however, set by the Indian External Affairs Minister Subramanyam Jaishankar when he made a strong case for reglobalisation at the Business 20 Forum, which serves as the official G20 dialogue platform representing the global business community, in September.

A realignment of the world order would only be possible with greater engagement of the Global South, Jaishankar had declared.

Almost echoing Nkrumah, he said due to factors such as scale, subsidies, technology, human resources and strategic choices, the nations in the bloc comprising countries in Asia, Africa, the Caribbean and Oceania had largely been reduced to being a consumer rather than a producer of goods.

“Their contribution very often was to provide resources for manufacturing elsewhere. They not only did not reap the full benefits of the economic change but often ended up saddled with unviable debts, emanating from opaque initiatives.”

On Saturday, it was Jaishankar who escorted African Union Chairperson Azali Assoumani to take his seat at the G20 table.

India Inc. hails move

The Indian industry widely welcomed the decision.

“As this announcement finds its way from New Delhi to the world, I am certain that this day will be remembered as a defining milestone towards charting more inclusive compositions across international organisations and their bodies,” Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder & Chairman, Bharti Enterprises and Chair B20 India Action Council on African Economic Integration, said in a statement.

Mittal especially commended the Modi government for its ‘uncompromising focus’ on making it possible.

“As a large and dynamic economy with a rich talent reservoir and natural resources, Africa’s rapid development will be instrumental to global inclusive growth. Prime Minister Modi’s strong emphasis on a human-centric development and giving a voice to the Global South has guided this momentous outcome from the G20 Summit India,” noted Chadrajit Banerjee, Director General of the industry chamber CII.

Banerjee added that India Inc. eagerly looked forward to partnering with the African Union in catalysing the continent’s growth and economic development.

The development comes at a time when the African Union is looking beyond China – which is increasingly being accused of following a debt-trap strategy to bring countries from Asia to Africa under its sphere of influence – for investments in one of the world’s most underdeveloped regions.

Assoumani has himself gone on record seeking big-ticket investments from India to match those made by China in the continent.

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