(Corrects “division” spelling in second last paragraph)
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced at the G20 summit in New Delhi on Saturday that the African Union has been granted permanent membership in the group, which consists of the world’s wealthiest and most influential countries.
The African Union, composed of 55 member states, now holds the same status as the European Union, marking it as the only regional bloc with full membership. Previously, it was considered an “invited international organisation”.
In his opening speech at the summit, Modi extended an invitation to Chairperson Azali Assoumani to represent the African Union as a permanent member of the G20 leaders.
A draft declaration obtained by Reuters earlier stated, “We welcome the African Union as a permanent member of the G20 and strongly believe that inclusion of the African Union into the G20 will significantly contribute to addressing the global challenges of our time.”
Modi initially proposed this move in June.
The agenda of the summit also encompasses various other topics, including providing more loans to developing nations through multilateral institutions, reforming the international debt structure, establishing regulations for cryptocurrency, and examining the impact of geopolitics on food and energy security.
The 38-page draft, circulated among members, left the paragraph regarding the “geopolitical situation” blank due to deep divisions over the conflict in Ukraine. However, consensus was reached on 75 other paragraphs covering issues such as cryptocurrencies and reforms in multilateral development banks.
The G20, formerly consisting of 19 countries and the European Union, represents roughly 85% of global GDP, over 75% of global trade, and about two-thirds of the world’s population.
(This story has been refiled to correct the spelling of ‘division’ in paragraph 7)
(Writing by Chris Thomas; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Kim Coghill)
Credit: The Star : News Feed
