CHENNAI: South African President Cyril Ramaphosa used his address at the G20 Leaders’ Summit to call out what he described as deep and persistent global inequalities in wealth and development, arguing that the current trajectory is “unjust and unsustainable.” He said that despite decades of international cooperation, the gap between rich and developing nations continues to widen, undermining progress on poverty reduction, climate action and access to technology, news agencies reported.
Ramaphosa stressed that developing economies need greater fiscal room, long-term concessional finance and fairer global trading arrangements to accelerate growth. He urged G20 members to overhaul development finance mechanisms so that emerging nations are not forced to choose between economic stability and essential social spending. He also reiterated Africa’s demand for more influence in global forums, arguing that inadequate representation weakens the legitimacy of global decision-making.
He said the world cannot expect meaningful progress on climate and sustainable development targets if countries in the Global South remain constrained by debt, volatile capital flows and a financial system tilted toward advanced economies. Ramaphosa called for multilateral lenders to scale up affordable green finance and for wealthier nations to honour their commitments on climate funding.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who presided over the session, echoed concerns about the uneven state of global development but framed the moment as an opportunity for the G20 to reset priorities. Modi said that inclusive growth must be the foundation of global economic recovery and stressed that development should not be limited to “select corridors of prosperity.” He highlighted India’s own digital and infrastructure initiatives as models of scale, affordability and resilience for developing countries.
Modi also pushed for a greater focus on reforming multilateral institutions to make them more responsive to the challenges of the Global South. He emphasised that the world’s largest economies have a responsibility to ensure that technology, capital and opportunities are accessible to all. Calling for collective action on energy security, food supply and climate responsibilities, Modi said the G20 should act as a platform that “bridges divides, not deepens them.”
Together, the interventions from Ramaphosa and Modi underlined a growing sentiment among emerging economies that global economic governance must adapt to shifting realities, or risk leaving much of the world behind.