Enroute to Cannes: Africa and the G20- What needs to happen

This booklet compiles the views of eight members of the Africa Progress Panel on what the G20 can do to help Africa fulfil its vast promise and contribute its share to global growth and development. An initial draft was shared as input for the meeting of the Panel with President Nicolas Sarkozy in his capacity as President of both the G8 and the G20 held in February 2011.

The Panel’s key message to President Sarkozy is that he has the historic chance to develop the G20’s emerging relationship with Africa into one of true and mutually beneficial partnership. By building on the momentum of the Seoul Summit, and implementing the specific action points of its multi-year development plan, the G20 can help Africa remove crucial barriers to its progress – such as its crippling infrastructure deficit – and thereby realize its enormous potential to become a new growth pole for the global economy. The Africa Progress Panel has consistently argued that such a partnership is in the interest of the G20, and Panel members are encouraged by President Sarkozy’s willingness to listen to their views.

While the Panel does not purport to be speaking for Africa, it can speak with an African voice, with the continent’s concerns and priorities as its guiding principles, and with the combined expertise, experience and knowledge of its members. It calls for the fulfilment of commitments to Africa, without ever forgetting that the main responsibility for progress rests with the continent’s leaders and that they themselves have entered into a series of commitments that they need to fulfil. The Panel also calls for the reform of the international architecture to allow Africa to compete on a level playing field, and have its voice heard in international fora.

The Panel is delighted to have met with President Sarkozy and remains ready to support the French G20 Presidency and other members of the G20 to encourage a shared interest in and purposeful action for Africa’s progress.