Trade, Industry and Competition on hosting first G20 Trade and Investment Working Group Meeting

South Africa, through the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic) has successfully hosted the first virtual G20 Trade and Investment Working Group (TIWG) meeting under its G20 Presidency from 18-20 March 2025. The Deputy Director-General of Trade at the dtic, Ambassador Xolelwa Mlumbi-Peter chaired the meeting

The Deputy Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Mr Andrew Whitfield officially opened and welcomed the G20 members to the first virtual TIWG meeting. He said:  “The G20 is the premium forum designed to convene a more representative grouping of industrialised and developing economies, in an effort to increase multilateral cooperation to address global challenges.”

South Africa officially took over the Presidency of the Group of Twenty (G20) on 1 December 2024 and is convening the G20 meetings under the theme: “Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability”, with a strong focus on Africa’s development.

The meeting afforded G20 members an opportunity to discuss pressing global trade and investment challenges and advance a forward-looking agenda for inclusive and sustainable economic growth. It also provided a platform for the Presidency to set the agenda on trade and investment focusing on four priority areas:

• Trade and Inclusive Growth – with a view to develop high-level principles to foster trade and inclusive growth, and work towards a G20 Africa Cooperation Agenda, building on previous Presidencies’ initiatives on promoting G20 partnership with Africa.
• Responsive Trade and Investment Agenda – to address global challenges such as climate change, digital inclusion, pandemic preparedness, food security, and supply chain resilience, alongside toolbox of reforms in the investment treaty regime to support the global commons.
• G20 Framework on Green Industrialisation and Investments – towards a grand bargain that supports value addition of critical minerals at the source or close to the source and promotes resilient supply-chains.
• On World Trade Organisation (WTO) Reform – support for WTO reform and the development dimension of the WTO.

The first G20 TIWG session was attended by representatives from G20 and other invited countries, and also included the presence of international organisations such as the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the United Nations Trade and Development (UNTAD), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the African Development Bank.

Members engaged constructively on all the issues and welcomed the agenda proposed by the Presidency. Members will engage further on the issues with a view to prepare recommendations for the Trade and Investment Ministers meeting scheduled for 10 October 2025.

MEDIA ENQUIRIES:
Bongani Lukhele – Director: Media Relations
Tel: (012) 394 1643
Mobile: 079 5083 457
WhatsApp: 074 2998 512
E-mail: BLukhele@thedtic.gov.za

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