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We need to strengthen global cooperation amid rising trade fragmentation and inequality

Parks Tau
By Parks Tau
12 May 2025
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History has shown us, time and again, that the world is deeply interconnected and interdependent. As such, attempts to fragment the global economy come at a cost.

South Africa’s presidency of the G20 comes at a time when the global economy is undergoing profound turbulence. Undoubtedly, a new phase in global economic relations is unfolding — one marked by the erosion of the principles that have long underpinned the multilateral trading system.

To be sure, we are witnessing the resurgence of tariff and counter-tariff measures that without question threaten global supply chains and the foundations of global economic stability.

The weakening of multilateral approaches is not new. The Covid-19 health and economic pandemic laid bare the stark inequalities in global access to medical products, exposing how value creation and crisis response remain deeply skewed in favour of those already commanding the upper tiers of global production.

As the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, we respectfully challenged the G20 Working Group to reflect on what should underpin global cooperation from a trade and investment point of view to deal with the question of the global commons.

History has shown us, time and again, that the world is deeply interconnected and interdependent. As such, attempts to fragment the global economy come at a cost. These costs are borne by governments, markets and most importantly, people. These impacts are felt more sharply and negatively cumulatively in the developing world and among the Global South majority.

Given this reality, we urge and encourage all partners in both the public and private sectors in the local and international terrains, to work together with us to reverse the geo-economic fragmentation that is undermining growth and hurts developing countries’ development prospects.

G20 cooperation with Africa


South Africa’s initiative on the G20 cooperation with Africa presents mutual benefits for both the G20 and African countries. Ideally, it aims to unlock the untapped potential of the continent for inclusive growth and development. The initiative to be launched at the summit focuses on three elements:

  1. Support for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), including voluntary G20 contributions to the Adjustment Fund.

  2. Mobilisation of investment for industrialisation in key sectors that have huge potential for growth, are critical to Africa’s resilience, and key to leverage its youth dividend.

  3. To mobilise investment in key trade corridors to close infrastructure gaps.


The G20’s support for Africa’s development, particularly in areas like industrialisation, climate change, and debt sustainability, is about addressing global challenges that affect all G20 members, such as economic instability and climate change. Africa’s development is closely linked to global stability and economic growth. By supporting Africa, the G20 is also investing in its own long-term interests.

Something that we must all remember is that the sustainable transition of the world depends on Africa’s vast resources, and the world cannot achieve its long-term decarbonisation without Africa. The initiative should thus not be interpreted as a largesse, but as a common good.

It is for this reason that President Cyril Ramaphosa in his World Economic Forum (WEF) 2025 address on the G20 called for a G20 framework on green industrialisation and investment aimed at delivering a grand bargain that promotes value addition to critical minerals, particularly close to the source of extraction. 

As Africa, we will not lose another opportunity at development while the world advances in the green transition on the back of the extractive access of African resources.

World Trade Organization reform


We hold a firm belief that, despite our differences, we are bound by a shared interest in global stability and that we can forge solidarity as the G20 countries. That is why we have anchored our G20 Presidency on the pillars of solidarity, equality, and sustainability.

The World Trade Organization forecasts a -0.2% contraction in merchandise trade volume in 2025. This is a sharp reversal from the 2.9% growth seen in 2024. Encouragingly, trade is projected to recover modestly — by 2.5% in 2026 — if we avoid further deterioration. It is therefore imperative that we refrain from actions that could inflict more harm on the global trading system.

It is beyond contestation that trade has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty in just over three decades. These gains should never be taken for granted.

Yet we must also confront the reality that the benefits of trade have not been evenly shared. Many countries, particularly in Africa, continue to face tariff peaks and escalations that limit competitiveness in value-added exports. Trade rules remain stacked against them. Calls for fairness in the global trading system are growing louder, even among the developed nations of the world.

Towards a ‘grand bargain’


The world today is vastly different from that of 1995. World Trade Organization reform is both necessary and urgent. While it is understandable that members are exploring new rules to keep pace with change, we must also address the system’s enduring structural imbalances.

We must work together to create a level playing field in the system. We must also ensure that services trade, which now exceeds $7.5-trillion annually; and digital trade, which is emerging as a transformative force for both large enterprises and small firms alike, are pursued in a balanced manner that promotes inclusive growth.

If we fail to seize the moment and reform the World Trade Organization, the gains we have made thus far could evaporate, and the global trading system will be subjected to the law of the jungle where only the fittest survive, but only for a moment.

The World Trade Organization’s stagnation reflects a broader crisis of trust. The Doha Development Round, launched in 2001 to rebalance global trade in favour of poorer nations, collapsed under the weight of geopolitical rivalries. Today, reform must address three gaps: 

  1. Structural imbalances: developing nations face entrenched disadvantages, from agricultural subsidies in wealthy countries to non-tariff barriers.

  2. Enforcement gaps: without accountability, rules become optional, undermining trust.

  3. Asymmetric power dynamics: the US-China rivalry has paralysed progress, sidelining smaller economies.


The reform agenda that we propose is, therefore, development-centred. Such an agenda should respond to growing calls for fairness made by World Trade Organization members, address long-standing development concerns of developing countries, and establish a transparent and credible framework that will guide future negotiations in the World Trade Organization.

In many ways, our proposal is that a new grand bargain should be established so that we are rightly remembered by history as having positively contributed to the global community of nations. DM

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