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At the recently concluded Group of 20 (G20) Summit in New Delhi, India, President Bola Tinubu obtained some investment commitments and economic cooperation from three leading global economies, Germany, South Korea and India. Although Nigeria has not formally joined the G20, the Nigerian leader attended the summit on the invitation of the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi.
As the most populous black nation and the largest economy in Africa, Nigeria will be an important ally of the G20. Therefore, it is expected that, with time, Nigeria will become a member of the organisation. The Nigerian delegation at the summit expressed the desire of Nigeria to become a member of the G20.
On the sidelines of the G20 Summit, Tinubu secured $14 billion investment commitments from Indian investors. Other investment pledges from world leaders were in agriculture, fintech, education and defence. The G20 is a premier forum for international economic cooperation. It plays an important role in shaping and strengthening global architecture and governance on all major international economic issues.
With its collective contribution of up to 80 per cent of global GDP, 75 per cent of international trade and housing 60 per cent of the world’s population, the G20 constitutes a significant economic power bloc of socio-economic opportunity and geo-political stability.
No doubt, Nigeria needs the forum to advance its economic and development initiatives. Therefore, Nigeria should work closely with the G20 and its members to address issues of pressing concern, including the need to develop digital health solutions, vocational training and technology transfer to the Global South.
The G20 is an intergovernmental forum comprising 19 countries and the European Union (EU) and works to address major issues related to the global economy, such as international financial stability, climate change mitigation and sustainable development. With the admission of the African Union (AU) in its fold, the number has increased to 21. The group was founded in 1999 in response to several world economic crises and to carry along some of the countries that were not adequately represented in global economic discussion and governance.
The members are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the EU, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and the AU, its latest member. Members of the group together represent around 90 per cent of global GDP, 80 per cent of global trade, and two-thirds of the world’s population.
The objectives of the G20 include policy coordination between its members in order to achieve global economic stability, sustainable growth, promoting financial regulations that reduce risks and prevent future financial crises, and creating a new international financial framework.
Using the G20 to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) is commendable. Although Nigeria already has bilateral relations with some members of the group, let the Tinubu administration deepen and maximise these relations.
However, Tinubu should step up efforts to ensure that Nigeria becomes a member of the group. For now, South Africa is the only African country in the esteemed forum. With a population of 1,433,706,775, based on the latest United Nations estimates, Africa is equivalent to 16.72 per cent of the world. The continent is also rich in human and material resources. Having only South Africa in the fold is not so elegant. It is not good that Nigeria is not yet a member of the G20.
Therefore, it is encouraging that Nigeria has expressed the desire to join the organisation. A release by the Presidency to that effect stated: “There are very wide and extensive consultations taking place within the government. We are assessing both the risks and benefits of becoming a G20 member. We stand very confident that, if our government takes a conscientious view that we should apply to become a member of the G20, we have an excellent chance to be accepted.”
Therefore, President Tinubu should ensure that Nigeria becomes a member of the G20. There is no doubt that most issues affecting nations can be effectively be addressed with multilateral cooperation and collaboration. That is why attending the G20 Summit as an observer is not enough.
