Overwhelming response to PM's proposal of making African Union permanent member of G20: Amitabh Kant

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Narendra Modi's proposal to make the African Union a permanent member of the G20 has received overwhelming response from the grouping, India's G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant has said. In an interview to PTI, the top negotiator noted that India was «very hopeful» of the African continental body finding a permanent position in the G20 during New Delhi's presidency of the grouping. Last month, Modi wrote to the leaders of the world's 20 largest economies pitching for giving the African Union full membership of the grouping at its upcoming summit in New Delhi in September.

The proposal was formally included in the draft leaders' declaration at the third G20 Sherpas' meeting that took place in Karnataka's Hampi from July 13 to 16. The African Union (AU) is an influential organisation consisting of 55 member states that make up the countries of the African continent. The Sherpas held four extensive rounds of discussions during the gathering to give shape to the leaders' declaration to be adopted at the New Delhi summit.

Kant said the prime minister's proposal on giving G20 membership to the AU received wide-spread support and that India's presidency of the grouping is largely aimed at benefiting the Global South including the African continent. «Our whole document is actually devised on the basis of the meeting the prime minister had with the 125 countries in the Voice of global South summit. What has come out from there has been the basic premise on which our document (draft leaders' declaration) is based,» he said.

«Therefore, one of the key issues has been that the prime minister wrote to all the leaders that the African Union should become a permanent member. We have proposed that in the Sherpa meeting,» Kant said. «I am glad to