Several world leaders already in SA for G20 Leaders’ Summit

Johannesburg
BN

Babalo Ndenze

21 November 2025 | 4:03

The leaders from the world’s largest economies have descended on Johannesburg despite the absence of the US, which will take over the G20 presidency from South Africa.

Several world leaders already in SA for G20 Leaders’ Summit

Picture: @g20org/X

Several world leaders have already arrived for this weekend’s G20 Leaders’ Summit, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expected to arrive on Friday.

The leaders from the world’s largest economies have descended on Johannesburg despite the absence of the United States of America (US), which will take over the G20 presidency from South Africa.

ALSO READ: US–SA diplomatic standoff deepens over G20 handover dispute

Leaders who’ve already touched down in Johannesburg include Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as well as European Union (EU) Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

The G20 Leaders’ Summit will start in earnest on Saturday and end on Sunday, where members are expected to come up with a declaration after months of meetings discussing several issues affecting the globe.

The G20, or Group of 20, is an intergovernmental forum comprising 19 sovereign countries, the EU, and the African Union (AU).

United Nations (UN) Secretary General Antonio Guterres is also in attendance and will hold a press conference ahead of the summit on Friday..

Albanese said on Thursday, shortly after landing, that the G20 is one of the most important world gatherings.

“It’s the most important gathering of which Australia is a member. It represents 85% of the global economy, 75% of global trade, and one in four of Australia’s jobs depends upon trade.”

President Cyril Ramaphosa, meanwhile, said the G20 process is “moving ahead decisively” with or without the US after President Donald Trump threatened to block the adoption of any joint declaration.

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