Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima, has urged world leaders at the 2025 G20 Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, to push for sweeping reforms in global financial and trade institutions to ensure truly inclusive and sustainable economic growth.
Speaking during Session 1 of the Leaders’ Summit on Saturday, Shettima, who represented President Bola Tinubu, said Nigeria, invited as a guest country, appreciates the G20’s ongoing efforts to drive inclusive development but warned that many developing nations remain hindered by “systematic barriers” that limit growth and financial stability.
“Nigeria commends the concerted efforts of the group in mobilising action towards accelerated attainment of inclusive, sustainable growth, while financing for development is guaranteed and no one or country is left behind,” he said.
He noted that the theme of the session — Inclusive and Sustainable Economic Growth, leaving no one behind, building our economies, the role of trade, financing for development, and the debt burden — accurately captures the struggles facing developing states. According to him, “The current multilateral framework does not adequately reflect the realities of today’s world.”
Shettima stressed that for global trade to be genuinely inclusive, the G20 must embrace major reforms.
“For trade to be truly inclusive, the G20 must take bold steps towards reforming the international financial architecture and global institutions. Only a more equitable and effective system can fairly manage global financial flows, address recurring debt crises, and respond to the needs of all nations, especially those in the Global South,” he said.
The Vice President maintained that Africa’s development aspirations cannot be realised without a strong collective commitment from the G20, particularly in securing sustainable financing for priority projects. Rising debt levels, he warned, continue to stifle progress and expose economies to broader global risks.
“Africa cannot realise the positive paradigm shift we seek without a collective resolve of the G20,” he said, stressing that “rising debt burdens continue to constrain economic progress and transform local challenges into global vulnerabilities.”
Shettima also emphasised the importance of debt sustainability and the responsible utilisation of Africa’s critical minerals as essential pillars of long-term growth.
“Ensuring debt sustainability while responsibly leveraging critical minerals for inclusive and enduring development must remain central priorities for the G20,” he said.
Calling on leaders to adopt a robust and forward-looking declaration, he added that the global body must prioritise policies that promote sustainable growth, financial inclusion, and indigenous production.
“The G20 must take very seriously the need to advance policies that drive sustainable growth, promote financial inclusion, and tackle emerging risks. This includes support for indigenous production, export from Africa,” he said.
Shettima’s intervention places Nigeria among the leading voices pushing for a fairer global economic order as debates over development financing and debt restructuring take centre stage at this year’s summit.
