G20 finance ministers, central bankers and senior officials meet in Bali
Reuters

South Africa will bid for African Union's seat in the G20 forum at the summit set to commence on Tuesday in Bali, Indonesia.

"It's important that the collective voice of the continent is represented within that platform," said Vincent Magwenya, official spokesperson for South African president Cyril Ramaphosa, on Sunday at a press briefing. The G20 is an international forum comprised of 19 member countries and the European Union.

"It is our sincere hope that that proposal will find favor and be endorsed by the member countries of the G20," he added. It is worth noting that South Africa is currently the only African member of the G20.

President Macky Sall, the current head of the African Union, is known to have called for the overhaul of international governance several times and urged greater African representation in organizations such as the United Nations Security Council.

Back in October, Sall made a huge statement on this subject. Speaking on representation, he said that multilateralism and international forums had to "serve the interests of all" or be faced with the "loss of legitimacy and authority."

Both Sall and Ramaphosa are set to attend the G20 summit along with other world leaders.

One of the biggest agendas on the table will be climate change, as the two African heads of state are expected to share the table with the leaders of some of the world's largest polluting countries, reports Bloomberg.

Macky Sall also said that rich and developed nations at the summit would be called upon to honor their promises of $100 billion in assistance to developing countries each year to combat climate change and global warming. The developed nations in the G20 are responsible for 80% of global emissions, while African countries account for less than 4% of the pollution.

"Pledges haven't been fulfilled," Sall said in an interview at the COP27 climate talks in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. "There have been some efforts, but they've been below our expectations." When the AU "joins the G20, we'll be able to speak regularly to our partners," he said.