Kenyan President William Ruto on Friday urged G7 leaders to support an overhaul of the global lending system to increase support for debt-ridden developing countries.
“Far too many countries are being forced to choose between repaying their creditors and investing in their economies and their people,” Ruto said at the G7 summit in Puglia, southern Italy. the opening session on Thursday was dedicated to Africa, climate change and development.
Mr. Ruto called on the Group of Seven rich countries to “strongly advocate” for an overhaul of the global financial system, to give countries of the South “access to financing on preferential, long-term and flexible terms , as well as a greater voice and role in decision-making.”
The Kenyan leader insisted that the vulnerability of countries be taken into account in the distribution of financing. “We face unrelenting global challenges of unprecedented scale,” he said.
The Horn of Africa is one of the regions most vulnerable to climate change and extreme weather events are increasingly frequent and intense.
The region, which is only just emerging from a devastating drought that left millions hungry, experienced, like southern Africa, torrential rains and deadly floods between March and May, linked to the El Nino weather phenomenon.
“Only effective collective action by the international community can offer a reasonable chance of managing and overcoming these challenges,” Mr Ruto said.
He also called on the G7 to “embrace” Africa’s call for reforms in the United Nations Security Council, where the continent is pushing for a permanent seat.
Developing countries have long complained about not having a say in the Council, where the five permanent members (the United Kingdom, China, France, Russia and the United States) have veto power, claiming that this imbalance risks making the organ obsolete. Their repeated calls for reform have so far not moved the lines.
“No global institution can claim to defend the universal values of humanity in 2024 while perpetuating the systematic marginalization of 1.4 billion people from 54 African nations,” argued Mr. Ruto.
