JOHANNESBURG, Nov. 15 — A Xinhua think tank report titled “Jointly Building a New Model of Global Leadership — Work Together in Pursuit of a More Just and Rational Global Governance System,” released Thursday at the Global South Media and Think Tank Forum China-Africa Partnership Conference here, has drawn strong interest from African participants from various sectors.
Participants highlighted the report’s timely insights and its relevance for the urgent transformation of global governance. According to the report, released by Xinhua Institute, a think tank affiliated with Xinhua News Agency, the world is entering a new period of turbulence and transformation, marked by overlapping crises and growing deficits in peace, development, security and governance.
At the root of these challenges, the report argues, lies a global leadership deficit, a failure of the global leadership that should guide collective responses to common risks facing humanity.
The report calls for joint efforts to build a new model of global leadership and steer the evolution of a more just and rational global governance system.
African participants from various sectors said the report’s framework for jointly building a new model of global leadership resonates with the needs of the times, advocating consultation over confrontation, cooperation over conflict, and multilateral synergy over unilateral dominance.
“We live in a time of profound transformation in the international system. The post-World War II governance architecture … is increasingly being challenged in terms of relevance, equity, and legitimacy,” said Balew Demissie Kebede, communication and publication consultant at the Ethiopian Policy Studies Institute.
Iqbal Surve, executive chairman of South Africa’s Independent Media, said the report was released at precisely the right moment.
In a world marked by conflict and disinformation, he noted, the foundations of trust are being eroded. “I think the Xinhua think tank report is a very important contribution towards greater involvement of the international Global South community,” he said.
Erastus Mwencha, former deputy chairperson of the African Union Commission, said that some multilateral mechanisms formed after World War II are “not functioning efficiently.”
“We can all come to the table with a firm mindset, one of dialogue, or what you may call consensus-building,” the chairperson said.
For decades, global economic power was concentrated in a few developed countries, giving rise to a “core-periphery” structure that disadvantaged developing nations.
With the collective rise of emerging markets and developing countries, particularly BRICS, the Global South has entered a “new awakening.”
Participants at the conference agreed that Global South countries have injected strong momentum into global leadership in recent years, pushing for reforms of traditional governance platforms while creating new mechanisms that reshape the global governance map.
They emphasized that the Global South has become a key force advancing the transformation of the global governance system toward fairness and equity.
As a major member of the Global South, China has played a constructive role amid global changes. By sharing its development opportunities, providing a wide range of international public goods, and injecting much-needed certainty into a turbulent world, China has continued to bolster “global leadership,” efforts that have received great recognition from the participants at the conference.
Nashwa Abdel Hamid, undersecretary of Egypt’s State Information Service, said the China-proposed Global Governance Initiative (GGI) aims to build a more just and equitable governance system grounded in sovereign equality and true multilateralism.
Following the launch of the GGI, “new opportunities emerge for African nations to shape their place in an increasingly multipolar world,” said Abdel Hamid.
Mwencha added that platforms such as the GGI, Global Development Initiative, Global Security Initiative, and Global Civilization Initiative offer institutional channels for dialogue among Global South countries.
These initiatives not only show conceptual depth but also provide a direction for action, making the promotion of an equal and orderly multipolar world and inclusive economic globalization a practical pathway for transformation, he said.
Experts noted that deepening cooperation between China and Africa continues to strengthen the Global South and enhance its role in global governance.
The evolution of China-Africa cooperation offers a practical model of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, demonstrating that the vitality of multilateral mechanisms lies in respecting participants’ individuality and focusing on common development priorities.
By working together, the participants observed that Global South countries, including China and African countries, can not only achieve sustainable development at home but also help build a more just, equitable and prosperous world.
“By working together, we can reform global governance to be more equitable and representative,” said Paul Ilado, editorial director of the Kenya-based Radio Africa Group. (Xinhua)
