JOHANNESBURG, Nov. 20  — South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has received a Group of 20 (G20) expert panel report that proposes solutions to some of the continent’s most pressing economic challenges, especially the rising debt burden.

The Report of the Africa Expert Panel was submitted to the president during a handover ceremony on Tuesday in Johannesburg.

Speaking at the event, Ramaphosa said the release of the report marks a “key milestone” of South Africa‘s G20 presidency, adding that it reinforces the message that “the greatest opportunity for global prosperity in the 21st century lies in Africa.”

He noted that unlocking this potential requires a new partnership among African countries, the G20, and global institutions to mobilize financing for infrastructure and human development.

“If we do not address the debt burden facing many African countries, we risk a lost decade for development in Africa and other regions of the world,” he cautioned.

“That is why South Africa has made debt sustainability a high-level priority of our G20 presidency.” Ramaphosa highlighted the report’s findings on Africa‘s disproportionately high cost of capital, which he said continues to raise borrowing costs and limit investment.

The report calls for expanded concessional finance, enhanced transparency and accountability from credit rating agencies, and reforms to counter biased perceptions of African risk.

The Africa Expert Panel was established by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, in line with South Africa‘s mandate as G20 president to advance Africa‘s developmental priorities.

Chaired by former finance minister Trevor Manuel, the 26-member panel, including 20 African experts, was mandated to produce evidence-based policy recommendations that strengthen Africa‘s voice within the G20 Finance Track.

The report outlines a series of proposals to tackle Africa‘s debt constraints and accelerate investment, including a new G20 debt refinancing initiative, steps toward a more transparent and effective sovereign debt resolution mechanism, stronger debt data systems, and improved debt sustainability analysis.

It also calls for measures to stimulate long-term investment, such as advancing the African Continental Free Trade Area implementation, developing national and regional investment frameworks, and tightening the regulation and disclosure requirements of credit rating agencies.

“Together, the actions they propose can create an investment boom in Africa,” Ramaphosa concluded. “South Africa will take these proposals forward not only in the G20 but in other international fora, working closely with the African Union and other partners.” (Xinhua)

CAIRO, Nov. 19 — Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer held a phone conversation on Tuesday, during which they emphasized the urgent need to build upon the recent UN Security Council resolution concerning the Gaza Strip.

The leaders stressed that this follow-up is essential to solidify the existing ceasefire and achieve further de-escalation in Gaza, according to a statement from the Egyptian presidency.

On Monday, the UN Security Council adopted a U.S.-drafted resolution endorsing the creation of an international stabilization force (ISF) in Gaza.

The resolution authorizes UN member states and the Board of Peace, a transitional administration in Gaza that will coordinate reconstruction efforts, to establish a temporary ISF in Gaza to carry out its mandate consistent with international law.

Countries will contribute personnel to the force “in close consultation and cooperation” with Egypt and Israel. In their talks, Sisi and Starmer underscored the significance of building upon the Sharm El-Sheikh summit, held in Egypt in October, to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid and the swift beginning of the reconstruction process.

For his part, Starmer reiterated the need to deliver sufficient quantities of humanitarian aid to the people of the Gaza Strip and to take all necessary measures in this regard, including encouraging more international humanitarian relief organizations to work toward achieving this goal.

Meanwhile, Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit said on Tuesday that the recent UN Security Council resolution on the Gaza Strip represents the “beginning of the road, not its end.”

In a statement, Aboul-Gheit emphasized that substantial work across all levels is required in the immediate future to translate the resolution’s provisions into tangible actions that will positively impact the lives of the Palestinian people.

The Arab League chief also highlighted the resolution’s fundamental reference to a reliable path that leads directly to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. (Xinhua)

UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 18 — Nearly half of the global population of 8.2 billion live in cities across the world today, according to a UN report released Tuesday.

The World Urbanization Prospects 2025: Summary of Results showed that the world has become increasingly urban, with the number of people living in cities having more than doubled to 45 percent since 1950, when only 20 percent of the world’s 2.5 billion people lived in cities.

The number of megacities, urban areas with 10 million or more inhabitants, has quadrupled from eight in 1975 to 33 in 2025, with 19 of them located in Asia.

The report, released by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, showed that Indonesia’s Jakarta is currently the world’s most populous city with nearly 42 million residents. The number of megacities is expected to rise to 37 by 2050.

Despite the prominence of megacities, the report finds that small and medium-sized cities are home to more people than megacities and are growing at a faster pace, particularly in Africa and Asia. Of the 12,000 cities analyzed, 96 percent have fewer than 1 million inhabitants, and 81 percent have fewer than 250,000.

The total number of cities worldwide more than doubled between 1975 and 2025, and projections indicate that by 2050, the number of cities worldwide could exceed 15,000, with most having populations below 250,000.

Meanwhile, the share of the global population living in towns declined gradually from 40 percent in 1950 to 36 percent in 2025, and rural communities are home to just 19 percent of the global population, said the report.

Towns, defined as population clusters of at least 5,000 inhabitants and a density of at least 300 people per square kilometer, are the most common settlement type in 71 countries, while rural areas remain the most common settlement type in 62 countries today, down from 116 in 1975.

“As governments convene at COP30 to advance global climate commitments, the United Nations underscores the pivotal role of urbanization in driving sustainable development and climate resilience across all settlement types,” said UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Li Junhua.

“Urbanization is a defining force of our time. When managed inclusively and strategically, it can unlock transformative pathways for climate action, economic growth, and social equity.

To achieve balanced territorial development, countries must adopt integrated national policies that align housing, land use, mobility, and public services across urban and rural areas,” Li said. (Xinhua)

BEIRUT/JERUSALEM, Nov. 18 — At least 13 people were killed and several others injured on Tuesday evening in an Israeli airstrike on the Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp in the city of Sidon in southern Lebanon, the Lebanese Health Ministry reported.

According to local TV channel al-Manar, the Israeli airstrike targeted a highly populated area in Ain al-Hilweh. The channel reported that ambulances were transporting casualties to hospitals, while Israeli warplanes continued to fly at low altitude over the camp.

For its part, the Israeli military said in a statement that the strike targeted militants “operating in a Hamas training compound” in the Ain al-Hilweh area, adding that the site had been used to plan and conduct attacks against Israeli troops.

“The IDF (Israel Defense Forces) is operating against Hamas’ presence in Lebanon and will continue to act against Hamas terrorists wherever they operate,” the statement said. (Xinhua)

UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 18 — UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday called for regional unity to fight terrorism in West Africa and the Sahel.

The security situation in West Africa and the Sahel is growing more critical by the day, he told a Security Council meeting on peace consolidation in West Africa.

This regional crisis demands a regional response, one that is unified, coherent and consensus based, Guterres said, adding that now is the time for dialogue and collaboration among all countries to strengthen the security and political cooperation architecture in the region.

Guterres also warned of the lack of dedicated financial resources to coordinate an appropriate regional response to terrorism, as well as the lack of strong financial support for humanitarian response plans in the region.

There is also a need for a coherent development strategy to address the root causes of terrorism, he said. Terrorists thrive where the social contract is broken, Guterres said, adding that when families are trapped in poverty and young people have no access to education or work, extremism gains ground.

When governance fails, where development stalls, where public services break down, where human rights are violated, where communities are marginalized, where citizens no longer have faith in their institutions, terrorists are finding ways to exploit people’s grievances, he noted.

“Repairing these fractures, investing in broad-based development, and transforming despair into opportunity is our strongest defense against radicalization,” he said. (Xinhua)