Johannesburg, Nov. 23, 2025 (Lusa) - Angola's president said at the G20 Summit on Sunday that the burden of debt compromises essential investments and pointed to the lack of accessible financing as the "greatest constraint on African ambition", calling for action to restructure debt.
João Lourenço was speaking in Johannesburg at the first session of the G20 summit, where he represented the African Union as its acting president.
João Lourenço called on the G20 to accelerate reforms of multilateral development banks, support local currency financing, modernise rating agencies and urgently implement the Common Framework, "ensuring deep relief for countries with unsustainable debt".
He said that "the biggest constraint on African ambition is the lack of accessible financing," stressing that the scarcity of cheap capital continues to hamper the continent's sustainable development.
He acknowledged that the G20 had "made commendable progress" on the roadmap for multilateral development institutions, but warned that it was “imperative” to accelerate the implementation of these strategies, calling for "a significant and rapid increase in the amount of accessible capital".
"Access must be strengthened, prioritising financing in local currency, to mitigate investment risks and safeguard our economies in the face of volatility," said the Angolan President.
He stressed that public debt is a decisive structural obstacle.
"Debt, which is associated with high interest rates and unsustainable servicing costs, is compromising essential investments in health, education and adaptation to climate change," he said, insisting that Africa needs "decisive action on debt restructuring".
In this context, he recalled that last month the continent approved the African Common Position on Debt, based on the Lomé Declaration, and reiterated the call for "the G20 Common Framework to be implemented with greater urgency and transparency", ensuring "profound relief for countries with unsustainable debt".
He also asked the G20 to support "the modernisation of credit rating agency practices" to "correct any biases" and ensure that assessments take into account "more comprehensive development metrics" and not just historical indicators that penalise emerging economies.
The Angolan head of state said that "Africa is at the centre of geopolitical, economic and social efforts" and that the African Union's entry as a permanent member of the G20 has placed the continent "in a prominent position in the field of multilateralism".
He also pointed out that the summit, held for the first time on African soil, should "bring African priorities to the fore," highlighting the leadership of the South African president, and called for "coordinated awareness-raising for the mobilisation of internal resources."
He also recalled that Africa is building its own continental financial institutions, which are essential for reducing external dependencies amid a "sharp decline in official development assistance".
João Lourenço stressed that the continent is "accelerating economic transformation and diversification," protecting its economies from external shocks, and highlighted the strategic impact of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which will create a market of $3.4 trillion and provide the diversification necessary for the stabilisation of global supply chains.
"We urge the G20 to view this initiative not only as an African project, but as an essential contribution to the stability of world trade," he urged.
Lourenço reiterated Africa's commitment to multilateralism and called for the implementation of reforms to the international financial architecture, stressing that the African Union "fully endorses the recommendations contained in the Reports of the African Panel of Experts and the Extraordinary Commission of Independent Experts on Global Wealth Inequality."
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