As a knowledge partner to South Africa’s G20 Presidency, Research ICT Africa (RIA) has spent the past year contributing to one of the most significant multilateral digital policy processes of 2025. Working under the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies, which chaired the Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG), we’ve helped shape conversations around digital inclusion, Digital Public Infrastructure, MSME digitalisation, and equitable and just artificial intelligence. The culmination of this work took place in late September at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, where delegates from G20 member countries, organisations, and guest nations gathered for the fourth and final DEWG meeting from 22 to 25 September, followed by the Ministerial Meeting on 29 September. What transpired over those intense days (and late nights) offers valuable insights into how global digital policy is negotiated, and the challenges of achieving consensus in an increasingly fragmented geopolitical landscape.
The process thus far
The DEWG’s work throughout 2025 centred on four priority areas: Connectivity for inclusive digital development, Digital public infrastructure and transformation, Digital innovation ecosystems: unleashing the potential of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), and Equitable, inclusive, and just artificial intelligence (AI). As a knowledge partner, RIA contributed issue papers and workshops across all four themes. For digital inclusion, we explored alternative, demand-side strategies that move beyond infrastructure-centric approaches. On Digital Public Infrastructure, we supported the UNDP in developing an integrated governance framework. Our After Access data informed our analysis of the barriers microenterprises face in achieving meaningful digitalisation. Related to the AI priority, we examined information integrity, the threat of deepfakes, and the critical need for enabling public data access for research purposes.
These contributions, along with those from other knowledge partners, including the ITU, UNESCO, UNDP, and several universities, informed the drafting of a Ministerial Declaration —a statement intended to represent the collective commitment of all G20 members to advancing the digital economy in ways that are inclusive, sustainable, and equitable. The purpose of the fourth DEWG meeting was to review the draft text paragraph by paragraph, allowing member countries and organisations to propose edits, additions, and deletions before finalising a text that all could endorse.
The camel: A horse designed by a committee
There’s an old saying that “A camel is a horse designed by a committee.” It’s intended to suggest that, when you get too many voices in a room, you’re left with something awkward, absurdly shaped, and decidedly inferior to the elegant and streamlined original. The four-day line-by-line negotiation process might seem to vindicate this cynical view. Each country sought to insert wording reflecting their particular political priorities and objectives. Some requested specific phrases aligned with their domestic policies, while others pushed broader political stances that shifted the text’s overall tone and ambition. In some instances, countries were successful, in others they weren’t; and what you were left with was a text that appeared rather lumpy: a contradictory conglomeration of ideas and positions.
But perhaps we should reconsider our metaphor. The camel, after all, is superbly adapted to its environment. Where a horse would falter, the camel endures, built for sustainability and stamina rather than speed and grace. The declaration that emerged from those negotiations, accepted by all participants present by the meeting’s end, represented something similar: a text adapted to accommodate the political and cultural diversity of the G20 membership. In a world where multilateral consensus grows increasingly elusive, achieving agreement across such varied stakeholders is no small feat.
The process wasn’t without its complications. The United States, notably absent from the room, delivered a virtual statement at the meeting’s outset indicating their disagreement with substantial portions of the text. They saw little value in line-by-line negotiations and recommended the text be adopted as a Chair Statement representing only the South African Presidency, rather than a Ministerial Declaration representing all G20 members. Despite this intervention, negotiations proceeded, and a consensus text was reached by all those represented.
The outcome
The Ministerial Meeting on 29 September, however, brought a definitive conclusion to these efforts. The US representative effectively vetoed the agreed text, and the outcome was that the declaration would indeed be adopted as a Chair Declaration rather than a Ministerial Statement. This distinction matters significantly: while a Ministerial Declaration carries the political weight and commitment of all member countries, a Chair Declaration represents the views and priorities of the host presidency alone, lacking the same multilateral endorsement.
Despite this, we should commend the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies for their considerable efforts throughout this process. Drafting text that attempts to bridge such diverse political positions is challenging enough; managing and facilitating four days of intensive negotiations requires diplomatic skill, patience, and unwavering commitment. As the Department’s official knowledge partner, we witnessed firsthand the dedication they brought to this work, and their efforts deserve recognition regardless of the final outcome.
For RIA, the outcome is bittersweet. The original draft text, informed by our workshops and issue papers, contained progressive language on digital inclusion for marginalised communities, human rights, and increasing representation of the Global South. Much of this content was diluted during negotiations, which, on the whole, favoured pragmatic conservatism and re-using language from previous G20 presidencies rather than introducing new and progressive concepts. When the declaration reverted to a Chair Declaration, there was no opportunity to reintroduce these provisions. In this sense, it represents a missed opportunity to secure strong multilateral commitments on some of the most pressing digital equity issues of our time.
Yet there are elements to acknowledge and appreciate. RIA was explicitly recognised in the final paragraph of the Chair Declaration, which stated: “We are grateful to all the organisations that contributed to the work of the DEWG as Knowledge partners, in particular the ITU, UNESCO, UNDP, the UN Office of Digital and Emerging Technologies, Research ICT Africa, University of Pretoria, University College London and the University of Cambridge, and the many others who contributed.” This acknowledgement reflects the substantive role knowledge partners played in shaping the discussions and introducing new and exciting ideas to the forum, even if not all of our recommendations made it into the final text.
The G20 process reveals both the possibilities and limitations of multilateral digital policymaking. While consensus may sometimes produce text that is less ambitious than some stakeholders hoped, the process of negotiation itself, bringing diverse voices to the table, considering competing priorities, and seeking common ground, remains valuable. As digital technologies continue to reshape economies and societies globally, forums like the G20 DEWG will remain crucial spaces for these conversations, however imperfect the outcomes may be.
For RIA, our work continues. The research, data, and policy frameworks we developed for the G20 will inform our ongoing efforts to advance digital inclusion and equity across Africa and the Global South. The conversations we’ve contributed to don’t end with a declaration- they’re part of a longer-term project of building a digital future that genuinely serves all people, not just the privileged few.
