#2/26 OPEN CONSULTATION MONDAYS, 9 FEBRUARY 2026
In an era defined by geopolitical flux and weakening consensus, the latest Global South Perspectives Network (GSPN) consultation examined a pivotal question: What is the future of the G20 in a fragmenting world? The discussion highlighted that while multilateral institutions continue to exist in form, their underlying cohesion is eroding. The G20, never anchored in treaty law and dependent entirely on political consent, has become a revealing barometer of this shift. As global power diffuses and commitment to shared rules softens, forums like the G20 no longer collapse outright; instead, they hollow out, with procedures continuing but their binding force weakening.
The consultation placed particular emphasis on the recent G20 Summit hosted in Johannesburg, the first on African soil. While symbolically significant, the African presidency was shown to represent a deeper structural push by developing economies to reshape global governance norms. By prioritising issues such as debt sustainability, the cost of capital, climate finance, and critical minerals, Africa asserted a form of agenda‑setting power that may prove more influential than securing immediate commitments. Yet this expanded agenda unfolded within tightening political space, limited participation by some major powers, and emerging procedural challenges, most notably concerns around the unilateral exclusion of South Africa from the next G20 presidency cycle, a decision seen as setting a potentially destabilising precedent.
Ultimately, the consultation concluded that the G20’s struggles are less about failure and more about adaptation within a shifting global order. As multipolarity deepens, fragmentation becomes structural rather than episodic, making consensus harder but also creating opportunities for new forms of cooperation, including coalitions of the willing. The G20 cannot restore the coherence of an earlier era, nor can it substitute for comprehensive institutional reform. However, it remains a consequential space for agenda‑setting and selective alignment, provided states are still willing to accept the imperfect but necessary discipline of multilateral cooperation. The future of the G20, like that of global governance more broadly, will depend on that political choice.
Global South Perspectives Network 
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