A recent virtual roundtable — hosted by B20 Sherpa Cas Coovadia under SA’s G20 presidency — spotlighted the urgent need for global action on food systems, industrial resilience and inclusive trade as business leaders and B20 SA task force chairs warned of rising economic and environmental fragility.
As the official business forum of the G20, B20 SA ensures that the voice of the global business community is heard at the highest levels of international governance.
The aim of this roundtable was to unveil the early recommendations of the B20 SA Sustainable Food Systems and Agriculture and Industrial Transformation and Innovation Task Forces, chaired by Bayer Crop Science Africa’s Debra Mallowah and Toyota SA Motors CEO Andrew Kirby respectively.
These recommendations will feed into the final policy package to be delivered to the G20 presidency in early September, ahead of the B20 SA Summit in Johannesburg from November 18 to 20.
Hunger, trade fragmentation and a broken value chain
“Food systems are at breaking point,” said Mallowah. “In just three years, global food insecurity surged by 150%, while productivity in agriculture has stagnated. Without co-ordinated action, we face deeper hunger, rising volatility and irreversible environmental degradation.”
Mallowah called on G20 leaders to prioritise investment in regional food systems, improve access to digital and climate-smart technologies and unlock intra-African trade. “This is our moment to act. We must turn agriculture into an engine of resilience and inclusive growth starting with smallholders, women, and youth.”
The Sustainable Food Systems and Agriculture Task Force’s five recommendations span supply chain resilience, sustainable farming, trade facilitation and financial access backed by enablers like blended finance and digital innovation.
“If we get this right, we could unlock up to $180bn in intra-African agricultural trade,” said Mallowah.
Industrial divide risks becoming permanent
Kirby warned that manufacturing sectors, especially in low- and middle-income countries, are under pressure.
“Since 2019, manufacturing value added has declined by more than 10% in many emerging economies. Without a bold shift, we risk a two-speed global economy,” he said.
Kirby stressed that re-industrialisation must be inclusive, technology-enabled and climate-conscious. “We need new models that support SMEs, embed Industry 4.0 technologies, and build regional value chains. The alternative is stalled growth, deepening inequality, and greater exposure to global shocks.”
He added that while services have supported urban inclusion, they cannot create industrial jobs at scale. “We must revive manufacturing to close infrastructure gaps, generate employment, and future-proof our economies.”
Africa must lead, not just participate
Coovadia closed the discussion with a call to leadership: “This is not just SA’s G20 moment. It is Africa’s opportunity to shape global policy. Whether it’s food, trade or industry fragmentation is not a strategy — co-ordination is.”
He emphasised that task force recommendations must translate into tangible reforms: “We don’t need new declarations we need delivery. We need policy coherence, capital mobilisation and courageous leadership to move from ambition to action.”
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This article was sponsored by B20 SA.
