The Africa CSO G20 Climate, Energy & Sustainable Finance Network is a diverse group of civil society organisations working at the nexus of financial, climate and energy justice across South Africa and the African continent.

We bring deep experience and expertise in areas including just energy transitions, climate change adaptation and resilience-building, food security, social, environmental and financial justice. We contribute grounded, community-level knowledge through our close connections with the constituencies we serve and support.

We seek to engage meaningfully with the G20 Presidency on a wide range of agenda items under both the Sherpa and Finance Track working groups and Task Forces listed above. We call for these G20 Working Groups to consult with us and provide space for observer representation for our group in the formal G20 meetings.

While the group identifies as an African civil society network, it also includes academics, think tanks, philanthropic organisations and international civil society actors who support our southern-led positioning.

Additional working groups may be formed if there is sufficient interest from the group, available leadership, and relevance to the G20 agenda. Each working group has two to three co-leads who coordinate its activities and lead the drafting and editing of text. These co-leads also form an advisory group to the coordinator and secretariat team to ensure democratic decision-making in the network’s processes.

The group has drafted numerous letters to G20 leadership.

• The first letter predated the formal setup of the network and was sent the 24th of July 2024
• The second letter, sent on the 13th of May 2025
• In June 2025, another round of letters was drafted by each working group highlighting their key priorities and demands for the South African G20 Presidency. These were sent to the relevant G20 working groups and task force leads, with the T20 Task Force on Accelerating Climate Action and the Just Energy Transition, and the C20 Energy Just Transition, Environment and Climate Sustainability working group

Africa’s Adaptation-Related Priorities for the Presidency of the G20

Key Demands:

→ Advocate for Scaling Adaptation Finance that is Grant-Based, Predictable, Accessible, and Aligned with the Needs of Climate Vulnerable Regions

→ Advance Policy Coherence without Shifting the Burden – Integration Rooted in Just Transition Principles

→ Strengthen African Coordination and Leadership on Adaptation and DRR and assert African leadership on Africa’s adaptation and resilience priorities

Africa’s Food Systems-Related Priorities for the Presidency of the G20

→ Invest in Smallholder-Led, Climate-Resilient Food Systems

→ Integrate Agroecological and Climate-Resilient Approaches in G20 Policy and Finance

Africa’s nexus of air quality, health, climate and economic priorities for the Presidency of the G20

Key Demands:

→Integrate air pollution reduction in discussions on climate and health

→ Prioritise efficient and equitable financing for air quality

→ Acknowledge the role of burning fossil fuels on air pollution

Africa’s Just Energy Transition and Critical Energy Transition Minerals Priorities for the Presidency of the G20

Key Demands:

→ Deliver a Just, Inclusive Energy Transition Aligned with the 1.5°C Pathway

→ End Fossil Fuel Subsidies and Align Energy Finance with Climate Justice

→ Drive Green Industrialisation and Critical Energy Transition Minerals Value Addition

Africa’s Sustainable and Climate Finance Priorities for the Presidency of the G20

Key Demands:

→ Deliver on scaled-up, just, equitable and accessible climate finance

→ Debt sustainability and restructuring – a priority for Africa

→ Accelerate the speed, scale and urgency of international financial architecture reform