Build One South Africa leader Mmusi Maimane. (David Harrison)
The chairperson of parliament’s standing committee on appropriations, Mmusi Maimane, has written to the Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, requesting complete clarity on all costs South Africa will incur as the host of this weekend’s G20 Leaders Summit.
Hosting the G20 is a chance for South Africa to demonstrate that it is a “serious global player” and to showcase the country to the international community, particularly as this will be the first time the summit is held on African soil, Maimane acknowledged.
But he emphasised that the committee had a constitutional responsibility to oversee public spending and ensure that public funds are managed prudently.
“To fulfil this mandate, we need a full and updated picture of how much South Africa will spend on hosting the G20,” he said in a statement.
In 2024, the projected total cost of hosting the summit was R691 million — R194 million for the Leaders’ Summit and R497 million for the Sherpa Track meetings.
This emerged in a parliamentary reply in September last year from Ronald Lamola, the minister of international relations and cooperation.
Of the proposed projected total budget standing at R194 million for this weekend’s G20 leaders summit, Lamola said this figure included R32 million for accommodation, almost R25 million for ground transport, R12 million for domestic air transport, nearly R104 million for venues, facilities, interpreters and catering and R4.2 million for “support services from stakeholders department”.
The R497 million for Sherpa Track meetings in the run-up to the summit included the first to fourth Sherpa meetings, the first and second foreign ministers’ meetings, and the leaders’ summit.
The committee now requires the latest costings, including any adjustments, reallocations or additional funding approved since those initial estimates, Maimane said, stressing that while the summit must be successful, it should not impose unnecessary pressure on the national budget or on already struggling South Africans.
“This is why the committee must be fully informed of all public funds government plans to use,” he said.
The G20 remains a crucial international platform for South Africa, bringing together developed and developing countries to advance a shared agenda for sustainable global development, Maimane added.