The United Arab Emirates reaffirmed its commitment to multilateral cooperation and sustainable development at the G20 Leaders Summit on Saturday at the Nasrec Expo Centre, Johannesburg highlighting new initiatives to support African development.
The statement was delivered by Saeed Bin Mubarak Al Hajeri, UAE Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, during the historic first G20 Summit on the African continent.
“The United Arab Emirates is pleased to participate for the fourth consecutive year, and sixth overall, in the G20 process. Our continued participation as a G20 Guest Country reflects our commitment to multilateral cooperation,” Al Hajeri said. “We are especially grateful to South Africa for inviting the UAE to participate in this historic Summit, where emphasis is being placed on strengthening disaster resilience, ensuring debt sustainability for low-income countries, and mobilizing finance for a just energy transition.”
Al Hajeri said the UAE has been actively engaged in the G20 process throughout the year in both the Sherpa and Finance Tracks. He emphasised the UAE’s strong partnership with African countries across sectors including sustainable energy, technology, food security, infrastructure, education, digital transformation, and healthcare.
“The UAE-Africa partnership has evolved beyond friendship and cooperation into a model grounded in mutual trust, respect, and a shared commitment to a more prosperous future,” he said.
The minister highlighted the scale of UAE investment in Africa, noting that the UAE is now the fourth-largest investor on the continent. Bilateral trade in 2024 reached approximately USD 107 billion, marking a 28 percent increase from the previous year. UAE investments in Africa between 2020 and 2024 totalled roughly USD 118.6 billion.
These investments, Al Hajeri said, create jobs, provide clean energy, support infrastructure development, and transfer skills to ensure long-term growth.
Central to the UAE’s development focus is artificial intelligence. Al Hajeri announced the launch of the AI for Development Initiative, a USD 1 billion programme designed to expand AI infrastructure and AI-enabled services across Africa.
The initiative was unveiled during a speech by His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi. It aims to enhance government services, improve productivity, and support projects in education, agriculture, healthcare, digital identity, and climate adaptation. Al Hajeri said the initiative represents AI “deployed at scale to meet national development priorities, not experimental work, but practical delivery.”
The UAE also reaffirmed its commitment to clean energy and water security. Al Hajeri highlighted plans to co-host the 2026 United Nations Water Conference with Senegal in Abu Dhabi, aimed at accelerating global progress toward Sustainable Development Goal 6 on water and sanitation. He noted that this will be the first time two Global South countries jointly lead a major global event on the issue.
From COP28 in the UAE to the G20 Summit in South Africa, Al Hajeri said the UAE’s message is consistent: technology must work for everyone, and development must be inclusive and sustainable. He concluded: “We remain committed to working with African nations and global partners to build a more prosperous, resilient, and equitable future for generations to come.”
