AU Chairman Macky Sall to attend G20 summit - Officials

African Union Chairman and Senegal President Macky Sall is set to attend the upcoming G20 summit in Bali, officials say.

Sall would have “two hats” at the meeting, representing both the AU and Senegal, one of the officials told Reuters news agency on Friday.

The visit, his first to a G20 summit, comes as Africa looks to hold wealthier nations to account for their climate pledges. 

It will follow Sall’s attendance at the United Nations COP27 climate meeting in Egypt where he was a leading advocate for rich countries to contribute more cash to help Africa adapt to climate change.

The summit in Bali, Indonesia, takes place on November 15-16, overlapping the second week of the COP27 conference.

Senegal is in discussions with G20 members about a deal to support its transition to low-carbon energy.

The Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) was pioneered by South Africa’s deal last year with countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France, providing funding to speed up its transition away from coal power.

“He will be there at the conference and one of the agenda items he will be discussing with the G20 partners is the Senegal JETP,” said the official.

In September, while addressing the 77th session of the UN’s General Assembly, Sall had advocated for a seat for the AU within the G20, “so that Africa can, at last, be represented where decisions are taken that affect 1.4 billion Africans”.