Minister Gayton McKenzie: G20 Ministerial Declaration

Director,
Fellow Ministers and Delegates of the G20,
Representatives of our Guest Nations,
Colleagues from partner organisations and cultural institutions,
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

Good morning to you all, and welcome to the warm shores of KwaZulu-Natal – a province where the heartbeat of Africa meets the open waters of the Indian Ocean. Here, history and hope walk side by side. The hills, the people, the rhythms – they remind us that culture lives and breathes all around us.

It is an honour to stand before you today, on behalf of President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa and the people of South Africa, as we mark the formal declaration of this year’s G20 Ministerial Meeting. We gather not only as ministers and officials, but as custodians of humanity’s shared story.

It is my honour and privilege, on behalf of our G20 Presidency – as host country of the 2025 cycle – to open this ministerial declaration at Zimbali in KwaZulu-Natal. I greet you all: Ministers, deputy ministers, ambassadors and state representatives, and even the presence of great nations in absentia. We recognise Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, the United Kingdom, the Republic of Korea, Mexico and the next President of the G20 the United States; representatives of the European Union and African Union; our esteemed guest countries Angola, Ireland, Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Singapore, Spain and the United Arab Emirates; and all the partner organisations present today.

Together we have elevated culture to its rightful place at the heart of global dialogue. We declare: Culture is not a luxury; it is the lifeblood of nations, the bridge to equality, and the shield against division.

South Africa’s G20 Presidency — Bringing Culture to the Centre

As the first African Presidency of the G20 in its history (with South Africa at the helm) we have made it a priority to place culture at the heart of our agenda. I emphasise: culture, in its many forms — traditional, modern, digital, indigenous, diasporic — is not an after-thought; it is a driver, an enabler, a platform for equality, justice and partnership.

Our Presidency has advanced a number of cultural initiatives: from the promotion of UNESCO-style intangible heritage programmes across the continent, to digital-creator rights, to restitution of artefacts, to the strengthening of Africa’s creative industries as global players. Because our argument is: you cannot talk about global economic inclusion if you leave out the cultural economy. And you cannot talk about equitable digital participation if respect for cultural creators is absent.

From the start of our Presidency, President Ramaphosa directed that culture must not sit at the margins of our agenda. Our team has worked tirelessly to ensure that culture, heritage, and the creative economy are recognised as engines of inclusion and development.

We have advanced new frameworks on digital creativity, expanded conversations on restitution of heritage, and brought the cultural economy into the mainstream of global dialogue. Because the truth is simple: you cannot talk about global fairness if culture is left behind.

Culture is not an ornament — it is an investment. It is identity, it is soft power, it is value creation. Every song, every dance, every artwork, every story carries an economy of its own. The nations that understand this are the nations that thrive.

Throughout our Presidency, South Africa has championed culture’s multifaceted role in building a fairer world. We have prioritised cultural heritage in the face of climate change – protecting irreplaceable sites from rising seas and wildfires, ensuring that the voices of our ancestors are not silenced by environmental catastrophe. We have harnessed digital technology to democratise culture, making museums virtual and art accessible to billions. We have woven culture into social and economic strategies, recognising it as a driver of jobs, tourism, and innovation – culture that heals divides, fosters inclusion, and propels sustainable development. And critically, we have confronted injustices of the past through restitution, while forging pathways for future equity in the creator economy.

Equally urgent is the restitution of cultural artefacts – the scars of colonialism that we are finally healing. I celebrate the positive steps from nations once complicit in pillage.

Equal Pay for Cultural Work in the Digital Age

Colleagues, allow me to speak from the heart about something I have made a personal campaign — the fight for equal recognition and remuneration for cultural work online.

We live in a digital age where creativity travels faster than any ship or plane. A song written in Soweto can reach a teenager in Seoul within seconds. A dance in Nairobi can inspire a trend in New York before the day ends. But even though creativity travels freely, money does not.

That is injustice dressed up as an algorithm.

Here I wish to speak candidly about something that I have taken as a partly personal campaign: the recognition and fair remuneration of cultural work online — especially digital-cultural creation – and the equal right of creators in Africa, the Global South, to benefit from the same global marketplace as creators in the Global North.

We have seen the anomaly of a TikTok creator working in Africa who will not be paid from the “Creator Fund” or will receive negligible returns, but the same person, if resident in the United States, might become a multimillionaire for producing similar content. This is not simply a matter of geography; it is a structural wrong. We see examples: today there is a Ugandan man living in Italy who, by virtue of being resident in Italy, has become one of the highest-earning TikTok creators – not because his content is inherently superior, but because the platform infrastructure awards certain markets more heavily, and the gate-keepers privilege residence in a “developed” economy.

We say: Africa and other places in the developing world and the Global South are not the “wrong place”, and the right time to fix injustice and unfairness is now. Under our Presidency, we have brought to the forefront the notion that digital cultural labour – whether music, dance, comedy, art, short-form video – must be treated as part of the global cultural economy, with equal recognition, equal access to funds, equal access to monetisation, equal access to distribution. If a video goes viral, its creator in Pretoria or Kampala or Lagos or Johannesburg should not be disadvantaged simply because of their address.

Long after our G20 presidency has passed, we will continue to advocate and work towards:

• establishing globally accessible digital-creator funds and platforms that recognise creators irrespective of location;
• encouraging platforms to apply transparent algorithms and threshold-rules that do not penalise creators in the Global South;
• with international support, enhancing connectivity, digital-skills training and creative-industry infrastructure so that African and other Global-South creators can compete on equal footing.

This is not merely philanthropic. It is strategic. Because culture is value creation, employment generation, export revenue, youth engagement, social cohesion. If we leave one half of the world’s creators behind, we limit global growth and global human flourishing because a person’s postal code should never determine the value of their imagination.

Culture must not be divided between the connected and the disconnected, between those who get paid and those who get applause but no income.

When we speak of inclusion, it must mean economic inclusion for the millions of young people creating online.

Restitution of Cultural Heritage and Human Remains

Another cornerstone of our Presidency has been the ongoing restitution of cultural artefacts and ancestral remains that were stolen, looted, or unethically acquired during colonial rule.

Another pillar of our cultural agenda during the South African Presidency has been restitution and redress for past injustices: the return of cultural artefacts to their places of origin, and the respectful repatriation of human remains that were unethically acquired.

We recognise with gratitude and respect the positive steps already taken by former colonial powers and institutions. For example: France has begun returning artefacts to African countries. Germany likewise, and several other European nations and institutions have committed to transparent provenance reviews and restitutions.

• France, under President Macron, this G20 cultural powerhouse has returned treasures to Benin and pioneered laws for African heritage.
• Germany has repatriated more than one thousand objects to Namibia, Tanzania, and others, leading Europe’s moral reckoning.
• The Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland have also awakened to the call. Just this week, the Neuchâtel Museum is returning the treasured Shilubana royal family artefacts to South Africa after more than a century.

In this context I wish to reflect, with humility and appreciation, on my recent trip to Glasgow, Scotland, where human remains – dug up in 1910 from South Africa and taken to the United Kingdom under pseudo-scientific, colonial pretences – were returned to South Africa. I extend my sincere thanks to the Hunterian Museum for their cooperation in this process; to Glasgow University; and to the British Government and people for their role in facilitating this return of dignity. These are not mere symbolic gestures: they are concrete acts of cultural justice and reconciliation.

When cultural objects, when ancestors’ remains, are returned home, we restore a part of our humanity. We signal that the past cannot simply be ignored, that the wounds inflicted by colonialism where cultural heritage was plundered are still with us, and that the only way forward is through recognition, restitution and re-engagement. Our Presidency has encouraged G20 members to make concrete pledges in this regard – because it is part of the cultural economy, of heritage tourism, of identity, of global trust.

I have said it repeatedly over this past year: it is not a crime to inherit something that was never yours to own from actions that you did not commit. But it is a stain upon you to continue to keep it and, through inaction, to continue the perpetuation of the historical crime.

Our Presidency calls on all G20 members to adopt national restitution frameworks, and to support the establishment of an International Cultural Restitution Fund that helps with provenance research, storage, and repatriation logistics — especially for nations without the resources to do so alone.

The Work of the G20 Cultural Group — a growing legacy of cooperation

As we look at the path ahead, it is vital to acknowledge the road that has brought us here. The G20 Cultural Ministers’ process is young – but in a few short years it has become one of the most dynamic and meaningful tracks of the G20 system. It has reminded us that culture is not a decorative sidebar to economics but a central pillar of sustainable development, inclusion, and international understanding.

The journey began in 2021 under the Italian Presidency, when the world was still emerging from the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic. Italy, a country whose very soil breathes art and heritage, convened the first ever G20 Culture Ministers’ Meeting in Rome. That meeting produced the Rome Declaration of the G20 Ministers of Culture, a historic document that identified five major cultural priorities:

• Protection of Cultural Heritage;
• Climate Change and Culture;
• Building Capacity through Education and Digital Transition;
• Culture and Sustainable Development; and
• Support for Creative Industries.

That declaration was the foundational stone. It affirmed that culture is a global public good and that safeguarding it must form part of the world’s shared responsibility. Italy also spearheaded new cooperation against the illicit trafficking of artefacts and the creation of the “Culture 2030 Indicators,” linking cultural policy directly to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

In 2022, when Indonesia assumed the G20 Presidency, the focus shifted toward the cultural economy and recovery. The pandemic had devastated creative sectors everywhere — from cinemas to museums to live performance venues — and Indonesia championed the principle that “Culture Unites the World.” The Bali meetings of that year reaffirmed the value of creative industries in job creation and youth empowerment. Indonesia also emphasised the need for cross-border collaboration between cultural SMEs, the protection of indigenous knowledge, and inclusive digitalisation to ensure no creative worker was left behind.

India’s Presidency in 2023 deepened that work with remarkable energy. Rooted in its own civilisational heritage and the principle of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam — “the world is one family” — India led the first-ever G20 Culture Working Group series across four host cities: Khajuraho, Bhubaneswar, Hampi and Varanasi. These meetings produced rich dialogue on heritage conservation, cultural tourism, and the link between culture and technology. India introduced the concept of “Living Heritage” — culture as something dynamic, not frozen — and called for enhanced global cooperation to protect intangible heritage and traditional crafts. The Indian Presidency culminated in the Kashi Culture Track Declaration, a visionary statement aligning cultural preservation with sustainability, digital empowerment, and inclusive growth.

When Brazil took the baton in 2024, it anchored culture within the broader struggle for social inclusion and climate justice. Brazil’s leadership emphasised that environmental sustainability and cultural sustainability are interdependent. The Amazon, the Cerrado, and other biomes were framed as both ecological and cultural ecosystems. Brazil pushed for recognition of cultural rights as human rights and introduced language around “culture for democracy,” underscoring the role of artistic expression in civic participation. The Brazilian meetings also advanced work on a Global Cultural Data Platform, designed to collect and share indicators on cultural employment, gender equity, and public investment.

And then came South Africa’s Presidency in 2025 — the first on African soil and the first to be guided by the collective aspirations of the African Union. Our Presidency built on these strong foundations and introduced a new layer of focus: cultural justice in the digital age. We placed emphasis on the unevenness of global digital remuneration and representation, arguing that algorithms and platform structures must reflect fairness and diversity. Under South Africa’s leadership, the G20 Cultural Group formally endorsed the concept of Digital Cultural Equity, established a Task Team on Repatriation and Restitution, and opened negotiations for the International Cultural Restitution Facility that I have already described.

Across these years, the Cultural Group has also produced an evolving set of practical tools:

• The G20 Principles on the Protection of Cultural Heritage in Crisis — drafted in Italy, refined in India and Brazil — which now guide member states in protecting heritage sites during natural disasters, war and displacement.
• The Cultural and Creative Industries Framework, identifying best practices for public-private collaboration, finance, skills development and intellectual property protection.
• A Digital Cultural Commons Initiative, still under development, to promote data-sharing, open access to cultural archives, and equitable digital participation.
• The establishment of the G20 Culture Dialogues Platform, an online repository for the exchange of case studies, research, and policy experiences among member states and the African Union.

The G20 Cultural Group’s work has been more than a series of communiqués; it has generated tangible global benefits. In many member countries, national ministries have used these dialogues to strengthen their own cultural policies — introducing digital creator support funds, expanding museum restitution programmes, and investing in cultural infrastructure in rural and indigenous communities.

Through these collective efforts, the G20 Cultural track has helped to:

• Recognise culture as an enabler of economic diversification;
• Position creative industries as growth sectors in national economies;
• Integrate cultural resilience into climate-adaptation strategies;
• Strengthen international cooperation against illicit trade in antiquities; and
• Promote equitable participation of the Global South in digital creative economies.

Importantly, this work has not occurred in isolation. The G20 Cultural Group has partnered closely with UNESCO, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the OECD, the World Bank, and regional entities such as the African Union Commission on Social Affairs, which houses the AU’s cultural portfolio. These partnerships have given the G20’s cultural agenda both depth and global legitimacy.

Today, as we gather in Zimbali, the cumulative labour of these years stands before us as a living architecture of collaboration. We are inheritors of a young but potent tradition — one that has moved culture from the periphery of global policy to its rightful place at the heart of sustainable development.

Let us honour this legacy by ensuring that our Declaration today continues that trajectory — that it strengthens not only our institutions but also the spirit of solidarity that has animated this journey from Rome to Bali, from Varanasi to Brasília, and now to KwaZulu-Natal. And let us recognise, as the African Union reminds us, that our cultural cooperation must remain inclusive, intergenerational, and rooted in mutual respect.

Culture as a Pathway to Peace

Colleagues,
We live in a time of increasing conflict – wars of territory, wars of ideology, wars of narrative. But culture remains a quiet soldier of peace.

Ladies and gentlemen, culture is peace. Culture offers a pathway towards non-violent partnership between and among countries.

Robert Alan Aurthur told us that “Intercultural dialogue is the best guarantee of a more peaceful, just and sustainable world.”

Culture, the knowledge of art, literature, heritage, and openness to others, creates empathy, creates connection, reduces fear, reduces conflict. When we are grounded in culture – in stories, songs, heritage and exchange – we are less likely to divide and more likely to collaborate.

I can reflect on this through our own recent history: when the voice of Nelson Mandela was silenced behind lock and key, when his body was imprisoned and his speech forbidden, culture spoke for him. The struggle of South Africa against apartheid was sustained by songs, by literature, by theatre, and by cultural icons: Jonas Gwangwa through his trombone, Miriam Makeba through song at the United Nations, Hugh Masekela, Abdullah Ibrahim, Brenda Fassie and Johnny Clegg stepped into the void over the years. Masekela’s Bring Him Back Home became an anthem of the struggle. Clegg and Savuka’s Asimbonanga in 1987 reminded us that “We have not seen him” for 24 long years. This is the soft but enduring power of culture. It connects people beyond borders, beyond arrest, beyond banishment.

One of the primary reasons why most G20 countries are at the table today is because of the size of their economies. But a country cannot become a leading player on the world stage without cultural presence and influence. Culture deepens influence, extends soft power, connects markets, binds partners. And that is true of all the G20 countries.

In that spirit I would like to acknowledge, for each of our 19 member countries (and the EU and AU as blocs) at this table, the cultural icons whose names are known around the world –and many more – who symbolise the cultural richness of each nation. It is a reminder of the true wealth of all our nations, the treasures of their culture.

When you hear “G20,” you may think of GDPs and interest rates. But behind every economy stands a cultural heartbeat that made the world pay attention. Let’s remind ourselves who we are – not just as economies, but as creators of more intangible greatness.

• Argentina: the birthplace of tango, of Astor Piazzolla, and the legendary Mercedes Sosa.
• Australia: land of Indigenous storytelling and the global artistry of Cate Blanchett and AC/DC.
• Brazil: rhythm of samba, the poetry of Gilberto Gil, and the sound of Anitta echoing across continents.
• Canada: Leonard Cohen, Celine Dion, Drake — voices that cross generations.
• China: from Confucius to Lang Lang, from calligraphy to cinema.
• France: the art of Monet, the voice of Édith Piaf, the revolution of ideas.
• Germany: Beethoven, Bach, and the bold innovation of Kraftwerk.
• India: the eternal voice of Lata Mangeshkar, the genius of A.R. Rahman, and the global presence of Bollywood.
• Indonesia: the haunting gamelan, and artists like Anggun who bridge East and West.
• Italy: Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Andrea Bocelli — the living history of beauty.
• Japan: Kurosawa’s films, the harmonies of Ryuichi Sakamoto, and the cultural phenomenon of anime.
• Mexico: Frida Kahlo’s colours, Carlos Santana’s guitar, and Octavio Paz’s words.
• Russia: the literature of Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, the music of Tchaikovsky.
• Saudi Arabia: Mohammed Abdu, bridging tradition and modernity.
• Türkiye: from the poetry of Yunus Emre to the pop sounds of Tarkan.
• United Kingdom: Shakespeare, The Beatles, Adele — cultural exports that define eras.
• United States: Jazz, Rock, Hip-Hop — from Aretha Franklin to Michael Jackson to Beyoncé.
• Republic of Korea: from BTS to Bong Joon-ho, redefining global culture.

And of course, the European Union, whose collective heritage – from Mozart to Picasso to Gaudí – continues to shape the modern imagination while the African Union and the many distinctive great nations it gives voice to has given us everything from Chinua Achebe and Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o to Ali Farka Touré and Youssou N’Dour.

These are not random names – they are proof that culture is an equal pillar of national strength. No country becomes a G20 nation without cultural presence.

Recognising Our Guest Nations

This year, South Africa also had the privilege of hosting special guest nations — each contributing its own colour to the canvas of humanity.

• Angola: Bonga, whose music told Africa’s story of resistance and hope.
• Ireland: Bono and Enya, whose voices have crossed borders for decades.
• Netherlands: Vincent van Gogh, the painter of emotion and eternity.
• Nigeria: Fela Kuti, the father of Afrobeat, whose rhythm shaped a continent.
• Norway: Edvard Grieg, composer of mountain and mist.
• Singapore: JJ Lin, showing how Asian pop can carry global soul.
• Spain: Picasso and Paco de Lucia — brush and guitar that speak the same fire.
• United Arab Emirates: Hussain Al Jassmi, symbol of unity in diversity.

Together, we show that global culture is not limited to membership; it is a shared inheritance.

Culture: Humanity’s Longest Legacy

Colleagues,
When the lights of our own generation fade, culture will still shine.

It is the greatest gift we leave to the future – the evidence that we existed, that we dreamed, that we loved.

Long after the buildings crumble and the currencies change, human beings will still read Shakespeare, still listen to Mozart, still gaze at the Mona Lisa, still weep before Picasso’s Guernica.

Even when humankind reaches faraway planets, the children of tomorrow will hum the same melodies and tell the same stories – because culture outlives us all.

Culture is not just the soul of a nation; it is the soul of our species.

It connects us, even when our sense of what is “human” evolves.

That is why we must nurture it, protect it, fund it, and share it.

Tribute to President Cyril Ramaphosa

As we come to the close of South Africa’s G20 Presidency, allow me a moment of reflection on the man who led it — President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa.

In 1990, when Nelson Mandela walked out of Victor Verster Prison, a young Cyril Ramaphosa walked beside him, carrying his briefcase, holding the microphone for him as he spoke to the world after 27 years of silence.

That image is engraved in our nation’s memory, the torch of leadership passing from one generation to the next.

Today, that same young man – now our President – has made history again as the first African to lead the G20. Under his guidance, Africa has not been a footnote in the story of global cooperation; it has been a full chapter.

President Ramaphosa has reminded the world that leadership is not about titles or power — it is about service, humility, and continuity. He has carried Mandela’s dream forward into the digital age, where culture, technology and justice meet.

And in a few weeks’ time, he will host the G20 Summit of World Leaders in Johannesburg – a moment of practical importance but also immense symbolic power. For it means that Africa, long spoken about is now speaking for itself.

The Handover to the Next Presidency

Distinguished colleagues,
As our term draws to its close, we prepare to hand over the Presidency of the G20 to our friends and partners in the United States of America, who will guide this forum through 2026.

To our American colleagues, I say: we pass you not only the documents and communiqués, but a vision – a vision of a G20 that is not only about economics but about empathy; not only about growth but about dignity; not only about trade but about culture.

We trust you to carry forward the work we have begun:

• To champion digital fairness for creators everywhere.
• To continue the restitution of artefacts and ancestral remains.
• To defend cultural heritage as a tool for peace.
• To make culture a permanent pillar of the G20 agenda.

And to all our fellow member states, I say thank you — for engaging, for debating, for believing that culture deserves its seat at the table.

Closing Reflection

As we conclude, let us remember:
Culture is the heartbeat that no machine will ever replace.
It is the song we all know without having learned it.
It is the truth that survives every translation.

And it is the reason that, despite all our differences, we can stand here today united in purpose and humanity.

Let our declaration speak not only to our economies, but to our souls.

May culture continue to be the bridge between our nations, the voice of our people, and the legacy we leave to those who will come after us.

I thank you all for your partnership, your friendship, and your shared belief in the power of culture.

And now, with deep pride and equal humility,
I formally hand over the Presidency of the G20 to the United States of America.

May you carry this torch forward, may you keep it bright,
and may the world continue to build peace through culture.

Thank you. Enkosi. Dankie. Siyabonga. Merci. Gracias. Arigato. Thank you very much.

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