Global South 'needs to be heard,' African official says at governance forum

China has built collaborative platforms for its fellow Global South members to collectively address imbalances in the global governance system, according to an African official.

"The Global South doesn't need to be represented. The Global South needs to be heard," Joseph Olivier Mendo'o, executive director of the international exchange department of the China-Africa Business Council, told CGTN on the sidelines of the 2026 Global Governance Forum (Xiongan).

China, through its proposed Global Governance Initiative (GGI) that promotes the building of a more just and equitable global governance system and a better world, has been a key part of such efforts, according to Mendo'o.

Themed "Rebuilding Confidence and Cooperation: Reforming and Improving Global Governance in a Transforming World," the three-day forum opened in Xiongan New Area, north China's Hebei Province, on Friday.

China has built collaborative platforms like the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and supported the African Union to join the G20 to amplify the Global South's voice, he said.

Delivering a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the forum on Friday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that it is important to enhance the representation and voice of the Global South in international affairs.

In comments, Mendo'o said the Global South, including Africa and China, should participate in the global rule-setting process.

"The Global South is not just a subject to be discussed. The Global South should be part of devising the items, and should be part of actually setting the rules too," he said.

Mendo'o also emphasized that Global South countries should unite as a collective force to address challenges proactively, as individual countries can only progress fast while collective effort enables long-term and far-reaching development.

"One country in the Global South cannot go far," he said. "But together, we can go far."