Third South Summit ends in Uganda with calls for deeper cooperation

The 3rd South Summit ended in Kampala on Monday (Jan. 22). It gathered high-level representatives from nearly 100 countries and heads of United Nations agencies.

Uganda's president called to keep promoting interests of the global south.

"That the Group of 77 and China remains united in its pursuit of collective interests at the United Nations. In the inter-governmental processes of the United Nations, We must ensure that priorities of the Group are promoted and defended," Yoweri Museveni said.

The two-day meeting was held under the theme "Leaving No One Behind" and is expected to bring a new dynamic to the cooperation among its 134 member states amid the increasing competitive global environment.

The summit aims to promote South-South cooperation in the fields of trade, investment, sustainable development, climate change, poverty elimination and digital economy.

The South Summit is the supreme decision-making body of the Group of 77 (G77), which was established in June 1964.

Since the 1990s, China has been coordinating and cooperating with the G77 through the "G77 and China" mechanism which is an important platform for developing countries to unite to strengthen themselves and coordinate to respond to challenges.

Over the years, China has joined hands with other member countries to promote South-South cooperation to achieve new and greater progress.

"That the Group of 77 and China remains united in its pursuit of collective interests at the United Nations. In the inter-governmental processes of the United Nations, We must ensure that priorities of the Group are promoted and defended," said Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, who is also the incoming chair of G77.

"Let us face it, those that benefit most from the present global governance system are unlikely to lead its reform. So momentum for change must come from you," said Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Guterres also affirmed China's great contribution to South-South cooperation.

"I think it's a very important contribution of China. This summit is the voice of the Global South and one of my main objectives is to make sure that we reform international institutions, for the Global South, to have the importance that corresponds to today's reality," he said.

This was the first time that the South Summit was held in Africa. The previous two summits were held in Havana, Cuba, in 2000, and in Doha, Qatar, in 2005, respectively.