Carney looks to trade pacts at G20 to help navigate ‘this moment of rupture’

by Dylan Robertson

JOHANNESBURG — Prime Minister Mark Carney hearkened back to the legacy of Nelson Mandela in praising efforts by fellow leaders to collaborate amid global volatility, as Canada sought more trade partners and promoted multilateralism at the G20 summit in Johannesburg.

“At a time when too many countries are retreating into geopolitical blocs or the battlegrounds of protectionism, Canada believes that the G20 must remain a bridge,” Carney told reporters Sunday.

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He cited the legacy of former South African president Nelson Mandela, who spent 27 years in prison for his opposition to the apartheid system of racial segregation. Carney quoted Mandela as saying a societal renaissance required confronting problems that go beyond any one country.

“His words spoke to a moment of rebirth in South Africa, and today they can guide how we lead the way forward, from this moment of rupture,” Carney said.

He was speaking after most leaders of the G20 agreed to a joint declaration that touched on climate change and gender equality, despite U.S. President Donald Trump staging an American boycott of the Johannesburg summit.

Carney saluted countries for releasing a joint document, noting it stems from “a very broad process that takes an entire year” and not just the final summit.

He noted the governments who signed on represent three-quarters of global population, and two-thirds of the world’s economic output.

“I look at it more from who shows up, who engages, who does the work,” Carney said.

He said the American absence was “a reminder that the centre of gravity in the global economy is shifting,” with economic and political power being diffused toward multiple countries, including the Global South.

“Our task is to ensure that Canada doesn’t only endure this shift, but that we prosper under it,” he said.

Carney said that is why Canada is working with India to possibly revamp negotiations for a trade deal, which have stopped and started since 2010.

He suggested a comprehensive deal would have a lot more benefit than the talks toward a sectoral agreement that Canada suspended in 2023 after the assassination of a Sikh activist near Vancouver.

The prime minister also co-launched a partnership Saturday with India and Australia on emerging technologies. That same day, he was part of talks between the European Union and a Pacific Rim trade bloc called the CPTPP, which could boost trade between countries trying to escape coercive practices such as American tariffs and Chinese import bans.

Working on South African deal

On Sunday, Carney announced that Ottawa and South Africa agreed to launch discussions for an investment-protection pact, aimed at getting companies in both countries to work together more on clean energy and the responsible sourcing of critical minerals.

He also announced that FinDev Canada would open an office in Cape Town to advance its work supporting private sector-led projects in emerging countries. That might help South Africa with the large infrastructure projects it has been developing so far with the help of countries like China.

The news came days after South Africa’s envoy in Ottawa told The Canadian Press his country was angling toward a “wine for gas” deal that would have his country sell higher-quality wines in Canada while importing liquefied natural gas.

At the summit, Carney also spoke with Angolan President João Lourenço in his capacity as chair of the African Union, about “a possibility that we could work something out” in partnering with the continental free-trade area that is taking shape, but he said he didn’t want to “overplay” the idea.

“Our new government is working for Canada, to move from reliance to resilience by building a broad and dense web of new partnerships, and creating new economic opportunities that will make Canada stronger both at home and abroad,” Carney said.

But Carney’s visit comes amid mounting concerns over Canada’s engagement with Africa, where he spent roughly 48 hours in a visit to South Africa and no other country on the continent.

On Friday, Canadian officials in Johannesburg announced Ottawa would for the first time ever cut back its support for the Global Fund, a major health organization that tackles infectious diseases like tuberculosis and HIV.

That follows a cut to foreign aid in this year’s budget, which the government insists is meant to align Ottawa with spending that took place before the COVID-19 pandemic.

In March, the Liberals released an Africa strategy that seeks to go beyond viewing the continent as an aid recipient, by preparing Canadian companies to profit from Africa’s young population and booming economies.

But the Trudeau Liberals released the strategy after years of delays and just days before calling an election. Ottawa allocated no new funds to the strategy, while it set aside $2.3 billion for the 2022 Indo-Pacific strategy.

Canada’s special envoy for Africa, Ben Marc Diendéré, told the Senate on Oct. 30 that the strategy is hindered not just by the lack of clear funding, but because he has “had to fight to get people to say the word ‘Africa'” with the department.

When asked about those comments Sunday, Carney said Africa is part of Canada’s diversification push.

“Is it the first thing we worked on in terms of priorities? No,” he said. “That’s because we have a responsibility to have that highest return. Canada remains engaged with Africa.”

Carney said Canada needed to focus first on deepening the strong ties Ottawa already has with economies such as Mexico, the U.K. and in Europe “to move them to the next level.” What followed was progress with high-growth Asian markets where Canada could secure “immediate results,” such as the newly signed Indonesia trade deal.

“It’s still a priority; it’s one of the big continents,” he said in French.

Carney is set to have a formal bilateral discussion Sunday with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as well as an informal discussion with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Read more:

• Talks with Trump will resume ‘when it’s appropriate,’ Mark Carney says
• At G20, Canada joins Europe and Japan in rejecting Trump’s Ukraine plan
• G7 security ministers in Ottawa to talk drugs, organized crime, migrant smuggling