President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Saturday said deep-rooted international cooperation, new policy tools and sustainable supply chains are needed to revive global trade.
Speaking at the G-20 leaders' summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, Erdoğan said the challenges faced affect not only the least developed countries but all economies, arguing that trade's contribution to global growth has weakened over time.
"We consider it important to strengthen international trade rules in a way that supports development and, in particular, to reaffirm our commitment to the principle of special and differential treatment under the World Trade Organization," he underscored.
Erdoğan said the total debt ratio worldwide has reached 324% of global gross domestic product (GDP), and stands at around 89% in Türkiye.
"This relatively low level of indebtedness provides us with significant fiscal space both to accelerate structural transformation and to allocate additional resources for investments. Unfortunately, most low-income economies do not have this advantage.
"These countries are effectively trapped between high financing costs and shrinking fiscal space," the Turkish president said.
Erdoğan expressed Ankara's support for the adoption of an approach based on fair and equal treatment in debt restructuring processes, especially for low-income countries.
"I invite the entire G-20 to assume greater responsibility in building a more inclusive global economy where no one is left behind," he added.
He said total global development aid, which fell 9% in 2024, is expected to decline by as much as 17% in 2025, which signals "significant losses" for Africa.
Türkiye places particular importance on developing financing models for sustainable development, especially in the least developed countries, by mobilizing local resources, he highlighted.
The Turkish president is in Johannesburg for the summit, a two-day event that began on Saturday and focuses on addressing some of the world's most pressing challenges.
