Social G20: Lula vows to submit society’s proposals to heads of state
During a meeting with representatives of G20 engagement groups at the Planalto presidential palace, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said he will submit the proposals approved by the 13 independent groups as well as two groups incorporated by the Brazilian president—G20 Favelas and F20, both formed to work on the realities of peripheral districts of Brazil and the world—directly to the heads of state who will be attending the Leaders’ Summit on November 18 and 19.
“[Today] is a day to listen to the input from the G20 engagement groups. It’s a long list, but it’s worth mentioning: civil society groups, think tanks, the youth, women, labor, science, startups, ocean advocates, business, parliaments, auditing courts, supreme courts, cities, and favelas—all focused on bringing solutions to people’s and the planet’s everyday problems through the eyes of experts and the people. Dialog is the way to build concrete improvements for the future,” the president wrote on social media on Monday (Nov. 11).
At the meeting, the global president of the Unified Central of Favelas (CUFA), Preto Zezé, talked about how he hopes favelas will be included in the global debate. “The leaders are going to discuss agendas about our lives, our interests. So this meeting here with President Lula is also good to mark the commitment that, once the G20 is over, life goes on, and so does the struggle. And we’re going to keep moving so that every decision is put into practice by the world leaders. [President Lula] has pledged to deliver these documents to the heads of state who are coming to Brazil, and we hope we can write a new page, representing the favelas as a part of the map of the global debate,” he said.
Social summit
An unprecedented initiative by the Brazilian government, the G20 Social Summit will be held before the G20 leaders’ meeting. From November 14 to 16, around 270 self-organized activities are planned. Topics such as environmental justice, health care equity, racism and colonialism, LGBTQIAPN+ rights, equal pay, culture preservation, and public services are expected to be addressed.
Also part of the Social Summit is a final plenary session on November 16, during which the document will be handed over to Presidents Lula and South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, who will take over the presidency of the G20 in 2025.
