NEWS
Report: Global Summit Watch Webinar on the Outcome of the Global Summits in 2025
Date: 12th December 2025
Organizer: Global Summit Watch
The webinar was moderated by William Gois, Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA), to highlight civil society engagement with different summits held in 2025. The video recording is available here.
Anselmo Lee, Co-convener of Global Summit Watch, opened the session by reviewing the four major pillars of global governance in 2025. He provided a comparative framework to help participants understand how these Summits performed.
-The G7 and BRICS Contrast: Lee reviewed the outcomes of the G7 in Kananaskis and the BRICS in Rio, noting the growing divergence between the “traditional” Western-led order and the expanding multipolar influence of the Global South. He observed that while the G7 focused on technology and security, BRICS prioritized alternative financial systems and membership expansion.
-The G20 and WSSD2 Link: Lee explained the critical connection between the G20 in South Africa and the 2nd Social Summit (WSSD2) in Doha. He noted that while the G20 dealt with the “hard” economic issues like debt and energy, the WSSD2 was intended to provide the “human face” to these policies through a new social contract.
-A Year of Declarations: Lee concluded his review by stating that 2025 produced a record number of pages in summit communiqués. He argued that the role of the Global Summit Watch is now to ensure these declarations do not exist in silos but are integrated into a cohesive accountability framework for civil society.
The session featured detailed reviews of specific 2025 summit outcomes and their implications for civil society.
As C7 Sharpa, Darron Seller-Peritz, Cooperation Canada, provided a debrief on the G7 Summit, highlighting the tension between security and social justice. Darron reported that the “Chair’s Summary” was dominated by geopolitical security, AI governance, and countering transnational repression. This shift made it difficult for the C7 to gain traction on core issues like Official Development Assistance (ODA) and climate finance. Darron also discussed the G7’s focus on securing critical minerals. He urged civil society to ensure these economic shifts do not lead to a rollback of human rights protections or the further marginalization of developing economies in global trade.
Aoi Horiuchi, Japan NGO Center for International Cooperation (JANIC) and Summit Watch Japan, provided a comprehensive review of the G20 South Africa Leaders’ Summit. The summit was held under the theme “Solidarity, Equality, and Sustainability,” marking the first time the G20 met on the African continent. Aoi noted that the summit resulted in a 122-paragraph Leaders’ Declaration that reaffirmed a commitment to multilateralism, despite the challenges of geopolitical fragmentation.
Zia Ur Rehman, Asia Development Alliance (ADA), offered a critical assessment of the 2nd World Summit for Social Development (WSSD2). Zia highlighted the concerningly low attendance of high-level political leaders from major economies at the Doha summit, and argued this reflects a lack of political urgency regarding global inequality compared to economic or security summits. Zia also emphasized that the issues of the most excluded—the extreme poor and minority groups—remained on the periphery, and called for Universal Social Protection to move from a rhetorical goal to a practical reality for Global South communities suffering from debt and climate shocks.
Wang Xiangyi, China Association for NGO Cooperation (CANGO), provided a detailed analysis of WSSD2. She focused on the Chinese civil society perspective regarding the “Social Development” agenda, and highlighted the WSSD2 as a vital platform for cooperative efforts that respect diverse national development paths.
Gabriele Köhler, Development Economist provided a critical analysis of WSSD2, arguing that while the language of a “New Social Contract” is a positive step, actual progress depends on fundamental reforms to the global financial architecture.
The webinar concluded that 2025 was a year of ambitious declarations. The priority for 2026 will be the rigorous tracking of these promises. Global Summit Watch will continue to act as a watchdog, providing the data and advocacy tools necessary to turn summit communiqués into lived realities for marginalized communities.