
Global Citizen Summit in Spain: SA actress to take the stage
Global Citizen has announced that its flagship summit, Global Citizen NOW, will take place on June 29, 2025, at CaixaForum Sevilla in Spain.
This summit will also feature our very own Nomazamo Mbatha as the host
The summit has been scheduled to take place ahead of the UN's Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4). A focus on reshaping global financial systems, promoting sustainable debt relief, and accelerating investment in renewable energy across Africa and Latin America.
The event will be hosted by South African actress and humanitarian Nomzamo Mbatha and will see high-level speakers deliberate. These include Pedro Sánchez (President of Spain), Ursula von der Leyen (President of the European Commission), Mia Mottley (Prime Minister of Barbados), Gaston Browne (Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda), Mark Suzman (CEO of the Gates Foundation), and Maria Fernanda Espinosa (former UN General Assembly President), and many others
This summit is being held in partnership with the Spanish Government. Intensive discussions and focused panels will place an emphasis on transformational development finance and renewable energy investment, particularly in underserved regions.
Another focus of the summit will be the Scaling Up Renewables in Africa campaign. This is supported by von der Leyen and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, in collaboration with the International Energy Agency. This campaign is aimed at tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030, as well as creating 500 000 jobs in the energy field. This particular initiative also hopes to provide electricity access to 600 million Africans. The pledging conference is scheduled for November 2025 during the G20 Summit.
Leaders like Sánchez and Mottley have called for urgent reform of the global financial architecture to meet today's challenges. Global Citizen CEO Hugh Evans emphasized the need for 'radical efficiency' to end extreme poverty.
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