The Group of 20 (G20) members agreed on Saturday to grant permanent membership to the African Union (AU) in an effort to make the group more representative.
The agreement was reached at the inaugural session of the two-day G20 summit held in New Delhi during the weekend.
Amid applause from other G20 representatives, Azali Assoumani, president of the Union of the Comoros and current AU chairperson, then assumed his seat representing the 55-member-state continental body for the session.
Created in 1999, the G20 is a main forum for international cooperation in the fields of finance and economy. It previously comprised 19 countries plus the European Union .
The AU, whose previous designation was "Invited International Organization" of the G20, now has the same status as the EU.
China is the first country that explicitly expressed its support for the AU's membership in the G20.
Vowing to work actively to support the AU's full membership in the G20, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a regular press conference on Thursday that "China supports the AU in playing a bigger role in global governance."
