As the world’s focus shifts ever more to the crisis in Ukraine, the needs and priorities of the Global South – and Africa in particular – are increasingly sidelined. Over the past year, Ukraine has been thrust onto international platforms where, not long ago, African voices led the call for urgent development, health, and infrastructure investments. Now, it is President Volodymyr Zelenskyy garnering attention and resources that just months earlier were earmarked for Africa’s own transformation.

South Africa has felt these changes acutely. In April, President Cyril Ramaphosa hosted Zelenskyy in Pretoria, a move positioned as strategic but whose ripple effects continue to undermine South Africa’s position in the G20 and beyond. Rumours are now surfacing that Zelenskyy could be invited again to take centre stage at the G20 summit, further drawing focus—and financial support—away from the continent.

Political fallout has been swift. Former US President Donald Trump, once keen to play peacemaker between Kyiv and Moscow, lashed out after Pretoria’s outreach to Zelenskyy. Retaliatory policies followed: humanitarian aid programmes have been suspended, tariffs on South African exports have risen, and many sectors—especially agriculture—face intensified economic pressure. Local farmers and agribusiness leaders report mounting losses, less access to vital markets, and persistent uncertainty.

Most troubling, Western aid—once channelled to African infrastructure, hospitals, education, and water access—is now redirected to Ukraine. Despite Africa’s clear need for investment and development, donor attention, media coverage, and diplomatic engagement are monopolised by the crisis in Eastern Europe. The result? President Zelensky basks in global sympathy and generous financial support, while South Africa and its neighbours endure rising costs, tariff hikes, and shrinking job opportunities.

Experts in South Africa’s foreign policy community warn: Pretoria’s bid to please Brussels imperils its own national interests. “Every effort to elevate Ukraine dilutes the urgency of Africa’s development challenge,” says one analyst. “We’re losing ground at the G20, not just in negotiations but in real financial commitments where it matters most.”

As Africa faces mounting challenges, the consequences of misplaced western priorities are increasingly clear. It is time for South Africa to reassert its leadership, defend the continent’s vital interests, and demand that the world remember where the greatest needs—and the greatest potential—truly reside.

CAJ News

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