Equity's James Mwangi appointed to Commission tasked with linking Global South and North

The Commission is an independent body set up by the German government in June 2026 to rebuild trust, rewrite global cooperation rules, and strengthen multilateralism between the Global North and the Global South.

Dr Mwangi joins other 19 commissioners who were presented in Berlin on October 5 by Co-Chairs Olaf Scholz, former Chancellor of Germany, and former Costa Rica president Laura Chinchilla. 

The Commission comprises approximately 22 high-ranking experts from politics, academia, civil society, and the private sector.  

Apart from the co-chairs, three members are from international institutions, 7 former leaders in government, 5 in development, peace and civil society, 3 in academia and research and 2 in business.

The network builds on the legacy of the 1977 Brandt Commission chaired by former German Chancellor Willy Brandt, which was credited with shifting global development.

Dr. Mwangi welcomed the appointment, saying involving Africa in global development structures has come of age, and will onboard his expertise from leading Equity to achieve impactful solutions.

"Willy Brandt's Commission gave the world the language of interdependence. Fifty years on, our task is to turn that language into partnerships that work. Africa should no longer be seen through the lens of aid. It is a source of growth, talent, innovation and investment," he said.

"I will bring what Equity has learned about mobilising domestic and global capital, backing entrepreneurs and small businesses, and making financial and economic inclusion a platform for jobs and shared prosperity.” 

The Commission will hold its first meeting in Bangkok from October 16 - 17, alongside the IMF and World Bank Annual Meetings. 

Equity Group says that the commission will be tasked with presenting interim findings in 2027, and a final report at the end of 2028. 

"Its recommendations will inform the global development agenda that follows the UN's 2030 Sustainable Development Goals," the Group noted.

Mwangi will work alongside World Bank President Ajay Banga and the World Trade Organisation Director-General Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Administrator of the UN Development Programme Alexander De Croo and Nobel Peace laureate Dr. Denis Mukwege. 

He will also work with former South Africa's Deputy President and Chancellor of the University of Johannesburg Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, former Senegal Prime Minister  Aminata Touré, former Indonesia Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati,   former Spain Foreign Minister Arancha González Laya, former Brazil Environment Minister Izabella Teixeira, former Uruguay's Foreign Minister Omar Paganini Herrera and President of the German Red Cross and former Health Minister of Germany Hermann Grohe.

Others include Prof. Kaushik Basu, Cornell University and Co-chair of the UN High-Level Expert Group on "Beyond GDP", Dean of Schwarzman College Prof. Xue Lan,and Elsy Milan, Lebanon's COP30 negotiator and researcher at the Center for Environmental Policy, Imperial College London and Chair of Promotora Empresarial de Occidente Altagracia Gómez Sierra.