partners
10 November 2006
Pretoria - South African Foreign Minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma will on
Saturday, 11 November 2006, depart for Brussels, Belgium where she will hold
political, economic and trade discussions with her EU counterparts during the
seventh meeting of the South Africa-European Union (SA-EU) Joint Co-operation
Council (JCC) scheduled for Tuesday, 14 November 2006.
Minister Dlamini Zuma and her delegation will participate in the SA-EU JCC
within the context of ensuring increased market and trade access with a view to
faster and shared economic growth in South Africa.
The JCC will reflect on trade, development and science and technology
co-operation over the past year as well as the progress made in the mandatory
review of the Trade, Development and Co-operation Agreement (TDCA), which
provides the legal framework for our current co-operation. The main emphasis of
the meeting will therefore be on laying the groundwork for the full
implementation of the TDCA and agreeing on a roadmap for the midterm review of
the TDCA.
This JCC will also seek to achieve agreement on the broad framework for a
proposed SA-EU strategic partnership, which would involve moving from dialogue
and exchanging views to active strategic co-operation and partnership on
regional, continental and global levels.
South Africa and the EU share many common political values and beliefs
making both natural partners to promote development, socio-economic and
political progress, as well as stability in a globalising world. Both partners
strongly believe in the primacy of the United Nations (UN) in advancing global
peace and security, equality, democracy, human rights, good governance,
tolerance and respect for the rule of law. Both also share a common vision of
an African continent which is prosperous, peaceful, democratic, non-racial,
non-sexist and united, and which contributes to a world that is just and
equitable.
South Africa therefore welcomes the decision by the EU to discuss the
broadening and deepening of relations through a strategic partnership based on
an open, concrete and transparent dialogue between the two partners pursued on
the basis of mutual understanding and ownership. South Africa believes that the
strategic partnership will build on our existing relations and will result in a
mutually beneficial partnership that adds value to the EU's relations with
South Africa, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Africa and the
developing world.
South Africa believes that this JCC provides a unique opportunity to discuss
the harmonisation of trade regimes between our respective regions. Minister
Dlamini Zuma will therefore lead discussions with her EU counterparts on
coherence between the TDCA trade review and the SADC Economic Partnership
Agreement (EPA) negotiation process in which South Africa is an active
participant.
Minister Dlamini Zuma will also have high level political dialogue with the
EU in troika format led by Erkki Tuomioja, Minister for Foreign Affairs of
Finland; Louis Michel, European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian
Aid; and Javier Solana, Secretary General of the Council Secretariat and EU
High Representative on Common Foreign and Security Policy.
Discussions are expected to focus on, among others, peace and security
issues in Africa and the Middle East and an exchange of views on the stalled
Doha Development Round.
Minister Dlamini Zuma will also use the opportunity to explain South
Africa's objectives during its tenure on the United Nations Security
Council.
Trade between South Africa and the EU has grown significantly since the
provisional application of the TDCA in January 2000, which creates a free trade
area covering about 90 percent of bilateral trade implemented over an
asymmetric, transitional period of 12 years. The EU remains South Africa's
largest trade partner accounting for EUR37 billion worth of trade in 2005, just
under 40 percent of South Africa's total imports and exports. EU Foreign Direct
Investment into South Africa in 2004 totalled a further EUR4,6 billion.
The EU has also dedicated grants of EUR125 million per annum through the
European Programme for Reconstruction and Development. The European Investment
Bank (EIB) has been mandated with EUR825 million for infrastructure investments
in South Africa from 2000/06. South Africa hopes that this amount will be
substantially increased to EUR1,5 billion.
Since the conclusion of the SA-EU Science and Technology Co-operation
Agreement in 1996, South Africa has participated in almost 200 framework
programme projects contributing more than R200 million to South African
research and technology and enabling South Africa to access cutting edge
research and development (R&D) projects worth close to R8 billion.
Contact:
Ronnie Mamoepa
Cell: 082 990 4853
Issued by: Department Of Foreign Affairs
10 November 2006
Source: SAPA
