Newton De Mello
Members of the Diplomatic Corp
Consul General Omar
Ladies and gentlemen
I greet you in the name of the Republic of South Africa and the Department of Trade and Industry.
I am tasked to lead a South African delegation of 32 companies to engage with their Brazilian counterparts. Since the democratic breakthrough, South Africa has established a relationship with Brazil based on common denominators, both economic and political. India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) is one but example of this relationship. Discussions on economic development are also taking place in SACU-Mercusor.
Brazil and South Africa share common challenges such as poverty, unemployment and skewed access to the economic resources whereby the rich stay richer and the poor are even poorer due to the economic meltdown. It’s high time that we close the gap between the rich and the poor.
The 1994 democratically elected government brought economic stability through progressive macro-economic policies that promoted domestic competitiveness and a developmental growth that sought to increase economic growth and job creation. It also increased the outward orientation of the economy by encouraging exports of South African products.
South Africa has also recently held its fourth peaceful democratic elections where 11 million registered voters out of an active population of 24 million registered voters overwhelmingly elected President Jacob Zuma. Part of the policies of President Zuma is to have economic diplomacy with countries of the South, hence the pursuance of south to south relations. Therefore ladies and gentlemen, by leading this delegation; I am fulfilling the mandate of the South African government.
The ultimate goal of the South African government is also to expose South African businesses to the international markets, with the intention of establishing relations and to have their fair share in the exchanging of goods and services through countries that have access to our markets. Brazil is also a major exporter to South Africa and as we want to see continuous investment in South Africa, we also want to see South African products entering the Brazilian markets. These two countries should be major players in encouraging fair trade and equity in the world.
The South African government, like all other countries of the world, has established alternative strategies to the global economic crisis by putting strategies to stabilise the economy. Part of the important interventions will be the diversification of commodities but we also want to avoid protectionism by opening up and also avoid heavy taxation, which will further make the country to fall deeper to a depression.
This global crisis has seen the reversal of the growth in our economy leading to the decline from a 5,1 percent growth to 1,8 percent on the second and last quarters of the 2008/09 financial year, respectively. This financial crisis poses a threat not only to South Africa but will damage economics of the world, especially the developing countries. Its manifestation in South Africa has affected both the automotive, manufacturing and mining industries.
Our alternative strategies have realised recapitalisation of the Development Financial Institutions (DFI). The IDC will intervene to bailout industries in distress. Government will not only leverage business by provision of grants, but in retrospect, will expect these industries to be competitive, self sustainable and create sustainable livelihoods in the social sections.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The Brazil, South Africa cooperation is vital in synergizing the economies of the two countries. The south to south trade relation with Brazil, Russia, India and China, as the most dynamic economies, will change the balance of forces in the world trade. This will happen through expansion of investments and long term relations by signing long term agreements. IBSA also has an intention to further cooperate in the promotion of economic development. The launch of the IBSA Business Council will strengthen trade and investment between the said countries. Therefore we are looking forward to the summit, which will take place later this year here in Brazil.
We will further pursue the aspirations of the South African Business through conversations in SACU-Mercusor. We will always welcome Brazilian business in South Africa for the exploration of investment opportunities and further encourage partnership with South African’s small businesses, as South Africa is alive with possibilities.
We are accompanied by proudly South African business people to showcase their innovation and expertise, as well as engage in technical sessions and one-on-one interactions. In order to further this mission, South Africa will also host a Trade and Investment Conference later this year, and we are looking forward to the participation of Brazilian industries.
In conclusion ladies and gentlemen,
On 18 July, South Africa and the world will be celebrating the life of the gigantic icon Nelson Mandela who did not only free South Africans but was an inspiration for democracy around the globe.
I congratulate the Brazilian soccer team which participated in the Confederations Cup and had an interesting engagement with Bafana Bafana. We are looking forward to challenge them in the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa with the hope that Bafana Bafana will keep the cup at home. We are also looking forward to hosting the Brazilian people through our hospitality industry and hope that you will enjoy the South African principle of Ubuntu (Botho).
Motho ke Motho ka Batho.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Trade and Industry
7 July 2009
Source: Department of Trade and Industry (http://www.thedti.gov.za/)
