I am honoured to be visiting Norway at the invitation of His Majesty King Harald V and Queen Sonja on this second State visit to the Kingdom of Norway since South Africa gained its freedom on 27 April 1994 in the first democratic and non-racial elections in our country's 359 year history.
In 1998 President Mandela hosted His Majesty King Harald V and Queen Sonja on a memorable State visit to South Africa and the following year President Mandela was able to reciprocate. In 2009, I was honoured to receive their majesties on a State visit to South Africa.
We owe much to Norway and its people for the substantial role that they played in mobilising international solidarity against apartheid spanning more than three decades. Successive Norwegian governments offered moral, practical and diplomatic support to the liberation movement, the trade unions and the churches in their resistance to apartheid.
The role of the Solidarity Committee of the Norwegian Confederation of Unions became one of the key organisations in support of the liberation movements of southern Africa through financial support and by initiating the consumer boycott in 1969. Norwegian, youth and christian organisations later played a key role in enforcing the oil boycott against apartheid South Africa.
We are now heading for our 18th year as a democracy and we look forward during this visit to strengthening the political, economic and trade relations between our two countries and ensuring that the agreements we have entered into since 1994 on bilateral cooperation and preferential trade are utilised to their full potential.
Last year, two-way trade with Norway grew by 21% to R3.2 billion from 2009. South African exports to Norway increased from R1 696 649 in 2009 to R2 326 796 in 2010. Imports from Norway decreased slightly from R927 939 000 in 2009 to R853 033 000 in 2010.
Our strong bilateral relations are rooted in the relationship forged during the liberation struggle and a common outlook on global issues such as democracy, good governance and human rights. South Africa has benefitted from Norway's development assistance in areas such as conflict prevention and peacekeeping, the alleviation of poverty, energy efficiency and combating global climate change.
Norway is a global leader in offshore and marine technology, energy and carbon sequestration. And it also has advanced telecommunications and manufacturing sectors.
There is much to be gained from expanding these trade relations and development cooperation and I am accompanied both by the Ministers of the relevant sectors as well as fifty South African business people who will interact with their Norwegian counterparts at the business forum to ensure that our bilateral trade continues to grow.
South Africa prides itself on its strong regulatory framework, efficient infrastructure, robust private sector, sound macro-economic management and resilient institutions of democracy.
The Global Agreement on Tariffs and Trade that was signed by South Africa in 1994 and membership of the World Trade Organisation have assisted our integration in the global economy following the isolation of the apartheid era. And market access has been enhanced by the free trade agreements between the European Union and the Southern African Development Community.
Our key role in the African Union in facilitating infrastructure development for the continent, our role in African peacekeeping and conflict resolution, the New Partnership for Africa's Development and the African Peer Review Mechanism offer effective channels for collaboration with Norway in the development of southern Africa and the African continent.
South African banks and financial institutions weathered the credit crunch in 2008 relatively well and we emerged from the global recession ahead of major industrialised nations. But we are acutely aware that the current 3% growth rate is not sufficient to ensure that we remain on top of the developmental challenges that our country faces.
Against the backdrop of a slow-down in the global economy, we need to ensure that South Africa as a member of the Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) nations is at the forefront of global changes that are underway. We need to build our relationship with Norway to ensure that we reach target growth levels in the next few years.
Norway's strong commitment towards Africa and its development is illustrated through its development cooperation both bilaterally and through the European Union. South Africa will host the next. South Africa - European Union summit in September 2011.
Norway's development cooperation contribution to South Africa for the period 2005 to 2009 was over R25 million. Norway is one of the few countries to reach the official United Nation target for official development assistance which is 0,7% of Gross National Income.
Our two countries have been cooperating in the environment field since 1996. During the Norwegian state visit, a memorandum of understanding was signed between Sasol and Gassnova on the Norwegian involvement in carbon capture and storage.
From 28 November to 9 December, South Africa will host in Durban the major United Nations climate change summit, COP-17, which serves as the seventh meeting of the parties to the Kyoto Protocol. Climate change is one of the greatest threats to sustainable development and demands that Durban assists in delivering a balanced agreement.
Last year, we celebrated the 20th anniversary of the release of President Rolihlahla Mandela in the presence of the founding President of our democratic nation in the public gallery of the second Parliament of the fourth government since our freedom in 1994.
Norway has also occupied a special place in our international relationships because of the unique institution of the Nobel Peace Prize and the four South African recipients who have been honoured in Oslo beginning with Chief Albert Luthuli in 1960, followed by Archbishop Tutu in 1984 and Presidents Nelson Mandela and FW De Klerk in 1993. South African authors Nadine Gordimer and JM Coetzee received the Nobel Prize for literature in 1991 and 2003 respectively. Three South Africans have won the Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine and one for Chemistry.
I am confident that the State visit will highlight the special nature of the Norway-South Africa relationship and strengthen the bilateral relations between our two countries.
Enquiries:
Zanele Mngadi
Cell: 082 330 1148
