Keynote address by Deputy Minister Alvin Botes at the dialogue on deepening the China–South Africa partnership: “Shared blueprint, common development”, hosted by the University of Johannesburg and the Chinese Media Group
Shen Haixiong, Vice Minister of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee
Dr Blade Nzimande, Minister of Science and Technology
HE Mr Wu Peng, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to South Africa
Professor Phaswana Mafuya, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research & Innovation, University of Johannesburg
It is a great honour to address this important dialogue convened under the banner Shared Blueprint, Common Development. Today’s gathering takes place at a symbolic moment, inviting reflection on our shared past and a renewed commitment to building a fairer, more inclusive global future.
Celebrating the legacy of Oliver Tambo and the Bandung spirit
This day, 27 October, holds deep meaning for South Africans. We commemorate the 108th birthday of Oliver Reginald Tambo — a founding father of our democracy and foreign policy, a leader of the anti-apartheid struggle, and a global champion of progressive internationalism. His legacy of Pan-Africanism, international solidarity, multilateralism, human rights, anti-imperialism, and self-determination continues to define South Africa’s foreign-policy DNA. Since 1994, these principles have guided us through four concentric pillars: Pan-Africanism, Global South Solidarity, Cooperation with the Global North, and Transformation of Global Governance.
This year also marks the 70th anniversary of the 1955 Bandung Conference, where newly independent Asian and African nations declared their right to shape their own destinies — free from colonialism and guided by solidarity.
The spirit of Bandung and the legacy of Tambo are woven into the fabric of South Africa–China relations. From the PRC’s historic support for Africa’s liberation movements to our democratic rebirth in 1994, our relationship has always been rooted in mutual respect, shared history, and a common vision for dignity and development.
Deepening political, economic, and people-to-people relations
Since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1998, our partnership has evolved into a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2010 and, since 2024, further elevated into an All-Round Strategic Cooperative Partnership in the New Era — the first of its kind on the African continent. Guided by frameworks such as the Bi-National Commission, Strategic Dialogue, Joint Economic and Trade Commission, and People-to-People Exchange Mechanism, our cooperation is strategic and future oriented rather than transactional.
President Xi Jinping has described this as a “golden era” in our relations. It reflects the trust and shared determination to pursue sustainable, inclusive, and innovation-driven growth. The PRC’s experience in high-quality industrialisation complements South Africa’s resource base, technological expertise, and innovation capacity — together positioning us to advance Africa’s industrialisation and deepen regional value chains in line with Agenda 2063.
We note with appreciation the outcomes of the Fourth Plenary Session of the CPC’s 20th Central Committee, reaffirming China’s focus on high-quality development and greater openness. Amid global volatility and uncertainty, the PRC continues to serve as a source of stability and a principled partner committed to peaceful cooperation.
The PRC remains South Africa’s largest trading partner, while South Africa’s is the PRC’s largest on the continent. However, we recognise the challenge of our trade deficit.
Addressing the deficit is a national priority. We aim to expand our export basket, diversify production, promote beneficiation, and ensure that trade translates into jobs, technology transfer, and inclusive growth, aligned with Africa’s green and digital transitions.
We equally value cooperation in infrastructure, energy transition, skills, science, and technology. South Africa welcomes deeper collaboration in green energy, digital manufacturing, AI, and sustainable agriculture — sectors that will define the next phase of our shared growth.
Our people-to-people exchanges in culture, education, and tourism remain the heartbeat of our friendship — ensuring that our partnership endures across generations.
Multilateral cooperation in a fractured world
Our partnership unfolds amid great-power rivalry, economic fragmentation, and declining faith in multilateralism. Yet amid these challenges, the PRC and South Africa share a common vision: reforming the United Nations, strengthening the G20, expanding BRICS, and deepening cooperation through FOCAC, the G77, and the Non-Aligned Movement.
Together, we advocate for a democratic, just, and inclusive international order, grounded in sovereign equality, the UN Charter, and international law. The Bandung spirit remains our compass. Through BRICS, FOCAC, and the UN, South Africa and the PRC demonstrate that the Global South can articulate its own vision of progress and justice.
Navigating the poly-crisis: from fragmentation to cooperation
We live in an age of “poly-crisis” — overlapping challenges of geopolitical fragmentation, economic protectionism, trade weaponisation, digital divides, and the scramble for Africa’s critical minerals. The rise of economic nationalism and disregard for multilateralism threaten the rules-based order that both our nations defend.
In this context, our partnership is strategic, principled, and moral.
Together, we prove that cooperation, not coercion, offers the surest path to stability. The PRC’s Belt and Road Initiative and its commitments under FOCAC offer Africa transformative opportunities for connectivity and industrialisation. Yet African agency must remain central — ensuring that partnerships are mutually beneficial, inclusive, and sustainable. Our minerals, data, and innovation must empower our youth, not entrench dependency. South Africa stands ready to work with the PRC to promote a new model of South–South cooperation that is high-quality, transparent, and transformative.
Conclusion — quo vadis? carpe diem!
Looking to 2026 and beyond, the 9th South Africa–China Bi-National Commission will deepen collaboration in trade, green growth, and innovation. Our priorities align across the National Development Plan 2030, Agenda 2063, SADC’s Regional Plan, and China’s 15th Five-Year Plan — all committed to industrialisation, innovation, and shared prosperity.
The year 2025 is historic: 35 years of China–Africa engagement; 25 years of FOCAC; 70 years since Bandung and 70 years of the Freedom Charter; 30 years since the Beijing World Conference on Women; and 80 years since the United Nations.
These milestones remind us that our partnership is not transactional but transformational — grounded in solidarity and shared destiny.
South Africa’s G20 Presidency offers a platform to advance Africa’s priorities, champion inclusive growth, and reform global institutions to reflect 21st-century realities. Africa’s modernisation cannot be outsourced; it must be driven by Africans, for Africans. Partnerships like FOCAC and BRICS enable us to realise a peaceful, prosperous, and integrated continent. China’s vision of a “shared future for humanity” resonates deeply with Africa’s own aspirations.
Our task is to align these visions through cooperation in trade, skills, technology, and innovation.
In closing, let us return to Oliver Tambo and the Bandung spirit — founded on non-alignment, sovereignty, solidarity, equality, dignity and justice.
These ideals form the DNA of our foreign policy and our bond with the PRC. They remind us that we are not passive participants in global affairs, but active architects of a new, equitable and inclusive world order.
Today, we reaffirm the blueprint for common development — one defined by high-quality cooperation, digital innovation, green transition, and shared prosperity for all.
I thank you.
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