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International relations and cooperation
The Department of International Relations and Cooperation's
priorities are outlined in the Medium Term Strategic Framework
for 2009 – 2014 [PDF]. They include:
- continuing to prioritise the African continent
- strengthening political and economic integration of the
Southern African Development Community (SADC)
- strengthening South-South relations
strengthening relations with strategic formations of the
North
- strengthening political and economic relations
participating in the global system of governance.
South Africa maintains diplomatic relations with countries and
organisations through 124 missions in 107 countries abroad
and through the accreditation of more than 160 countries and
organisations resident in South Africa.
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South Africa and Africa
The focus of South Africa's engagements on the African continent
is to promote development, contribute to the resolution
of conflicts and build an environment in which socio-economic
development can take place.
African Union (AU)
The AU is Africa's premier institution and principal organisation
for promoting the continent's accelerated socio-economic integration,
which will lead to greater unity and solidarity between
African countries and peoples. South Africa was instrumental
in establishing the AU and its organs, which are the:
The financial institutions, the African Central Bank and African
Monetary Fund, and the African Court of Justice still have to
be operationalised.
Through active interventions in the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC), Ethiopia/Eritrea, Côte d'Ivoire and Sudan,
South Africa supports peace and security efforts in Africa.
The PAP occupies its current temporary premises in Midrand,
Johannesburg. Preparations are underway to identify a suitable
site and construct the permanent headquarters of the PAP
in South Africa.
The AU has made notable progress towards the political
and economic integration of the continent:
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the AU has developed the PSC, which is responsible for
the resolution of conflicts, peacekeeping and post-conflict
reconstruction in conjunction with the United Nations (UN)
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a common defence policy has been adopted, which
includes a Standby Force, with a nucleus of five brigades,
one from each region
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the Human and Peoples' Rights Court has been established
- the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa and the
Declaration on Gender Equality is being implemented
- the Protocol on the Court of Justice is underway.
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New Partnership for Africa's Development
(Nepad)
South Africa played a role in the establishment of Nepad and
the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), and hosted the
secretariats of these two bodies. Nepad, as a blueprint for
Africa's socio-economic development, represents the incarnation
of the objectives of the AU at a practical level to intensify
the struggle against poverty and underdevelopment.
Nepad remains the main frame of reference for intra-African
relations and Africa's partnerships with international partners
such as the:
The primary objective of Nepad is to eradicate poverty,
halt the marginalisation of Africa in the globalisation process,
promote the empowerment and economic integration of women
and achieve the millennium development goals (MDGs).
The underlying principles of Nepad are:
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Accountability: Nepad recognises the importance of good
political, economic and corporate governance in creating
the conditions for development, with African governments
embracing greater accountability to their constituents.Nepad also seeks to base Africa's partnership with the
North on mutual accountability.
- Ownership: Nepad is a long-term vision that is African-led
and -owned. Ownership should be promoted through
broad and deep participation by all sectors of society, and
by tapping into indigenous knowledge/expertise to define
needs and solutions.
- Partnership: While Nepad is a partnership between and
among Africans, it seeks to accelerate sustainable development
in Africa through partnerships with the South, and
to forge a new partnership with the developed North that
changes the unequal relationship with Africa.
Through Nepad, Africa expanded its development priorities.
Development and funding in agriculture, information and
communications technology, science and technology (S&T),
infrastructure and education brought improvement to the
quality of life for millions of Africans.
The 14th Session of the AU decided to integrate Nepad
into the AU and established the Nepad Planning and Coordinating
Agency (NPCA) as a technical body of the AU.
This is an important step towards the acceleration of Nepad's
implementation. The NPCA will focus on the implementation
of regional integration programmes and projects. The AU/
Nepad African Action Plan for 2010 to 2015 is a master plan
for concrete projects that will serve as a catalyst for the development
of the continent.
South Africa ranks among 14 AU member states of the APRM, which was established in 2003 as a voluntary instrument
to ensure efficient delivery of services to the peoples of
the continent, and promote good democratic, economic and
corporate governance.
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South Africa and the Southern African
Development Community
SADC has been in existence since 1980, when it was formed
as a loose alliance of nine majority-ruled states in southern
Africa known as the Southern African Development Coordination
Conference, with the main aim of coordinating development
projects to lessen economic dependence on the then
apartheid South Africa. The founding member states are: Angola, Botswana,
Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia
and Zimbabwe.
As a community of nations, SADC has had to work together
in confronting various challenges of political and socioeconomic
nature. The year 2010 saw elections in, among other countries,
Mauritius and Tanzania. The Free Trade Agreement, which was launched in 2008, is
part of SADC's ongoing efforts to create strong relations with
southern African countries through trade. SADC also aims to
create a regional customs union.
Asia and Australasia
South Africa and Indonesia were instrumental in the launch
of the New Asian-African Strategic Partnership (NAASP) in
Bandung in 2005 on the 50th anniversary of the Bandung
Conference, which cemented Afro-Asian solidarity. NAASP
represents a commitment by heads of state and government
to help build closer economic ties between Africa and Asia.
South Africa continues to strengthen its relations with the
region through increased two-way trade; personal exchanges
between high-level dignitaries; and the finalisation of new
instruments of cooperation in the S&T fields, through technology
transfer, investments and overseas development
assistance (ODA) in capacity-building.
While Japan, Malaysia and Taiwan already rank among the
foremost sources of foreign direct investment in South Africa,
the significance of China and India, as sources of investment,
is growing.
South Africa's multinational companies are finding
attractive investment opportunities in Australia, China, Indonesia
and Thailand in diverse fields such as mining, minerals
processing, electronic media and the petrochemical industry.
South Africa also plays a leading role in the Indian Ocean
Rim Association for Regional Cooperation, which creates an
opportunity for countries of the South to serve their economic
interests.
Apart from strengthening trilateral cooperation, India,
Brazil, South Africa (IBSA) countries are committed to collective
efforts to reform the United Nations Security Council, as
well as the international financial architecture and to take joint
steps to mitigate the effects of the global financial crisis. The
three countries have also agreed to redouble their efforts to
promote transport interconnectivity through the adoption of
cooperative maritime and aviation frameworks that will assistin facilitating the new intra-IBSA trade target of US$25 billion
by 2015.
The South African Government hosted the fifth IBSA Dialogue Forum Summit from 17 to 19 October 2011.
South Africa enjoys wide-ranging multilateral relations with
Australia and New Zealand.
At the end of 2010, South Africa was invited to become the fifth member of the BRICS group of developing economies, which
includes Brazil, Russia, China and India. As full member,
South Africa attended the annual BRICS Summit in Beijing, China,
in April. South Africa expects to gain substantial trade and investment
benefits as a member of this group.
[Top] The Middle East
The Department of International Relations and Cooperation distinguishes between two clearly identifiable subregions in the
Middle East. There is the Levant, which comprises Israel, Iraq,
Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine and Syria, and, on the other hand,
the Arabian/Persian Gulf Region, consisting of the member
states of the Gulf Cooperation Council, namely Bahrain,
Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates
(UAE), Iran and Yemen.
The Middle East is an important economic region as it
occupies a unique geopolitical position in the tricontinental
hub of Europe, Asia and Africa.
South Africa's leading trade partners in the region are Saudi
Arabia, Iran, Kuwait, Qatar, Israel and the UAE.
South Africa supports a just, equitable and comprehensive
peace process in the Middle East and an end to the
illegal occupation of land that has led to conflict and violence
between the peoples of the region.
[Top] The Americas
The overall bilateral relationship with the United States of
America (USA) remains strong with cooperation expanding
on matters of common interest and mutual benefit.
One of the highlights in South African-US bilateral relations is that
the USA has identified with South Africa's strategic priorities
and is making an effort to align its programmes and projects
with these.
At the meeting between presidents Jacob Zuma and Barack
Obama in Washington during April 2010, in the margins of
the Nuclear Security Summit, President Obama recommitted
to ensuring that the strategic partnership with South Africa is
strengthened.
The annual consultations between South Africa and
Canada, first launched in 2003 as a result of a Declaration
of Intent signed between the two countries, remain an
effective vehicle for managing relations in all spheres. The
agenda has expanded in scope and now includes ODA, trade
and investment and cooperation in the fields of sport, arts
and culture, S&T, safety and security, minerals and energy,
agriculture, transport, Africa and multilateral issues.
Bilateral relations with Latin America and the Caribbeanwill continue advancing the development agenda of the
South and the strengthening of cooperation among developing
countries through active participation in groupings of
the South at regional, interregional and multilateral levels.
[Top] The Caribbean
South Africa enjoys cordial relations with the countries of the
Caribbean and Latin America. The South African embassy
in Cuba is accredited to the Dominican Republic, while
the South African high commission in Kingston, Jamaica,
is accredited to 15 Caricom countries. A high commission,
headed by a chargé d'affaires, was established in Trinidad
and Tobago in 2006.
The majority of the people of the Caribbean are of African
descent and thus have strong historical and cultural links
with the continent of Africa. South Africa's endeavours, in
conjunction with the AU, to strengthen cooperation between
Africa and the African Diaspora in the Caribbean, have
added impetus to bilateral and multilateral relations.
[Top] Europe
The EU is a unique international organisation comprising 27
member states. Developed primarily as a single market, it
is the largest economy in the world. The EU has a common
trade policy, a common agricultural and fisheries policy and
a regional policy (to assist its underdeveloped regions). Thirteen
member states have also adopted a single currency,
the Euro. The EU has also developed the Common Foreign
and Security Policy and the European Security and Defence
Policy.
Since 1994, building on shared values and mutual interests,
South Africa and the EU have developed a comprehensive
partnership based on the Trade, Development and Cooperation
Agreement (TDCA). The TDCA, which was signed in
1999, provisionally came into force in January 2000, and,
fully ratified on 1 May 2004, governs South Africa's relations
with the EU.
Through this agreement a partnership has been built,
which rests on five pillars: trade, political dialogue, development
cooperation, economic cooperation and cooperation
in other areas.
The TDCA provides for an FTA by 2012. The Trade Chapter
of the agreement provisionally came into force in January
2000. The TDCA also provides the legal basis for continued
EU support for development-cooperation activities in South
Africa. This support is channelled through the European
Programme for Reconstruction and Development, which is
the largest single development programme in South Africa
that is financed by foreign donors. Further assistance from
the EU comes in the form of soft loans from the European
Investment Bank.
A key outcome during the South Africa-EU Summit in
September 2009, was the signing of the amending agreement
to the South Africa-EU TDCA.The amending agreement
included 35 new and revised non-trade chapter articles, which
were negotiated following the mid-term review of the TDCA.
Germany has made substantial new investments in the
South African economy since the 1994 democratic election
and remains one of the country's most important trading
partners.
The United Kingdom (UK) consistently occupies the third
position in terms of South African exports. With the number oftourists from the UK per year approaching half a million, the
UK is one of South Africa's most important overseas tourism
markets. In March 2010, President Jacob Zuma paid a state
visit to the UK.
South Africa and France cooperate in various multilateral
forums, particularly to improve peace and security on the African
continent and support the advancement of global governance.
President Zuma paid a state visit to France in March 2011. The strategic nature of South African-Russian relations
has been significantly consolidated over recent years through
continued high-level political dialogue with the Russian Federation.
In August 2010, President Zuma paid his first official visit
to Russia.
Did you know?
The European Union (EU) is South Africa's largest trading
and investment partner with the country in turn prominently
placed within the EU's top-20 trading partners.
Focused on poverty alleviation, the EU is South Africa's largest
development partner. The EU (including its member states and the
European Investment Bank) annually commits over R6 billion in
grants and loans to economic and social development, as well as
governance programmes in South Africa.
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[Top] United Nations
South Africa remains an active participant in ongoing discussions
on the reform of the UN and believes that the multilateral
system should be fully engaged in the endeavour for
human development and poverty eradication, starting with the
achievement of the MDGs; the common struggle to address
environmental degradation; the pursuit of an overarching
human-rights agenda; the promotion of democracy and good
governance; and all efforts to combat terrorism and the proliferation
of weapons of mass destruction and small arms.
As a party to the UN conventions on climate change, desertification
and biodiversity, South Africa is committed to reducing
poverty and the loss of biodiversity. South Africa is also firmly
committed to the protection of the oceans and the sustainable
management of its marine resources. South Africa will host the
17th UN Conference of Parties on climate change in 2011.
South Africa continues to reinforce its role as an active andsubstantive role player on disarmament, non-proliferation and
arms-control issues at national, regional and international
levels.
It actively participates in the various nuclear disarmament
and non-proliferation forums.
Did you know?
In October 2010, South Africa won a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for the second
time. The country served on the UNSC in 2007/08.
The United Nations General Assembly also elected Germany,
India, and Colombia to two-year seats on the council, commencing
1 January 2011.
Each non-permanent country sits on the council for two years
alongside the permanent powers – Britain, China, France, Russia
and the United States of America – who have the right to veto any
council resolution.
South Africa will be guided by its commitment to multilateralism,
advancement of the African Agenda and the peaceful resolution
of conflict.
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United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP)
The UNDP has an office in Pretoria, which is headed by
the resident representative, who is also the resident UN coordinator
for all UN operational activities for development in
South Africa.
Commonwealth
The Commonwealth comprises 53 member countries on
every continent and major ocean, making up a quarter of the
world's population and generating 20% of global trade.
Members range from micro-states in Polynesia to members
of the G8, from the smallest and poorest to the richest and
most populous, with cross-cutting affiliations straddling the
North-South divide.
The Commonwealth is united by its shared ideals and
common traditions manifested in similar structures of governance;
public administration and law; and a common working
language, commercial and business practices, and understanding.
It is an important multilateral institution, both uniting
and serving its member countries and providing a lobby on
global issues.
Its programmes of action, such as the Commonwealth
Fund for Technical Cooperation, the Commonwealth Youth
Programme and the Commonwealth Foundation, are focused
on capacity-building, economic and social development, theremoval of disparities in living standards across the world and
the alleviation of poverty and illiteracy.
President Jacob Zuma led a delegation to the Commonwealth Heads of State and Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Perth Australia in October 2011.
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Non-Aligned Movement (NAM)
The NAM with its 114 member states is the largest political
grouping of countries outside of the UN, making it an important
lobby group of developing countries in global affairs.
South Africa formally joined the movement in 1994 and has
played a leading role ever since.
Read more on South Africa's international relations
Source: Pocket Guide to South Africa 2010/11
Editor: D Burger. Government Communication and Information
System
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Last modified: 03 April 2012 15:29:54.
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