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29 October 2008

South African Foreign Minister, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma will on Thursday, 30 October depart for the Democratic Republic of Congo ahead of President Kgalema Motlanthe’s working visit scheduled for Kinshasa from 30 to 31 October 2008.

President Motlanthe’s delegation will include Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Mandisi Mpahlwa, Minister of Defence, Charles Nqakula, Minister of Health, Ms Barbara Hogan, and Minister of Public Service and Administration, Minister Baloyi.

The visit is aimed at assessing progress on bilateral projects since the last Ministerial review attended by then Minister Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi and held in Kinshasa in August 2008 and will be the first such visit to DRC by President Motlanthe since taking the reigns in September 2008.

The Summit meeting between President Motlanthe and President Joseph Kabila will be preceded by a meeting of senior officials from 27 to 29 October and a ministerial session on 30 October 2008. The fifth session of the BNC took place in Pretoria on 3 April 2008. It is expected that during this visit a strong emphasis will be placed on devising mechanisms and processes to monitor more closely the achievements and progress made with bilateral projects and also to consider the possibility of trilateral agreements in some areas.

South Africa remains committed to a strategy for post conflict reconstruction and development in the DRC that is aligned with that of the African Union and New Partnership for Africa’s Development (Nepad). South Africa’s assistance to the DRC is broadly based on three key areas as decided by cabinet, which are the Security Sector Reform (SSR), institutional capacity building and economic development.

For more information contact:
Ronnie Mamoepa
Cell: 082 990 4853

Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
29 October 2008