Deputy President Paul Mashatile has welcomed China’s plan to host the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Ministerial Coordination Meeting alongside the China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo in June 2025.
He emphasised that such events would strengthen economic ties between Africa and China and help improve collaboration to speed up projects in industrialisation, infrastructure development, agricultural modernisation, and green initiatives.
According to the Deputy President, these efforts align with the goals of the African Union (AU) Agenda 2063, which is essential for the continent’s advancement.
The Deputy President on Thursday received a courtesy visit from the Chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), Ren Hongbin.
The CCPIT is a significant Chinese economic promotion organisation that reports to the State Council.
Its role is to facilitate and promote trade and investment with foreign countries by assisting Chinese companies in international business and supporting foreign companies operating in China.
It has more than 400 000 Chinese business members, the majority of which are from State-owned enterprises (SOEs).
This visit to the Deputy President follows the successful second State Visit to China by President Cyril Ramaphosa in September 2024 and other business activities including the South Africa – China Presidential Business Forum, a private discussion with 20 important Chinese investors, and the Presidential Business Programme in Shenzhen.
The Presidential Business Programme focuses on key investors in China’s main technology and innovation centre.
According to the Presidency, the Chairman’s visit was mainly focused on following up on the implementation of the outcomes of the 9th FOCAC Summit held in Beijing in 2024, as well as optimising the trade and investment environment for better cooperation between South Africa and China.
The Deputy President told the Chairman that President Ramaphosa was encouraged by the number of Chinese companies he interacted with in Beijing and Shenzhen last year, who all expressed a wish to increase their investment exposure in South Africa.
“We continue to prioritise new investments in targeted sectors and enlarge the beneficiation and manufacturing base in South Africa, especially in the automotive and energy, which will contribute to local job creation, technology, and skills transfer,” said the Deputy President.
The Deputy President took the opportunity presented by the visit to mobilise Chinese businesses to attend the Business 20 (B20) meetings of the G20 in South Africa this year.
The Chairman also invited South Africa to attend the 3rd China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE) that will be hosted by the CCPIT in Beijing in July.
The CISCE is one of the four national-level trade and investment conferences hosted in China yearly.
The 2nd CISCE was held in Beijing in November 2024 and was addressed by the Vice President of China, Han Zheng. – SAnews.gov.za
