DIRCO Annual Report

Collaboration with The Presidency and the dtic in support of the President’s target to attract US$100 billion in investment over the next five years Several countries in Western Europe made announcements of new investments during the President’s 2020 Investment Conference. These included the following: • Belgian Chamber of Commerce and Industry – R1.5 billion in various industries • Fuchs Lubricants (Germany) – R260 million in chemicals • Dr Oetker (Germany) – R200 million in fast-moving consumer goods • Sew-Eurodrive (Germany) – R200 million in automotives • Sonae Arauco (Portugal) – R200 million in art melamine presses to produce high quality wood-based decorative boards for local consumption. Periodic engagements with the dtic took place in preparation for the Presidential Investment Conference, which was held in October 2020. The South African missions are following up where applicable with the companies that made pledges. Missions have also created their own Investor databases for their investment promotion work. Implementation of economic diplomacy initiatives with bilateral, regional and private-sector partners towards socio-economic development, tourism, investment, trade and economic growth South Africa’s missions abroad were able to source information on how to obtain the list of trade and investment opportunities, in order to convey it to South African companies and the dtic. Economic relations were promoted, albeit in a limited way, compared to previous years, through activities such as the hosting of virtual business seminars, and engagements with potential high-level investors and importers. The identification of mutually beneficial investment opportunities led to the strengthening of bilateral relations. Meetings were also used as a platform to project the capabilities of South African companies and allowed the sharing of experiences, including on women and youth development strategies.

The Caribbean and some Central and Eastern European countries have a disadvantage with regard to economies of scale, as they are unable to attract significant investments or favourable trade agreements, due to their size. There are many similarities with South Africa, which necessitate a holistic approach towards these regions. These countries view South Africa as a priority partner and gateway to the continent. Latin America presents a rich source base of precious metals, namely in Chile, Peru, Brazil and Mexico. Chile has the world’s largest reserves of copper and lithium and the seventh-largest silver reserves. The dtic engaged through our Mission in the region to continue engagement in the mining sector and attend mining expos, which are now presented virtually. Public diplomacy activities by missions were severely limited due to lockdowns. Several missions, however, made use of webinars to engage partners and stakeholders. Tourism promotion is by far the most severely affected in mission activities given the travel restrictions. The missions have, however, continued to engage through webinars in order to keep the momentum. It is, however, expected that inward tourism into South Africa may take time to pick up, in light of the travel restrictions imposed on South Africa by some countries in the Northern Hemisphere. Collective strategisation with SA Tourism and Brand South Africa will be required going forward.

Department of International Relations and Cooperation

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