The DTI and the Department of Defence's arms acquisition agency, Armscor, were sponsoring a national pavilion at the Defence Services Exhibition (DSA) that started in the Malaysian capital on Monday morning.
"This exhibition has grown bigger every year and it has now emerged as the premier event in the region," the DTI said in a statement received in Johannesburg.
The DTI said 21 South African defence-related companies were exhibiting technologies, products and systems at the show.
"This will also be the fifth time that a South African pavilion will showcase indigenously designed systems extremely suitable for the harsh environmental conditions experienced by a large number of international defence forces," the DTI added.
DSA will feature many aspects of defence technologies covering land, avionics and maritime systems as produced by leading manufacturers from around the globe.
Some 600 exhibitors from 40 countries and regions, including major defence manufacturing giants such as Denel, together with larger country group pavilions of more than 30 countries and regions are expected to exhibit.
Other South African companies at the show are the Hazmat, TEC and Protechnik divisions of Armscor, Avitronics, Grintek, Imperial Armour, MOH-9 Ceramics, Wave Length Innovations, Night Vision Optics, Reutech Radar Systems, Fuchs Electronics, Truvelo Manufacturers, Milkor, Cochrane Steel Products, Safety Xpress Stromberg, Makpla, RDI, ATE, Volt Ampere and Sir Dicks Uniform.
"Participation at DSA is considered a priority by South African captains of industry as this defence expo attracts many senior decision makers and trade visitors," DTI said.
In addition, the opportunity to meet and network with international exhibitors to explore joint ventures is conducive to creating a mutually beneficial business environment.
Another objective was to encourage black economic empowerment (BEE) that would lead to local job creation and enhanced exports from South Africa.
"The South African participation is indicative of the commitment of the South African government to assist the local industry where possible to open doors and gain a foothold in the international marketplace," the DTI explained.
"The transparent manner in which the South African defence-related industry operates complies with local and internationally accepted standards and protocol."
In one of the first announcements from the show, South African defence electronics company, Avitronics, said it had been awarded the first phase of a contract to supply eighteen multisensor warning systems to the Malaysian government for its recently acquired fleet of Sukhoi fighter aircraft.
The company said the first and second phases of the order would be valued in excess of US20-million (R134-million) and would commence immediately, starting with the system engineering phase to ensure that the system is fully integrated onto the aircraft - Sapa.
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