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The Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) will lead a delegation of eighteen business people on an Outward Selling and Investment Mission (OSIM) to Thailand and Taiwan from 28 July to 1 August 2014.

The objective of the OSIM is to create market access for South African value-added products and services to enter Asian markets. It is also an opportunity to profile South Africa as a choice investment destination. The choice of these two countries is informed by the dti’s ddiversification strategy which aims to leverage market opportunities and ensure that South Africa’s exports to dynamic high growth markets are facilitated.

The Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr Rob Davies says the mission will provide an opportunity for the South African business delegation to introduce their products and services directly to their target markets in the two countries.
 
“The success of the mission will be rely on the optimum marketing of the products and services by the delegation to the market and result in the South African companies being suppliers of products and services in the agro-processing, jewellery and automotive components sectors of Taiwan and Thailand,” said Davies.
 
 According to Davies, this is expected to lead to increased export orders, and more production output and the resultant additional job opportunities for South Africa,” adds Minister Davies.
 
Taiwan remains South Africa’s second largest investor from the Asian region, after Japan. According to the Taiwanese Investment Commission, the Taiwanese investment in South Africa amounted to R14 billion (US$2 billion) with 620 on-going projects. Total trade between Taiwan and South Africa was worth R21.7 billion in 2013 with a trade balance of R3.7 million in favour of South Africa.
 
Thailand on the other hand, has a trade balance of R22 million over South Africa. At the end of 2013, total trade between Thailand and South Africa was worth R31.1 billion.
 
The programme of the Outward Selling and Investment Mission (OSIM) will include investment seminars, business-to-business meetings and site visits in both Thailand and Taiwan.