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Date
: 25/08/2004
Source: The Presidency
Title: J Zuma: Angolan Chamber of Commerce & Industry & SA
business community in Angola
ADDRESS BY THE DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA
H.E. JACOB ZUMA, TO THE ANGOLAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
AND SOUTH AFRICAN BUSINESS COMMUNITY IN ANGOLA, Luanda, 25 August
2004
Honourable Ministers and Deputy Ministers,
Distinguished members of the Angolan Chamber of Commerce and
Industry,
The South African Ambassador to the Republic of Angola,
South African entrepreneurs,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
We are deeply honoured that you responded to our call for us to
meet in order to discuss how we can deepen and strengthen our
fraternal economic relations.
It was important to us that we do not conclude our visit to this
beautiful sister country without meeting with the business
community. It is our humble opinion that the success of our
bilateral relations would be greatly enhanced when you, the
business community, the engine of economic growth, take your
rightful place in boosting these relations.
In one of its thought provoking studies, the World Bank asks this
controversial question: "Can Africa Claim the 21st Century?" It
went on to make this disturbing observation about countries south
of the Sahara "Despite gains in the second half of the 1990s,
Sub-Saharan Africa enters the 21st century with many of the world's
poorest countries. Average per capita income is lower than the end
of the 1960's. Incomes, assets, and access to essential services
are unequally distributed. And the region contains a growing share
of the world's absolute poor".
This state of affairs requires swift remedial action from all of
politicians, business people and us. The issue we need to ponder is
how to effectively respond to the continued re-configuration of the
global economy, which keeps the welfare of Africa at the periphery.
All modern political and economic thoughts are agreed that the
private sector has a critical role to play in ensuring the growth
of our economies; thereby creating gainful employment that would
contribute to the eradication of against poverty.
The end of the conflict that had engulfed Angola, and the dawn of
freedom in South Africa, affords us the opportunity to take active
and sustained remedial measures to improve economic activity
between the two countries.
The trade figures indicate that our mutual trade has grown
phenomenally over the last three years. Nevertheless, there is
still a lot of room for improvement. Angola has a huge potential to
emerge as one of the real economic giants in our sub-region and the
continent. Accordingly, it is important that we act together as
partners to stimulate this growth.
The Angolan Government has already introduced to us, projects that
will contribute enormously to the economic growth of this country.
Yesterday we had the opportunity to visit the Port of Lobito,
Benguela Railway and SONAMET in Benguela Province. My delegation
and I were left in no doubt that there are business opportunities
for our private sector to invest within the Lobito Corridor.
It is also important to note that the Lobito Corrido, given its
location and the linkages with other countries in the region
through the railway network, dovetails very well with NEPAD, which
stresses infrastructure development.
There are also various other possible areas of co-operation. As we
all know, Angola has the most fertile lands in the region and
agricultural potential is boundless, while South Africa offers a
thriving commercial farming sector. Undoubtedly, this is one area
where partnership, which can benefit both countries, could be
explored.
Tourism is another area that offers possibilities for joint
ventures and partnerships. In addition, major projects such as
infrastructure reconstruction, water supply projects, construction
and housing projects, public works projects, rehabilitation of
transport infrastructure must be leveraged to benefit the private
sectors of both countries. We believe that these projects could
herald a new era for Angola, in the spirit of mutual benefit.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have also begun to engage intensively with
our Angolan counterparts regarding the promotion of the concept of
Spatial Development Initiatives following similar initiatives
elsewhere.
The SDI will play a critical role in terms of post-conflict
reconstruction and the attraction of investments. The cross-border
nature of SDI projects boosts economic activity in a wider
development zone, as it puts together development projects in a
co-ordinated fashion in the identified countries.
We believe the SDI will catalyse regional growth and economic
development. Undoubtedly, the SMMEs will benefit if these projects
are implemented.
Distinguished guests, as Africans we have adopted the New
Partnership for Africa's Development, the socio-economic
development blueprint of the African Union.
We have said in the preamble of this programme that the resources,
including capital, technology and human skills, that are required
to launch a global war on poverty exist in abundance, and that what
we need to realise our objectives is bold and committed
leadership.
We have therefore committed ourselves to good leadership through
the implementation of good economic and political governance
through the NEPAD programme. This we have done because we believe
that democracy and good governance are fundamental to the
regeneration of our continent. Angola is one of the countries that
are playing a pioneering role in realising the NEPAD
objectives.
Most importantly, ladies and gentlemen, NEPAD has moved beyond
planning to implementation. There are a number of projects in
progress such as the oil pipeline in the Gulf of Guinea between
West African countries and the optic cable network from Cape Town
to Europe linking countries in West Africa.
This would be coupled with the Cape Town to Asia optic fibre
connection linking up the East African countries. Close by, the
Inga dam electricity generation project is taking shape in the
Democratic Republic of Congo, which upon completion should benefit
the DRC, Angola, Namibia and South Africa.
These are some of the opportunities presented by NEPAD, which I
hope the Angolan business community would want to be involved in.
There are exciting times ahead for the business community not only
in our two countries but in the entire African continent.
Having called for more economic activity between our two countries
let me also use this opportunity to urge South African
entrepreneurs who are doing business in Angola to do so with an
added objective of helping to rebuild this country which has been
destroyed by the ravages of war.
In doing so, you will be contributing to the development of the
region and continent. Therefore issues such as skills and
technology transfer and general contribution to the social
development of the country would enhance reconstruction and
development agenda of this country, region and continent.
Ladies and gentlemen, when we began this address, we quoted the
report of the World Bank, which asked whether or not Africa could
Claim the 21st Century as its own.
We hope we have attempted to show that the continent is not
engulfed by the deep dark despair and hopelessness but rather, it
is hard at work to change the perception that is ingrained in the
mind of others.
The good news for the African business community is that African
leaders, through the African Union and its programmes, are agreed
that creating an enabling environment for economic growth and
sustainable development in the continent is crucial.
That is why Africa is undertaking more effective programmes to
eradicate conflicts, bring about democracy and introduce monitoring
mechanisms to ensure compliance, such as the African peer review
mechanism.
We continue to be steadfast in our commitment to rise to the
challenge of claiming this century as our own.
As anywhere, we would suffer temporary setbacks, but we are on the
unstoppable march to a better tomorrow, and we invite the business
community to accompany us on this journey.
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