The Premier of the Eastern Cape province, Rev. Makhenkesi Arnold Stofile, will lead a delegation of senior Eastern Cape Government officials to the Austrian province of Lower Austria from 15-17 June 1998, at the invitation of the Governor of Lower Austria, Dr Erwin Pröll.
On 16 June 1998, South African Youth Day, Premier Stofile and Governor Pröll will sign a joint Declaration of Intent on Co-operation and the Establishment of Friendly Relations between the Eastern Cape and Lower Austria.
The visit will focus on ways of establishing and promoting cooperation between the two provinces in areas such as the economy, public administration training, agriculture, tourism, science and technology, culture and education. As a first step towards this, Lower Austria is offering to host practical public administration courses for officials of the Eastern Cape.
Lower Austria is the country's largest province with a 23% share of the total surface area. It is also the most important from an agricultural point of view. More than one third of the province's surface area is used for forestry. Lower Austria's share of total Austrian GDP amounted to 15.9% in 1995, the third highest of all the Austrian provinces. GDP growth was at 2.8%, the highest of all the Austrian provinces.
Lower Austria's industry is mainly concentrated around Vienna and the Vienna basin, the most important sectors being chemicals, plastics, food, beverages, tobacco, crude oil (the refinery near Schwechat has an annual capacity of 12.5 million tons), metallurgy and engineering, wood processing and electronics. Lower Austria's total retail sales amounted to ATS 87.8 billion in 1995, the second highest after Vienna.
The province has an extensive transportation network to the east and west and the Danube also provides it with a major waterway and source of hydro-electricity.
A number of industrial, business and technology parks offer investors interesting business opportunities.
Enquiries: Clara Kiesewetter, South African Embassy, Vienna Tel: ++43 1 320 64 93
ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS ON BEHALF OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN EMBASSY IN VIENNA PRETORIA 15 JUNE 1998