Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
MEDIA STATEMENT ON A JOINT RELEASE BETWEEN THE DEPARTMENTS OF FINANCE AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND THE EMBASSY OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY
South African-German Development Co-operation enters new phase with focus on delivery, job creation and human resources development The 1998 South African-German Annual Negotiations on Development Co-operation were held in the Union Buildings, Pretoria, from 24 to 26 June 1998. Germany made new commitments totalling DM 47,0 million (R 140,0 million).
Welcoming the delegations, the ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany, Dr Uwe Kaestner, underlined the commitment of Germany for the support of the new South Africa which was political in the early nineties and is now directed to strengthening socio-economic stability. He stressed that development co-operation is one of the most important areas of German-SA relations, as reflected in the creation of the binational commission. He also called for increased visibility of German assistance to the neediest sectors of society.
In her opening statement, the head of the German delegation, Ms Elisabeth D'Hondt, Chief Director for sub-Sahara Africa at the Federal Ministry for Economic Co-operation and Development, pointed out that, to date, Germany's total contribution towards Development Co-operation in terms of bilateral, multilateral and NGO involvement in South Africa amounted to R1,6 billion. Ambassador Kaestner reaffirmed Germany's commitment to supporting the effective development of previously disadvantaged sectors of South African society and noted that the future focus should be on achieving delivery at this level.
In his reply, Mr Shaheed Rajie, Chief Director : International Development Co-operation of the Department of Finance, stated that Germany was the first country with which South Africa had instituted annual Development Co-operation talks and that, whereas earlier German Development Co-operation had been largely directed towards assisting the processes of policy development, the stage of effective policy implementation had now been reached.
New commitments relate to Municipal Infrastructure (loan to the DBSA of DM 25 million), Technical Assistance in Science and Technology Co-operation, Community Development and Public sector reform, as well as additional funding for a number of on-going projects.
On the basis of a joint strategy workshop held in Pretoria during the two preceeding days, it was decided in future to focus on a reduced number of sectors and to develop further proposals for future co-operation founded on sector reviews which are to be conducted within the next two months.
For additional information please contact Mr Franz Marre at the German Embassy : Tel No. (012) 427-8915, or Mr Willie Jordaan at the Department of Finance : Tel No. (012)315 5650 or 083-264-5466.
ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS ON BEHALF OF THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE PRETORIA 25 JUNE 1998