22 September 1999
Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
Government officials of the Republic of South Africa and the Republic of France held their first annual consultation on development co-operation in Pretoria this week.
The South African delegation, which included representatives from the Departments of Finance; Foreign Affairs; Arts, Culture, Science & Technology; Education; Safety and Security; Sports and Recreation; as well as the South African Revenue Service; Statistics South Africa; the Agriculture Research Council and the Development Bank of Southern Africa, was lead by Mr Shaheed Rajie, Chief Director for International Development Co-operation at the Department of Finance.
The French delegation was lead by Mr Philippe Colombani, Head of the Africa & Near East Division in the Directorate for Foreign Economic Relations at the French Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industry and included representatives from the Ministry of Economy, Finance & Industry, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, represented by Mr J L Rondreux, from the Directorate-General for International Co-operation and Development in the French Foreign Ministry, the French Development Agency (Agence Francaise de Development) and its subsidiary for the private sector, Proparco.
The meeting reviewed the flow of French financial support to South Africa since the election of the first democratic government in 1994. For the period 1994-1999, the total amount of French assistance, as defined by the OECD rules, amounted to FF2,5 billion (FF1 = R1), 80% of which comprised untied aid, constituting a global grant-equivalent of FF1,5 billion.
France has extended development co-operation to South Africa worth more than FF120 million since 1994, half of which was allocated to scientific and technical co-operation and the balance to cultural, linguistic and educational co-operation, including youth and sports-related initiatives.
These first initiatives joined in the Reconstruction and Development Programme in areas such as housing, water and health. Since 1996, programmes have been reinforced and diversified to include exchanges with South African tertiary education establishments and research laboratories.
The President's Education Initiative also received an allocation of FF 17 million.
The French Development Agency (AFD) and Proparco have been involved in funding 24 municipal infrastructure projects to the value of FF650 million through their relationships with the DBSA and Infrastructure Company as well as 120 small and medium enterprises with various financial institutions including the IDC since 1995 to the value of FF250 million. Moreover, the AFD group is active in the SADC region and co-operates in co-financing arrangements with South African private and public institutions for major regional infrastructure, industrial and agricultural projects.
As South Africa has been included in the official French development programme in 1999, the Priority Solidarity Zone (Zone de Solidarite Prioritaire), the AFD will focus its activities in the Southern Africa region on health and education and will extend its activities in the South Africa region. Proparco will extend its activities towards the private sector by strengthening its ties with DBSA and IDC.
At the same time, South Africa has been included in the French Economic Partnership Zone (Zone de Partenariat Economique), which also includes African emerging countries like Morocco, Egypt and Tunisia. This partnership provides the opportunity for South Africa to benefit, on a project by project basis, from the Special Reserve for Emerging Countries, a concessional credit line bearing a 80% grant-element in the case of South Africa. This line can be used for non-commercially viable projects considered as strategic in the process of the economic transition in South Africa.
The partnership established with South Africa on structuring regional projects such as the Mozal Aluminium Smelter, the Maputo Corridor highway and the regional energy grid, have been described as good examples to develop and extend on in future, based on a co-operation between public and private sector.
During his introduction speech, French Ambassador Tristan d' Albis highlighted how South Africa had benefited from all the aspects of the French reform of its co-operation system which took place in 1999.
These consultations once again affirmed France's financial commitment towards developing countries and specifically the African continent.
JOINTLY Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs AND THE FRENCH EMBASSY Pretoria 22 SEPTEMBER 1999