30 March 2000
Mali President Alpha Oumar Konare, and Mrs. Adam Ba Konare, accompanied by a delegation including the Mali Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Modibo Sidibe, and the Executive Secretary of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Mr. Lassana Kouyate, will arrive in South Africa on Thursday 30 March 2000. President Konare will be reciprocating on invitations to visit South Africa extended to him by former President Mandela and repeated by President Mbeki.
It is expected that the visit, which is an official working visit, will focus mainly on matters of common bilateral interest. President Konare will meet with President Mbeki on Friday morning, from where he would depart for a luncheon offered by Anglogold and the South African Foundation. During his stay he would also meet with selected South African dignitaries, including cabinet ministers.
The visit concludes with an official banquet offered by President Mbeki on Friday evening.
A special relationship exists between the two Presidents and this is further enhanced by the real economic benefits to be gained through closer cooperation between the two countries. There is a strong South African mining presence in Mali, and further opportunities for cooperation exist in the fields of agriculture and science and technology, transport, environmental issues, health and medical techology.
Mali, at present one of the non-permanent members of the UN Security Council, also plays an important multilateral role in the West African region, where it is currently the Chair of the ECOWAS, and member of the Community of Sahelian States (COMESA).
Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
Pretoria