Cape Town – President Cyril Ramaphosa and Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will discuss strengthening ties between their two countries this week host when the latter arrives in Cape Town for an official visit.
Loong is expected to arrive on Tuesday.
The two countries will seek to strengthen their longstanding partnership and explore new areas of bilateral economic cooperation.
Singapore is a significant investor in South Africa, with investments totalling over R5 billion in sectors such as manufacturing, financial services and real estate.
South Africa’s economic relations with Singapore are focused on trade, investment, tourism promotion and skills transfer.
“Singapore’s visit to South Africa continues the High Level engagement the two governments have fostered since diplomatic relations begun in 1993, ahead of South Africa’s democratic transition.
“Since then, the two countries have shared excellent bilateral relations, which have formed the basis of regular high level visits.
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“This year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Republic of South Africa and the Republic of Singapore as partners who work together closely,” the Presidency said.
Singapore, like South Africa, is a member of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), the Commonwealth, as well as the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).
The two countries have signed numerous agreements to enhance cooperation in areas such as trade, investment, education, and defence.
The High Level visit has been preceded by an official visit undertaken by the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Dr Naledi Pandor, to Singapore in July 2022 to strengthen bilateral relations.
“President Ramaphosa and Prime Minister Hsien Loong will hold official talks on cooperation in the areas of communications and digital technology, science and innovation, water and sanitation and skills development.
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“The leaders discussed the potential for closer collaboration in these areas when they met on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders Summit held in Bali last year.
“Cooperation is expected to deliver mutual benefits in terms of economic growth, job creation, and innovation,” the Presidency said.
The visit will also bring leading business leaders from the respective countries to collaborate in sectors ranging from ports, logistics and supply chain, healthcare and biomedical, food manufacturing and engineering.
One of the key areas of collaboration between South Africa and Singapore is trade.
“Singapore is one of South Africa’s largest trading partners in Southeast Asia, with trade between the two countries totalling approximately R28 billion in 2022. South Africa exports a range of products to Singapore, including gold, diamonds, and wine, while Singapore exports electronics, chemicals, and machinery to South Africa,” the Presidency said.
The official visit ceremony and proceedings will take place at Tuynhuys, Cape Town.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
