SA, Angola strengthen co-operation
Trade between SA and Angola stands at well over R30 billion a year
SOUTH AFRICA has committed to strengthening co-operation with oil-rich Angola in the areas of mining and upstream petroleum, Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane said yesterday.
This follows a meeting between Zwane and his Angolan counterpart, Minister of Geology and Mining, Francisco Queiroz, at the 2017 Investing in African Mining Indaba in Cape Town.
The upstream petroleum sector includes searching for potential underground or underwater crude oil and natural gas fields, drilling exploratory wells, and subsequently drilling and operating the wells that recover and bring the crude oil or raw natural gas to the surface.
In a statement, Zwane said the two countries would collaborate on matters of mutual interest, including in the areas of policy, geological mapping, exploration and policy.
“We must also action the agreements in the African Mining Vision, so that our objective of a prosperous Africa can be realised,” Zwane said.
He said teams from both countries would meet in the next two weeks to begin implementing the bilateral commitments.
Trade between South Africa and Angola stands at well over R30 billion a year, with Angolan imports into South Africa primarily being petroleum oils, bituminous minerals and crude.
THE CURRENT economic climate has forced South Africa and most commodity-dependent African countries to refocus their attention on the urgency of economic diversification, revitalisation of manufacturing and innovation, Minister of Trade and Industry Rob Davies said yesterday.
He told the “Investment Dialogue” session that formed part of the Investing in African Mining Indaba in Cape Town that the “Fourth Industrial Revolution” would offer new opportunities for Africa to achieve inclusive and sustainable growth, by fast-tracking market integration in Africath-roughindustrial corridors and regional integration.
“The Fourth Industrial Revolution will have an impact on manufacturing and how things are done in the economy.
“We need to start preparing ourselves to respond to it.
“We need to understand what the ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’ is and unpack how South Africa could benefit from it, especially when it comes to capitalising on innovation.”
Davies said that central to this were the opportunities to extend and strengthen value chains through downstream manufacturing.