SA, Zambian leaders meet

President Jacob Zuma, pictured, arrived on a two-day state visit to Zambia yesterday to meet with President Edgar Lungu.

Before his arrival, International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane arrived in Lusaka on Wednesday to co-chair the second session of the Joint Commission for Cooperation (JCC) with her Zambian counterpart, Foreign Affairs Minister Harry Kalaba.

The joint commission was inaugurated in Pretoria on December 7, 2016. The JCC is a structured bilateral mechanism that meets annually and is an opportunity for the two countries to deepen cooperation and explore new areas of mutual benefit.

There is a standing mid-term review under the JCC, which monitors and ensures the implementation of decisions and signed agreements.

The areas of cooperation between the two countries cover a wide scope of fields in agriculture, energy, mineral resources, trade, finance, defence, environment, public enterprises, science and technology, health, labour, arts and culture, and tourism.

New areas of cooperation are being explored and a memorandum of understanding (MU) will be initiated in areas of information and communications technology, broadcasting, higher and basic education, youth affairs, sport and recreation, small business development, public works, and local government. Cooperation between the two countries has been growing.

To date, there are more than 20 agreements/MUs signed between the two countries. Bilateral trade between SA and Zambia has increased substantially since 1994.

The total exports to Zambia in 2016 amounted to R30.5 billion and total imports from Zambia were R2.7 billion. – ANA

New areas of cooperation between SA and Zambia are being explored.