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King Salman invites Ramaphosa for state visit to Saudi Arabia
Ramaphosa will be hosted by HRH Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud of Saudi Arabia.
Photo: Twitter/GCIS
President Cyril Ramaphosa will be departing for a state visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on Friday at the invitation of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud.
Ramaphosa will be hosted by HRH Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud.
The state visit is expected to take place on 15-16 October 2022.
Ramaphosa postponed his trip to Saudi Arabia earlier this year due to the deadly KwaZulu-Natal floods.
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Who’s accompanying Ramaphosa?
Ramaphosa will be accompanied by International Relations minister Naledi Pandor; Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Reform Minister Thoko Didiza, Trade and Industry minister Ebrahim Patel, Gwede Mantashe of Mineral Resources and Energy and Fikile Mbalula of Transport.
Discussions
The Presidency said the discussions would focus on export market opportunities for South African produce and on South Africa as an investment destination as well as an entry point into Southern Africa and beyond, within the context of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
“It is envisioned that the various deliberations will provide renewed impetus to strengthened economic cooperation in identified priority sectors, notably agriculture, defence, energy, and transport, further underpinned by regular high-level engagements between the two countries.”
Hajj quota
There is also hope that Ramaphosa will request an increase in the South African Hajj quota.
South Africa was granted a quote of thousand pilgrims for Hajj 2022, a far cry from the more 2,500 from previous years and before the Covid-19 pandemic.
With South Africans and the rest of the world not being allowed to perform Hajj in 2020 and 2021, the waiting lists for SA has ballooned to a backlog of about 16 years, when previously it was between five and eight years.
Diplomatic relations
Diplomatic relations between South Africa and Saudi Arabia were formalised in 1994 with four South Africa’s democratically elected presidents having visited the Kingdom to date.
The late president Nelson Mandela visited the Kingdom in 1998; former president Thabo Mbeki visited in 2007; former president Jacob Zuma visited in 2016 and President Cyril Ramaphosa visited in 2018.
The Republic of South Africa and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia enjoy a strategic bilateral partnership based on cordial and fraternal relations.
The recent 9th session of the South Africa-Saudi Arabia Joint Economic Council, held from 3-4 October 2022, launched the South Africa-Saudi Arabia Joint Business Council.
The Joint Business Council brings together leading business people from both countries to deepen economic ties as Saudi Arabia is the largest source of imports from the Middle East region.
Total bilateral trade between South Africa and Saudi Arabia amounted to R66 billion in 2021.
Business engagements
The Presidency said Ramaphosa will also participate in high-level business engagements with leading businesspersons as well as institutional and private investors.
“In this regard, the President will deliver the closing remarks at the Saudi Arabia – South Africa Investment Forum and participate in Saudi Arabia – South Africa Investment Roundtable.”
“The high-level meetings will also afford the leaders an opportunity to discuss bilateral, continental and global issues, and to reaffirm their commitment to further cooperate closely on multilateral issues,” the Presidency said.
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