Pretoria – International Relations and Cooperation Minister, Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, and her Mexican counterpart Dr José Antonio Meade Kuribreña have on Friday signed six cooperation agreements aimed at strengthening relations between the two countries.
Following a Bi-National Commission (BNC) meeting in Pretoria, the Minister said South Africa and Mexico had signed six agreements, including an “Action Plan: South Africa and Mexico towards a priority relationship”.
She said the cooperation agreements were in line with the New Growth Path priorities, as supported by the National Development Plan, and included job creation, energy, agriculture, mining, manufacturing and tourism.
More than 20 government departments and agencies have bilateral relations and contact with Mexico or are in the process of establishing such relations.
“We should also acknowledge the fact that other forms of cooperation are equally important, covering the building blocks of society, such as food security, science and technology, social development, health, water resources, conservation, youth and education, as well as arts and culture,” said the Minister.
Diplomatic relations with Mexico were established in 1993 and the South African Embassy opened in Mexico City in 1994.
Mexico has become one of South Africa’s top three trade partners in Latin America and the Caribbean, while South Africa is Mexico’s largest trade partner in Africa and largest African investor in Mexico.
Minister Nkoana-Mashabane thanked Minister Meade for the positive engagement.
“Apart from bilateral cooperation, we also had the chance to cover continental and regional issues, as well as our positions on multilateral matters such as Peacekeeping, the Open Government Partnership and the G20,” she said. – SAnews.gov.za
