Pretoria – South Africa and the United States will continue to strengthen their relationship today during a biennial Strategic Dialogue.
The dialogue seeks to strengthen co-operation across sectors including the economy, education, intelligence, health and defence, among others.
The dialogue will be chaired by International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane and US Secretary of State John Kerry.
“It is expected that the upcoming Strategic Dialogue will focus on strengthening political and economic relations with the USA, with a particular emphasis on attracting foreign direct investment, promoting value-added exports and sourcing support for skills developments and capacity building in line with the objectives of the National Development Plan (NDP),” Dirco said on Tuesday.
The high level forum will also ensure that Development Cooperation from the US, including funding for health (PEPFAR) and education priorities, continues to be aligned to South Africa’s domestic priorities, while also focusing on promoting cooperation at the multilateral level and the reform of the global governance architecture.
The US is currently the third largest trading partner for South Africa, after China and Germany.
“Approximately 98% of South Africa’s exports enter the US market duty-free and quota-free under the current dispensation of the US African Growth and Opportunities Act (AGOA),” said spokesperson Clayson Monyela.
Furthermore, the US continues to be one of the major contributors to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into South Africa.
Approximately 600 US companies in South Africa contribute about 30% of all Corporate Social Investment (CSI) for corporate social projects.
Bilateral trade between South Africa and the US increased from about R130 billion in 2013 to R141 billion in 2014.
The United States enjoyed a trade surplus with South Africa in 2014, for the first time since 2009.
The US investments in South Africa increased from R1.2 trillion in 2012 to about R1.8 trillion in 2013. - SAnews.gov.za
