The Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola and the Minister of Trade, Industry, and Competition Parks Tau arrived in Paris on Monday to lead South Africa’s delegation at the 2025 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Ministerial Council Meeting.
The two-day meeting, chaired by Costa Rica and featuring Australia, Canada, and Lithuania as Vice-Chairs, will begin today and conclude on Wednesday.
The OECD serves as a forum and knowledge hub for data, analysis, and best practices in public policy. It collaborates with over 100 countries worldwide to foster stronger, fairer and cleaner societies.
This week’s meeting will focus on achieving resilient, inclusive, and sustainable prosperity through rules-based trade, investment, and innovation.
OECD members will engage in high-level discussions, including conversations with partner countries that are not members, to identify priorities for international policy cooperation.
The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) said Ministers Lamola and Tau will urgently call for action regarding the 500% premium interest that African nations are required to pay to access international capital.
According to this department, this issue was highlighted in the 2024 African Development Bank’s (AfDB) Economic Outlook report.
“Ministers Lamola and Tau will highlight how African countries currently incur interest rates on global bonds that are 500% higher than those on multilateral loans, such as those from the World Bank and AfDB. They will urge OECD-G20 collaboration to address this disparity.”
The department said as the holder of the Group of 20 (G20) Presidency, the country has proposed specific reforms to make affordable capital accessible for climate-resilient infrastructure.
“We continue to seek sustainable and innovative solutions through dialogue, collaboration, and cooperation. South Africa’s G20 Presidency stands firm in the belief that multilateral cooperation is not optional but imperative. Unilateral actions that undermine the rules-based order risk reversing decades of progress,” the statement said.
The department said financing for development was essential for Africa’s inclusive growth and urban sustainability and that the meeting’s focus directly supports the country’s G20 Presidency for fair finance.
“Rules-based systems must prioritise fair capital access. Africa’s development is shackled by extortionate borrowing costs.”
Lamola is of the view that South Africa’s presence in Paris signals a commitment to dismantle financial barriers hampering Africa’s sustainable development. “Africa’s prosperity cannot be deferred,” the Minister added.
Meanwhile, Tau said South Africa’s engagement with the OECD is aimed at achieving four strategic aims. These include higher investment, inclusive economic growth, a prerequisite for addressing unemployment, poverty, and inequality. – SAnews.gov.za
