Pretoria – President Jacob Zuma is expected to travel to Senegal next week where he will meet with his counterpart President Macky Sall to strengthen bilateral relations and exchange views on various regional and global issues.
According to the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, the state visit will give Zuma and his delegation an opportunity to engage with the Senegalese government on specific areas of interest, including defence capacity building, trade and economic development, mining and mineral beneficiation, water purification and job creation, among others.
Zuma, who will be in Senegal on Tuesday and Wednesday, will be accompanied by the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, Minister of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries Tina Joemat-Pettersson, Minister of Public Enterprises Malusi Gigaba, Minister of Arts and Culture Paul Mashatile, Minister of Defence and Military Veterans Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula and Deputy Minister of Minister of Economic Development Hlengiwe Mkhize.
The delegation will also include South African businesspeople, who will attend the South Africa-Senegal Business Forum on the 3 October in Dakar, with a view to promote and expand trade and investment between South Africa and Senegal.
The department said South Africa and Senegal shared the same view that trade proposals should be specific in order to inform business delegations and facilitate their business deals.
Bilateral relations between the two countries received a new impetus after the election of Macky Sall as the President of Senegal in 2012.
While South Africa and Senegal have healthy economic relations “there is still room for a lot of improvement in trade relations”, said the department.
South Africa is assisting Senegal in the field of electricity production through the involvement of Eskom Energie Manantali hydro-electric project which supplies power to Senegal Mali and Mauritania. – SAnews.gov.za
