Pretoria - A delegation of Japanese government and business representatives will hold talks with South African representatives in a move to strengthen ties amid growing global competition for rare metals and other resources in the continent.
International Relations and Cooperation Deputy Minister Sue Van Der Merwe will chair the meeting between the delegations and her Japanese counterpart Osamu Fujimura in Cape Town on Wednesday.
For South Africa, which is rich in gold, platinum and rare earths, Japan is eyeing expanding exports to the country related to the construction of infrastructure in various fields such as transport.
"The purpose of the visit is to investigate opportunities in the areas of trade and investment within infrastructural development projects in the energy and transport sectors," department spokesperson Saul Molobi said on Tuesday.
The high level delegation also includes Japanese Vice Minister of Economy, Chiaki Takahashi as well as business representatives from various companies such as Toyota, Hitachi, Sumitomo, Mitsubishi, Nippon Export and Investment Insurance.
Currently there are about 86 Japanese companies operating in South Africa and Japan was the biggest export market for South Africa in 2005, 2006 and 2008. However, due to the Global Economic Recession, Japan dropped to 3rd position in 2009.
Bilateral trade between the two countries is expected to recover from 2010. Two-way trade amounted to R107 billion in 2008 with South Africa enjoying a trade surplus of R25 billion.
The two countries share deep and fruitful bilateral relations. They cooperate in various fields including investments, science and technology, public administration, education, business, sports and recreation among others.
More than 1200 South Africans have been trained in various training courses in Japan.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) currently despatches more than 20 experts and volunteers to South Africa, to train government officials in various fields such as maths and science teachers and artisans.
This year marks the 100th year since the establishment of an official contact between South Africa and Japan with the appointment of an Honorary Consul of Japan, Sir Julius Jeppe, in Cape Town in 1910.
According to Molobi, programmes of events have been organised in both South Africa and Japan to promote people-to-people contacts and a better understanding of the two countries' respective cultures.
