South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has been urging Guangdong business people to invest in his country, which he says has many opportunities for growth and development. He is one of dozens of African leaders in China for the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Summit, currently taking place in Beijing.
Prior to the three-day summit, Ramaphosa visited Shenzhen for a roundtable where he said that South Africa had “important lessons to learn” from China’s tech hub.
He also highlighted opportunities for investors in South Africa, including in the country’s emerging “green economy.”
“We are keen to learn more about [Shenzhen’s] journey towards becoming a global centre of technology, innovation and growth,” he said. “As we work to develop our economy, we value advice, support and technical assistance in planning, infrastructure and skills development.”
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Ramaphosa explained that South Africa planned to develop an electric vehicle (EV) industry and had also implemented regulatory changes that were stimulating “substantial new investment in electricity generation capacity, mainly from renewable sources.”
He said he saw potential for Shenzhen to be an “important partner” for South Africa as its energy sector transforms, adding that companies like EV manufacturer BYD and battery maker CATL could use the country as a springboard to other African markets
“Yesterday we visited Shenzhen and marvelled at the transformation of the city from a fishing village to a high-tech knowledge economy and a leader in the digital supply chain,” Ramaphosa said on Wednesday. “We seek to achieve a similar transformation in our economy.”
The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Summit will set the tone for Sino-African relations for the coming years. It winds up on Friday.
