Issued by: African National Congress
28 August 1998
Ladies and Gentlemen of the Media
As you are aware, the primary point of departure of this Government remains, in the simplest terms, to create a better life for all of our people. This being so, South Africa's foreign policy must, of necessity, be focused on achieving material benefits for all of its citizens. In fact, our foreign policy objectives are essentially an outward projection of South Africa's domestic imperatives - that is, sustainable economic and social development, as well as the promotion of peace and stability.
This originates in our belief in the right of humanity to live in a world free of want and of war, a world where every person can achieve their full potential.
Much has been accomplished in achieving these objectives in four years of ANC governance. So much, in fact, that I cannot even attempt to go into the full detail in the limited time available to me today, but can only give a few examples.
It is evident that the normalisation of our relations after our first democratic elections has provided South African Business with a vastly increased field of operations. This has enabled our country to diversify its trade. The premium which often had to be paid in the era of sanctions no longer applies, bringing down the cost of our imports. Our exporters also have many new markets to explore. Our Embassies abroad play a very important role in this regard, and there is increasing coordination with the Department of Trade and Industry in our efforts to broaden our markets and attract investment. In this regard it is significant that there has been an inflow of R40 billion in new direct foreign investment into South Africa since 1994.
The normalisation of our relations has not only brought benefits for our own citizens. It is also playing an important role in the economic development of our sub-region and, in fact, the entire continent. Our manufactured products are, in many cases, not only cheaper than those imported from Europe or America, but are better suited to the needs of consumers in Africa. As we work on developing the transport infrastructure, delivery times of these products are falling to a fracture of those imported from other continents. In our own subregion important projects such as the Maputo corridor and the Trans-Kalahari highway are contributing to significant improvements in the quality of life of our own citizens and those of our neighbours. It is a priority of the Southern African Development Community, of which we are the current Chair to harmonise its infrastructure and policies. In this regard, a Southern African Power Pool is in the process of being created, which has already resulted in a proposal to build a R6 billion hydro-electric plant at Mpanda Uncau in Mozambique which will benefit planned industrial development such as a new aluminium smelter in Maputo which was officially launched in July 1998. In the same month agreement was also reached between the Cahora Bassa partners (South Africa, Mozambique and Portugal) in respect of the distribution of power to the sub-continent.
We have joined the governments of Mozambique and Angola in projects to remove landmines. In so doing, we are not only helping to undo some of the destabilisation inflicted upon our region by the previous regime - we are also assisting in unlocking economic potential through restoring valuable agricultural resources and rehabilitating infrastructure. South African demining technology, developed to serve aggressive ends, has now been harnessed for positive purposes, and is acknowledged to be at the cutting edge of technology in its field.
These are a few examples of how foreign policy, together with the support and expertise from the private sector and co-opted government entities supports the realisation of the reconstruction of our continent.
This government has also committed itself to playing an active role as a responsible world citizens. We are the only the country which voluntarily renounced its nuclear capacity and destroyed its nuclear weapons. We followed this by taking a leading role in the campaign to declare Africa a nuclear weapons free continent. This goal was achieved through the Treaty of Pelindaba, and we are now cooperating with similar campaigns in other continents. We have also played a leading role in the campaign to adopt and enforce a global ban on anti-personnel landmines.
The actions, such as those I have just described, which South Africa has taken in the international sphere are not divorced from the domestic goals set by the government. As I stressed at the outset, sustainable economic and social development remains our lodestone. But the seeds of prosperity are all too easily choked by the weeds of conflict. That is why we have cast our lot in favour of disarmament, and that is why we involve ourselves in conflict resolution, in our immediate vicinity and further afield.
Over the next few days, we shall be hosting the XIIth Summit of the Non Aligned Movement in Durban, where we are expecting to receive between 70 and 80 Heads of State and Government and between 4000 and 5000 delegates, as well as an estimated 1500 media representatives. This major undertaking represents and enormous challenge as well as an exciting opportunity for the South African Government and the Department of Foreign Affairs as well as for the people of South Africa in general and the inhabitants of Durban in particular.
Some commentators have questioned the wisdom of our having accepted the Chair of the Movement. Their view is that the NAM no longer has a role to play in a new unipolar world increasingly characterised by globalisation. To these critics I can only say that they seem to have lost touch with key developments during this decade. I am refering to the realisation, which crystallised from a series of crucial international conferences, that human development has to be addressed holistically, and that its key elements are economic growth, sustainable development and environmental protection. The overwhelming majority of NAM members, although they are politically non aligned, are aligned to sustainable development. South Africa will seek to make this global issue one of the key themes of the upcoming Summit. Many members of the Non Aligned Movement fall in the category of Least Developed Nations, and are hampered in their efforts to achieve the ideal of sustainable development - by lack of resources, rudimentary social structures and lack of expertise and finance. It is our view that this should be addressed through continuous dialogue and strong partnership between the North and the South, and between State and Non-state actors, which we shall strongly promote during our period in the Chair of NAM.