Pretoria – The Chinese Embassy in Pretoria has donated R500 000 to the national department of social development to boost the South African government’s provision of social services to impoverished communities amidst rising poverty levels attributed to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Ambassador of China to South Africa, Chen Xiaodong, handed the donation to Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu at a ceremony attended by officials from the Chinese embassy and the South African government.
Chen remarked that under the leadership of President Cyril Ramaphosa, South Africa had achieved positive results in epidemic prevention and control, while economic and social development is also gradually turning to pre-pandemic normalcy.
“Ambassador Chen spoke highly of the social security measures taken by the department of social development under the leadership of Minister Zulu, saying that China is ready to work with South Africa to overcome difficulties and continue to provide assistance within its capacity to achieve the goal of prevailing over the pandemic, stabilising the economy and ensuring people’s livelihood,” the Chinese Embassy said in a statement.
Zulu commended the People’s Republic of China for the “generous donation, adding that the gesture fully demonstrates the profound friendship of the Chinese government and people towards South Africans”.
She highlighted that the donation is of great significance in alleviating the difficulties of people at the grassroots and gives impetus to the fight against the pandemic at a community level in South Africa.
On Friday, Speaker of the National Assembly Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula was leading a high-level delegation of the Parliament of South Africa to meet a Chinese delegation at a virtual meeting to discuss matters of mutual interest, including the ongoing fight against the Covid-19 pandemic and strengthening trade and economic relations.
The Chinese delegation will be led by the Chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) of the People’s Republic of China, Li Zhanshu.
Parliamentary spokesperson Moloto Mothapo said: “This meeting is part of strengthening relations as outlined in the memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed in 2006 between South Africa’s National Assembly and China’s National People’s Congress”.
China has been South Africa’s largest trading partner for more than a decade in a row, and South Africa has been China’s largest trading partner in Africa for several consecutive years.
Information from the Chinese Embassy in Pretoria shows that in 2019, the two-way trade between China and South Africa exceeded $42 billion (R608.7 billion), accounting for one-fifth of the total trade volume between China and Africa.
There are more than 200 Chinese enterprises in South Africa, with a total investment and financing of more than $25bn, creating 400 000 jobs for local people, according to the Embassy.
Despite the impact of the Covid-19, the China-South Africa practical cooperation and bilateral trade have maintained strong momentum and great resilience.
IOL