Pretoria - Deputy President David Mabuza has held a virtual meeting with Chinese ambassador Chen Xiaodong ahead of the 8th session later this year of a bi-national forum aimed at facilitating relations between the two countries.
In a statement, the Presidency said during the courtesy call, Mabuza welcomed the Chinese ambassador and wished him well in his tour of duty to Pretoria after he took over from his outspoken predecessor Lin Songtian last year.
Lin was recalled to become president of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries in Beijing.
During the call, Mabuza welcomed progress in the implementation of the outcomes of the 7th session of the South Africa-China Bi-National Commission held in Beijing in October 2019, the Presidency’s Matshepo Seedat said.
“In his capacity as the co-chair of theSouth Africa-China Bi-National Commission, Mabuza expressed his anticipation to co-chair the 8th session … with his counterpart Vice President Wang (Qishan) here in South Africa later in the year,” said Seedat.
The Presidency said the upcoming forum would work towards forging closer relations in business, people-to-people exchanges, education, tourism, science and technology and the health sector.
In this regard, Mabuza welcomed the scholarships offered by China to South Africans and further commended the Asian country for its successful handling of the Covid-19 pandemic while also welcoming continuous interaction on vaccines against the virus, Seedat said.
In an interview last year, Chen said his country had been South Africa’s largest trading partner for 11 years in a row, while Africa’s most industrialised country had been China’s largest trading partner on the continent for 10 consecutive years.
In 2019, two-way trade between the two nations exceeded US$42 billion, accounting for one-fifth of the total trade between China and the whole of Africa.
Chen said more than 200 Chinese enterprises operated in South Africa, with a total investment and financing of more than $25 billion, creating 400,000 jobs for local people.
African News Agency (ANA)