South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to host the President of the People’s Republic of China for a state visit on August 22.
Jinping’s visit to Pretoria will coincide with the first day of the 15th BRICS Summit which kicks off from August 22 - August 24 and will be held at the Sandton Convention Centre.
This marks the fourth State visit by Jinping.
His first visit was in March 2013 where he met with former President Jacob Zuma and also attended the 5th BRICS Summit.
This was followed by the second state visit in December 2015 and the third in July 2018 where he also attended the 10th BRICS Summit.
Over the years, South Africa and China have constantly sought to solidify and strengthen both economic and diplomatic ties with key investment projects being already undertaken in SA.
In January this year, the two countries commemorated 25 years of diplomatic relations since their first relations were established in 1998 and to date China remains South Africa’s largest trading partner.
In 2021, South Africa exported $20.6 billion to China while China’s imports from South Africa stood at US$32.54 Billion.
According to Hong Kong listed companyTaung, South Africa also ranks second in China’s mining investment into Africa with a “significant investment of $227 million acquisition by the Jinchuan Group and the China-Africa Development Fund of a 45% stake in Wesizwe Platinum, a junior mining company.”
China has also recently offered to assist South Africa with its load shedding crisis having pledged to provide Eskom with renewable energy equipment.
More nuanced details around impending investments will likely be announced at the Summit.
IOL