Ramaphosa on a four-nation West African tour to deepen ties

• The President of South Africa accompanied by a business delegation is on a four-nation visit to West Africa this week. Ramaphosa and the accompanying delegation will visit Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Senegal.
• The state visit, which concludes on December 7,  is expected to strengthen South Africa’s bilateral relations with the countries concerned and promote partnerships and African development and cooperation in multilateral forums, explore new markets for South African products and generate employment for South African people.

The President of South Africa accompanied by a business delegation is on a four-nation visit to West Africa this week. Ramaphosa and the accompanying delegation will visit Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Senegal. Initially, the visit ran into uncertainty with the rising global travel restrictions due to the Covid-19 Omicron variant and heightened concerns for health and safety over the spread of the new variant.

The state visit, which concludes on December 7,  is expected to strengthen South Africa’s bilateral relations with the countries concerned and promote partnerships and African development and cooperation in multilateral forums, explore new markets for South African products and generate employment for South African people.  Ramaphosa will also explore how to leverage the opportunities presented by the AfCFTA for mutual benefit and also to expand the footprint of South African companies on the continent.

The two-day visit to Nigeria from – Dec 1-2 coincided with the 10th Session of the Bi-National Commission (BNC) between Nigeria and South Africa. The 10th BNC reviewed the progress of the decisions taken by the 9th session of the commission such as the establishment of an early warning mechanism, the re-establishment of the South Africa-Nigeria consular forum, an agreement on diplomatic consultations, and the reaffirmation of the historical and political relations between the two countries.

The visit to the Ivory Coast the first since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1992 will commence from December  2^nd. The visit to the third country on the list, Ghana will culminate in an inaugural session of the Bi-National Commission. It is reported that more than 200 South African companies have a presence in Ghana. The South Africa investment in Ghana is pegged at $1-billion. In Senegal, the South African delegation will explore trade and investment opportunities, particularly in the infrastructure sector. South African companies are already operating in the energy and wildlife tourism sectors.