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Roundup: Sino-South African Ties Bear Fruits
The relationship between China and South Africa has grown rapidly in an all-round way since they established diplomatic relations on January 1, 1998.
Over the past two years or more, high-ranking officials of the two countries have had the frequent exchange of visits, further deepening mutual understanding and friendship.
South African President Thabo Mbeki visited China in his capacity as vice president in 1998 and former South African President Nelson Mandela and Speaker of the Parliament Frene Ginwala also stepped foot on the land of the most populous country in the world on the separate occasions.
In return, Chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress Li Peng, Chinese Vice-president Hu Jintao and other senior Chinese leaders all visited the rainbow nation.
It was particularly eye-catching that Chinese President Jiang Zemin paid his first state visit to South Africa earlier this year, which is believed not only to give a new impetus to bilateral relations, but also bring such relationship to a new period of stable and overall development.
Politically, the two countries have supported each other and made joint efforts to create a new international political and economic order, safeguard the rights and interests of developing nations, reduce and restrict the negative effects of globalization on developing countries.
The healthy growth of Sino-South African political ties has resulted in the rapid development of bilateral economic relations and trade.
The two countries have so far signed several agreements on the promotion of bilateral cooperation on trade, investment, science and technology.
China mainly imports from South Africa a wide variety of goods ranging from iron ore, copper and chrome to timber and paper pulp.
The value of its imports rose to almost 1.5 billion U.S. dollars in 1999 from 14 million dollars in 1991. In the first seven months of this year, the figure amounted to more than 900 million dollars.
Enjoying a favorite trading nation status with China, South Africa has since 1998 imported from China machinery, electronics and textile products valued at more than 200 million dollars.
So far Chinese companies have established 90 joint ventures in South Africa, mainly involving in television sets, washing machines, refrigerators and electrical appliances as well as garments.
Louis Fick, chairman of the Corporate Electrical Technologies (CE-TEC), a Sino-South African joint venture producing compact fluorescent lamps for local and international markets, noted that the lamps made with technology from China's Fujian Machinery and Equipment Corporation, save more than 20 percent of electricity and their lifespan is 10 times longer than ordinary incandescent light bulbs.
Moreover, the South African business community has come to realize the great importance of taking advantage of new opportunities arising from China's upcoming entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO).
A number of South Africa's big corporations of steel, coal, television technology and chemicals such as Iscor, MIH Group, Sasol, Polifin and South Africa Breweries, are doing businesses in China and have increased their investment there significantly.
At a recent Africa-Asia Society Conference in Johannesburg, Deputy Minister of South African Trade and Industry Department Lindiwe Hendricks described the Chinese market as "lucrative", saying that South African enterprises should improve their efficiency to make them more competitive on the Chinese market.
She noted that the two countries "share many objectives with regard to key multilateral issues and on the urgent need for the reform of the international multilateral, political, economic and financial architecture to reflect new global realities".
Hendricks said with confidence that Sino-South African partnership of co-operation will be further improved on the basis of equality and mutual benefit in the near future.
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