Remarks on the occasion of the Opening of the South African Embassy’s Trade and Investment Roadshow, Canton of Zug 10 March 2008

Dr. Hajo Leutenegger, President Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Canton of Zug

South Africa’s Ambassador to Switzerland, Dr Konji Sebati

South African Delegation, Dr Anna Mokgokong, Sybil Romberg, Andre Myberg

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Let me first thank you for allowing me to make a few remarks at this event “the South African Business Road Show;” an event that will seek to offer you first hand information about SA as preferred destination for business, especially for small and medium enterprises. You will learn more about business opportunities in South Africa and how to access them. I am informed that special focus will be on the Capital Equipment sector. I am pleased that there will be some Swiss entrepreneurs who do business in SA and will share their successful experiences with you.

In the past 14 years since South Africa saw the end of apartheid, our country has developed into an open free and open economy, which has undergone fundamental changes and unprecedented growth. South Africa offers political and macroeconomic stability with a highly developed infrastructure, abundant in raw materials and a sophisticated financial sector with a steadily increasing industrial and services sector these make South Africa an attractive business and tourist destination. South Africa is seen in a continental perspective as the engine for growth for the rest of Africa.

Our recent electrical outages are just but one of the signs of the levels of our unprecedented growth during recent years and this new challenge we are confronting with the same fervour.

South Africa’s Accelerated Shared Growth Initiative (ASGISA) wishes to achieve just this, through accelerating development in targeted areas, such as engineering and ICT through the Joint Initiative for Priority Skills Acquisition (JIPSA) we wish to ensure that our economy is well placed in terms of skilled professionals, artisans etc to ensure that we can effectively create more jobs to efficiently manage our advancing economy.

Switzerland ranks as 7th on the list of Trade and Investment partners with South Africa with more than 150 Swiss companies employing about 30000 South Africans, besides the long established multinationals an increasing number of small and medium sized enterprises have opened businesses in South Africa in recent years. Business opportunities are almost unlimited and go across all sectors.

My official visit of the last few days affirms that relations between South Africa and Switzerland are getting deeper and stronger and we share common interests in the family of nations. During 1997 Former President Nelson Mandela visited Switzerland, as part of his program he addressed members of the Swiss-South Africa Association in Zurich and during his speech this was one of the points he raised;

“And yet, just as our own achievements are but the first steps towards a better life for all our people, so too has the potential for Swiss involvement in South and Southern Africa been barely touched. We would like to see more investment: in productive enterprises; in infrastructure; and in joint ventures that can help open the world of business to those excluded by past policies. We would like to see more trade, in both directions.” Nelson Mandela Zurich, 2 September 1997.

We can safely say that since 1997 both the Swiss and South African business communities have taken those words to heart and this has been concretely reflected in our current trade figures and ongoing initiatives, as well as the active Swiss engagement in the South African economy. Switzerland remains one of South Africa’s top ten trade partners globally. Notably, there has been an increase in the volume of Swiss-South African business activities in recent years, which have truly embraced the value of social responsibility.

I have been informed that the Trade and Investment Road Show, hosted by our Embassy, in conjunction with the regional Chambers of Commerce is the third of its kind since 2006, and has done remarkably well.  The Swiss Minister of Economic Affairs, Mrs Doris Leuthard officially opened the Swiss Business Hub in Pretoria in Pretoria. This indeed a milestone in our two countries endeavour to further concretise the mechanisms through which our businesses can seek investment opportunities, joint initiatives and partnership.

South Africa has prioritised investment in the development of our Small Medium Enterprises, as stipulated in our industrial policy framework.

President Thabo Mbeki’s recent State of the Nation Address,  referred to 2008 as being the year of ‘Business Unusual’, the President announced the 24 Apex priorities, which combined, will offer a substantial impact on a more conducive business environment (through improved customer focus), and  infrastructure development.

I must again thank you for your time today, and  would like to now let the guest speakers who are leaders and specialists in their fields to elaborate more the available business opportunities in South Africa.

I thank you