South Africa and the European Union look to the future

Dear Fellow South African, 

On Thursday last week, we had the privilege of hosting European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa at the 8th Summit of South Africa and the European Union in Cape Town. 

As a bloc, the European Union (EU) is one of South Africa’s largest trading partners and the source of much investment in our country. Our economic ties with European countries go back to colonial times. Since the advent of democracy 30 years ago, we have steadily been growing the volume and value of trade.

This summit will be remembered as a watershed moment in the development of our trade and investment relations. While expanding our traditional areas of cooperation, we are now focused on working together to develop the industries of the future.

We agreed to work towards a Clean Trade and Investment Partnership. This partnership will support the development of value chains that are more environmentally sustainable. It will make South Africa and the EU more competitive in a low-carbon global economy by improving conditions for investment in the extraction and local beneficiation of rare minerals, renewable energy, low carbon hydrogen and clean technology.

This partnership will improve cooperation between South Africa and the EU on some of the regulatory issues that constrain greater levels of trade. This work should enable South African companies to export products like sustainable fuel and electric and hybrid vehicles to the EU.

One of the most important outcomes of the summit was the announcement by the EU of an investment package worth €4.7 billion – around R90 billion – to support investment projects in South Africa. This package will include grants and loans from European financial institutions and businesses.

Among other things, this investment will be used to build South Africa’s vaccine production capacity and boost local pharmaceutical value chains. The package will also support South Africa’s just energy transition through the development of critical raw minerals and low carbon hydrogen. In addition to investments in transport and digital infrastructure, the package will provide resources for skills development.

We will work with our EU partners to develop the industries that process our natural resources into finished goods for export. This creates more jobs here in South Africa and ensures that our country derives a greater benefit from our natural resources. 

We agreed on further cooperation in the areas of education, science, technology and innovation, specifically providing opportunities for young people to acquire skills through greater investment in education and science.

At a time of great geopolitical turmoil, the summit reaffirmed the unwavering commitment of South Africa and the EU to multilateralism, the consistent application of international law and the centrality of the United Nations Charter. We agreed that a collective effort was needed by all countries to overcome global challenges such as climate change, pandemics, rising inequality and conflict.

The EU shares South Africa’s view that the UN Security Council needs to be reformed so that it is more inclusive, efficient and democratic. In its composition and actions, the Security Council needs to better reflect the realities of today’s world. We also agreed to strengthen efforts to safeguard and advance human rights across the world.

As a G20 member, the EU expressed its support for South Africa's G20 Presidency and its emphasis on solidarity, equality and sustainable development. It welcomed South Africa’s focus on forging partnerships between G20 members and other African countries.

The summit confirmed the great alignment between the South Africa and the EU on matters of global and continental significance. We share a vision of a just, peaceful and more equal world order in which all countries are able to develop and thrive.

We share similar views on how to navigate these difficult times, by standing together to uphold the principles of the UN Charter, to adhere to international law and to strengthen the institutions of global cooperation.

Above all, we are committed to the mutual well-being and development of the peoples of South Africa and all the member states of the European Union. We have a shared vision of the future and we are determined to work together to achieve it.

With best regards,
 

Effective early learning is the best investment in our future

Dear Fellow South African,

Last year, our country achieved a record matriculation pass rate of 87%. This is a welcome sign that efforts to transform our education system are bearing fruit.

However, too many learners drop out of school before writing matric and others struggle to get good marks, in part because they do not get the grounding they need in the early learning years.

Last week the 2030 Reading Panel, which was set up to look into early-grade level reading skills, released a report showing that 80% of Grade 3 learners cannot read for meaning in any language, including their home language. Similarly stark findings for South Africa were revealed in a recently published study that surveys Trends in International Mathematics and Science capabilities in Grades 4 and 8.

Mastering basic skills in reading and maths at foundation level often determines how a learner will perform later in school and beyond.

That is why the Basic Education Sector Lekgotla held in Gauteng last week focused on expanding Early Childhood Development (ECD) and improving numeracy and early grade reading.

One of the most damaging effects of Bantu Education was the deliberate neglect of black children when it came to the provision of foundation years learning. One study published in 1992 found that during apartheid only 6% of black children had access to quality ECD programmes, compared to one third of all white children.

We have spent the last 30 years trying to correct this. This effort has now received greater impetus with the passage of the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act. This Act makes Grade R, the reception year before Grade 1, compulsory.

Through an enhanced focus on ECD, the Act will help ensure that young children are better prepared for formal schooling. Early Childhood Development plays a critical role in developing early literacy, early numeracy and social-emotional skills during an important time in a child’s cognitive development.

Children who attend quality pre-primary programmes tend to have larger vocabularies, better number awareness, stronger perceptual skills, improved social skills and greater curiosity.

Quality ECD provision promotes social equality. Children from poor families benefit most from access to ECD. As the learning journey progresses, quality ECD is also linked to better transitions into high school, lower repetition and dropout rates, and better academic performance overall.

The Basic Education Sector Lekgotla discussed how best to realign the existing education curriculum to strengthen foundational learning, including through ongoing assessments, scaling up teacher training and development, and expanding the provision of ECD learning and teacher support material.

In addition to its negative impact on future learning, weaknesses in early literacy and numeracy narrow the careers options that learners will have later in life.

It is widely recognised that investing in science, technology, engineering and mathematics education is key to economic growth, job creation, productivity and economic competitiveness. Such education prepares young people for a diverse range of occupations that are most needed by a growing economy.

A recent report by the World Economic Forum on the future of jobs shows that the need for science, technology, engineering and mathematics related jobs are fast outstripping ‘traditional’ occupations, which are on the decline in the face of technological advances. Our basic education system has to produce learners that are able to find work in an ever-changing knowledge and technology based global economy.

The efforts of the Department of Basic Education to strengthen the provision of technical and vocational pathways to learners in high school are therefore to be welcomed. Even in more industrialised economies than ours, technical and vocational training is recognised as a solid pathway to employment and entrepreneurship.

The World Bank’s recent South Africa Economic Update pointed to basic education as a key enabler of inclusive growth in South Africa. It highlighted a set of potential reforms, including prioritising foundational years and focusing on building numeracy and literacy capabilities.

Better educational outcomes in basic education are linked to broader social and economic development. Education is a powerful tool to break the cycle of poverty, to uplift individuals and communities, and to bringing about a more equitable society.

As was evident from the Basic Education Sector Lekgotla, all stakeholders in the education space are committed to prioritising foundational learning as the most effective means to enable young South Africans to succeed and thrive far into the future.

With best regards,

21/02/2025

Your Excellences, fellow Foreign Ministers

Heads of Delegations

Distinguished Delegates

Let me first express South Africa’s deep appreciation to you all for what has been a very productive First Foreign Ministers’ Meeting under South Africa’s G20 Presidency. I further thank the members of the G20 Troika, Brazil and the United States of America, for their support and cooperation during our G20 Presidency.

This meeting had two main purposes:

1. To have a high-level strategic discussion on the global geopolitical environment and its impact on our work; and
2. A reflection on South Africa’s G20 Presidency priorities and High-Level Deliverables.

The meeting was opened by H.E. President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa who, inter alia, welcomed Foreign Ministers and Heads of Delegations, and elaborated on South Africa’s priorities.

The First G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting under South Africa’s Presidency:

• Noted that the First G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting under South Africa’s Presidency was historic as it was the first G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on the African Continent.

• Expressed support for the theme of South Africa’s G20 Presidency: Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability and its priorities and High-Level Deliverables, namely: Strengthening disaster resilience; Ensuring debt sustainability for low-income countries; Mobilising finance for a Just Energy Transition; and Harnessing critical minerals for inclusive growth and development; in relation to High-Level Deliverables: Task Force One – Inclusive Economic Growth, Industrialisation, Employment and Reduced Inequality; Task Force Two – Food Security; and Task Force Three – Artificial Intelligence, Data Governance and Innovation for Sustainable Development.   Furthermore, we have proposed the following Additional Initiatives: Review of the Work of the G20; a Cost of Capital Review; a Broadened Compact with Africa 2.0; and an Initiative on Critical Minerals.

• The South African Presidency took note of the fruitful discussions and inputs on the various priorities and High-Level Deliverables which will enrich our work as we elaborate in-depth on these in the various streams of work during 2025. We can assure you that all the views expressed will be considered as we progress with our work during this year. We look forward to the active participation and contributions of all your delegations.

• Reaffirmed the role of the G20 as the premier forum for international economic cooperation and underscored the collective responsibility of the G20 for the effective stewardship of the global economy, fostering the conditions for sustainable, resilient and inclusive global growth, as a critical element of the broader multilateral system.

• Noted with concern the slow progress being made in the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda. To this end, the meeting stressed the need for urgent action to accelerate efforts and reaffirm the G20’s strong commitment to the SDGs in line with the theme, Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability.

• Stressed that ongoing conflicts across the globe are detrimental to economic development and the attainment of the SDGs. The impact of war on education and health was highlighted as a major concern by some participants. To this end, sustainable investment in conflict prevention and peacebuilding was underscored.

• Concerning ongoing conflicts and war in Africa, the Middle East and Europe, the meeting reiterated that all states must act in a manner consistent with the Purposes and Principles of the United Nations Charter.

• Affirmed that all parties in conflicts must comply with their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law. Guided by these principles, there was agreement to support all efforts towards a just peace in Ukraine, Palestine, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and other major conflicts around the globe.

• Recognised the widening geopolitical divisions which have contributed to fostering a climate of distrust, thus threatening to unravel progress made to address pressing global challenges such as poverty, climate change, pandemics, nuclear proliferation and armed conflict.

• Expressed support for South Africa’s proposed working methods on managing geopolitical issues during its G20 Presidency namely; that the G20 Sherpas, Ministers of Foreign Affairs and the Leaders will engage on these matters and that the Working Groups will focus exclusively on technical issues.

• Noted that 2025 will mark the 80th Anniversary of the United Nations and reaffirmed the commitment to strengthening multilateralism and that all states must act in a manner consistent with the Purposes and Principles of the United Nations Charter.

• Underscored the need to reform the international system of global governance, inclusive of the international financial architecture, the multilateral trading system, and the multilateral development banks.

• Further stressed the need to reform the United Nations to make it fit for purpose and relevant to the current international reality. This includes reform of the Security Council.

• Expressed support to the forthcoming Fourth Financing for Development (FFD4) Conference set to take place in Seville, Spain in June 2025 and the 2025 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 30) which will convene in November 2025 in Belém, Brazil.

• There was support and recognition that African voices need to be heard and elevated in the work of the G20 as well as in finding solutions for addressing the world’s most pressing global challenges.

• South Africa noted the requests made by delegations regarding specific information on the operationalisation of the Task Forces as well as the Cost of Capital Review.

• Recalled paragraph 84 of the 2024 G20 Rio de Janeiro Leaders’ Declaration, where G20 Leaders made a commitment to “evaluate the G20’s first full cycle of presidencies under South Africa’s Presidency and, with full respect to the principles agreed at the Cannes Summit in 2011, provide recommendations to the second cycle, including a roadmap for future presidencies”.

• South Africa undertook to present a four-stage roadmap of this proposed G20 review, including a briefing on the recommended approach and survey methodology, which will involve the participation of G20 members, guest countries and invited stakeholders. The final report will be presented for adoption at the final G20 Sherpa meeting taking place from 16 – 19 November 2025.

I thank you.

While GNU parties may differ, we are all pulling in the same direction

Dear Fellow South African, 

Last week, the annual Budget Speech by the Minister of Finance was postponed for the first time in our democratic history. 

Cabinet decided to postpone the presentation of the budget to allow further discussion on areas of disagreement among parties in the Government of National Unity (GNU). The budget will now be tabled in Parliament on 12 March 2025.

The last-minute postponement was unfortunate. It gave rise to concern and uncertainty among South Africans, investors and the financial markets, who look to the Budget for important signals about the state and direction of our economy.

The budget reflects government’s choices and priorities for the country’s development. Decisions on how to spend public funds have implications for every South African. 

It is therefore essential that the concerns raised by different parties around the budget are properly addressed, in the interests of accountability, transparency and consensus-building. 

This is the first time that the budget is being presented by the Government of National Unity (GNU). It is understandable that this new arrangement would require a different approach in some respects. The process of forging agreement among the political parties in the GNU is still work in progress, but we are certainly getting there. 

Disagreements, contradictions and policy divergence are inherent in governments made up of several political parties. 

It has been more than six months since the formation of the GNU. Despite disagreement between parties on a range of matters, the centre holds. It is a sign of a healthy and robust democracy that such differences may emerge from time to time and be ventilated in public. 

Such differences don’t mean that the GNU is in crisis. It means that democracy is working.

A Government of National Unity by definition infers consensus-building. No one party can impose its will. There needs to be thorough deliberation and meaningful engagement. 

The decision to postpone the Budget Speech and to continue discussions should engender public confidence in the GNU. It should reassure citizens that despite differences of opinion, we are pulling in the same direction. 

As GNU partners, we will continue working for the South African people. As we have done in the past to overcome differences, we will once again find one another. 

The events of last week present us with an opportunity to raise the level of understanding among South Africans around the budget and what it means for them. 

The considerable public interest around the Budget Speech, including from young people and on social media platforms, was greatly encouraging. It is our hope that this sparks a necessary national conversation on how we will fund our national priorities and the trade-offs that will need to be made. 

The reality is that we strive to implement our national priorities in a context of slow growth, limited revenue, high unemployment and a large social wage. The state is simply not able to fund every priority and ambition. 

The critical issue of the public purse must be a subject of discussion and debate not just among political parties, but among all South Africans who aspire to lead lives of dignity. 

The social contract between government and the citizenry relies heavily on accountability and transparency. These have been features of our budgetary process since the advent of democracy. 

The formation of the GNU was the result of the desire by the South African people that political parties work together to move the country forward. 

As we continue to do so, we are adapting and strengthening our existing frameworks for cooperation, partnership and building consensus. 

We are learning, we are adjusting to new circumstances and we are moving forward. 

With best regards,