Europe and South Africa have agreed to start talks on a new generation of trade deals – a Clean Trade and Investment Partnership – to strengthen Europe’s strategic partnership with the country.
South Africa will be the first country to sign such an agreement with the EU. It will focus on investment, the clean energy transition, skills, and technology, and on developing strategic industries along the entire supply chains – thus creating good jobs in Africa. The leaders also agreed to extend their cooperation to critical raw materials.
EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, meeting South Africa’s president Cyril Ramaphosa in Cape Town said South Africa remains an emblem of hope for the world. “In the face of an increasingly fractured world, with the return of major wars on both our continents, that message of hope matters more than ever. And the cooperation between South Africa and Europe matters more than ever.”
Kick-starting this new chapter in EU-South Africa relations, the Commission president announced a Global Gateway Investment Package worth €4.7 billion.
The bulk of the package will be invested in projects supporting a clean and just energy transition in the country.
This presents a significant pledge in the context of the ‘Scaling up Renewables in Africa’ campaign, launched by Ms von der Leyen and South Africa’s president Cyril Ramaphosa in the margins of the G20 Summit in Rio. The campaign will culminate with a major pledging event in the margins of the G20 Summit in Johannesburg, scheduled for November this year.
The Global Gateway package also focuses on connectivity infrastructure – both physical and digital– and on boosting the local pharmaceutical industry.
The EU is South Africa’s largest trading partner, with almost EUR 50 billion in trade between the two partners.
EU – South Africa Summit Declaration
Factsheet on EU-South Africa Global Gateway Investment Package
