Seychelles and South Africa sign new bilateral cooperation agreement |15 October 2022
Mrs Dlamini and Minister Radegonde exchange documents after the signing (Photo: Joena Meme)
• Agree to enhance trade and investment between them
Seychelles and South Africa have signed their 3rd Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation (JCC) which is for a two-year period.
The document was signed by the Seychelles’ Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Sylvestre Radegonde and the South African deputy Minister Candith Mashego-Dlamini in a ceremony at the Maison Quéau de Quinssy yesterday morning in the presence of high government officials from both sides.
The signing in the ‘Salon Maxime Ferrari’, is a culmination of several months of discussions, which started on Tuesday July 26, 2022, and which ended with the two sides having their final agreement and adopting the minutes of the senior officials meeting held back in July.
The Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation is a platform where cooperation matters are addressed.
At the end of the discussion yesterday, Minister Radegonde, who chaired the session, praised the solid partnership between Seychelles and South Africa and said signing the third JCC was proof of their strong bonds of friendships and holds greater promises for the future.
“Both sides have recognised the value of achieving tangible results for a win-win partnership. We remain dedicated to building further on our collaborations in key sectors including health, tourism, civil aviation, education, defence, police, immigration as well as arts, culture and heritage”.
Minister Radegonde further added that the meeting emphasised the desire of both sides to accelerate trade and investment and exchanges of expertise and best practices, with the view of unlocking the potentials for further economic growth.
He said he was now looking forward to the conclusion of various legal instruments on trade, investment and customs cooperation.
“Today, we have decided that it is imperative that both parties demonstrate firm political commitment and time bound framework to undertake the much-needed follow-ups for effective implementation of the decisions, and we need to endeavour to abide by the deadlines,” added Minister Radegonde.
For her part deputy Minister Dhlamini, who co-chaired the meeting, said a lot of grounds have been covered in this third meeting, as they have exchanged views on a comprehensive spectrum of issues of strategic importance.
She said both countries have discussed how to better work together to improve the lives of their citizens and the positive outcomes of the 3rd session of the Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation are evidence of their joint commitment to working as equal partners.
“This can surely be achieved by further focusing our effort on trade, investment as well as by facilitating business relations between our two countries. We know that our respective business sectors are keen to continue trading with each other and investing in each other’s countries and therefore we as governments need to ensure that we create a conducive environment for increased economic activity,” said Mrs Dlamini.
She added that South Africa considers Seychelles as one of its reliable partners on the continent and commended Seychelles for its role in championing the blue economy as well as cause of small island states in Africa and beyond.
During this year’s discussion, Seychelles and South Africa also identified new areas for effective cooperation and exchanges in fields of youth and sports, innovation and technology.
Seychelles and South Africa established formal diplomatic relations 29 years ago.
The fourth Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation will be signed in 2024.
Patsy Canaya