Ban praises SA for role in Africa
26 February 2009
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has commended South Africa for its ongoing role in peacekeeping and post-conflict reconstruction in Africa.
Speaking after a meeting with President Kgalema Motlanthe in Pretoria on Wednesday, Ban said South Africa "holds a particular place in the United Nations family, and ... is today an important partner in UN peacemaking and peace building".
South Africa currencly has about 2 000 troops helping the United Nations in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Sudan.
Ban, making his first official visit to South Africa as part of a five-nation tour of Africa, also stressed the leading role South Africa played in engaging non-industrialised countries on the global threat of climate change.
"While South Africa has been an effective advocate on behalf of the G77, much of Africa has not benefited from the current international climate change regime," Ban said. "It is time to change that ... South Africa has shown commendable leadership and can do more."
He announced that the UN, in a joint project with the Global Environment Facility, would contribute US$11-million to the upgrading of South Africa's public transport system to ensure it uses "green" technology ahead of the 2010 Fifa World Cup.
He said that he and Motlanthe had discussed the forthcoming G20 meeting in April, "where South Africa's President will be once again the only African leader in attendance and an effective voice for the millions of voiceless and most vulnerable."
Zimbabwe
Ban said the UN welcomed the inauguration of the new unity government in Zimbabwe, but remained concerned about the arrest and detention of Movement for Democratic Movement (MDC) members.
Motlanthe said he had spoken to Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, who had given him an assurance that all political detainees would be granted bail.
Ban said the UN would be increasing its support to Zimbabwe in order to deal with a cholera outbreak which has infected over 80 000 people and killed about 3 000, according to a World Health Organisation report.
The UN's senior adviser for humanitarian affairs, Catherine Bragg, is currently in Zimbabwe. She met with President Robert Mugabe on Tuesday to discuss how the UN could mobilise more humanitarian aid for Zimbabwe.
Ban said South Africa's forthcoming elections presented another opportunity to showcase the country to the region and the world as one that was capable of effecting peaceful democratic change.
Ban and his wife later had a private meeting with former President Nelson Mandela and his wife Graca Machel in Johannesburg.
The UN secretary-general is visiting South Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Rwanda, Tanzania and Egypt as part of his Africa tour.
SAinfo reporter and BuaNews
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