SA, Iran trade expanding
Zibonele Ntuli
15 December 2004
Foreign Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma says bilateral trade between South Africa and Iran has increased by nine percent between January and September this year.
She was addressing the 8th meeting of the joint bilateral commission involving the two countries in Tehran on Tuesday. Dlamini-Zuma said that South African exports to Iran had also increased by over 30 percent during this period.
She said a number of South African companies trading with Iran had almost doubled in this period as the private sector showed commitment to the trade relationship through investment.
"I am informed that South African investments in Iran currently exceed $1.5-billion while negotiations for an additional $4-billion are nearing finalisation.
"We also welcome the confidence of the Iranian private sector investing in South Africa. Investments totalling $150-million have already flowed into my country, and we want to encourage Iranians to
continue choosing South Africa as the destination of choice for their investments," she said.
Dlamini-Zuma's delegation includes some of South Africa's top business people and she said her visit to Iran brought the South African private and public sector investments to the Iranian market.
"Over the last ten years of our relationship, we have put in place a legal framework for our relations that consists of 63 agreements.
"These agreements cover a vast area of common interests that include economic issues, cultural co-operation, sports teams exchange, health co-operation, housing co-operation as well as sharing experiences in women's affairs and security issues," she said.
Source: BuaNews
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