SA, Tunisia sign cooperation deals
14 October 2004
President Thabo Mbeki wrapped up a two-day visit to Tunisia on Wednesday with the signing of three cooperation agreements on jobs, culture and health, said the department of foreign affairs.
The signing of the agreements was witnessed by Mbeki and his Tunisian counterpart Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
The agreements, said the department, include a memorandum of understanding on employment, on cultural co-operation between 2004 and 2007 and on co-operation in the field of public health and medical benefits.
The two presidents also discussed details of a technical project to recruit South African medical and paramedical staff to Tunisia and a joint venture in the pharmaceutical industry.
The two countries are at the opposite ends of the African continent and since 1994 bilateral trade has been balanced but minimal, reaching less than $9-million in the first eight months of this year, according to Tunisian figures.
Mbeki was
accompanied by a delegation of politicians and businessmen and three agreements were signed during a meeting between representatives of employers' organisations and the chambers of commerce of the two countries.
These seek to boost trade by giving the private sector a bigger role, including the possibility of establishing an air link between the two countries.
Source: Department of Foreign Affairs
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