The Minister of of Trade, Industry and Competition, Mr Ebrahim Patel, will co-host the South Africa-Spain Business Forum with his Spanish counterpart, Ms Reyes Maroto, Spanish Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism. The session will take place at 15:00 on Thursday, 27 October 2022 at The Capital Menlyn Main in Pretoria.
The business forum takes place against the backdrop of the official visit to South Africa by the President of the Government of Spain, Mr Pedro Sanchez.
Spain is one of the key sources of investments in the renewable energy sector in South Africa.
In 2021, Spain was South Africa’s 4th largest exports destination (24th in the world) and the 5th largest supplier to South Africa in the European Union (15th in the world).
On average, total exports from South Africa to Spain increased by 20,1% annual average over the ten-year period ending in 2021 from approximately R7.6 billion in 2012 to approximately R28.5 billion in 2021.
The Head of Invest SA, Mr Yunus Hoosen, says the objective of the business forum is to enhance and enrich bilateral cooperation with a very specific focus on promoting further investment in climate related and climate driven industries.
“The main purpose of the event is to foster further and closer collaboration between South African and Spanish companies in a number of key sectors. These include renewable energy, green hydrogen and battery storage, healthcare, automotive industries, infrastructure (notably water infrastructure), agro-processing and tourism,” he said.
About 30 Spanish companies invested in 39 Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects across South Africa between January 2003 and January 2022. These projects created 635 jobs and R16.81 billion of capital investment in South Africa was recorded for the period under review.
The FDI projects are mainly in electronic components, renewable energy, industrial equipment, metals, software and IT services, business services, communications, minerals, ceramics and glass, chemicals and other sectors.
Journalists interested in attending the session are required to fill in the attached form and send back to Phumzile Kotane at pkotane@thedtic.gov.za
Enquiries:
Bongani Lukhele – Director: Media Relations
Tel: (012) 394 1643
Mobile: 079 5083 457
WhatsApp: 074 2998 512
E-mail: BLukhele@thedtic.gov.za
Issued by: The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic)
Follow us on Twitter: @the_dti
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