International Relations for
Growth and Development
Presentation to the
Joint Budget Committee
03 November 2004
Overview of Presentation
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•
Strategic considerations
Policy rationale
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•
Engagements on the continent
NEPAD
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•
Negotiating agenda – post 2000
Negotiating issues
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Challenges
Conclusion
Strategic Considerations
• Creation of favourable economic conditions for
advancing SA’s developmental objectives
• Recognition that globalisation is a force for SA to
contend with
• Multilateralism, including WTO engagements, are
appropriate for pursuing economic growth and
development
Strategic Considerations
(cont..)
• Need to work with other developing countries in
the WTO to promote common objectives around
market access for exports, economic
development & constructing a global economic
system that is balanced and responsive to
developing country interests
• An appreciation of the fact that regional trading
arrangements & free trade agreements can
promote economic development and integration
into the global economy
Policy Rationale
Contained in:
• Global Economic Strategy 2001 – currently under
review
• Integrated Manufacturing Strategy 2002
Objectives:
• Promote domestic economic reform
• Isolation to global integration/re-positioning
• Enhance competitiveness
 exports + industrial competitiveness
• Export growth (market access)
Policy Rationale (cont…)
• Reduce high production costs
• Allocate resource more efficiently
• Reverse anti-export bias
• Diversify by market and product (value added)
• Create sustainable employment growth
Strategic overview of the
continent
 Need to foster deeper relations on a bilateral
basis.
 Focus on regional investment, infrastructure
development, intra-regional trade.
 Diversification and the production of valueadded products.
 Technology transfer and skills development.
 Utilization of the NEPAD framework to attain
set objectives.
Engagements on the continent
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•
•
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Derives from the global economic strategy
Aligned to the NEPAD framework
Pursues a developmental agenda in Africa
Underpins the need for regional economic integration
Needs a strategy of engaging the multilateral institutions
that are dominant in the continent, e.g. World Bank,
ADB,UNCTAD, etc
• Takes cognizance of exogenous factors
• Focuses on intensive bilateral engagement on the
continent
Regional strategies (Africa)
• Over-arching strategy premised on regionallyfocused (sub-) strategies:
 Southern Africa
 Equatorial Africa, i.e West, Central and East
 North Africa and the Middle East
• Intensify mutually-beneficial bilaterals within regions
• Forge and consolidate strategic alliances with
strategic countries
Regional strategies (Cont.)
• Economic development and integration
• Collaboration on cross-border projects e.g. SDI’s
• Develop financing instruments/institutions
• Build capacity
• Develop complementary industrial strategies
• Build and enhancing regional institutions
Negotiations: Post-2000
Rationale
• Political and Strategic considerations
•
Advance domestic trade reform (pace/sequencing)
•
Further enhance competitiveness
•
Build on previous negotiating outcomes (further
negotiated market access)
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Threats to multilateralism
•
Proliferation of FTAs (competitive position)
Negotiating Issues
All Negotiations contain:
Tariffs
Agriculture/industrial
Standards
SPS, TBT
NTBs
Quotas, Rules of Origin, Customs
Remedies
Safeguards, AD, countervail
Dispute Mechanism
Challenges
• Market Access : external ( WTO)
» internal ( Intra-Africa
• Trade Facilitation – export finance
» Customs
» Logistics
» Ports and documentation
» Standards
» Export promotion
Challenges
• Production – diversification,
» expansion and
» beneficiation
• Infrastructure : assist in identifying projects,
» Scoping the project
• Investment facilitation : access to finance,
» reduce risk for potential development
partners
• Economic governance – technical co-operation
• New areas – regulatory framework
Conclusion
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
Growth
Employment
SMME’s
BEE
Competitiveness
 Geographic
spread
 Investment
 Exports
 Women
Empowerment