President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa yesterday dashed hopes that Pretoria would immediately open its wallet and extend critically-needed financial assistance to cash-strapped Zimbabwe, the Daily News can report.<\/p>\n
However, the leader of Africa\u2019s most industrialised country also made it clear that South Africa was ready to help Zimbabwe to revive its sickly economy \u2014 although this would be done within Pretoria\u2019s means and after the regional economic giant had fully considered all the available options.<\/p>\n
In addition, Ramaphosa bluntly demanded that President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his under pressure government provide a safe and conducive investment climate for South African companies operating in Zimbabwe.<\/p>\n
At the same time, the South African president left Harare without creating time in his busy schedule to meet with opposition leader Nelson Chamisa \u2014 who was hoping to get audience with the region\u2019s most influential statesman, to brief him about local political developments.<\/p>\n
Ramaphosa was formally in Harare to co-chair the third session of the Zimbabwe-South Africa Bi-National Commission (BNC) \u2014 which was established in 2015 \u2014 in a bid to strengthen relations between the two countries.<\/p>\n
The crucial meeting saw the two leaders and their respective ministerial teams reviewing the progress which had been made with regards to implementation of the commission\u2019s 45 key bilateral agreements \u2014 which span trade and investment, health, labour, migration, defence, taxation, tourism, water and the environment.
\nAhead of yesterday\u2019s meeting, hopes had been high among long-suffering Zimbabweans that Ramaphosa would deliver immediate \u201cgood news\u201d on the much-needed financial assistance for the country, which was first mooted in December last year.<\/p>\n
But addressing journalists at the end of the BNC, the South African president said his government was yet to fully consider the much-talked about financial assistance, particularly because Pretoria was currently grappling with its own economic challenges.<\/p>\n
\u201cSouth Africa stands ready to render support to Zimbabwe within our means in your quest for economic renewal.
\n\u201cIt is our wish that, using the BNC mechanism, we should at our level strive to provide the strategic impetus to drive the bilateral relations to a significantly higher level,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have agreed that we are going to have continued dialogue on a number of issues, including investments as well as issues to do with finance and the economy, and with that we think at the BNC level we have formed a very firm foundation of being able to assist one another \u2026 as we traverse a number of challenges and difficulties.<\/p>\n
\u201cMay I say … our efforts are really emboldened and strengthened because there is a deep level of trust, a deep level of being able to work together, very cordially, even as we have to deal with difficult issues.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo the matters that you have referred to as financial assistance, we have discussed that in great detail and the discussions are on-going and our various teams are busy finding workable solutions.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd because of the strength of our relations, we have no doubt whatsoever that we are going to find solutions that are going to lead to the strengthening of our two respective economies so that we can address the challenges that both our countries are facing at this moment in time,\u201d Ramaphosa added.<\/p>\n
This comes after South African media reported in December last year that Pretoria had turned down a request from Mnangagwa\u2019s administration for a US$1,2 billion bailout.
\nBut South Africa\u2019s Finance minister, Tito Mboweni \u2014 who accompanied Ramaphosa to the Harare BNC \u2014 later confirmed that Pretoria was indeed considering financial assistance to Zimbabwe.<\/p>\n
The country\u2019s International Relations minister, Lindiwe Sisulu, also weighed in subsequently \u2014 saying Ramaphosa\u2019s government would grant Zimbabwe the bailout that it sorely needed to address its deepening economic crisis which triggered riots in January this year.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will help Zimbabwe as and when we are able to. If there\u2019s anything we can\u2019t do, I\u2019m sure they can find help from other international parties.
\n\u201cBut they are our sister country and we\u2019d like to help solve their problems. Any assistance we can afford, we\u2019d like to provide it,\u201d Sisulu, who was also part of Ramaphosa\u2019s delegation to Harare, said.<\/p>\n
Last month, Finance minister Mthuli Ncube also confirmed that Zimbabwe was seeking assistance from its biggest trading partner.
\n\u201cWe are in constant talks with South Africa. They are our neighbour, biggest trading partner and we have a bi-national commission.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo we have been interacting with them to see whether they can be of help and support us whenever we need it,\u201d Ncube said.
\nIn a joint communique which was issued after yesterday\u2019s meeting between Mnangagwa and Ramaphosa, the two leaders also said they were looking at increasing a standing credit facility between the central banks of the two countries \u2014 under whose facility Zimbabwe can access R100 million from the South African Reserve Bank.<\/p>\n
\u201cOther financing options beyond this are also being explored, for example, a facility from South African private banks to the Zimbabwean private sector and guaranteed by the South African government with an appropriate counter-guarantee from the Zimbabwean government,\u201d the communique said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa yesterday dashed hopes that Pretoria would immediately open its wallet and extend critically-needed financial assistance to cash-strapped Zimbabwe, the Daily News can report. However, the leader of Africa\u2019s most industrialised country also made it clear that South Africa was ready to help Zimbabwe to revive its sickly economy \u2014 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":2501,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,12],"tags":[55,88,31,149,468,332],"class_list":{"0":"post-5534","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-all-news","8":"category-policy","9":"tag-government","10":"tag-mdc","11":"tag-mnangagwa","12":"tag-president","13":"tag-ramaphosa","14":"tag-south-africa"},"yoast_head":"\n