Liaison Office of South Africa

in Taiwan                                                           

Suite 1301, 13th FL., 205 Tun Hwa North Rd., Taipei 105, Taiwan

Tel: (02) 8175-8588           Fax: (02) 2712-5109

                                  News & Media

        Headlines  

   SA top in Africa for trade: World Bank

   Incentive aimed at medium-size manufacturers

  South Africa's rooibos a hit with tea lovers across the world
  Application for accreditation: Global African Diaspora Summit, South Africa  
  South Africa Pioneers Ethical Seal
  Image of South Africa has improved
  Direct flights from Eritrea to SA to improve trade relations
  Safa determined to make Afcon a success

  South African artist chosen to create environment art installations in Cheng Long Village,

        Yunlin County, Taiwan

South Africa ranks top among upper middle-income economies in a World Bank survey that measures how efficiently countries trade.

South Africa is also the highest ranked African country, according to the “Connecting to Compete 2012: Trade Logistics in the Global Economy” report released on Wednesday.

“Trade logistics is key to economic competitiveness, growth, and poverty reduction,” said Otaviano Canuto, World Bank vice president for poverty reduction and economic management, in a statement.

Overall, South Africa ranks 23 out of 155 countries included in the Logistics Performance Indicators (LPI).

Its main competitor on the African continent, Nigeria, is ranked 121.

Among the upper middle-income countries, South Africa is placed first, followed by China, and then Turkey. Last year, China ranked ahead of South Africa for top spot.

Singapore is the top performer overall, followed by Hong Kong and Finland. Burundi is the lowest ranked.

The study is based on a comprehensive world survey of international freight forwarders and express carriers.   The survey finds that high income economies dominate the top logistics rankings, while the economies with the worst performance are least developed countries that are also often landlocked, small islands, or post-conflict states.

“Infrastructure stands out as the chief driver of progress in top performers, followed by improvements in logistics services, and customs and border management,” said Mona Haddad, sector manager of the World Bank’s international trade department.   “All top performers show strong co-operation between the public and private sectors, and a comprehensive approach in the development of services, infrastructure and efficient logistics.” 

The LPI has six components which look at the efficiency of a country’s border control agencies, including customs, the quality of infrastructure, and the east of arranging competitively priced shipments.

  It includes the competence of logistics services like transport operators, the ability to track consignments and the frequency with which shipments reach the consignee within the scheduled times.

  “Better overall logistics performance and trade facilitation are strongly associated with trade expansion, export diversification, attractiveness to foreign direct investment, and economic growth,” according to the World Bank report

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The Department of Trade and Industry has aimed its new R5,75bn manufacturing incentive scheme at developing medium-sized and downstream enterprises rather than at the giants of the economy.

Firms that charge import parity pricing, which in the department’s estimation includes ArcelorMittal SA , Sasol , Sappi and Mondi , are excluded from the scheme. Upstream manufacturers would have to have extremely good, employment-creating projects to qualify. Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies outlined the details of the scheme yesterday. It was first announced in the budget in February.

Mr Davies said the rationale for the scheme lay in the importance of reviving the manufacturing sector for the benefit of the overall economy. "SA’s problem with stagnant growth can largely be explained by our performance in manufacturing. The scheme is aimed at encouraging firms to make competitiveness raising decisions now," he said.

The manufacturing competitiveness enhancement programme has six dimensions which will allow firms to choose solutions that address their biggest problems. They are:

• a cost-sharing grant for new investment of between 30% and 50%, up to a maximum of R50m ;

• a cost-sharing grant for investment in green technology of between 30% and 50%, up to a maximum of R50m ;

• a cost-sharing grant of up to 70% of the cost of programmes to improve enterprise competitiveness;

• a cost-sharing grant of up to 70% to conduct a feasibility study for a new enterprise;

• a cost-sharing grant of up to 80% for "cluster activities" among firms, such as collaborative marketing;

• a working capital loan at a fixed rate of 6% to fund firms in the period of pre-dispatch and post-dispatch of goods until payment.

Smaller firms will qualify for proportionally larger grants.

Trade and industry deputy director-general Tumelo Chipfupa said the scheme was open to all manufacturers except for those that already benefit from sector-specific schemes — the automobile and components sector and clothing and textiles — and basic steel, chemicals and paper and pulp manufacturers.

The scheme is partly modelled on the success of the department’s competitiveness programme for clothing and textiles manufacturers.

While specific sectors were not targeted as beneficiaries, Mr Chipfupa said the department hoped the agro-processing, downstream metals and plastics manufacturers and transport and machinery equipment sectors would be the biggest beneficiaries. Taken together these sectors accounted for 45% of manufacturing employment and 33% of manufacturing value-added.

Stewart Jennings, chairman of manufacturers lobby group the Manufacturing Circle, said although the incentive was "relatively small" it was nonetheless important. "It is a step in the right direction. Most important, though, is government’s recognition of the importance of manufacturing." It was also significant, he said, that while government incentive programmes had in the past "picked winners" by being sector specific, this one was generic and would enable manufacturers that wanted to succeed to participate.

The scheme marks a departure from the department’s approach in the past, which has favoured large, capital-intensive investments. 

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Western Cape, South Africa -- In cafes across Cape Town, brewing the perfect cup of rooibos has become a fine art.

Measuring just the right amount of tea is key while great care is needed to not allow the leaves to swirl for too long. Once ready, the rooibos cups, gleaming in a sumptuous deep red color, bring with them a reedy scent that greets the noses of the customers waiting to enjoy a sip.

Grown only in South Africa's Western Cape province, the naturally caffeine-free tea used to be a specialist drink appealing to only some taste buds.

But in recent years, its refreshing taste and inviting aroma, coupled with its health benefits, have turned rooibos into a popular choice for tea lovers across the world.

"Germany really was the start of the big export boom," says Martin Berg, managing director of Rooibos Limited in South Africa, the largest rooibos tea processing factory. "Since then, Holland, UK, USA, Japan -- all the first world countries, rooibos has grown in there, grown in popularity," he adds.

 The increasing popularity of rooibos, an Afrikaans word that means "red bush," has created an industry worth around $23 billion. Some 15,000 tons of rooibos are harvested every year and at least half of that is then exported to the increasingly health-conscious consumer.

Willem Engelbrecht, whose family have been farming rooibos for four generations, believes that the natural herb's popularity has increased because of the plant's health benefits -- documented in several studies -- including its anti-oxidant properties.

"It's also got a soothing effect, and that is what we need for our everyday high-speed lifestyles," says Engelbrecht. "The Japanese did a lot of research early in the 1990s. Once that research became public and also South African research, people all over the world started to drink the product, not only for its very exceptional taste, but also for its wonderful health attributes."

 In Western Cape, the rooibos industry is a major employer during the summer months of harvesting. Under the hot South African sun, the workers, who are paid per kilogram, are constantly cutting down and piling up the tea to satisfy the increasing demand from abroad.

 Once the bushes, which are actually green, are cut down into small pieces, they are laid out to dry. The intense sunlight in the Western Cape slowly then turns the rooibos into its rich dark red color.

After it has been processed and sterilized, the tea is ready for the consumer.

This trade has become so lucrative that the industry is now trying to protect the rooibos name and its heritage. Producers are lobbying for the tea to be given geographical indication status (see fact box) to protect this unique brand -- a lengthy lawsuit with a U.S. company, which tried to use the rooibos name, went the way of the South Africans.

But farmers, like Engelbrecht, believe more should be done.

"There is not currently the legislation in South Africa to protect the word rooibos as a geographical indicator or G.I., similar to what exists in France, where the French government makes sure that champagne can only be used by the wine producers in the Champagne region of France," he says.

"I think it is the responsibility of government to make sure that legislation come in place, because we need to protect our cultural assets," adds Engelbrecht.

But while the industry waits for government reforms, plans are already in place for further expansion into new markets, such as India and China.

 As a result, laboratory tests are underway to develop new products to broaden the tea's appeal and suit different palates across the world.

"We now have a vast array of different rooibos products, from the traditional unflavored tea to all the flavored tea, cappuccinos made from rooibos, cosmetics, rooibos used in cooking," says Engelbrecht.

 Back in Cape Town, customers are already enjoying some of these new products. There's a whole new menu of fruit-flavored rooibos teas, rooibos cappuccinos and even espressos.

But despite this extensive range, the perfected traditional cups of rooibos remains the firm favorite.

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Members of the media are invited to apply for accreditation to the Global African Diaspora Summit, to be hosted by the African Union in South Africa from 23 -- 25 May 2012 under the theme: “Towards the Realisation of a United and Integrated Africa and its Diaspora”.

The Summit, scheduled for 25 May in Johannesburg, will  be preceded by a Ministerial Meeting on 24 May and a Senior Officials Meeting on 23 May 2012. It is expected that the Summit will be attended by delegations led by Heads of States and Government from Africa and her diaspora, including countries in the Caribbean, the Americas and elsewhere.

More information about the Summit is available on the following links:

Websites: www.dirco.gov.za/diaspora / http://au.int/en/summit/diasporasummit2012

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/GlobalAfricanDiasporaSummitSouthAfrica

Applications for accreditation should include the following:

Full Names

Name of media house

Designation (e.g., reporter, photographer)

ID/passport number

Please forward the above details by no later than 18 May 2012 to both of the following officials:

Ms Laoura Lazouras, LazourasL@dirco.gov.za

Ms Nthabiseng Ramatshela, RamatshelaN@dirco.gov.za

NB: No media will be allowed access to the Summit venues without prior accreditation  

Enquiries: Mr Nelson Kgwete, 076 431 3078 or 012 351 1105

Issued by the Department of International Relations and Cooperation

OR Tambo Building

460 Soutpansberg Road

Rietondale

Pretoria

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Outlined and audited by the country’s Wine Industry Ethical Trade Association (WIETA), the first of these full traceable seals are expected to be awarded later this year.

The initiative is intended to complement South Africa’s existing sustainability seal, established in 2010, with the hope that these two programmes will eventually be combined.

“We’ve been constantly feeling over the last three years or so that our producers don’t get enough recognition for what they do,” Su Birch, CEO of Wines of South Africa, told the drinks business. “We want to be recognised as ethical producers in one of the most beautiful parts of the world,” she explained.

In order to encourage sufficient industry uptake of the new ethical seal, its launch will be accompanied by a fast track programme to implement fair labour practices in wine farms and cellars.

Divided into three phases, the first step of the programme sees the simultaneous training of workers, owners and management in labour law and the WIETA code of fair trading principles, which acknowledges the International Labour Conventions’ Ethical Trading Initiative and also incorporates South African labour legislation. All training manuals will be supplied free of charge by WIETA.

Following this initial training phase, producers will be required to complete assessment forms to determine their level of compliance. WIETA will then provide further support where necessary to help address any gaps.

The final stage of the programme requires producers to pass a full WIETA audit, which includes on-site inspections.

In order to qualify for the ethical seal, brand owners must enter an annually renewable legally binding agreement with WIETA and, in order to ensure full traceability, must identify all their suppliers. At least 60% of these suppliers need to be WIETA accredited, with the remaining 40% able to demonstrate that they are preparing themselves for accreditation.

Commenting on this initiative, Linda Lipparoni, CEO of WIETA, said: “By introducing the seal we want to acknowledge and accredit wineries and farms that follow ethical practices, and protect them from potential negative publicity resulting from those who flout the law.

“After almost 20 years of democracy and exposure of the country’s wine producers to international best-practice, we have reached a level of maturity where no abuses of human rights should be countenanced,” Lipparoni continued, stressing: “The industry has no place for the few who, by perpetuating unfair labour practices, are tarnishing the majority who recognise that the ethical treatment of workers is both a moral and legal obligation.”

This emphatic commitment to ethical winemaking practices supports the industry’s vehement rejection of a “biased” investigation last year by Human Rights Watch into human rights abuses in South African vineyards.

Although managed and accredited by WIETA, this initiative has won support from the Food & Allied Worker’s Union (FAWU), Sikhula Sonke, Wome

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There are some among us who even before President Jacob Zuma assumed office made it their agenda to speculate about South Africa's waning influence in the world under him. They chose to misunderstand the evolution of our foreign policy, which dates back to 1912, when the ANC was formed. The idea that our foreign policy under presidents Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki was not informed by ANC policies but their own initiative - which the current president is incapable of advancing - is false and ridiculous. International relations is not conducted on the basis of personal preferences of a particular head of state. It is conducted on the basis of principles, values and national interests. The promotion of human rights, democracy and the pursuit of the African agenda remain critical.

Brics

For the record, after his initial criticism of South Africa joining Brics - Brazil, Russia, China, South Africa - Jim O'Neill, chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, has now changed his tune. In an article titled SA's Brics Score: Not All Doom and Gloom, he wrote: "South Africa could more than justify its presence if it helped Africa to fulfill its remarkable potential. "I witnessed South Africa's successful hosting of the 2010 Fifa World Cup and following that, wrote an article suggesting that if Africa explored cross-border synergies, it would be big enough to be regarded as a true Bric country." O'Neill said SA scored well for the cost of setting up business and for most of macroeconomic stability variables and also does reasonably well in some areas of governance and schooling. If SA could also help to lead the rest of the continent to reach its own standards where these are high, Africa would be on an accelerated path to greater economic might. By exploring cross-border expansion in trade and infrastructure, as well as improvements in domestic productivity, SA will have more than justified its role as a member of Brics. President Zuma's 2012 State of the Nation Address is in line with these. Zuma has been appointed by his peers in the African Union (AU) to champion infrastructure development. With regard to respect and influence I don't know of any ad-hoc high level committee of the AU that has excluded the president. Our membership of Brics has three objectives: to advance our national interests; to promote regional integration and related infrastructure programmes and to partner with key players of the south on issues of global governance reforms. As the host of the next Brics summit, we have a contribution to make to the realisation of the objective of establishing the Brics Development Bank.

UN Security Council

South Africa's current non-permanent membership of the UN Security Council was endorsed by the AU summit and was a vote of confidence on the country's ability to represent and advance the continent's aspirations and interests. It is a well-known fact that more than 60% of the Security Council's (SC) agenda is on African issues. The reason why SA voted for Resolution 1973 has been explained. Those who have bothered to read the resolution will confirm that it did not provide for regime change and indiscriminate bombings of Libya. The three African countries serving at the SC then - Nigeria, Gabon and SA - voted for the resolution. This was later endorsed by the AU Peace and Security Council. When the abuse of the resolution became apparent and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) carried out the bombings, SA stood up to Nato and challenged its violation of international rule of law. Those familiar with the mandate of the SC and the Charter of the UN, have confirmed the correctness of SA's position. In a SC high-level debate on the need for closer cooperation between the UN and regional organisations, Zuma brought to the SC's attention how the situation in Libya, for example, was a glaring example of the consequences of poor or lack of coordination between the UN and the AU. After that debate SA sponsored a unanimous resolution 2033 of 2012, focusing on the strategic relationship between the AU and the UN in the maintenance of international peace and security. This resolution is ground-breaking. It is testimony of our consistency, forthrightness and vision of SA's foreign policy that elevates the African Agenda.

African Union Candidature

Southern Africa has never had an opportunity to lead the then OAU and now the AU at the highest level. Hence the decision to field a candidate for the position of the AU Commission chairperson. A clear vision and programme has been articulated by the regional candidate. This is why regional heads of state and their ministers are actively campaigning and lobbying for their candidate as they did before. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma is not a South African candidate. This idea that a country's influence is measured by the number of votes it obtains whenever it contests a position is wrong. The assertion is ahistoric and is devoid of any theoretical or practical basis. Our commitment to the advancement of Africa has never been based on the delusion of false promises that African countries will cede their sovereignty to SA. If all of us agree that the institutions of the AU need to be strengthened, then we must answer the question, how? It is fallacious to opine that the Pan-Africanist orientation of our foreign policy was the work of an individual and was not linked to the broader ideological underpinnings of our world view.

Foreign policy champion

For the first time in our history since 1994, Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, the minister responsible for international relations and management of our foreign policy, is a seasoned diplomat and international relations practitioner. She has represented the country as a high commissioner in several countries for about 12 years. Nkoana-Mashabane delivered SA's inclusion into Brics, the return to the SC and an even bigger prize by presiding over the successful and historical Cop 17. Not only did the minister secure a second commitment period to the Kyoto Protocol, but the Durban Platform package has been hailed the world over as having restored trust in the UN climate change convention processes. So, has South Africa's image improved under President Zuma? The answer is a resounding YES.

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Pretoria – The South African government has welcomed the introduction of regular flights from Eritrea, saying this will further help strengthen economic, political, and social relations between the two countries.

Eritrean Airlines will now fly to Cape Town International Airport and OR Tambo Airport, four times a week. The first flight is scheduled for today.

“The South African government views this as part of advancing the African Agenda and sustainable development, which is a strategic objective of South Africa’s foreign policy for a progressive Africa and a better world,” the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) said on Monday.

This new development, according to the department, is also in line with President Jacob Zuma’s infrastructure initiative, which aims to advance greater development, stability and integration in Africa.

“Currently, the South African mining infrastructure company, SENET, has established an office in Asmara and is involved with the government of … Eritrea in the development of Eritrea’s mining infrastructure, notably in the production of gold and copper.”

Eritrea, a former Ethiopian province and Italian colony which gained independence in 1993, is still trying to rebuild itself, especially its infrastructure and the economy after years of internal strife and instability.

Eritrea GDP’s is showing signs of growth as it soared to an estimated 17% in 2011. It is also one of the few African states that are on track towards meeting the UN Millennium Development Goals in child mortality and water conservation. – BuaNews

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   By Nthambeleni Gabara

Johannesburg - South African Football Association (Safa) President Kirsten Nematandani says all stops will be pulled to ensure South Africa’s successful hosting of the 2013 African Cup of Nations.

Speaking before officially handing over his duties as interim chairman of the 2013 Afcon LOC Board to his deputy, Chief Mwelo Nonkonyana, in Johannesburg, Nematandani said Safa will hit the ground running with its preparations.

“Nothing can stop the 2013 Afcon from [succeeding]. We have no more … time to relax. We have to hit the ground running also to ensure that our national team is ready for the tournament,” he said, while signing the handover agreement with Nonkonyana.

Cabinet on Friday announced the host cities of the 2013 Afcon and those of the 2014 African Nations Championships (CHAN).

The opening and closing ceremonies of the 2013 Afcon will be played at Johannesburg's FNB Stadium, while matches will take place in Port Elizabeth (Nelson Mandela Bay), Rustenburg (Royal Bafokeng), eThekwini (Moses Mabhida Stadium) and Mbombela (Mbombela Stadium).

Nematandani told Nonkonyana that with the support of government, there would be no reason for the hosting of the continental tournament - scheduled to begin on 19 January and end on 10 February - to fail.

In responding, Nonkonyana pledged to do his best as interim chair until a permanent Afcon LOC Board is established.

“We dare not fail South Africa and the entire African continent. We cannot host the 2013 Afcon tournament in a lower standard than that of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

“I don’t have enough words to thank our government for the support, but one thing for sure is that we are not going to fail them. We will work very hard to ensure that the tournament is a success,” he said, thanking Nematandani for laying a solid foundation for him.

Nonkonyana said during his tenure, the 2013 Afcon Board will operate in line with what the Constitution of the country dictates.

Mvuzo Mbebe, 2013 Afcon LOC boss, said all 16 teams which will participate in the tournament are expected to be in the country on 13 January, while Bafana Bafana will play a team yet to be announced during the opening match on 19 January, at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg.

According to Mbebe, there will be 24 group stages, six matches in each group, eight knock-out matches, 17 match days, 24 match sites, with two group stage matches per day in the same venue in the same host city.

“All group matches for a single team will be played in the same city, unlike in the FIFA World cup where a team plays group matches in three different venues,” he said.

Mbebe said from 13 May to 18 May, they would be visiting the host cities for verification and engagement on any outstanding issues. They would also be meeting with the Inter-Ministerial Committee appointed by Cabinet.

He said this month will see the launch of the countdown and marketing campaign for the tournament, while the inspection visit by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) will be in July.

The opening window for media accreditation for the South African media only will also begin in July, together with the unveiling of the tournament mascot.

He said the theme song of the tournament will be launched in August, while the media accreditation of the international media will be opened in September.

Mbebe said the final draw of the 2013 Afcon will be done in October. - BuaNews

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            2012 Cheng Long Wetlands International Environmental Art Project

            (Date : 11 April 2012)

            Six International artists will arrive in Cheng Long Village, Yunlin County, Taiwan, on Thursday, April

            12,  2012, to begin a 25-day residency in the small fishing village and create site-specific

            environmental art installations.  The artists will be working with children at Cheng Long Elementary

            School, community people and volunteers to make their artworks on the theme of “What’s for Dinner?”

            emphasizing environmental issues related to seafood production. 

            The curator for the Cheng Long Wetlands art project, Jane Ingram Allen, selected the following artists

            for this year’s project, out of 180 entries from artists in 60 different countries:

            1.   Janet Ranson of South Africa

            2.   Markuz Wernli Saito of Switzerland and Madoka Yoshitomi of Japan

            3.   Prashant Jogdand of India

            4.   Isabelle Garbani of France now living in the USA

            5.   Yen-Ting Hsu of Taiwan living in Taipei

            6.   Yvonne Chou of Taiwan living in Kaohsuing

           Please visit the Blog at http://artproject4wetland.wordpress.com for more information and photos about

           the selected artists and the 2012 art project. 

           This year some of the artworks will be in the village along roadways and inside abandoned houses, and

           some will be in the wetlands nature preserve area caused by sinking farmlands and climate changes. 

           Artists will use recycled and natural materials that they collect in the village and surrounding areas. 

           This is the 3^rd year of the international environmental art project sponsored by the Kuan Shu

           Educational Foundation and supported by the Taiwan Forestry Bureau, Yunlin Country Government,

           Kouhu Township and Cheng Long Village as well as Cheng Long Elementary School and other

           supporters. 

           The 2012 art project exhibition will open to the public on Saturday and Sunday, May 5 and 6, 2012.  

           Public activities with the artists will be happening both days. 

           The artworks will remain on public view in Cheng Long through December 31, 2013. 

           For more information: 

           Jane Ingram Allen, Curator

           Tel:  09-30-375-160

           Email:  allenrebeccajanei@gmail.com

           Chao-mei Wang, Head Educator

           Kuan  Shu Educational Foundation

           Tel:  09-28-717-673

           Email: "觀樹教育基金會*鸕鶿班長*@ChengLong Wetlands" <ks.kk696@gmail.com>

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