SUMMIT OF HEADS OF STATE AND GOVERNMENT OF THE GROUP OF 77 AND CHINA HAVANA, CUBA 15-16 SEPTEMBER 2023

Following the passing of Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi and the honour accorded to his funeral a Special Official Funeral-Category 1, President Cyril Ramaphosa has delegated Dr Naledi Pandor, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation to lead South Africa’s delegation to the Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Group of 77 and China.

The Summit will be hosted in Cuba on 15 and 16 September under the theme, "Current development challenges: The role of science, technology and innovation"

President Ramaphosa, values the importance of the the Group of 77+China as the largest intergovernmental organisation of developing countries in the United Nations.

This is a platform where countries of the Global South can articulate and promote their collective economic interests and enhance their collective negotiating capacity.

This capacity is brought to bear on global issues that are deliberated within the United Nations system and on the advancement of South-South cooperation for development.

The President welcomes the opportunity for South Africa to contribute to the Group’s debates, analysis and consensus on the main challenges facing the South.
 

PRESIDENT CYRIL RAMAPHOSA TO DELIVER THE EULOGY AT THE SPECIAL OFFICIAL FUNERAL OF THE LATE PRINCE MANGOSUTHU BUTHELEZI

President Cyril Ramaphosa will, on Saturday, 16 September, deliver the eulogy at the Special Official Funeral of the late Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi, in Ulundi, KwaZulu-Natal.

Prince Buthelezi, passed away on Saturday, September 9, 2023, at the age of 95.

President Ramaphosa has honoured Prince Buthelezi by declaring his funeral a Special Official Funeral-Category 1.

In accordance with the State, Official, and Provincial Official Funeral Policy of the government, a Special Official Funeral, Category 1, is a recognition reserved for individuals of extraordinary distinction as designated by the President of the Republic of South Africa.

The funeral will include elements of military honours.

The President has directed that flags be flown half-mast at flag stations around the country until the evening of Saturday, which is the day of the funeral. 


PRESIDENT CYRIL RAMAPHOSA TO PARTICIPATE IN UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY UNGA78

President Cyril Ramaphosa will lead South Africa’s delegation to the General Debate of the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA78) which takes place from 18 – 26 September 2023 in New York, United States of America.

The President will deliver the South Africa statement to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, 19 September 2023, at 13h00 US Eastern Time, which will be 19h00 in South Africa. 

The address to the UN General Assembly will be preceded by a number of High Level engagements.

These include summits on Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, Sustainable Development Goals, a High-Level Dialogue on Financing for Development, as well as the Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response and Climate Ambition Summit to be hosted by the United Nations Secretary General.

President Ramaphosa will also lead discussions during the Presidential Roundtable that will hosted by the United States Chamber of Commerce and US-Africa Business Center.

In addition, the President’s programme will also include several bilateral meetings on the sidelines of UNGA.

UNGA78 is convened under the auspices of “rebuilding trust and reigniting global solidarity: Accelerating action on the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development towards peace, prosperity, progress and sustainability for all”.

The theme has been set by the incoming President of the UN General Assembly Ambassador Dennis Francis of Trinidad and Tobago.

South Africa’s participation at the United Nations is directed by its international relations policy objectives of among others:

(i) Mobilising support for South Africa’s domestic objectives, as outlined in the National Development Plan (NDP), including reducing inequality, unemployment, and poverty eradication.

(ii) Support for the African Agenda and promoting Africa’s sustainable development by advocating for Africa’s priorities under the African Union (AU) Agenda 2063.

(iii) Influencing the reform of the global multilateral architecture; and advancing the agenda of the South in the North-South Dialogue platform.


THE UNITED DEMOCRATIC MOVEMENT AND OTHERS VS MINISTER OF PUBLIC ENTERPRISES AND OTHERS CASE NO:2023-005779

The United Democratic Movement and its co-applicants, which include NUMSA and Build One South Africa, took government to court on an urgent basis, on an issue that required government to coordinate numerous department responses in relation to the very complex matter, of load shedding.

This legal challenge questions the lawfulness and constitutionality of the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan.

This process to coordinate government’s response required government to spend a great deal of energy, time and money to respond in detail, as it always does on any matter before the courts.

This process has cost taxpayers money and to some extent taken attention away from the urgent related issues to which government has to attend operationally.

The UDM, Building One SA, NUMSA and others made government spend public funds and time on this gathering of information before suddenly withdrawing the application.

Government always approaches such matters with a view that it is not only responding to the applicants, but it is responding to the public, while attending to the underlying issues in the normal course of the administration.

Therefore, for all these applicants to take up time and taxpayers money to then simply walk away because they finally appreciated the detailed substantive and indisputable response submitted by government is in fact an insult to both the court and the South African public.

In particular, the UDM is well represented in Parliament where government continuously accounts to elected representatives of the people in work in progress and challenges faced.

President Ramaphosa, spent the first and second day of his working visit to the United States for the 78th United Nations General Assembly, discussing sustainable development goals and investments to South Africa. 

On Sunday, 17 September, President Ramaphosa held a bilateral meeting with Professor Klaus Schwab, CEO of the World Economic Forum (WEF), to discuss South Africa’s participation at WEF and the progress the country is making on the reforms aimed at advancing inclusive economic growth. The President also met with the United States Congressman Gregory Meeks. Both President Ramaphosa and Congressman Meeks acknowledged the need for greater cooperation between the US and South Africa in tackling global issues that are impacting the African continent, primarily, the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on Africa. 

Congressman Meeks welcomed the briefing on the conclusion of the investigation into the docking of the LadyR vessel in Simmons Town, South Africa and expressed his commitment to contributing to the strengthening of US-Africa diplomatic and trade relations, and to attending the AGOA forum in South Africa later this year. 

President Ramaphosa concluded his first day of engagements with a meeting with the United Nations Secretary General, Mr Antonio Guterres. 

The two leaders discussed developments related to the reform of the international financial architecture and other initiatives in support of the Sustainable Development Goals, as well as the reform of the United Nations Security Council. The Secretary General commended South Africa for its important role in advancing these efforts.  

Addressing the High Level Partnership for Maternal Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH) event on Monday, 18 September, President Ramaphosa called on Heads of State and Government to join the Global Leaders Network to champion the women, children and adolescent health agenda. 

“As Heads of State, we can provide leadership and inspire ambitious action. We have the convening power to mobilise our peers and advance policies, programmes and financing initiatives for improved outcomes. As part of our agenda, we must challenge the disregard in many communities and countries for sexual and reproductive health and rights of women”, said President Ramaphosa. 

Speaking at the Sustainable Development Goals Summit, President Ramaphosa joined the call to address the fundamental development challenges that have long characterised our unequal world. The President emphasized the need for targeted investment, technology transfer and capacity building support especially in key areas such as industralisation, infrastructure, agriculture, water, energy, education and health. The President further underscored the requirement for sustained financial support, including supportive trade policies from the international community.

Later on Monday President Ramaphosa will lead the business roundtable discussions with the US Chamber of Commerce and the US-Africa Business Center. President Ramaphosa will use the occasion to position South Africa’s economic reform agenda that is focused on expanding industrial capacity as an opportunity for more US investment that can leverage off the demonstrated manufacturing base of South Africa. 

President Ramaphosa will hold a bilateral meeting with the President of Nigeria, H.E Bola-Ahmed Tinubu to discuss the deepening of trade, diplomatic and political ties between Nigeria and South Africa and the current security situation in parts West Africa.

Media enquiries: Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to the President - +27 82 835 6315

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

The Presidency and National Treasury have today, Sunday 27 August 2023, released a progress report for Q2 2023 on the implementation of economic reforms through Operation Vulindlela.

In October 2020, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the establishment of Operation Vulindlela as a joint initiative of The Presidency and National Treasury to accelerate the implementation of reforms to revive economic growth and create jobs.

The progress report outlines several key milestones that have been reached as part of government’s economic reform agenda, including the following:

● Gazetting of the final date for analogue switch-off (ASO), which has enabled analogue transmission to be switched off for all frequencies above 694 Megahertz (MHz) on 31 July 2023 to enable the use of spectrum for mobile telecommunications. This key reform will improve network quality, reduce data costs and expand digital access for all South Africans.

● Selection of an international terminal operator to partner with Transnet at the Durban Pier 2 container terminal. This will crowd in private investment and management expertise to improve the performance of South Africa’s largest container terminal, handling 72% of the Port of Durban’s throughput and 46% of South Africa’s port traffic.

● Establishment of the National Logistics Crisis Committee (NLCC) to oversee short and long-term interventions to fix South Africa’s freight logistics system. The NLCC has eight work streams focused on immediate operational improvements in the logistics system as well as longer-term reforms to improve efficiency and competitiveness, and will report to the President.

● Approval of the National Water Resources Infrastructure Agency (NWRIA) Bill for tabling in Parliament. The establishment of the NWRIA as a dedicated agency to manage and invest in bulk water resource infrastructure is the centrepiece of institutional reforms in the water sector.

●  Establishment of the One Stop Shop for energy projects to accelerate private investment in new generation capacity. The One Stop Shop will facilitate regulatory authorisations for energy projects, with the aim of establishing a single, fully electronic application process.

●  Progress in procuring new generation capacity to close the gap in electricity supply, with nine projects from Bid Window 5 having reached financial close to date and a further four expected to close by September 2023.

The report provides a detailed update on each of the priority reform areas in Operation Vulindlela, including reforms to the energy, logistics, telecommunications, and water sectors as well as the visa regime.

The full Operation Vulindlela 2023_24 Q2 Report can be downloaded at https://www.stateofthenation.gov.za/operation-vulindlela.

          
Joint statement issued by:

- Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to the President media@presidency.gov.za
- Cleopatra Mosana, Head of Communications in the National Treasury cleopatra.mosana@treasury.gov.za

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria
Operation Vulindlela 2023_24 Q2 Report.pdf

President Cyril Ramaphosa will, tomorrow, Tuesday, 29 August 2023, engage with young men and boys on the prevention and combating of gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) as part of the programme of the Presidential Young Men and Boys Indaba. 

The engagement will afford the President a platform to engage with young men and boys on the tangible progress made in GBVF prevention activities in schools and the challenges faced under the scourge of violence and abuse.

President Ramaphosa has consistently called for the mobilisation of men and boys in the fight against gender-based violence and femicide.

The Indaba will also feature a dialogue among high school learners on positive masculinity.

“What About The Boys?” is a GBVF prevention initiative to raise a nation of good men and is an outcome of a 2022 social compact, led by youth organisations and stakeholders in the public and private sectors.

This programme is aligned to Pillar 2: Prevention and Restoration of Social Fabric of the National Strategic Plan (NSP).

One of the key interventions of Pillar 2 of the NSP is to change behaviour and social norms that drive GBVF with key groups within the society using a variety of approaches. 

The President will be supported by the Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga. 

Members of the media are invited as follows:

Date: Tuesday, 29 August 2023
Time: 09h00
Venue: Maponya Mall, Chris Hani Road, Klipspruit, Soweto, Gauteng Province

For media logistics enquiries contact Terence Khala: Basic Education Department Media Liaison Officer on +27 81 758 1546 and Elijah Mhlanga:Head of Communication at Basic Education Department on 083 580 8275 

          
Media enquiries: Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to the President media@presidency.gov.za

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

The Republic of South Africa congratulates the government and the people of The Republic of Zimbabwe for organizing and holding the harmonized elections to elect the President, National Assembly and Local government representatives, which took place on 23 and 24 August 2023.

South Africa is conscious that these elections took place under a difficult economic environment due to the burdening sanctions which the people of Zimbabwe continue to unjustly endure. 

Furthermore, South Africa has taken note of the preliminary pronouncements by the invited International Observers Missions including the African Union (AU) and the South African Development Community (SEOM) Observer Missions.

South Africa calls on all the parties in Zimbabwe to work in unison in sustaining peace and work towards development and shared prosperity in the country.

          
Media enquiries: Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to the President media@presidency.gov.za

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa today, 29 August 2023, met with the chairpersons and chief executives of strategic state-owned enterprises (SOEs) at the Union Buildings to discuss the implementation of measures to stabilize their financial and operational performance and harness their economic potential.

Government has, since 2018, embarked on a process of reform to address the legacy of state capture in SOEs, including through the appointment of capable leadership, the recovery of stolen assets and the pursuit of those responsible for perpetrating acts of corruption. In addition, as part of Operation Vulindlela, fundamental reforms are being implemented in the energy, logistics and water sectors to address structural challenges and reposition SOEs for the future.

President Ramaphosa called on the management and boards of SOEs to accelerate this reform agenda and fulfil their developmental mandate. He emphasized the importance of SOEs, as strategic national assets, in driving inclusive growth, investing in infrastructure, and creating jobs. 

The meeting received a report from the Presidential State Owned Enterprises Council (PSEC), which was appointed by the President in 2020 to advise government on the revitalisation and repurposing of strategic SOEs.

Since its establishment, the Council has undertaken in-depth analyses at 21 SOEs to inform its recommendations. It has proposed changes to the governance framework and shareholder ownership model to enhance oversight, separate the ownership, policy and regulatory functions of the state, and leverage the combined balance sheet of SOEs.

In addition, the National Treasury provided an update on its review of the procurement system to implement the recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture while enabling SOEs to operate in an efficient and competitive manner. Legislative and regulatory reforms are underway to strike an effective balance between preventing corruption and abuse and allowing innovation, agility and responsiveness in procurement. 

President Ramaphosa said: “It is quite clear that the success of our economic recovery relies on the effective functioning of state-owned entities. We are implementing reforms to ensure that SOEs are able to adapt to new economic conditions, including rapid developments in technology, their respective operating environments and changing global trends, and to serve the country well into the future.”

President Ramaphosa will continue to prioritise the turnaround of South Africa’s SOEs in order to drive economic growth and transformation.

Media enquiries: Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to the President, on 082 835 6315

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa will tomorrow, 31 August 2023, officiate at the expansion of the South African Police Service (SAPS) Forensic Science Biology Laboratory and subsequently address the Women in Law Enforcement Parade. 

The unveiling of the expansion of the SAPS Forensic Science Biology Laboratory and Women in Law Enforcement Parade will take place consecutively at Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape Province.

The South African Police Service initiated the expansion of the Forensic Science Biology  Lab following shortcomings identified in addressing the backlog in the analysis of DNA retrieved from crime scenes. 

President Ramaphosa will officially open the expanded Biology DNA Analysis Lab and tour the facility, which is installed with advanced equipment to analyse DNA. The lab will improve turnaround times in DNA analyses and reinforce the fight against Gender Based Violence and Femicide. 

Following the unveiling of the lab, President Ramaphosa will proceed to the Wolfson Stadium to address the Women In Law Enforcement Parade, which encompasses women in the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security Cluster. 

The details of the event are as follows: 

Phase One: Opening and Tour of the Gqeberha Biology Section DNA Lab

Date: Thursday, 31 August 2023
Time: 09h00
Venue: Eben Donges Building, North End, Gqerberha

Phase Two: Women In Law Enforcement Parade

Date: Thursday, 31 August 2023
Time: 11h30
Venue: Isaac Wolfson Stadium, 7 Stofile Street, Kwazakhele, Gqerberha

Media RSVP: Brigadier Athlenda Mathe - +27 82 040 8808

SAPS Media enquiries: Major General Mathapelo Peters on +27 76 065 6502 or Ms Lirandzu Themba on +27 82 604 9080

Media enquiries: Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to the President, on +27 82 835 6315

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed his deep sadness at the significant loss of life inflicted by a fire in a residential building in Marshalltown, Johannesburg, in the early hours of today, Thursday, 31 August 2023.

By 08h30 today, the reported death toll stood at 73, while scores more are injured and receiving medical treatment.

President Ramaphosa offers his deep condolences to the families of the deceased and wishes injured survivors a speedy and full recovery.

The President’s thoughts are also with households and individuals who have lost their accommodation and possessions in this incident.

The President said: “This is a great tragedy felt by families whose loved ones perished in this awful manner, and our hearts go out to every person affected by this event.

“This incident calls on all of us, from the emergency services and other entities of government to community-based organisations, to reach out to survivors to help restore people’s physical psychological wellbeing and offer all material help residents may need.”

President Ramaphosa hopes the investigations into the fire will enable communities and authorities to prevent a repeat of such a tragedy or to bring to book any culpable parties.

Media enquiries: Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to the President, on 082 835 6315

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

President Cyril Ramaphosa will this evening, 31 August 2023, address the nation on the outcomes of the 15th BRICS Summit and on the outcome of the panel investigation into the docking of the Lady R vessel in South Africa.

eNCA will provide a feed to all media and PresidencyZA will also live stream the proceedings.
 
The address is scheduled to take place at 20h00.
 
 
Media enquiries: Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to the President – 082 835 6315
 
Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

In view of the fire disaster in Johannesburg, President Cyril Ramaphosa has cancelled his address to the nation. 

The President will, this afternoon, conduct a site visit to Marshalltown to receive a briefing on the emergency and recovery operations and on the support the government is providing to the affected families.

Time: 17h30 
 

Media enquiries: Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to the President – 082 835 6315
 
Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria