Mbeki to attend inauguration of Brazilian president

December 30, 2002, 17:15

President Thabo Mbeki and Foreign Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, will attend the inauguration on Wednesday of Luiz Inacio "Lula" da Silva as Brazil's new president. Da Silva, a former metalworker and trade unionist, was elected president on October 27.

"The participation of President Mbeki and his delegation in the inaugural ceremonies of the new Brazilian president is expected to further cement the already excellent relations between South Africa and Brazil," says the department of foreign affairs.

Formal diplomatic relations between the two countries date back to 1948. Brazil was, in later years, at the forefront of calls for the isolation of the apartheid government, said a foreign affairs statement. "Since the transition to a democratic South Africa, bilateral relations between South Africa and Brazil have normalised rapidly, and evolved to a level that could be described as strategic."

The first meeting of a joint commission created to boost bilateral co-operation took place in Brasilia in August. South Africa considers Brazil as a strategic country being the largest economy in South America and playing a prominent role in world diplomacy, the department said. Among other things, Brazil has been a driving force in the promotion of South Africa's relations with countries that make up the South American trade bloc, Mercosur.

Brazil - SA's biggest Latin America trading partner "In view of Brazil's historical link to Africa and its large population of African descent, Brazil is potentially a significant partner in achieving the objectives of Nepad (the New Partnership for Africa's Development)." The department said Brazil was South Africa's biggest trading partner in Latin America. South African exports to that country reached their peak in 1996 with a total of $414 million.

More than a quarter of this figure was represented by industrial alcohol, which Brazil used in its fuel pool. South African exports to Brazil for the following four years were $367 million, $278 million, $172 million and $228 million respectively.

Major South African exports to Brazil included precious and semi-precious stones, metal, anthracite and coal, iron and steel, chemical products, organic chemicals, aluminium, nickel, synthetic fibres, machinery and mechanical appliances, paper and paperboard. Imports from Brazil increased by almost 85% between 1993 and 1997. In 2000, exports to South Africa stood at $302 million a trade surplus of $74 million in Brazil's favour. South Africa imported from that country mostly vehicles and vehicle components, aircraft, machinery, mineral fuels, electrical machinery, animal and vegetable fats and oils, meat, ores, organic chemicals and tobacco. - Sapa