MINSK, 5 November (BelTA) - Chairman of the House of Representatives Igor Sergeyenko met with Speaker of the National Assembly of the Parliament of the Republic of South Africa Angela Thokozile Didiza in Midrand, South Africa, BelTA learned from the House of Representatives.
As Igor Sergeyenko noted, South Africa is a dynamically developing state and the recent transformations that have been carried out in the country have increased its international standing. "Belarus also does not stand still," he stressed. "Thanks to the president of our country, we have managed to make Belarus not only sovereign, but also economically independent, which is much more difficult."
Describing the economic potential of Belarus, the speaker spoke about the successes achieved in the IT industry, mechanical engineering, precision farming, the creation of new medicines and methods in healthcare. "For the first time in the history of the Belarusian state, a Belarusian female cosmonaut made a trip to the International Space Station. Our country has received the status of a modern space power," the chairman of the House of Representatives said.
Igor Sergeyenko also mentioned the high-tech and infrastructure projects, which are drivers of the development of Belarus. Among them are the Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant, the Great Stone Industrial Park, the BelGEE Plant, and Belarusian National Biotechnology Corporation. Four Belarusian satellites were launched into Earth orbit, the first hybrid heart surgery was performed, etc.
Belarus' GDP rose by 4.5% in January-September. So far the Belarusian economy has been growing at a rate much higher than the WB forecast of 4% for Belarus for 2024. In general, GDP in dollar terms expanded by 4.1 times over 1993 and exceeded $72 billion in 2023. Over 30 years, GDP at purchasing power parity per capita has increased 6.5 times, up to $30,800.
Speaking about the socially-oriented model of the Belarusian economy Igor Sergeyenko said that Belarus has one of the lowest levels of poverty, not only among the CIS countries, but also among the EU states.
Igor Sergeyenko invited Angela Thokozile Didiza to pay an official visit to Belarus to get familiar with the economic opportunities of Belarus and the prospects for the development of trade and economic relations. He said that the National Assembly had formed a working group on cooperation with the Parliament of South Africa and expressed confidence that its contacts with a similar structure in the National Assembly of South Africa would contribute to the intensification of Belarusian-South African cooperation in all areas, and first of all in the development of the legal framework of bilateral cooperation.
The parties discussed the prospects for the development of trade and economic cooperation. “Belarus attaches special importance to the export of goods and services to the markets of African countries. We are interested in intensifying contacts with South Africa in trade, cooperation in agriculture and industry,” Igor Sergeyenko said.
He stressed Belarus’ readiness to expand supplies of haul trucks (BelAZ is one of the world’s top three manufacturers), agricultural machinery (every tenth tractor is produced in Belarus), fertilizers (20% of the world market), utilities machinery, buses, petrochemical products, medicines, consumer goods, food products and so on.
The exchange of visits of agencies and business circles will contribute to the deepening of economic relations, Igor Sergeyenko stressed. In his words, Belarus is ready to hold the fifth meeting of the Belarusian-South African committee for trade and economic cooperation and the fourth meeting of the joint intergovernmental commission for cooperation in science and technology.
The parties also touched upon the assistance of the MPs of the two countries in the process of setting up the joint Belarusian-South African working group on cooperation in agriculture, and the development of a legal framework for cooperation between the Belarusian Agriculture and Food Ministry and the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of South Africa.
Speaking about the potential for cooperation in agriculture, Igor Sergeyenko cited the experience of Zimbabwe. The country has been implementing an agricultural mechanization program together with Belarus since 2020. About 2,000 Belarusian tractors and combine harvesters have been delivered to Zimbabwe within the framework of the program. Thanks to this, in 2022, for the first time in the last 50 years, Zimbabwe fully provided itself with grain, yielding the largest wheat harvest of 375,000 tonnes.
During the meeting, the parties also emphasized the importance of the project to set up a tractor assembly plant in South Africa based on Belarusian technology under the local brand "Ganda Ganda". This project has been underway since 2021. It not only enables to provide small and medium-sized farms in South Africa with affordable agricultural equipment, but also creates new jobs.
Discussing the prospects of multilateral cooperation, the parties reaffirmed their commitment to coordinating their actions in international parliamentary structures when addressing acute global and regional issues. It concerns mainly the illegality of the sanctions policy against the most vulnerable countries, politicization of human rights, and global food and water security.
In this regard, Igor Sergeyenko stated that Belarus fully shares the values and principles of BRICS. It is the only applicant to join this prestigious organization representing the European region. Belarus applied for full-fledged membership in BRICS in May 2023. "This year we became a partner state. This is a step before joining the association," he explained. The speaker expressed the hope for South Africa's support in Belarus’ bid to become a full-fledged member of BRICS.
During the meeting, the parties also emphasized the importance of the project to set up a tractor assembly plant in South Africa based on Belarusian technology under the local brand "Ganda Ganda". This project has been underway since 2021. It not only enables to provide small and medium-sized farms in South Africa with affordable agricultural equipment, but also creates new jobs.
Discussing the prospects of multilateral cooperation, the parties reaffirmed their commitment to coordinating their actions in international parliamentary structures when addressing acute global and regional issues. It concerns mainly the illegality of the sanctions policy against the most vulnerable countries, politicization of human rights, and global food and water security.
In this regard, Igor Sergeyenko stated that Belarus fully shares the values and principles of BRICS. It is the only applicant to join this prestigious organization representing the European region. Belarus applied for full-fledged membership in BRICS in May 2023. "This year we became a partner state. This is a step before joining the association," he explained. The speaker expressed the hope for South Africa's support in Belarus’ bid to become a full-fledged member of BRICS.
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