South Africa

The Minister of Trade and Industry, Mandisi Mpahlwa, has appealed to South African business people to take advantage of investment opportunities in their fellow Southern African Development Community (SADC) member-state, Mauritius. Minister Mpahlwa was speaking at the signing ceremony of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Economic Co-operation between the two countries, which took place at Radisson Hotel, in Cape Town. The Mauritian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, Dr Arvin Boolell, also attended the ceremony.

THE rising cost of imports has added an extra R13bn to Transnet's five-year capital investment programme, prompting the state-owned freight transport company to revise its initial budget of R65bn.

Transnet said this week that imports made up about 30% of its planned capital expenditure programme. The group, which plans to expand capacity of its ports, railways and pipelines, will now spend R78bn over the next five years.

As India and Africa hold their first ever Agri-Food Summit, the Asian powerhouse has emphasised the importance of increasing its trade relations with African countries, especially in the field of agriculture and agro-based products.

Inaugurating the Summit Tuesday, India's Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, pointing out the significance of holding the Summit in Agriculture, said there was a need to share experience for mutual benefit.