President Jacob Zuma has welcomed the Delhi Declaration issued by the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa following the 4th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on Thursday, saying it would invigorate their collective resolve to find global solutions to global challenges.

The Delhi Declaration highlights the possibility of establishing a new Development Bank for emerging economies and developing countries.

It also tackles the roles of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, the Doha Round of trade talks, energy, efforts to fight terrorism, the situation in the Middle East and North Africa, particularly Syria, Iran, and Afghanistan, and the humanitarian crisis in the Horn of Africa.

In a statement issued after the meeting, President Zuma said he was pleased with the BRICS leaders' commitment to support Africa and South Africa's comprehensive infrastructure development programmes, as part of stimulating sustainable development and prosperity on the continent.

BRICS Development Bank plan

The President also welcomed the decision to prepare for a new BRICS-led Development Bank for inclusive and sustainable development projects.

In the declaration, the leaders directed their finance ministers to work towards forming a Development Bank that would cater to the needs of developing countries while supplementing the existing efforts of multilateral and regional financial institutions for global growth and development.

"This development is welcomed by many other African leaders as it will support our priority infrastructure projects as well as trade and investment opportunities with our BRICS partners," Zuma said. "Such a bank has great potential to help us create good jobs in developing countries."

Concern over WTO trade talks impasse

On the matter of inclusive growth, Zuma said the BRICS leaders were concerned about the current impasse in WTO trade negotiations, and the threat to the Doha Development Agenda.

"Developing economies are under pressure to offer additional and unreciprocated access to their markets in industrial products and services, in exchange for moderate reforms in agricultural protectionism. This is unfair, un-mandated and anti-development."

Regarding global governance, Zuma said the BRICS leaders had reflected on the comprehensive reform that was required of global decision-making structures to better reflect the current realities of a multi-polar world.

The leaders also discussed the situation in the Middle East and North Africa. According to Zuma, in order to bring stability to these regions, strong global governance was required now more than ever.

The BRICS leaders also discussed the important issues of food security and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals by 2015.

Source: BuaNews

South Africa's Gauteng province will spend R8.5-billion on formalising squatter camps over the next three years, Premier Nomvula Mokonyane said at the opening of the first phase of the R487-million Jabulani Hostel Redevelopment Project in Soweto on Thursday.

The project will see 1 919 community residential and state-subsidised units completed over the next few years.

To be built on the site of the single-sex hostels designed for migrant labourers during South Africa's apartheid era, the new units will provide a more family-oriented environment for the current hostel dwellers as well as other income groups.

Bulk infrastructure services will be completed by the end of April, with occupation expected at the end of May.

'I'm overflowing with joy'

"I'm very happy. I'm overflowing with joy," said 66-year-old Edmond Ngwenya, a hostel-dweller since 1968, who will be among those to move into the units once the finishing touches have been completed.

Ngwenya described the living conditions in the hostels as difficult, almost unbearable at times. The communal set-up allowed for little privacy and was no environment in which to raise a family, Ngwenya added. His new unit would finally give his family a home.

Also speaking at Thursday's launch, Human Settlements Minister Tokyo Sexwale said the project would offer hope and dignity.

Bringing people together

He said it was an integrated project that would bring people together, adding that it was unacceptable to have the poorest of the poor on one side of the railway line and those who fell into different categories elsewhere.

"What we are seeing is a new attempt, a new vision, a new strategy to put our people together so that we negate what apartheid was doing.

"Our job is not to provide just houses but homes," Sexwale said. "A home is an asset ... One day, people will be able to trade these things ... What we are seeing here is property development."

People who do not have an income, up to those who earn R3 500 a month, will benefit from the project.

It will also cater to the "gap market" of people who earn too much to qualify for state subsidies, but too little to qualify for bank loans.

Source: BuaNews

More than 30 South African businesses are taking part in a five-day initiative aimed at creating market penetration for local value-added products and services in Russia.

Led by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Trade and Investment Initiative follows on President Jacob Zuma's state visit to Russia in August 2010, which recommended efforts to increase trade between the two countries.

Oil and gas, agro-processing, metal and aerospace enterprises, as well as the mining and capital equipment sectors, are participating in the initiative, which kicks off on Monday and includes mini-exhibitions and business-to-business meetings.

South Africa's export basket to Russia is currently dominated by primary sector products, particularly agricultural products such as citrus fruits, apples and pears. Russia's exports basket, by contrast, is concentrated more on fabricated products.

Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said there had been substantial growth in total trade between South Africa and Russia between 2006 to 2011, from R2.5-billion to R3.2-billion.

"South African exports increased from R670-million in 2006 to R2.02-billion in 2011," Davies said last week.

Russia is the world's seventh-largest economy by nominal GDP and the sixth-largest by purchasing power parity. It is South Africa's 41st biggest export destination.

Source: BuaNews

South Africans celebrate Humans Right Day on Wednesday - a day to reflect and honour the heroes and heroines who laid down a monumental foundation during the struggle for a rights-based, democratic and just society.

The day also celebrates the country's Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

Marked on 21 March, Human Rights Day remembers the massacres in Sharpeville and other parts of the country. On that fateful day in 1960, police opened fire and killed 69 people at a peaceful demonstration against the apartheid pass laws.

In recognition of the massacre, the United Nations General Assembly in 1966 declared the day International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination - which is observed annually.

16th anniversary of the Constitution

This year's commemoration coincides with the 16th anniversary of the Constitution, a fundamental vision statement that gives full expression to South Africa's democratic ideals, guaranteeing the rights of every South African and guiding the policies and actions of the government.

The country is widely acknowledged for having one of the most progressive Constitutions in the world.

Walter Sisulu Square of Dedication

President Jacob Zuma will deliver the day's keynote address at an official event at the Walter Sisulu Square of Dedication in Kliptown, Soweto, under the theme: "Working together to promote unity in diversity and human dignity for all".

The theme calls on all South Africans, in the spirit experienced during the drafting of the Freedom Charter, to rally together to realise the goals envisaged in the Constitution.

The President is expected to focus on the government's commitment to reinforce, protect and promote the human rights that are enshrined in the Constitution.

Source: BuaNews

The Eastern Cape Automotive Sector Support Initiative was launched in Port Elizabeth on Monday, with the government, industry and labour set to collaborate on a number of measures to advance the sector in the province.

"Today marks the start of a process of ongoing collaboration between the public and private sectors in the Eastern Cape to jointly formulate responses and implement key programmes in the automotive sector," Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said at the launch.

Joint provincial programmes

Joint programmes already agreed upon cover the areas of logistics, skills development, and supplier development, localisation and incubation.

The support initiative will work on developing the road and rail corridor between Port Elizabeth and East London, and between the Eastern Cape and Gauteng province, while also undertaking regular skills and needs audits in the sector.

It will also work with the Durban Auto Cluster to implement the Automotive Supplier Competitiveness Improvement Project.

National development programme

Davies said the national Motor Industry Development Programme (MIDP) has contributed positively to the motor industry in terms of production and export values.

"Production volumes have grown from about 389 000 units in 1995 to a peak of 587 719 units in 2006 before dipping to 373 923 units in 2009, and bouncing back to 532 545 units in 2011," Davies said.

The MIDP is being phased out, and will be replaced by the Automotive Production Development Programme (APDP), which comes into operation in 2013.

Davies said there was an opportunity to increase the local content in domestically assembled vehicles, coupled with an expansion of the component export basket.

Source: BuaNews

South Africa's relations with India continue to yield positive results, SA High Commissioner to India Harris Majeke told a business seminar hosted by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in Chennai, India on Monday.

The five-day seminar, part of and international Investment and Trade Initiative (ITI) led by Trade and Industry Deputy Minister Elizabeth Thabethe, kicked off on Monday and ends in Mumbai on Friday.

"This gathering serves to reinforce the longstanding friendship that both India and South Africa have shared since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1993," Majeke said.

Billions in trade, investment

"We have been able to build quite a diversified economic and political framework, with bilateral trade between our countries growing from US$4-billion to $11.1-billion over the 2005 to 2011 period."

Majeke said India ranked among the top 10 investing countries in South Africa, with investments estimated at over $6-billion to date. South Africa's investments into India have also been growing steadily, with investment now amounting to $250-million.

Majeke said initiatives that were being undertaken to step trade and investment up further. These included the establishment of an India-South Africa joint ministerial commission, the India-South Africa CEOs Forum, and the signing of trade and various other agreements.

South Africa and India also cooperate on defence matters and small enterprise development.

SA, Indian business delegations

"We are also in the process of negotiating a preferential trade agreement between our countries," Majeke said. "This will further accelerate trade flows, and extend the range of traded goods, which will deepen the mutually beneficial trade and investment ties between our developing countries of the South," he said.

The seminar is being attended by over 100 South African and Indian businessmen and women.

Sibongile Sambo, managing director of SRS Aviation and part of the 45-member South African delegation attending the seminar, said she had already managed to negotiate a potential deal with an Indian aviation company this week.

Source: BuaNews

Banking group Absa and the Department of Science and Technology have signed an agreement to collaborate on a range of technology and agricultural business development programmes aimed at stimulating South Africa's growth trajectory.

Speaking in Pretoria on Monday after signing the memorandum of understanding, Science and Technology Minister Naledi Pandor said the partnership was in line with the government's bid to find "sustainable strategies to increase investment in research and development, and also stimulate business to do the same".

Closing the 'innovation chasm'

In terms of the agreement, the department and Absa will work together on human capital development, technology commercialisation, renewable energy technologies, information communication technology (ICT) and agricultural business development.

Pandor said the partnership would help to address the "innovation chasm" in ICT, information security and renewable energy technologies.

Underlying the collaboration was an attempt to create "synergies in the research, development and innovation enterprise," Pandor said, adding that it was crucial for South Africa to promote a prosperous society that derived equitable benefits from science and technology.

Partnerships for human development

Absa's chief executive for retail and business banking, Bobby Malabie, said Absa was committed to helping the government widen access to high-level graduate programmes in science and engineering.

"Our role extends beyond that of a mere bank," Malabie said. "We are a true partner in society as we take a step closer today towards realising the desired partnership with universities to attract quality graduates who will be able to advance the fields of science, engineering and technology.

"It is only through industrial, governmental and educational partnerships that this can be achieved," he said.

Source: BuaNews

Kemantha Govender

The lives of rural women in parts of KwaZulu-Natal are changing for the better now that their arts and crafts are being properly marketed and sold, with help from the Siyazisiza Trust.

The Trust, started in 1987, operates in Nongoma, northern KwaZulu-Natal, and opens up distribution channels for the women. It also provides the women with training and financial literacy.

The Trust works with affiliate organisation Khumbulani Craft, which provides job skills and practical business training to crafters in the KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces.

Deputy Tourism Minister Tokozile Xasa visited Nongoma on Monday to see for herself how women are trying to eradicate poverty and sustain their lives through their art.

Xasa urged the women to persevere with their businesses because apart from financial gains, their craft also told stories about the country's history and culture.

Phumla Mnganga, chairperson of the Siyazisiza Trust, told BuaNews that illiteracy rates among rural women were high, "so they don't always understand the concepts of costing. We provide organisational capacity and help them create proper structures for their work."

Some of the women's work has been used to decorate the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy, and had it not been for the Trust, they would not have had such an opportunity, despite being highly skilled in their craft.

Tourism company Tourvest is another distribution channel made possible by the Trust.

"We are aware that often such partnerships tend to be exploitative," Xasa said. "We are assured that, through the involvement of the Siyazisiza Trust, the women receive a fair price for their crafts."

Xasa said the partnership was a great example of how, through socio-economic development, rural craft women were being empowered.

The government has prioritised the development of a culture and heritage strategy for South Africa, which will identify ways of turning culture and heritage into sought-after attractions.

"We also are looking at unlocking the economic development of these products," Xasa said.

Source: BuaNews

Diverse contemporary artists producing new and important work.

South Africa wants to learn from Oman when it comes to tackling piracy in the Mozambican Channel, Defence Minister Lindiwe Sisulu said after signing a defence co-operation memorandum with her Omani counterpart, Sayyid bin Saud bin Harib al-Busaidi.

The memorandum, signed in Cape Town on Tuesday, includes an agreement on technical co-operation, an agreement to share lessons around peace-keeping operations, and the sale of military hardware to Oman by South Africa.

Sisulu said Oman had vital lessons to share with South Africa around maritime protection, as both countries were strategically placed on international sea routes between Asia and the rest of the world.

Oman was the first country in the Gulf to acquire military hardware from South Africa, and Sisulu said she was confident that, with South Africa's large military industry, the relationship would continue.

The signing of the agreement follows President Jacob Zuma's state visit to Oman in November 2011.

Oman and South Africa have enjoyed good relations with one another since 1995, with SA setting up an embassy in Muscat in 2002, and Oman establishing its Pretoria embassy the following year.

Source: BuaNews

South African Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa has called on protestors taking part in Wednesday's marches to cooperate with the police to ensure that the protests are peaceful and orderly.

"We urge everybody who will be partaking in the protests tomorrow to do so in an orderly manner," Mthethwa said on Tuesday.

"Police, assisted by their counterparts including defence, local government, event organisers and other stakeholders, will be on hand to ensure that no property is destroyed, no harassment takes place, and basically ensure that all things run smoothly."

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) has planned 32 marches across the country on Wednesday, including marches in Johannesburg and Cape Town, in protest against the use of labour brokers and e-tolling on Gauteng's freeways, among other things.

'Good cooperation' between police, organisers

Mthethwa, who was briefed by police management about security operational plans on Tuesday, noted that there had been good cooperation between the march organisers and police in the pre-planning phase.

He called for this cooperation to be strengthened to avoid any unnecessary altercations and tensions in the future.

He also called on union leaders to discourage their members from any ill behaviour.

Disorderly protest 'will not be tolerated'

"Police have a mandate to protect law-abiding citizens, and those who find themselves on the wrong side, we shall have no leniency on them," Mthethwa said.

"We also urge community members who witness such evil actions to report them to the police. No person has the right to take the law into their own hands, under whatever circumstances."

He said that while the government respected the rights of citizens to express themselves through protest marches, it would not tolerate any disorderly or violent protests.

Source: BuaNews

South Africa is a culturally diverse country, one nation made up of many peoples.