A ministerial delegation from South Africa will meet on Wednesday in Malelane, in the South African province of Mpumalanga, with representatives of Mozambique’s government to discuss ‘the current situation of instability in Mozambique’, the South African authorities announced on Tuesday.
‘The meeting is taking place due to various challenges we are facing,’ Chrispin Phiri, spokesperson for South Africa’s minister of international relations and cooperation, told Lusa, without giving details.
According to the ministerial spokesman, Ronald Lamola, the head of South Africa’s diplomacy, will lead the South African delegation. It will include officials from the Ministries of Defence, Home Affairs, Trade and Industry, the Police and Porto, the Revenue Authority (SARS), and the Border Management Authority (BMA).
In a statement released by South Africa’s Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation, it is announced that the Mozambican delegation will be led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Verónica Dhlovo, who will represent the neighbouring country’s counterpart areas, with the aim of the meeting being ‘to address the challenges in Mozambique’.
‘This meeting represents a significant opportunity for collaboration and dialogue between South Africa and Mozambique,’ reads the note.
The South African ministerial spokesperson considered that ‘the current situation of instability in Mozambique requires additional consultations beyond the recent bilateral talks on the border situation’ between the two countries.
‘We would like to see a de-escalation of the situation and mutual engagement,’ he said, emphasising that Pretoria “will assist in whatever is necessary”.
According to the South African government, the ministerial delegations will visit the South African border post of Lebombo in Komatipoort in the afternoon after the meeting.
The main border between South Africa and Mozambique (Ressano Garcia, on the Mozambican side) is considered one of the main supply routes to the neighbouring country, including the capital, Maputo.
This border has faced several disruptions in the last two months due to the post-election protests in Mozambique.
The head of the Freight Forwarders Association of South Africa (RFA), Gavin Kelly, called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to intervene, estimating the damage to the South African economy at around 10 million rand (€532,000) a day as a result of the current demonstrations and unrest in the neighbouring Portuguese-speaking country.
Last week, the President of Angola, João Lourenço, urged South Africa in Pretoria to find a regional solution to the ‘worrying’ crisis of instability that he said was affecting Mozambique.
‘I would like to convey to you the interest of the Republic of Angola and my interest in developing lines of communication and permanent consultation with South Africa, to define common positions and strategies for finding solutions to the various crises that arise in our region, such as the worrying instability currently occurring in Mozambique due to the non-acceptance by one party of the results of the last general elections held in that country,’ said João Lourenço.
The Angolan head of state was speaking at the Union Buildings in Pretoria at the end of a meeting with his host, Cyril Ramaphosa, as part of his first state visit to South Africa.
Lusa
