<\/p>\n
Addressing delegates alongside President Emmerson Mnangagwa, Ramaphosa said the meeting had reaffirmed the longstanding ties between the two countries and highlighted the need to convert agreements into tangible benefits for citizens. “Today, we have reaffirmed the bonds of friendship, solidarity and cooperation that exist between our two countries and peoples,” Ramaphosa said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Ramaphosa said discussions had demonstrated both the depth of bilateral relations and the need for greater action to unlock the full potential of the partnership. “The agreements and Memoranda of Understanding signed in our presence today, together with the decisions reached, reflect our concrete plans to deepen cooperation,” Ramaphosa said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Ramaphosa stressed that implementation would now be critical. “These instruments must now be implemented so that our countries and peoples benefit,” Ramaphosa said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Ramaphosa described Zimbabwe as one of SA’s most important strategic and trading partners and said both countries had committed to expanding trade and investment. “It remains one of our largest trading partners. We have undertaken here to redouble efforts to expand investment and trade,” Ramaphosa said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
According to Ramaphosa, stronger economic growth is essential to improving access to services and creating jobs, particularly for women and young people.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Ramaphosa highlighted opportunities for cooperation in agriculture, agro-processing, energy, mining, transport, pharmaceuticals, vaccines, water, tourism, financial services and digital technology.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Ramaphosa also emphasised the importance of improving cross-border movement. “We are committed to moving people and goods seamlessly and securely across our border in a well-managed and coordinated manner,” Ramaphosa said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Beyond economic cooperation, Ramaphosa said both countries would continue working together to combat cross-border and transnational organised crime while strengthening cultural and people-to-people relations.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Ramaphosa further linked the bilateral relationship to broader regional goals, saying SA and Zimbabwe would continue supporting regional integration and industrialisation initiatives through the Southern African Development Community. “Our common history and geography are the foundations of our shared future,” Ramaphosa said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“The realisation of that shared future depends on effective and sustained collaboration.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Looking ahead to the next meeting of the Bi-National Commission, Ramaphosa urged officials to focus on implementation. “As we prepare for the Fifth Session of our Bi-National Commission, let us turn our decisions into actions. Let us turn our people’s expectations into reality,” Ramaphosa said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Closing the session, Ramaphosa thanked Mnangagwa and the Zimbabwean delegation for participating in what Ramaphosa described as a historic engagement between two close neighbours.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":43424,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"news-type":[78,44],"class_list":["post-43423","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-featured","news-type-finance","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"South Africa's (SA) President Cyril Ramaphosa has reaffirmed the country's commitment to strengthening economic, trade and investment relations with Zimbabwe following the conclusion of the Fourth Session of the SA-Zimbabwe Bi-National Commission in Pretoria on Friday.","published_date":"","news_description":"South Africa's (SA) President Cyril Ramaphosa has reaffirmed the country's commitment to strengthening economic, trade and investment relations with Zimbabwe following the conclusion of the Fourth Session of the SA-Zimbabwe Bi-National Commission in Pretoria on Friday.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/43423","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/43423\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43425,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/43423\/revisions\/43425"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43424"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43423"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=43423"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}