🇿🇦 🌍 South Africa envisions a more integrated and empowered Africa in the emerging multipolar world, official says
In an interview with Sputnik Africa, Deputy Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Zuko Godlimpi emphasized the importance of free movement of capital, labor, and technology across the continent.
👉 He highlighted South Africa's role as a champion for African interests on global platforms like the BRICS, the World Trade Organization, and G20.
🗣 "South Africa has always internalized the position that it is there representing the aspirations of the rest of the African continent… whatever agreement it brokers, it brokers with an eye of opening up opportunity channels for the rest of Africa so that Africa can collectively develop," he stated.
Godlimpi highlighted the proposed Pan-African critical minerals corridor, aiming to create a unified approach to processing and utilizing these resources within the continent. He also stressed the importance of infrastructure development, mentioning the African Continental Free Trade Area's focus on rail, internet, and airfreight connectivity.
In a multipolar world, the official noted, countries no longer have to negotiate with the world individually. He sees BRICS as a key platform for fostering this kind of collaborative development.
🗣 "They come together leveraging the experiences of other countries, leveraging the capabilities of other countries and benefiting from a large scope of technology transfer," Godlimpi explained, emphasizing the need to protect the multipolar world from degenerating into great power competition, which could hinder Africa's ability to shape its own destiny.