NEWS RELEASES

March 3, 2000 (9:05 a.m. EST) No. 35

KILGOUR TO LEAD LEARNING AND TECHNOLOGY PARTNERSHIP TRADE MISSION TO SOUTH AFRICA

Minister for International Trade Pierre S. Pettigrew announced today that Secretary of State (Latin America and Africa) David Kilgour will lead a partnership trade mission to South Africa from March 6 to 10.

"My goal with this trip to South Africa is to help Canadian businesses reach out to potential partners and forge new relationships," said Kilgour. "These new relationships can both create jobs in Canada and help South Africa improve the skills of its workforce. We will profile and promote Canada as a provider of quality services and products in the area of learning and technology."

The partnership trade mission to South Africa will focus on learning and the application of technology as a means to deliver knowledge and training. The objectives of the mission are to promote advanced learning technologies, to share with South Africans the lessons learned from the Canadian experience in various key areas, and to establish a framework for increasing partnerships in the knowledge industry.

Kilgour and 16 trade mission delegates representing the Canadian private and public learning sectors will participate in a five-day business program in Johannesburg and Capetown. Kilgour and the delegates will have the opportunity to showcase Canadian capabilities, products and services through presentations, panel discussions and business meetings with their South African counterparts.

Canadian and South African participants will address the challenges of education and training development in a rapidly developing knowledge industry, as well as the challenges facing Canada and South Africa in the development of their respective workforces. They will also have the opportunity to use Canadian interactive technologies to address issues in education and workforce development and share best practices in the use of multimedia.

The partnership trade mission will precede two other important learning and training events taking place in Canada this year, which will include South African representatives: the World Education Market Conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, from May 24 to 27, and the 14th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers that will be held in Halifax, Nova Scotia, between November 27 and 30.

Kilgour will take advantage of his visit to the region to hold a number of political meetings. He will meet with Aziz Pahad, South African Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs; attend a roundtable on the Great Lakes organized by the Institute for Global Dialogue; and meet with some members of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

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A list of participants in the delegation and a backgrounder are attached.

For further information, media representatives may contact:

Sylvie Bussières

Office of the Minister for International Trade

(613) 992-7332

Tasha Stefanis

Office of the Secretary of State (Latin America and Africa)

(613) 992-9404

Media Relations Office

Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade

(613) 995-1874

DELEGATION ACCOMPANYING SECRETARY OF STATE (LATIN AMERICA AND AFRICA) DAVID KILGOUR TO SOUTH AFRICA

Robert Baser, DAI Inc., Ottawa, ON

Sandra Bassett, Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology, Ottawa, ON

Robert Davidson, Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada, Ottawa, ON

Dr. Gordon E. Dittberner, AgriVet International, Nepean, ON

Dr. Emery Dosdall, Edmonton Public Schools, Edmonton, AB

Pierre Pontbriand, Informatique D.B.D. Inc., Laval, QC

Erin M. Keough, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NF

Dr. John N. McDowell, Canadian University College, College Heights, AB

Rory McGreal, TeleEducation NB, Fredericton, NB

Dr. Claudia Mitchell, McGill University, Montreal, QC

Gregg Murtagh, Transport Canada International Co-operation, Ottawa, ON

Dr. Abla Sherif, Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology, Ottawa, ON

Dr. Malinda S. Smith, Athabasca University, Edmonton, AB

Dr. Rolf Stokhuyzen, Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, Calgary, AB

Grant Thomas, International Development Research Centre, Ottawa, ON

Ralph Weeks, Medicine Hat College, Medicine Hat, AB

Backgrounder

CANADA-SOUTH AFRICA TRADE RELATIONS

• Canada and South Africa have been progressing toward a strong bilateral trade relationship since the abolition of apartheid. South Africa is Canada's most important trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa and provides a gateway for Canadian companies to other countries in the region.

• South Africa is also the largest source of African direct investment in Canada.

• South Africa was chosen as the destination for the partnership trade mission because it is the most advanced and productive economy on the African continent. In addition, South Africa possesses a sophisticated free market economy with a modern and expanding infrastructure and communications system.

• Two-way trade rose almost 170 percent since 1993 and in 1998 was $817 million. It decreased to $734 million in 1999.

• In 1999, trade figures from Statistics Canada report exports totalled $247 million and imports $487 million. This represents a slight decline from 1998 figures, of $317 million for exports and $514 million for imports.

• Export Development Corporation has made financing available through general purpose lines of credit, and short-term financing is readily available from Canadian commercial banks. Two-way investment remains modest but newly released figures indicate that Canadian direct investment in South Africa increased from $37 million in 1992 to more than $520 million (Jan.-Sept. 1999).

• Investment in Canada by South Africa was negligible in 1998, but stood at $240 million before the 1999 year's end (Jan.-Sept.1999).

• Canadian companies are expanding joint-venture and investment activities and at present there are some 75 Canadian companies with local participation in South Africa.

• Canada's main exports to South Africa in 1998 were aircraft, cereals, sulphur and machinery. South Africa's main exports to Canada in 1998 were precious metals, iron and steel, chemicals, and fruits and nuts.

• Mining and related undertakings continue to be an area of considerable activity and promise with estimates that roughly half of all new mining ventures in all of Africa have Canadian participation. Other key sectors of interest include transportation, telecommunications, information technology, the knowledge industry, agriculture and agri-food.

• Canada has a bilateral development assistance program of up to $62 million over five years. Four priority areas have been identified for the CIDA bilateral program: 1) restructuring of South African government institutions; 2) human resource development; 3) support to civil society; and 4) economic development.