Zambia President Hakainde Hichilema is in South Africa as a guest speaker at a private function.
The Presidency said Hichilema paid President Cyril Ramaphosa a courtesy visit at the Mahlamba Ndlopfu official residence in Tshwane Wednesday afternoon.
Hichilema is visiting South Africa as a guest speaker at a private function, explained the Presidency.
“President Hichilema’s courtesy call on President Ramaphosa provided an opportunity for bilateral discussions between South Africa and Zambia ahead of an Inaugural Bi-National Commission scheduled for later this year,” said the Presidency.
“Today’s meeting also touched on regional issues, reaffirming South Africa and Zambia’s common international policy of a stable and peaceful continent.
“This shared approach includes the use of multilateral bodies to advance the African Agenda and that of the global South, and the collective solidarity of the SADC community in the fight against terrorism and insurgencies.”
The South African president commended Zambia’s fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, reasserting that developing countries must have equity in developing and distributing vaccines.
Ramaphosa and Hichilema noted progress in the establishment of facilities in Africa for the production of vaccines and other therapeutics that will reach populations around the continent.
They identified the need for South Africa and Zambia to keep one another abreast of investment opportunities in each country.
Ramaphosa and Hichilema agreed to actively encourage businesses to invest in areas of mutual benefit for regional development, such as in mineral beneficiation, local manufacturing, and agriculture.
“President Ramaphosa and President Hichilema cemented bilateral relations between the two countries,” said the Presidency.
South Africa and Zambia enjoy cordial bilateral relations, underpinned by strong historical and political bonds that date back to the era of the liberation struggle and apartheid colonialism.
