South Africa Aims to Boost Trade With Russia, BRICS Partners for Economic Growth, Official Says

South Africa's Deputy Minister of Trade, Industry, and Competition, Zuko Godlimpi, has outlined a vision for enhanced cooperation with Russia within the BRICS framework, focusing on key areas of mutual benefit.

Godlimpi emphasized the shared goals of South Africa and Russia, both BRICS members, to build a fairer global trading system that better represents developing nations. He highlighted the importance of increased cooperation among BRICS countries, particularly in building resilient supply chains for agricultural and energy sectors.

"Russia has historic capabilities on the line of gas to energy power generation, and South Africa is grappling with its energy security concerns," he said in an interview with Sputnik Africa. "That's one area of cooperation that we want to have a productive conversation with the Russians."

He also pointed to the significant potential for increased trade in agricultural products, noting that South Africa has the capacity to supply the Russian market. Furthermore, the official emphasized the importance of leveraging technology transfer and investment opportunities in the energy sector, particularly with the global green transition underway.

"The key issue to our long-term economic growth is to build alternative markets for South African products, and BRICS is a good starting point in expanding our market footprint," he explained.

Technological Sovereignty

South Africa embraces homegrown innovation for energy security and green transition, the deputy trade minister said. He noted that Africa is poised to take a leading role in the global green transition, particularly in renewable energy technology.

The official sees a significant opportunity for African innovators to drive solutions for the continent's energy security challenges rather than simply importing solutions from elsewhere.

Godlimpi highlighted the potential of South African companies like Hala Energy, which are focused on developing renewable energy technologies to address the country's energy security concerns.

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"Our intention is to process and build renewable technology capabilities in Africa," Godlimpi emphasized. "So what we would want is to have a conversation of partnerships with investors from across the globe to not only be concerned about buying minerals from Africa, but to go and invest right inside Africa in building our domestic manufacturing value chains in critical minerals for the green transition."

He stressed that the South African government is committed to supporting such businesses and helping them scale up their operations.

A More Integrated & Empowered Africa

South Africa envisions a more integrated and empowered Africa in the emerging multipolar world, the official said, emphasizing the importance of free movement of capital, labor, and technology across the continent.

The deputy minister highlighted South Africa's role as a champion for African interests on global platforms like the BRICS, the World Trade Organization, and the 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.

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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.