Iran’s first lady calls for urgent action on trade imbalance

Anna Cox THE MINISTER of Minerals and Energy Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka is urging South African businesswomen to take advantage of opportunities made available by the growing trade relations between South Africa and Islamic Republic of Iran. Mlambo-Ngcuka recently addressed a meeting held in Pretoria which was attended by women from Iran and South Africa to discuss business opportunities. The focus was around business sectors mainly in the oil and gas, pharmaceutical industry, education, science and technology, and rural development. Iran’s first lady, Zohreh Sadeghi, who was on an official state visit to South Africa, led the Iranian women’s delegation. Thirty South African businesswomen representing different sectors attended the meeting which was hosted by the Women and Gender Empowerment Unit of the Department of Trade and Industry. Iran is currently South Africa’s third largest trading partner in the Middle East with the total trade between the two countries amounting to R9.9 billion. Ninety percent of South African imports from Iran consist of crude oil, said Mlambo-Ngcuka. She added that SA’s imports from Iran accounted for R9.6 billion while exports were R372 million in 2002. “This evidently exposes the huge trade imbalance that existed between the two countries. “This imbalance needs to be addressed urgently. The signing of the Bilateral Trade Agreement in 1996, and the Agreement on the Reciprocal Promotion and Protection of Investment in 1997, will go a long way in addressing this imbalance,” she said.