Riyaz Patel
President Cyril Ramaphosa is in Guinea where he began the first leg of his three nation West African tour.
“The visits take place in the context of strengthening the already existing bilateral, political and economic relations between South Africa and the sister countries,” said a statement from the Presidency.
Ramaphosa is expected to touchdown in Ghana Thursday, followed by a visit to Togo Friday.
After his visit to Ghana, President Ramaphosa is scheduled to visit the Republic of Togo on Friday.
South Africa is one of the largest foreign direct investors in Ghana.
Several local firms are operating in Ghana, including, MTN, AngloGold Ashanti, Shoprite, Goldfields, Standard Bank, First National Bank, Barclays/Absa, Multichoice and South African Airways.
South African businesses have a significant footprint in Guinea and Togo as well, with MTN, WBHO, AngloGold Ashanti, Gateway Africa, Plan Africa Holding Guinea SARL and UBU Holdings the major players.
Nedbank is a shareholder in the Lomé Head-Quartered West African Bank, Eco bank.
The Presidency said the working visits are aimed at providing an opportunity for South Africa to explore new areas of cooperation with Guinea, Ghana and Togo, and to promote increased trade and investment flows to the mutual benefit of the peoples of the four countries.
“The visits will also create a platform for President Ramaphosa to engage with his counterparts on matters of mutual interest in South Africa’s quest for a peaceful and prosperous continent in line with the aspirations of AU Agenda 2063 as well as the reform of the global governance system,” the Presidency said.