Finnish President meets Cyril Ramaphosa in Pretoria

Finland’s President Sauli Väinämö Niinistö visited South Africa to meet with President Cyril Ramaphosa at the Union Buildings in Pretoria on Tuesday. This visit came after a state visit by Namibian President Hage Geingob the week prior as reported by the Times Live.

Niinistö had initially planned to visit South Africa in April 2020, but the visit was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This was the first visit by a Finnish leader to South Africa in more than two decades.

Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said Finnish investment is a priority for both countries, with more than R2bn in new investments made in the past three years. Most of the discussions during the visit centred on exploring possible opportunities in renewable energy, information and communication technology, mining technology, packaging and food hygiene, construction, and finance that Finnish and South African companies can work together on.

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A business-to-business matchmaking engagement between South African and Finnish companies preceded the presidential round table. The outcome of the two interactions is expected to result in increased trade and investment between South Africa and Finland.

Magwenya stated that despite its small population and territory, Finland is among the most developed countries in the world and is an important partner to South Africa. Like other Nordics, Finland plays an active role in global affairs, is a strong advocate for multilateralism, has an excellent capacity and track record for peace and mediation efforts, and is a global leader in innovation.

Niinistö’s Southern Africa visit also included a state visit to Namibia.

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Photo: Facebook / @Cyril Ramaphosa