Déclaration de M. François Huwart, secrétaire d'Etat au commerce extérieur, sur l'évolution des relations industrielles et commerciales entre la France et l'Afrique du Sud, à Johannesbourg le 1er juin 2001. (discours en anglais).
Date: 2001-06-01
Orateur: François Huwart
Fonction: FRANCE. SE au commerce extérieur

Honourable Minister, Mr Trevor Abrahams, CEO of the Civil Aviation Authority, Chairmen and CEOs, Ladies and gentlemen, It is a genuine pleasure for me to be back here in South Africa just one year after my first official visit. I am both pleased and proud to be part of this strong French delegation headed by Prime Minister Lionel Jospin. A visit to South Africa is always very special and very dear for French people. It must go back to the dreary days of the anti-apartheid struggle and also to the tremendous joy we all felt when Nelson Mandela gave birth to the new South Africa. For these reasons, there are ties today between our two countries that go far beyond the usual bilateral relations. This mutual admiration and sympathy may account for the quality of our trade and economic links, if not yet the quantity of our exchanges. It is a fact that trade and investment are not yet what they ought to be. The one message I certainly want to stress today is that the French government believes in the strengths and chances of the new South Africa. We believe that your potential for growth and development is formidable and I can tell you that many French firms share this view. The sheer number of French businessmen who are here to attend this economic forum is a clear sign of that. We are thus convinced that our economic ties ought to be even tighter than what they now are. So let me take this opportunity to congratulate the organisers of this French-South African Economic Forum which is pursuing this very goal of tightening our economic ties. I would like to thank all the speakers and both chairmen at this forum as well as our MC, TISA, the DTI, the BBC and Mafube Publishing for their active participation in this event. All the agreements that have just been signed must be as many tools in this respect. I know, for instance, that large companies like Eurocopter and SNECMA are already helping South African companies to enter the European market. This is exactly the kind of partnership that the free trade agreement that was signed between Europe and South Africa is expected to bolster. These agreements also bear witness to the commitment of French companies to South Africa, in terms of investment, economic empowerment, offset programmes and affirmative action. French companies are able to comply with South African regulations, and even if sometimes they are sometimes reluctant to make dramatic announcements like others, you can be sure, Mister Minister, that they will keep their promises. But let me add a word about economic empowerment and affirmative action. A very interesting and passionate workshop was held this morning on this topic. I must say I am quite proud of the achievements of two major French companies, Alstom and Schneider, both world leaders in the electrical equipment industry, which have just signed black economic empowerment agreements today, respectively with Kgorong Investment and Malesela Holdings. In less than a year these two groups have invested massively in South Africa and transformed the companies they bought into ones that are more representative than before. I am proud to witness that French companies have been very quick to follow the recommendations of your government. I tend to see it also as another indication that French firms are very determined to take part in the great infrastructure modernisation projects concerning transportation, power distribution or telecommunications. But I would also would like to mention the agreement that you just signed with the French Aerospace Institute, IAS. Since 1995, the French government has been giving scholarships to previously disadvantaged South African engineers to come to France to train in the field of space and aeronautics. This programme has been very successful. I remember last year, Minister Erwin, when I attended the farewell ceremony for 6 young black men going to Toulouse, the European capital for space and aeronautics, where Airbus is set to build its new giant plane, the A 380. ATDF is now our partner for the 2001 programme. Five more students will come to France in July to complete the same course. Let me take this opportunity to mention briefly on the agreement that was just signed by Mr Abrahams and the CEO of Bureau Veritas. This 4.5 million French francs grant (686 000 euros) from the French government will help upgrade the South African civil aviation regulations framework. This is the second French grant in one year to South Africa, after the SADC upper airspace project, and I sincerely hope these ties will be strengthened in the aviation industry as well. As a rule, French companies are quite aware of economic empowerment and affirmative action in their business practises, and play a key role in giving more opportunities to black people in their training programmes as well as in the management or shareholding of their South African subsidiaries. I am convinced that their long experience in many parts of Africa is precious in this regard. As for investment, the other topic you discussed this morning: it is something that the French government is following closely. More and more French firms see South Africa as a strategic country from which they can reach out to other African markets or the Indian Ocean. Renault for instance has decided to transfer their African sales management to Johannesburg for the entire African market. Turbomeca, with its shares in Denel, will also have a regional African maintenance centre based in South Africa. Nevertheless, the stock of French investments remains too low in spite of South Africa's great assets and prospects. At the same time, to attract foreign investments is one of your country's top priorities. Therefore, I want to renew my call to French firms not to miss these opportunities. There is one last agreement that I want to mention because it can give a boost to partnerships between South-African and French firms, it involves "CFME ACTIM", soon to be renamed Ubifrance, and its counterpart, "Trade and Invest South-Africa". I am glad to see that their cooperation agreement was renewed. Ladies and gentlemen, you can be sure that all the Directors of French subsidiaries in your country enjoy being here very much and actively feed the French passion for the African continent. Africa, as a whole, is faced with daunting challenges. To ensure that the continent is not left out of the globalisation process but is able to translate it into economic growth and development, France and South Africa must lead the way and work together. During this visit, I have already seen very encouraging signs of mutual willingness to do so. I am now confident that this forum and the agreements signed here today will prove helpful in the years to come. One thing is for sure, we do consider the new South Africa as a privileged and essential partner, not only on this continent, but in the world at large. Thank you (source http://www.minefi.gouv.fr, le 3 août 2001)