Ministers reviewed the work of the sector groups. The automotive group concentrated its attention on ways of exchanging information between Australia and South Africa in developments in their respective car plans, especially in regard to the development of export capacity. The focus of this work would be the period beyond the year 2000. The work would be directed both to vehicle manufacture and to trade in components. The mining group dealt with a sector in which both countries have extremely well-established and mature industries.
Opportunities therefore arise only in specialised, niche areas.
They suggested additional links between industry and research institutes, on such issues as mineral benefication, value-adding in mineral projects, the concept of limited life projects, rehabilitation of mine sites, and recovery of both contaminated and valuable product from closed mines. Members of the group will do further work on the prospect for collaboration in service agreements and joint ventures for specific projects in Asia. The food groups discussed the need for a protocol on requirements for reciprocal market access for fruit and vegetables and livestock. They indicated a commercial interest in application of Australian electronic transfers for documentation for exports. The group reviewed, as did Ministers, the differential South African tariff regimes for meat products, especially the high tariff applied to mutton imports.