Global Times - South African Mayor looks forward to more trade with China

South African Mayor looks forward to more trade with China

Source: Global Times
[02:25 September 10 2009]
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By Guo Lu in Dalian

A green economy is a major issue for both countries to address, said Dan Plato, executive mayor of Cape Town, in an exclusive interview with the Global Times.

"It will take time to change to a green economy, but the switchover is necessary for both South Africa and China," said Plato.

Plato, 48, elected mayor of Cape Town in May, is looking for environmentally-friendly investment projects in China, including green tourism and renewable energy resources.

A metropolis with great natural beauty and a rich culture, Cape Town was ranked one of the top green cities in the world last year, according to the Ethisphere Institute, a New York-based business ethics and social responsibility think tank.

Plato believed there was much room for the cooperation on renewable energy given his city's experience with green development.

The city introduced a sustainable development program in 2004 to help deal with growing energy needs. The program aims to have 10 percent of homes using solar power and 10 percent of the city's energy consumption coming from renewable resources by 2020.

Plato was also interested in tourism possibilities. The large size of the Chinese population makes tourism a great industry on which the two countries to cooperate, especially if issuing visas becomes easier, Plato told the Global Times.

Last year the number of tourists visiting South Africa was only 5.5 percent higher than the year before.

South Africa's GDP is predicted to contract just under two percent this year, according to Old Mutual Investment Group, a South Africa-based mutual fund company, and other analysts.

"South Africa is picking up from last year's global down -turn, driven by big companies like gold and diamond mine companies in Cape Town," Plato added.

However, trade between China and South Affrica still faces challenges. In 2008, trade volume declined by 23 percent to $5.6 billion.

Doing business in China requires patience because our cultures are so different. We need to try to understand each other and continue working together, Plato said.

According to Plato, South Africa offers a number of policies to encourage investment from overseas. The China- Africa Development Fund, for example, is the first government-supported fund set up to encourage Sino-African trade.

The mayor admitted, however, that the fund is not well-known and not enough people utilize it. "But it could help business people conducting trade between China and South Africa get financing," he said.