Undersecretary Reinart: opportunities for Estonia-South Africa cooperation mainly in ICT field

Undersecretary for Economic and Development Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Väino Reinart is on a visit to the Republic of South Africa where he met with the Minister of Small Business Development of South Africa Lindiwe Zulu today.

Undersecretary Reinart and the Minister of Small Business Development Lindiwe Zulu agreed that in relations between the two countries, developing economic ties has the most potential. “Opportunities for cooperation between Estonia and South Africa are mainly in the field of ICT, cooperation in research and development, tourism and the service sector also has potential,” Reinart said.

The Undersecretary and the Minister also discussed the EU-Africa Summit taking place in Abidjan in the autumn, when Estonia as the member state holding the presidency of the EU Council has an important role in highlighting innovation and digital economy. “Estonia has extensive experience in using e-services that help to make the government and society more efficient and guarantee a better quality of service,” Reinart emphasised.

Following the meeting, Undersecretary Reinart and the Minister of Small Business Development of South Africa Lindiwe Zulu attended a business forum, in the framework of which the Estonian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry signed a cooperation agreement. Reinart also invited Minister Zulu to the Startup Nations Summit taking place in Tallinn in November.