My Dear Sister and Colleague, Your Excellency Minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner,
Ministers of Defence Honourable Angie Motshekga and Honourable Guy Kabombo Muadiamvita from the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
Senior Officials and Experts from both Countries,

I am greatly honoured to welcome and receive you here in Pretoria, our Capital City.

I am also pleased that our two Ministers of Defence have joined us for the Political Consultations. May I also take this opportunity to warmly welcome Minister Muadiamvita to our country. I believe that you have had productive exchanges with Minister Motshekga in order to strengthen our cooperation in the area of defence.

Dear Colleagues,

Your visit to South Africa is taking place at a crucial period in your country. The security situation in the eastern Democratic of the Congo is fragile and is cause for concern. Many people have lost their lives and, millions, especially women and children, have been displaced.

Since the beginning of this year, the international community has been pre-occupied with these disturbing developments. The United Nations Security Council convened no less than three emergency sessions to review developments in the eastern DRC. Similarly, our regional and continental organisations have also met and called for a ceasefire, an end

to hostilities, facilitation of humanitarian assistance and a return to the peace talks. The people of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo are yearning for peace and normalcy. We dare not fail them.

I wish to assure you, Dear Colleagues, that South Africa will continue to support your quest for peace. In this regard, we support the ongoing mediation efforts aimed at finding long-term and durable peace. We are pleased that one of our veterans and former President, His Excellency Kgalema Motlanthe, has been invited to join the mediation team to assist in finding a solution to the conflict in the eastern DRC. We have no doubt that with his vast political experience, former President Motlanthe will be an asset to the Team.

Excellencies,

Your visit to our country and our meeting today is a practical demonstration of our shared commitment to deepen cooperation between our two countries.

Accordingly, we should use this opportunity to review and assess the state of bilateral relations and the implementation of the commitments we made during the 12th session of the Bi-National Commission (BNC) which you graciously hosted in July 2023.

We should examine progress in our joint efforts of promoting trade and investment between our countries, an area which is critical to the growth of our respective economies and the improvement of the lives and livelihoods of our people.

As may be recalled, during the previous session of the BNC we made a commitment to deepen cooperation in various economic sectors, including in the area of infrastructure development.

South African companies are keen to invest or expand their investments in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Our Development Finance Institutions are also willing to extend and expand their coverage.

Working together I am confident that we will create the necessary conditions for these investments to be realised.

I propose that in the coming months we should convene a full review of the implementation of the BNC outcomes of the 12th session in order to lay a firm foundation for the 13th session which we are looking forward to hosting during the course of this year.

Senior officials should be directed to put their shoulders to the wheel to follow-through all the tasks that have been agreed to but remain outstanding.

In conclusion, let me once more welcome you, Minister, to our country and wish you a successful stay.

Thank you.