Western Cape Premier Alan Winde has returned from a visit to the US, where he held talks with government and private sector stakeholders in Washington DC, Atlanta and New York City.

The US has been the lead source market for foreign direct investment in the Western Cape over the past decade.

Sixty-two projects benefitted from a total capital expenditure of more than R29-billion between 2015 and 2024, covering several sectors, including communications, software and IT services, business services, food and beverages, and pharmaceuticals.

Joining Winde on his American visit were a delegation from the Western Cape government, as well as representatives from the province’s tourism, trade and investment promotion agency, Wesgro.

“Growing the economy to create more jobs is our apex priority in the Western Cape, and our trade relations with the USA are of critical importance,” said Winde during a visit to the South African Embassy in Washington DC.

“We embarked on this visit to further nurture our long-standing relationships with various USA stakeholders, and to continue to safeguard and promote these relationships in the interests of our residents.

“The USA is a key market for Western Cape exports and a substantial source of investment into our province, and we will fight to make sure that we keep our mutually-beneficial trade ties open and growing.”

The US is the Western Cape’s second-largest export market, with exports totalling more than R18.32-billion in 2024 – a 2.66% increase on the previous year.

The province now also accounts for more than 50% of South Africa’s total agriculture and agriprocessing goods exports to the US.

Therefore, advocating for the protection of this key job-creating industry was high on the agenda, says Winde’s office.

Other important local industries include boat-building and satellite component manufacturing.

The Western Cape also welcomed 163 303 tourists from the US in 2024, marking a year-on-year growth of 16.45%.

US Airline Delta Air Lines currently has three direct flights to Cape Town every week, and in an engagement with the company, Winde confirmed that this will be increased to five weekly flights at the end of October.