Dear Editor
As South Africa enters its final hours to negotiate a viable trade deal with the United States of America to avoid punitive tariffs on South African imports, South Africa now faces a secondary blow via restricted access to Taiwanese semiconductor chips following Minister Ronald Lamola’s unnecessary decision to downgrade the Taiwanese mission in South Africa.
At a time when South Africa needs to enact an aggressive economic diplomacy agenda to revive our stagnant economy and address our spiralling unemployment rate, the ANC’s refusal to implement the Government of National Unity’s (GNU) Statement of Intent and pursue genuine non-aligned foreign policy is risking tens of thousands of jobs simply to cater to selfish party interests.
This is not the foreign policy of a government that cares about the wellbeing of the country, but one that is caving to its own ANC party-political interests at our economy’s peril. Simply put, ANC foreign policy is wreaking havoc on the South African economy.
The DA demands that Minister Ronald Lamola urgently reassess and revise recent foreign policy decisions which have been nothing more than economic suicide, in order to protect South Africa’s increasingly fragile manufacturing sector.
Future economic growth requires access to semiconductor chips. It is therefore critical that the steps are taken to negotiate with the Taiwanese government to secure this critical technology for which there is no substitute.
Taiwanese semiconductor chips are crucial components in the production of any modern electronic device. South Africa’s automotive industry alone is dependent on these chips to account for approximately R300 billion in annual automotive exports around the world, creating tens of thousands of local jobs.
The reality is that South Africa, with its developing economy, cannot afford to pursue a foreign policy that forces us to be exclusive about our trading partners. The ANC cannot preach non-alignment from the DIRCO ministry only to sacrifice our economic sovereignty at the altar of party-political interests with citizens paying the price.
South Africa needs to adopt an economic diplomacy agenda that seeks trade with any and all compatible partners free from undue influence.
Minister Ronald Lamola should also reacquaint himself with the Basic Minimum Programme of Priorities outlined in the Statement of Intent which speaks to rapid and inclusive economic growth.
DIRCO, under an ANC Minister, is hurtling South Africa towards economic ruin with its increasingly exclusive approach to trade and its reluctance to relax investment-killing policies such as Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment.
The South African economy has been made to walk the plank by ill-conceived foreign policy decisions and a damaging economic diplomacy agenda.
We must urgently and honestly determine South Africa’s national interest to guide our foreign policy, and not allow the ANC’s party-political interests to force our economy to fall into the abyss.
Regards
Ryan Smith MP
DA Spokesperson for International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO)