Rishi Sunak, Cyril Ramaphosa Agree To Take UK-South Africa Ties To 'Next Level'

President Cyril Ramaphosa and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak discussed ways to boost exports and agreed to take the partnership between the two countries "to the next level", both bilaterally and through the Commonwealth.

South Africa is looking to deepen and broaden its ties with the UK, President Cyril Ramaphosa said Wednesday.

Ramaphosa met Rishi Sunak at 10 Downing Street and said he wanted to focus on trade and investment and a zero-carbon economy transition.

"For us, this is a great opportunity to deepen and broaden our links, links that are historic in many, many ways," President Ramaphosa told reporters.

Sunak said that the state visit was "historic," and that "South Africa and the UK are strong partners, allies, and friends." He noted that both countries share several objectives, such as transitioning to clean energy while creating jobs and opportunities for citizens.

The state visit was commemorated by the UK and South Africa signing an agreement to intensify their health partnership to help avert future pandemics.

As stated in the agreement, British and South African institutions will work together on nine research projects on health systems, mental health, surgery, and HIV.

In addition, the two countries are collaborating to tackle climate change, with the UK contributing funding to the Just Energy Transition Partnership with South Africa to assist the country to decarbonise its economy.

The UK will also provide support for genome sequencing at South Africa's National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD). This will help improve surveillance for antimicrobial resistance in Africa, which is important for detecting and responding to COVID-19 variants such as beta and omicron.

During the visit, President Ramaphosa also emphasized the role that industrialized nations must play in assisting other countries to reduce emissions. He also welcomed Britain's involvement in initiatives to help South Africa decarbonize.

The state visit came to an end with Ramaphosa making a final call on the King at Buckingham Palace. The meeting lasted around 10 minutes.