South African deputy president: SA-China culture exchange underway

South African Deputy President Paul Mashatile has highlighted that China and his country are engaging in significant cultural exchange. During his visit to Beijing for the China International Supply Chain Expo this week, the statesman said that South Africa is prioritizing international exchange, particularly with the Global South.

"It's something that exists already where we are doing a lot of exchanges in music, dance and learning each other's languages as required. It is happening," said Mashatile.

"We are encouraging people to people relations, with many countries, including China. As part of FOCAC (Forum on China-Africa Cooperation), we also have an agreement on cultural partnership."

Mashatile explained that the BRICS group, which includes both China and South Africa, is essential for cooperation among the Global South.

"We are happy that we are part of BRICS. And we see BRICS as an anchor for countries of the global south to cooperate even more strongly, particularly in the face of rising protectionism for the West, particularly the US… We need to defend our markets as well, against the tariff battle that the US has started and we can only do so if we cooperate and work together… That's going to go beyond us and China. All the countries of the Global South must be part of this cooperation. I think, if we do it, we will be able to withstand the challenges."

Mashatile was accompanied by South African cabinet ministers who discussed the work of their respective departments in their exchanges with China. South African Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Thandi Moraka said work is being done to boost cultural diplomacy between the two countries.

"Even here in China, through our mission in Beijing, we do partner with Brand South Africa (the official marketing agency of South Africa) and several organizations to strengthen our cultural diplomacy programs, where we need to learn other people's languages and also learn how they eat and how they dance through music," she said.

"And also, the Embassy of China (in South Africa) is working very closely with us to work towards strengthening our cultural diplomacy with the People's Republic of China," she added.

Meanwhile the country's Tourism Minister Patricia Patricia de Lille, who is also part of Mashatile's delegation, announced major new travel initiatives to make access between the two countries easier, including new flights.

"South African Airways, our own airline, they will be reintroducing the flight between Beijing and Johannesburg in October 2025," said De Lille, "they are waiting for the delivery of new aircraft, there is a shortage and a delay from Boeing, but by October 2025 we will bring back the South African Airways flight between Beijing and Johannesburg."

De Lille also explained the new visa application process for Chinese and other international visitors to South Africa.

"We have introduced a new visa system to make it easier for Chinese visitors to come to our country… It's called the Trusted Tour Operator Scheme, meaning that people who want to travel to South Africa, you don't need to go to our embassies or our consulates, you can apply for your visa via a tour operator. We have so far accredited 19 Chinese tour operators. And they apply on your behalf, if it's a group of two or five or even 100. And the (South African) Department of Home Affairs has put up a dedicated account manager to handle the visa issues from China. So, we've seen a growth between February and June this year, more than 18,000 applications that we've received through the Trusted Tour Operator Scheme," said De Lille.

"In September of this year, South Africa will be introducing an electronic travel authorization, and that's going to be applicable for the whole world, where you can, from the comfort of your home, wherever you are, apply for an online visa. The turnaround time will be less than 72 hours, and the new system that Home Affairs will be introducing is going to also use AI to help us with the verification of travelers to South Africa," she added.

South Africa currently holds the Group of 20 (G20) presidency and will host the G20 Leaders' Summit in November. Mashatile said the upcoming summit in Johannesburg is an opportunity to form partnerships.

"We will be inviting a lot of other businesses to come to South Africa in November as we convene the summit in Johannesburg. A lot of businesses will have opportunities on the margins of the G20, during the meeting of the heads of state, to be able to continue to engage and look for opportunities and sign agreements and partnerships," he said.