At the BRICS business forum, President Xi shared his thoughts on the changes the world is going to witness in the next decade. South African officials and experts alike were encouraged by his speech and future prospects.

NALEDI PANDOR SOUTH AFRICAN HIGHER EDUCATION MINISTER "We are very thrilled because the deliberations while indeed that had a focus on China and South Africa, there's also been a very key attention to the African continent. This is something South Africa deeply appreciates because it's a commitment that we have that we should not just advance an agenda of South Africa, but an Africa agenda."

LUMKILE MONDI ECONOMIST "The fact that President Xi has convinced China to invest about 14.7 billion dollars into our economy whose first quarter GDP shrunk this year by 2.2%. It's a sign of confidence and hope that many countries and many investors will also leverage at the back of this commitment of China, and coming and investing our country so that we can our public of poverty inequality and under-development."

LUWELLYN LANDERS SOUTH AFRICAN DEPUTY INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS MINISTER "China is very important to South Africa. And of course on the African continent, we have now surpassed all other countries in terms of trade with China. So clearly the relationship is an excellent one."