South Africa’s national investment promotion agency, Investment South Africa (ISA) will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Board of Investment Thailand in Bangkok, Thailand on Tuesday, 31 January 2017.

According to the Acting Head of ISA, Mr Yunus Hoosen, the purpose of the MoU is to advance the economic agenda between South Africa and Thailand. 

“One of Invest SA’s objectives is to identify potential foreign investors and attract them to invest in the country, in an effort to grow the economy and create employment opportunities. The MoU that we will be signing with Thailand next week is aimed at promoting and facilitating cooperation between the two countries on investments in automotive, agro-processing and electronics sectors. It will also enhance our collaborative efforts to attract investments into our countries,” says Hoosen.

He adds officials from the KwaZulu-Natal-based Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone (RBIDZ) will be part of the delegation. They will be on a mission to attract Thailand automotive component manufacturers to invest in the RBIDZ.

“We are optimistic that the implementation of the MoU will see Thai investors setting up manufacturing plants in South Africa resulting in job creation,” adds Hoosen.

The latest statistics show that total trade between South Africa and Thailand in the first three quarters of 2016 reached R29.9 billion, a 24.3 % increase from R24 billion achieved in the same period of 2015.

InvestSA is South Africa’s national investment promotion agency, providing a One-Stop-Shop services to investors. This includes investment promotion, facilitation and aftercare, all of which are geared at fast-tracking projects and reducing government red-tape.