South African delegation heading BACK to the White House
Mashatile said the recently announced tariffs could disrupt trade flows and undermine the global competitiveness of the local automotive sector.
As of 8 August 2025, a 30% tariff on all South African goods entering the United States is now in effect.
'We will continue engaging with the USA to identify practical solutions. The President will be sending the delegation once again to the White House to engage with the US administration on this matter,' he said.
The country's second-in-command delivered a keynote address at the National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers (NAACAM) Show 2025, a premier forum showcasing the capabilities of the domestic automotive component manufacturing sector in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape.
The Deputy President touched on the importance of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement on economic integration and industrialisation, which is projected to draw additional international investment into the African automotive industry.
Creating a single continental market for goods and services could potentially lead to increased trade, investment, and job creation within Africa.
'However, this does not suggest that we do not need other nations as trading partners. We believe in diversifying our investments and engaging in trade with several partners.'
The Deputy President said Cabinet is committed to protecting the economic interests of the country and is forging ahead toward strengthening the economy and dealing with the triple challenges of unemployment, poverty, and inequality.
'I must highlight that there will be repercussions felt throughout the entire value chain if we do not reach an amicable trade agreement with the White House.'
He said it was likely that South African suppliers supporting domestic original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) exporting automobiles or integrated systems to the United States will face volume reductions.
'This will put pressure on production planning, employment decisions, and investment choices.'
In addition, the South African automobiles and components would see a direct rise in the landed cost in the United States market.
'Because of this, they would be unable to compete with goods from nations that have continued preferential or zero-duty access, such as those in the USMCA (United States, Mexico, Canada Agreement).
'Overall, the imposed tariffs threaten to disrupt well-established trade flows and weaken the global competitiveness of South Africa's automotive manufacturing ecosystem.' Remains steadfast
However, the Deputy President believes South Africa remains resilient and steadfast in its efforts to grow and protect the economy.
He called for collaboration between the government and the private sector to address the growing dependence on imports, infrastructural inadequacies, the transition to electric vehicles (EVs), and the issue of a 30% tariff increase.
He praised the NAACAM for investing a lot of resources in improving the localisation, transformation, and supplier development landscape in South Africa.
The automotive industry holds significant potential for shared prosperity through targeted industrial development. The sector plays a crucial role in the gross domestic product (GDP) and employment of the country.
It is one of the most strategically important and internationally linked industries, accounting for 22.6% of manufacturing output and contributing 5.2% to the nation's GDP.
The automotive sector employs around 115 000 people in total, with over 80 000 of these employees working in the component sector. In 2024, the component sector exported R62.5 billion of components.
'We must never allow the loss of these gains because of external and internal pressures. I say this with concern because the employment levels in the sector have been under strain due to ongoing economic pressures and reduced production volumes.'
In the past two years, NAACAM has reported the closure of 12 companies, affecting over 4 000 people.
The Deputy President believes that the latest unemployment figures are an indication that the nation's joblessness crisis remains an urgent concern.
'We need to do more to combat unemployment, which might include improving education and skills to match labour market demands, promoting entrepreneurship and small enterprises, and investing in public employment programs to generate jobs.'
He told delegates that government is committed to working with various sectors to create employment and improve the living conditions of the people.
'As the government, we recognise the industry's significant role and see it as the backbone of our economic growth, promoting industrial development and encouraging innovation.'
Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1
Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Citizen
28 minutes ago
- The Citizen
Hlabisa is a lesson on getting things done behind chaos
While the GNU continues to be chaotic, Cogta Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa has kept calm and done the unthinkable. The GNU presents a laugh a day. In the last month, Andrew Whitfield got axed, setting an awkward precedent for President Cyril Ramaphosa's defence chief. While bus drivers are taking their own lives, having not been paid since January, a dialogue is on the go that increasingly seems to be evolving into a monologue. Gayton McKenzie has been doing his thing, whatever that might be on the day, and team DA is patting themselves on the back for outsourcing state work to the banks. And we all applauded it, such is our disdain of home affairs. Oh, and the ministers appointed to fix load shedding were busted doing what we already knew they were doing; burning diesel as ferociously as Christians burned Beatles albums. Amid all the chaos and lack of time to consider which connected cadre should feast on which deal, some real good has been done; Transnet even seems to be on the rise, Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi's revelations are promising to unlock some gems and South Africa's economic kingpin, Thabo Mbeki, has finally found some guts to start saying some things. Amid the chaos, some things are improving The weather is perfect for sowing the seeds of ideas that may be great for the country and good for the fiscus, even if they aren't politically popular. In a country where a small minority are being squeezed for funding, it's difficult to make financially prudent decisions. But since that money isn't getting to the people it's supposed to, it makes it somewhat easier. Add to that the warring internal factions and it shouldn't be surprising that as the castle of patronage comes down, a couple of things can be improved with the resources. A minister who seemingly gets this and has largely kept a calm demeanor throughout the GNU is Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Velenkosini Hlabisa. During lockdown, we learned just how much power Cogta has and Hlabisa has been wielding it pretty impressively. ALSO READ: IFP reaffirms GNU role, slams NPA and urges reforms within justice system Halbisa takes on municipal functionality On natural disaster management, he's done the unthinkable in South African terms; enhancing the implementation of a 10-year-old framework. It shouldn't be impressive, but since we tend to have a kink of jumping from one policy to the next, doubling down and anchoring a belief in a policy's execution is quite a brave and functional thing. When last have you heard a minister insistent on implementing the plan of a predecessor and making it work? Hlabisa genuinely seems to want to do what's good for the people and when it comes to preventing them from dying, that's quite nice. I'm not sure if it's because nobody knows how to get in his way or whether it's just not profitable to impose themselves on him, the minister has been given some room to manoeuvre and it appears he knows this. It shouldn't be surprising that he's taken on what is probably going to be the most difficult reform of this administration; municipal functionality. Ten years ago, you wouldn't dream of anybody in Jacob Zuma's cabinet thinking of claiming that the national government is bloated, let alone municipalities. ALSO READ: Cogta warns municipalities against wasting R1.2 billion disaster relief Now, the minister is having a right go at the state of municipal affairs and fairly so. It's not like John Steenhuisen is going to criticise anybody's literacy because it will come off poorly, but the way Hlabisa puts it makes it pragmatic in the eyes of the public. 'You can't monitor billions if you can't read,' he said. Why on earth we're even in a position where he's got to say that is beyond me, but thank goodness somebody has finally said it. What's most exciting about this shake up is that it's clearly a long term investment and he's set milestones allowing him to take his time on the matter. It shows a degree of seriousness rather than politricking and perhaps we don't see the results in his lifetime. It feels so good to hear a minister commit themselves to a long term solution to an issue that nobody has really tried to address in 30 years. There's a saying about great men planting trees and I really hope this one grows. We could do with the shade. READ NEXT: Almost 40 municipalities facing sanctions from Treasury over mismanagement
IOL News
an hour ago
- IOL News
SA Falls Prey to US Playbook on Human Rights, Regime Change
A worker checks the first copy of "The Star", the biggest and most respected South African daily, hot from the printing press on May 02, 1994 in Johannesburg, South Africa, as it headlines Nelson Mandela as next president of the country following the ANC victory in the first all-race elections. Thirty years of governance have taken their toll on the ANC. This vulnerability created the ideal conditions for a regime change strategy to advance, says the writer. Image: AFP Dr. Reneva Fourie The pattern is well-worn. Regardless of the issue or the president in power, if a country refuses to toe the Washington line, accusations of human rights abuses become the weapon of choice. Cuba and Venezuela were targeted primarily because of their economic policies, which diverged from the model preferred by Washington. Iran and China were labelled for achieving successes that rivalled or surpassed Western capabilities. Now the target is South Africa. The offence is that the country dared to take Israel to the International Court of Justice and lay bare evidence of genocidal acts. When pressure failed to deter the government from this principled course, the United States released a plethora of destabilising interventions, the most recent being a report alleging that the human rights situation in South Africa had worsened significantly. In the past, millions accepted the official story told about countries placed on Washington's list of offenders. They defended sanctions that crippled economies and harmed civilians. Those who challenged the propaganda were branded as conspiracy theorists or apologists for despots. South Africans are now watching this process unfold in real time. Narratives are created and disseminated through a system of media, think tanks, and lobbying networks, until repetition renders them true. This is not a new phenomenon. Noam Chomsky and Edward Herman's Manufacturing Consent detailed how media and political elites shape public perception to align with imperial interests. The same playbook is being used against South Africa. The US government, alongside its allies in the corporate media and right-wing NGOs, is constructing a narrative of a 'failing state' to justify intervention. Several sources, including Dale McKinley's The ANC and the Liberation Struggle: A Critical Political Biography, indicate that the seeds of regime-change had been planted well before the democratic transition. Knowing that the fall of apartheid was imminent, and that the vast socio-economic disparities due to apartheid policies would compel some form of social protection, deliberate efforts were made to secure capital control of the economy and progressively erode the highly popular power of South Africa's liberation movement. Thirty years of governance have taken their toll on the ANC. Internal disputes, corruption scandals, and declining service delivery have eroded public trust. This vulnerability created the ideal conditions for a regime change strategy to advance. In the run-up to the 2024 general election, large sums were poured into a coordinated effort to remove the ANC from power. One significant step was a meeting held in Gdańsk, Poland, in 2023. Out of this gathering came plans for a political coalition to challenge the ANC, then known as the Moonshot Pact. The return of the Trump administration to power in the United States gave impetus to the regime-change agenda. Backed strongly by the Zionist lobby, the administration re-established links with figures and groups rooted in the apartheid era. It embraced false claims promoted by AfriForum and Solidarity about state-sponsored genocide, land seizures, and restrictions on cultural rights. These are being weaponised to discredit progressive forces inside the South African government. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad Loading The United States' 2024 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices in South Africa presents itself as objective but is a work of distortion. It accuses the government of complicity in extra-judicial killings, repression of free expression, and antisemitism. It claims the state had failed to take credible action against officials responsible for human rights abuses and included allegations of inflammatory racial rhetoric and violence against racial minorities. The Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation rejected the report outright. It described it as inaccurate and deeply flawed, and said it ignored the reality of South Africa's constitutional democracy. Despite this, Solidarity announced plans to travel to the United States in September. Its stated purpose is to propose ways for Washington and other foreign actors to improve human rights in South Africa. There is no moral or political justification for such an appeal. The United States is a country that fails to address its own deep racial and economic inequalities and that has fuelled human rights abuses globally through war, sanctions, and covert operations. South Africa already has the National Dialogue, which provides a platform for honest discussion and collective problem-solving. Solidarity's actions are treasonous. They seek to restore the racial hierarchy of the past and place South Africa under a form of minority rule that would guarantee elite privilege. What Solidarity and its allies may not realise is that they are not the architects of this agenda but the instruments of it. The real prize for Washington and its corporate backers is a government that will embrace neoliberal policies without question. That role fits the Democratic Alliance perfectly. The United States is becoming more open in its regime change tactics, confident that the same methods used in Latin America, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe can work in Southern Africa. It is aggressively forging ahead to undermine South Africa's ability to determine its policies, protect its resources, and shape its future free from foreign control. The answer is not to retreat into denial or partisanship. It is to recognise that the struggle for sovereignty is a shared one. External actors can exploit the divisions that exist within South African society unless they are addressed honestly and directly. That is why the National Dialogue process is critical. It provides a forum where competing visions can be debated without the interference of those whose only interest is to control outcomes for their gain. South Africa has faced powerful adversaries before. The defeat of apartheid was not a gift. It was the result of unity, sacrifice, and a refusal to accept the idea that the powerful always win. The same spirit is needed now. We need to be united on the principle that the people of South Africa, and no one else, must decide the country's future. If South Africans adhere to that principle, the current campaign of manipulation and pressure will fail, just as previous attempts to crush the people's will have failed. * Dr Reneva Fourie is a policy analyst specialising in governance, development, and security. ** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL, Independent Media or The African.
IOL News
10 hours ago
- IOL News
Effective empowerment of women will boost the economy
Refilwe Lesufi Image: Supplied As Women's Month continues to be commemorated in South Africa with colourful banners and applause, it is worth noting that for many women and girls, the struggle for equal opportunity is a daily lived experience. Efforts to empower women and girls in South Africa have not resulted in an impactful shift in addressing historical disparities. The labour market continues to favour men and shows minimal signs of making real progress towards improving prospects for women. Stats SA's latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey for the second quarter of 2025 reveals ongoing disparities in the labour market. A media statement by Stats SA notes that the unemployment rate for women in this period was 35,9% compared with 31,0% for men, a gap of 4,9 percentage points. 'These differences reflect persistent gender imbalances in unemployment, labour force participation and the sectors in which men and women are employed.' Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading Education is also not closing the gap in unemployment for South African women, according to the Stats SA statement, and gender disparities in the labour market remain entrenched across all levels of educational attainment. 'In the second quarter of 2025, the official unemployment rate for graduates stood at 12,2%, marking a 0,5 percentage point increase from the previous quarter. … a closer look reveals a persistent gender gap among the most educated. Female graduates faced an unemployment rate of 15%, compared to 8,9% for their male counterparts, a difference of 6,1 percentage points.' A gender-focused approach is needed to deliver employment opportunities that are inclusive and responsive to challenges faced by women. In South Africa, a large share of the country's scarce skills lies within Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM ) fields. According to the Reginsights article, ''The Most In-Demand Skills in South Africa 2025,' skills such as ICT specialists, engineering professionals, healthcare workers, renewable energy experts, technicians, education specialists, agricultural scientists, finance specialists, and logistics professionals are all in short supply. As we celebrate National Science Week, let us remember that the future of STEM in South Africa lies in the hands of our youth. Image: Supplied STEM as a strategic driver offers a powerful, gender-focused pathway to creating inclusive employment opportunities, especially for women in rural areas, informal settlements and townships, while directly addressing the unique barriers they face. PROTEC is an independent NPO that provides education support in STEM gateway subjects – Mathematics, Technology and Science – as well as English and World of Work life skills training. In partnership with our funders, we have consistently committed to advancing the gender equality and redress agenda. More than 63% of our total beneficiaries are female, and we are seeing a growing number of young women pursuing careers in engineering, science, and other STEM fields that were once male-dominated. In 2024, ten of PROTEC's top twelve matric beneficiaries were female. Why is a focus on women so important? An article by the Stellenbosch University Business School in December 2024, titled 'Equal pay for equal work: How does South Africa measure up?' reveals that, 'In South Africa, around 38% of households are headed by women. Female-headed households are approximately 40% poorer than those headed by men. Also, 48% of female-headed households support extended family members compared to only 23% of male-headed households.' Women bear a disproportionate burden in caring for children, earn less than men, are more vulnerable to domestic violence, and face greater challenges in accessing resources to improve their lives — illustrating how power dynamics continue to favour men.
