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East Africa mulls better relations with South Africa after Zuma exit

Saturday February 17 2018
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East Africa is mulling strategies of engagement with South Africa. PHOTOS | AFP

By BERNA NAMATA

East Africa is mulling strategies of engagement with South Africa following last week’s political earthquake that saw Jacob Zuma resign as head of state almost 18 months ahead of the country’s next general election. 

The change of guard, which has ushered in anti-apartheid leader turned business mogul Cyril Ramaphosa as president, has raised optimism in the region as they seek to attract investments from Africa’s second largest economy.   

While Ramaphosa was poised to assume state presidency after the June 2019 general election, Zuma was forced out of office after almost a decade of political scandals, which have not only threatened the country’s standing as Africa’s powerhouse, but also damaged its reputation abroad.   

Ramaphosa is expected to intensify efforts to grow the economy and expand economic opportunities for South African companies in a bid to address the country’s current economic crisis, which has left many ordinary South Africans unemployed. 

“We must all do all we can to ensure that we turn our economy around,” Ramaphosa had said in January shortly after winning the ANC leadership. 

East Africa's political parties

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In East Africa, the events in South Africa have been closely monitored mainly due to the ANC’s historical political ties with the ruling dominant parties in Uganda through the National Resistance Movement (NRM), Tanzania’s Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM) as well as Rwanda’s Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF).   

In Burundi, the ANC under Nelson Mandela played a crucial role in the peace negotiations that culminated in the Arusha Accord of August 2000.  

Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta recently met with Ramaphosa during a dinner hosted on the eve of the ANC’s 106th anniversary celebration. Ramaphosa said President Kenyatta’s visit demonstrated the special relations between Kenya and South Africa.

“ANC and Jubilee party will work towards cementing good relations between Kenyans and South Africans,” he told his guest.

While South Africa under Zuma has not seen a major policy shift towards the region, it has been seen as taking sides in regional politics. Specifically, South Africa was accused of taking sides in the ongoing conflict in Burundi where it is seen to be support President Pierre Nkurunziza as well as President Joseph Kabila in the DR Congo conflict.

Zuma was also seen as hostile to Rwanda as bilateral ties between the two countries remained strained since 2014 after they expelled the other’s diplomats.  

South Africa sent away Rwandan diplomats it suspected of planning attacks on Rwandan dissidents in South Africa and Kigali retaliated by expelling South African diplomats in the country, leading to a near-severing of diplomatic ties.

Visas

Both countries however maintained embassies and ambassadors in place but with no diplomatic staff. However, since 2016, the two countries have been trying to restore relations but at a slow pace. Despite reappointing diplomats, South Africa is yet to appoint a visa official to Kigali.

The South African High Commissioner to Rwanda George Nkosinati Twala told The EastAfrican that a discussion on the issuance of visas is ongoing and there could be a new development soon.

His departure is seen as a relief to Kigali.  

“President Zuma personally accorded wanted Rwandan fugitives refugee status,” an official told The EastAfrican, adding that Zuma has not been supportive of the African Union reforms being led by President Paul Kagame.

Rwanda’s State Minister of Foreign Affairs in charge of East African Community Olivier Nduhungirehe said Rwanda and the region hope for a new dawn of relations with South Africa.  

Beyond Rwanda, Ramaphosa is expected to prioritise repairing the country’s image at home and abroad to recover its influence which may include supporting  regional integration efforts and the African Union.  

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