Ramaphosa secures new $10bn investment pledge from the UAE

President Cyril Ramaphosa has secured another $10bn (about R133bn) commitment for his multi-billion dollar investment drive, this time from the United Arab Emirates. 

The UAE commitment brings to $20bn (about R266bn) the total in investment pledges that Ramaphosa has received during his three-country visit to oil-producing nations.

Ramaphosa met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi on Friday as part of the visit. 

"I am delighted to have come here, because this forms a very firm foundation for our relationship. We are here to form a strong relationship between SA and UAE and a bridge of partnership," Ramaphosa said.

On Thursday, Saudi Arabia committed to invest $10bn in the SA economy. Shortly after becoming president, Ramaphosa had announced an ambitious plan to attract $100bn in new investment over five years to kick start an economy which is battling to create jobs. 

“Our drive to get investment has been given a huge boost by our coming here UAE and we are grateful that it sees a great opportunity in investing in SA, likewise they see SA as a market they can also derive some benefits,” the president said on Friday.

Ramaphosa said the UAE and Saudi Arabia were expected to be part of the October investment summit. The UAE is South Africa’s largest trading partner in the gulf region, but the two countries want to increase trade.

There has been a sharp increase in recent years in trade between South Africa and UAE, which has increased from R6bn in 2011 to R38.2bn in 2017.