Embassy Activities

Welcome to the South African Embassy website and find below the highlights of the month.

The 2019 Rugby World Cup

In what will become one of the most memorable Rugby World Cups finals in recent history. South Africa playing their own brand of Rugby completely outclassed England to the tune of 32-12.

South Africans from all walks of life and from every corner of the world stood together to support the Springboks under the #STRONGERTOGETHER.

This victory by South Africa means this is the 3rd World Cup victory for South Africa which means that they are now tied with New Zealand. This is also a particularly proud moment for all South Africans, as Siyathanda “Siya” Kolisi becomes the first “Black” South African captain to lead the team to a world cup final victory.

The euphoria created by the sterling performance of the SpingBoks has brought together people of different races, cultures and walks of life and united them for a common purpose. Once again, sport has proven to be a critical part of knitting together the social fabric of our nation. Transformation in our sporting codes and at grassroots levels are vital to strengthening sports in the country.

The united spirit displayed during this World Cup by all South Africans shows that we can overcome any challenge through determination and by working together. We are indeed #StrongerTogether.

South Africa Investment Conference

The 2nd South Africa Investment Conference (SAIC) will take place from  5-7 November 2019 at Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg.  The Conference  is a platform to unlock investment opportunities for both domestic and international businesses.

More than 1 500 delegates from across the globe are expected to attend SAIC. Investors will have the opportunity to engage with government, and business leaders on prospects of investing in South Africa .

The 2nd SAIC supports the country’s investment drive, announced in 2018 by President Cyril Ramaphosa, which seeks to mobilise R1,2 trillion in new investments by 2023. The first South Africa Investment Conference was held in October 2018, where R300 billion was committed for investment in South Africa by local and international investors. 

Indeed, the three main sponsors of this year’s South Africa Investment Conference all made pledges at the inaugural Investment Conference in 2018. Naspers pledged R4,6 billion, Vodacom committed R50 billion and Anglo American made a pledge of R71,64 billion.

Investment Conference will provide a platform to showcase growth and investment prospects in an economy with vast potential and enormous resources.

Council of Ministers Meeting of Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA)

2018 marked the centenary of the birth of Late President Nelson Mandela and provided an opportunity for IORA to solidify the historical link of his vision to strengthen regional economic cooperation between the countries bordering the Indian Ocean.

The 19th Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) Council of Ministers and related Meetings will take place between 5-7 November 2019 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirtes. The meeting will take place under the theme: “IORA – Promoting a Shared Destiny and Path to Prosperity in the Indian Ocean”.

IORA was established through the vision of former South African President Nelson Mandela, when 14 member states founded the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC) in March 1997. The Association is an economic cooperative community of littoral and island states whose shores are washed by the Indian Ocean.

South Africa believes that IORA is strengthening regional cooperation with IORAs 22 Member States.

World Para Athletics Championships

World Para Athletics Championships will be held in Dubai from  7-15 November 2019. The South African Team for the 2019 World Para Athletics Championships has been announced.

The team is a great blend of experienced athletes who have performed well at the highest level in different international para events.

The last World Championships were held in 2017 in London where South Africa finished 10th on the medal table with 15 medals.

The 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children Campaign

The 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children campaign will take place from 25 November to 10 December 2019. The 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children is an international awareness-raising campaign.  It takes place every year from 25 November (International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (International Human Rights Day). 

The period includes Universal Children’s Day and World AIDS Day. South Africa adopted the campaign in 1998 as one of the intervention strategies towards creating a society free of violence. The campaign continues to raise awareness amongst South Africans about the negative impact of violence against women and children on all members of the community.

Movember

Movember is an annual event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November to raise awareness of men's health issues, such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and men's suicide. The Movember Foundation runs the Movember charity event, housed at Movember.com. The goal of Movember is to "change the face of men's health." 

By encouraging men (whom the charity refers to as "Mo Bros") to get involved, Movember aims to increase early cancer detection, diagnosis and effective treatments, and ultimately reduce the number of preventable deaths. Besides annual check-ups, the Movember Foundation encourages men to be aware of family history of cancer and to adopt a healthier lifestyle.

Since 2004, the Movember Foundation charity has run Movember events to raise awareness and funds for men's health issues, such as prostate cancer and depression, in Australia and New Zealand. In 2007, events were launched in Ireland, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, El Salvador, Spain, the United Kingdom, Israel, South Africa, Taiwan and the United States. As of 2011, Canadians were the largest contributors to the Movember charities of any nation. In 2010, Movember merged with the testicular cancer event Tacheback.

This month, as the South African Embassy in Ankara, the achievements of the Springboks have brought is tremendous joy and happines in winning the World Rugby Cup 2019. This is the third trophy South Africa has lifted since the dawn of democracy. May this moment reinvigorate the hope of 1995 and inspire our nation to build a South Africa of Madiba’s Dreams. We join over 57 million South Africans in congratulating our team, the Springboks for their victory over England in Japan. Congratulations to the bokrugby for flying the South African flag high and thank you for making the country proud by bringing the WebbEllisCup home. Thank you South Africa for standing Stronger Together behind the Springboks.

We wish all other sportsperson the same success in their sportive tournaments, especially the team in World Para Athletics Championships.  

Ambassador P I Malefane
South African Embassy in Ankara, Turkey