Dr Kleiber,
Your Excellencies,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen
I wish to welcome you, Your Excellency, and the rest of the delegation, to this occasion of the signing of the Letter of Intent. We trust that your stay in South Africa has been fruitful and enjoyable.
The diplomatic ties between South Africa and Switzerland are very important to us. This visit marks the importance of the scientific ties between our two countries as well. We have noted with great admiration Switzerland's progress and advances in science and technology and we hope that through this collaboration between our two countries, we will be able to make a positive contribution to the development and growth through science and innovation.
Today we live in a globalized world, which is highly competitive and increasingly becoming borderless. Science and Technology are critical to the economic growth and to the upliftment of the quality of life of our people. The site2016s that are taking place in the world today demand higher levels of innovation in order to improve our competitiveness. With the shift towards knowledge-based economies, the ability of a nation to continuously enhance proficiency in science, technology and innovation is becoming more urgent. We need to respond to these site2016s with new strategies and approaches.
Your Excellency, the signing of this Letter of Intent marks a significant step towards enhanced cooperation between our two countries. We need to keep the momentum going in order to ensure that, through our collaboration, we will respond to the challenges that are currently facing our countries.
I believe that we need to jointly develop a concrete programme to encourage interaction between our science communities in areas that would generate significant benefits for our countries such as biotechnology, information and communication technology, new materials, microelectronics, among others.
It will not only benefit our country, but also redirect the focus of our relations towards the future and in support of the objectives of NEPAD, energise the current investment climate in Switzerland and reaffirm South Africa's position as a reliable investment destination, as well as to strengthen the bonds of friendship between our two countries.
This cooperation could also be used to identify common approaches for our scientists to participate in the Framework programmes of the EU. This will strengthen the support for science and technology further not only in the FP6, but also in the FP7.
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, on this note, I would like to invite you all to join us in the beginning of this relationship and friendly ties between the two governments and the people of our two countries. The Letter of Intent is the first step at government level and will be followed by an MoU and perhaps a formal agreement at a later stage. This process will enhance our cooperation in science and technology and to our mutual benefit.
Thank you
