South Africa’s High Commissioner to Pakistan Mr. Mpendulo Jele Kumalo called on Minister of Defence Production Rana Tanveer Hussain on Friday last week.
According to a press release by the Ministry of Defence Production (MoDP), Mr. Kumalo and Mr. Hussain had discussed matters of mutual interest, such as the desire to enhance defence production ties between the two countries. In fact, Mr. Hussain had even expressed hope that South Africa and Pakistan would begin engaging in joint ventures in defence.
Notes & Comments:
During the Africa Aerospace and Defence (AAD) exhibition, South Africa’s Minister of Defence Ms. Mapisa-Nqakula had committed to assigning a Defence Attaché to Islamabad by the end of this year.
Open and increasingly frequent interactions between Pakistani and South African officials and defence industry representatives indicate a mutual desire to revitalize defence ties, which had dampened towards the end of the 2000s.
There is a wide range of opportunities for both sides, Pakistan, in particular, may be interested in South Africa’s munitions and light armoured vehicle technology. Moreover, the South African defence industry’s general willingness to engage in co-production partnerships and offer commercial offsets to the buyer could position Denel Group and Paramount Group quite favourably in the Pakistani market.
