South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said Pretoria and Hanoi are taking “a decisive step” toward upgrading their bilateral relationship to a strategic partnership, following talks with Vietnamese leaders in Hanoi.
“South Africa sees Vietnam as a key partner in our export diversification strategy and we are encouraged by the steady growth in trade and investment in our two countries,” Ramaphosa told a joint news conference after meeting his Vietnamese counterpart.
Vietnam, which has set an ambition to become a high-income nation by 2045 and join Asia’s ranks of “tiger economies,” counts South Africa as its largest trade and export partner on the African continent. Two-way trade has expanded sharply over the past two decades—from $192 million in 2007 to $1.72 billion in 2024, according to Vietnamese government figures.
Officials said an upgraded framework would aim to deepen cooperation in priority sectors including mining and minerals processing, energy transition, agriculture and agro-processing, automotive value chains, healthcare, education exchanges, and tourism. Enhanced coordination in multilateral forums and maritime logistics is also expected to feature in the roadmap.
Ramaphosa’s trip is the first visit to Vietnam by a South African head of state in roughly 20 years, underscoring renewed momentum in Africa–Asia ties. Both sides framed the prospective strategic partnership as a platform to unlock investment, diversify supply chains, and improve market access for exporters—key goals as South Africa pushes industrialization and Vietnam pursues value-added manufacturing and services.
Negotiators will now work on the modalities of the partnership, with officials describing the next phase as focused on converting headline commitments into implementable projects and financing pipelines.
