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OUTH African President Jacob Zuma yesterday said he is confident that the situation in Zimbabwe will be addressed.

And President Zuma said it was heartening that Zambia has now become South Africa's number one trading partner in Africa.

During a joint press briefing with President Banda at State House yesterday, President Zuma said there should be no reason for people not to be confident that the situation in Zimbabwe will be addressed.

He said the Zimbabwe issue was being handled by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) under the troika and the regional bloc had decided to evaluate the unity government after six-months but MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai decided to disengage when they were about to do so.

However, President Zuma said the decision was made by SADC at a meeting in Maputo for the MDC to get back into the government.

“They have been meeting, discussing the outstanding issues. There is a facilitation… we have no reason not to be confident that we will resolve these matters. We will certainly do so. And I am sure, you would recall that Zimbabwe comes from a very difficult period, even to reach the global political agreement was a difficult one they did.

They established the unity government, and I don't think anyone of us at this point in time should feel not confident that Zimbabwe is going to solve the problems,” President Zuma said. “I think all of us, including Zimbabweans believe that, that situation must be resolved once and for all so that we can be able to move forward and change the situation in Zimbabwe. We are therefore very confident, and I think having interacted with our colleagues in all the parties, there is no reason not to be confident.”

President Zuma said South Africa and Zambia shared a warm history of friendship and solidarity, saying the difficult years of fighting colonialism and apartheid together must now translate into a successful joint quest for economic freedom and social development.

He said the shared history should encourage both countries to fight poverty, disease and ensure that the people had decent jobs and a better quality of life.

President Zuma said the two countries had a well-established trade relationship, which had substantially increased since 1994.

He said South Africa's major exports to Zambia included mineral oils and fuels, autos and components, chemicals, steel and capital equipment.

“It is heartening Mr President that Zambia is now South Africa's number one trading partner on the continent. We need to explore more investment opportunities. In this regard I have brought a business delegation comprising representatives of 60 companies,” President Zuma said. “They have interests in the following sectors - Energy and petroleum, ICT, infrastructure, Financial services, healthcare, mining as well as agro-processing.”

President Zuma said Africans must continue to fight for equality and fairness in international relations, and ensure that Africa takes her rightful place amongst other continents of the world.
“As we speak, climate change negotiations are going on in Copenhagen. We will go to Copenhagen next week and strongly push our position as the African continent,” he said.

President Zuma said Africa needed a strengthened international climate regime that ensured global reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, in accordance with what was required by science.
On the same issue, President Banda said he would not attend the summit in Copenhagen.

President Zuma said he welcomed the commitments on finance that were being made by some developed countries, but that these remained extremely limited and did not come close to the scale required, which was at least US $100 billion per annum for mitigation, and US $100 billion per annum for adaptation.
Meanwhile, Zambia and South Africa yesterday signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) in agriculture, health, energy and mining.

Asked on what mechanisms had been put in place to ensure the success of the MoUs, President Zuma said what was important now was to start the process first and implementation would be the next step.
When asked what could be done on the matter where Zambians sought medical treatment in South Africa at huge cost, President Banda said there was no country in the world that was self-sufficient on the matter of health.

On a lighter note after the briefing, President Banda reminded President Zuma over an instance where a monkey urinated on him.

Just as the two leaders had finished addressing the press and headed for lunch at Nkwazi House, President Banda asked the South African President if he had heard of the incident where a monkey urinated on him.

President Zuma said he heard about the incident.
Then President Banda explained that it actually happened under the tree while he pointed at the same tree.
And during a state banquet and investiture ceremony at Mulungushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka on Monday night, President Banda conferred the Order of the Eagle of Zambia first division on Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma for his outstanding contribution to the liberation struggle of South Africa.

In February, during his visit to Chipata as guest of honour at the Nc'wala traditional ceremony of the Ngoni people of Eastern Province, Zuma who was not yet South African President at the time was bestowed with the status of Freeman of Chipata town.

In his address after receiving the medal on Monday, President Zuma said he was humbled to be a recipient of an award similar to the one that was posthumously bestowed on Oliver Reginald Tambo, the late leader of his governing African National Congress (ANC).

“The story of liberation in southern Africa will not be complete without a full acknowledgement of the centre role played by Zambia towards freedom of the sub continent,” President Zuma said. “It was from here that the ANC and many other liberation movements including Frelimo of Mozambique, MPLA of Angola, ZAPU and ZANU of Zimbabwe and SWAPO of Namibia conducted their struggles against colonialism and apartheid.”

President Banda commended Zuma for his election to the presidency.

“I am happy to note that from the time Zambia and South Africa established formal diplomatic relations in 1994, commercial interactions between our two countries have increased greatly over the years. South Africa has also become one of Zambia's most important single sources of direct foreign investment,” said President Banda. “I am delighted that South African investors still find Zambia an attractive and viable destination for their investment.

In this regard I wish to assure South African investors as well as those of other countries that their investment in Zambia is secured, safeguarded by the progressive policies and robust legal framework put in place by my government. I am, therefore, encouraging South African investors to take advantage of available opportunities in Zambia.”

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