Trade and Industry Minister Parks Tau outlines SA's industrial strategy for a Just Energy transition at WEF

SOUTH Africa is positioning itself at the centre of the global energy and technology transition, leveraging its vast mineral wealth to drive industrialisation, investment and deeper trade partnerships, as the country recalibrates its economic strategy for a decarbonising world.

- SIPHELELE DLUDLA

Speaking on the sidelines of the ongoing World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos, Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Parks Tau, underscored that South Africa's mineral endowment extends well beyond the legacy resources of the past.

Tau said while coal and abundant sunshine remain central to the current energy mix, the country is increasingly focused on the critical and rare earth minerals that underpin clean energy systems, digital technologies and advanced manufacturing.

"So we are sitting pretty much at the crossroads as a country where we are transitioning not only from an energy point of view but also from a technology point of view into what the future looks like and having the benefit of the deposits in our backyard," Tau said.