South Africa renames Taiwan office, budgetary constraints delay Johannesburg move

WITH Taiwan’s South African office having been recently downgraded from Taiwan Liaison Office (TLO) to Taipei Liaison Office (TLO), the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) has revealed that while the impending relocation of the Taiwan office has been set in stone, Taipei has indicated that this might change should an expected due date/target cost overrun.

- SIYABONGA SITHOLE [e-mail]

The South African government had initially intended to move its Pretoria office to Johannesburg in October 2024, but talks between the countries resulted in a new date end of March being set.

However, with just under a week to go before the deadline, Taiwan and the South African government are still engaged in a possible change of date due to financial implications associated with the relocation.

DIRCO spokesperson Clayson Monyela has indicated that due to the shift in relations between the two countries since the advent of democracy, this name change reflects the current government’s position on its relations with Taiwan.