SA High C’ssioner speaks at Trade and Finance Confab

South African High Commissioner to Ghana, Lulama Mary-Theresa Xingwana, is expected to speak at the country's first three-day international conference on trade and finance in Accra on April 10-12, 2017.

The event, according to the organisers, will bring together players in the trade and finance sectors, spanning agriculture, manufacturing, insurance, construction, import and export as well as foreign businesses from across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas.

She will be speaking on the topic: South Africa Trade Relations: Opportunities for the Local Ghanaian Business Community.

Ms Theresa Xingwana has been a South African Member of Parliament after the 1994 South African elections. She is currently also chairperson of the Southern African Development Community's Regional Women's Caucus and director of the South African Council of Churches' Women's Development Programmes (1987).

She has chaired the Joint Monitoring Committee for the Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of Women (2002–2004), the Parliamentary Women's Caucus (1999–2004), the Malibongwe Rural Development Project for Women (1998–2000) and the National Assembly Portfolio Committee for Sports and Recreation (1994–1999). She has been a tutor of Classes for Domestic Workers in rural areas and the suburbs of Johannesburg, as well as for Learn and Teach, since 1985. From 1999 to 2004, she was on the National Assembly Portfolio Committee for Defence.

She has also been on the ANC's Provincial Executive Council for Gauteng (1998–2001) and the National Assembly Portfolio Committee: Environmental Affairs and Tourism (1996–2004), Head of Development for the ANC Women's League (1991–1994) and a member of FEDSWA (1981–1991). Her membership to the United Democratic Front lasted from 1983 until 1991, and she has been a member of the ANC Women's League since 1993.

The event which is sponsored by Heritage Security Limited see the opening addresses by reputable personalities on trade opportunities for local traders from Ghana. The session will point out both new and other specific existing opportunities that have not been taken advantage of but have been available.

There will also be a special address by Trade Minister Alan Kyerematen, who is expected to speak on how the private sector can drive government’s One District, One Factory agenda.

The second day will focus strictly on how to finance the opportunities exposed on the first day. It will have finance experts from several institutions dealing specifically with how funds can be accessed to take advantage of the opportunities brought to the fore from the first day.

The third day will see an exhibition where both international and local exhibitors will showcase their products and services to the potential buyers and sellers.

Lulama "Lulu" Mary-Theresa Xingwana (born 23 September 1955) is a South African politician who served as Minister for Women, Children and People with Disabilities from November 2010 - May 2014.

Previously she held the position of Deputy Minister of Minerals and Energy from 2004 to 2006 and was Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs from 2006 to 2009, succeeding Thoko Didiza.

She obtained a Bachelor of Science degree from University of Witwatersrand in 1985 and three postgraduate diplomas, one in Economic Principles from the University of Limpopo in 2002, and the other two in Development and Leadership Studies, and Rural Development from the University of Zimbabwe in Zimbabwe.