State Visits as a Tool of Economic Diplomacy: Bandwagon or Business Sense?

The document examines the role of business delegations in South African state visits from 2009 to 2010, highlighting the collaboration between Business Unity South Africa (BUSA) and the Department of Trade and Industry (dti). While these visits facilitate networking and government understanding of private sector needs, they face challenges including lack of dedicated funding, poor strategic planning, and concerns over political representivity. The author recommends a new model with clearer roles, dedicated resources, and pre-visit reconnaissance to maximize economic outcomes.

• Since 2009, the South African government has increased the prominence of business delegations on official state visits, with approximately a dozen such delegations participating in bilateral visits by the end of 2010.
• Business delegations are jointly managed by Business Unity South Africa (BUSA) and the Department of Trade and Industry (dti) via Trade and Investment South Africa (TISA), typically operating on a first-come, first-served basis for registration.
• Between August 2009 and October 2010, President Zuma led state visits to several countries with varying levels of business participation, ranging from 22 delegates in Lesotho to 371 in China, covering sectors such as agriculture, energy, ICT, and mining.
• State visits provide benefits such as enhancing government understanding of the practical realities of trade, creating networking opportunities for South African business leaders, and providing access to a wide range of potential partners in the host country.
• The current approach faces significant operational challenges, including a lack of dedicated budgets or staff, insufficient strategic planning for specific host countries, and the absence of pre-visit scoping missions.
• There are concerns regarding the credibility and motivation of business delegations, with public criticisms suggesting some participants may be political allies of the president rather than representatives of commercial interests.
• The author recommends a revised model where BUSA takes overall responsibility for the business delegation to reduce perceptions of political interference, supported by dedicated resources and a comprehensive monitoring system to assess impact.

APA

Grant, C. (2011). State Visits as a Tool of Economic Diplomacy: Bandwagon or Business Sense? South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Occasional-Paper-87.pdf

Chicago

Grant, Catherine. State Visits as a Tool of Economic Diplomacy: Bandwagon or Business Sense? South African Institute of International Affairs, 2011. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Occasional-Paper-87.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Grant |first1=Catherine |title=State Visits as a Tool of Economic Diplomacy: Bandwagon or Business Sense? |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=July 2011 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Occasional-Paper-87.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{grant2011state, author = {Grant, Catherine}, title = {{State Visits as a Tool of Economic Diplomacy: Bandwagon or Business Sense?}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2011}, month = jul, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Occasional-Paper-87.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }