The 13th SA-EU JCC session will be held in Pretoria, South Africa on 17 July 2012. The JCC is held annually to assess progress made in the implementation of sectoral cooperation programmes between South Africa and the EU. The Trade, Development and Cooperation Agreement (TDCA), provides the basis for the cooperation which was further enhanced with the establishment of the SA-EU Strategic Partnership in 2007.
In the context of the TDCA and the Joint Action Plan of the Strategic Partnership, to date there are bilateral sectoral Dialogue Forums on; Customs, Development, Education & Training, Energy, Environment & Sustainable Development, Health, ICT, Maritime Transport, Migration, Science & Technology, Space, and Trade. There is also ongoing cooperation on Regional Development, which started in 2011. Furthermore, there are ongoing consultations on how to engage on Employment and Social Affairs; and on Crime & Justice.
The JCC will focus on the achievements over the past year and also identify any implementation challenges with the view to share experiences across the Dialogue Forums. The progress made through the sectoral cooperation is essential in achieving concrete benefits from the Strategic Partnership in support of South Africa’s developmental priorities. The joint report from the JCC will be presented to the principals at the 5th SA-EU Summit, which will be held in Brussels on 18 September 2012.

The South African Delegation to the JCC will be led by the Deputy Director-General in charge of Europe from the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, Ambassador Rapu Molekane. The EU Delegation will be led by the EEAS MD for Africa, Mr Nick Westcott. The South African Ambassador to the EU, Mxolisi Nkosi and his EU counterpart, Roland Van Der Geer will also participate in the session. Embassies of the EU Member States in South Africa have been invited as observers.