What is expected of Mcebisi Jonas in his role as special envoy to the U.S?
The former deputy finance minister takes on the role amid a deteriorating relationship between South Africa and the USA.
FILE: Former deputy finance minister, Mcebisi Jonas, reacts during a demonstration march organised by a broad-based coalition called #UniteBehind, to place pressure on MPs to vote for the removal of South African President Jacob Zuma (not visible) before a no-confidence vote by Parliament, on 7 August 2017 in Cape Town. Picture: RODGER BOSCH/AFP
Stephen Grootes speaks to Khaya Sithole, Independent Analyst about Mcebisi Jonas' role as special envoy to the U.S.
Listen to the interview in the audio player below.
The Presidency on Monday announced former Deputy Finance Minister, Mcebisi Jonas as a new special envoy to United States.
Jonas will lead negotiations with the world's biggest economy, while focusing on strengthening trade relations and promoting economic cooperation between the two countries.
South Africa's relationship with America has soured since Donald Trump took office in January, cutting off aid and imposing higher trade tariffs.
The Trump administration has cited land expropriation and the genocide of white farmers for it's current stance on South Africa.
Speaking to Stephen Grootes on The Money Show, independent analyst Khaya Sithole says this will be a tough job, regardless of the person in the hot seat.
"I don't think there is actually a right person for job of this nature, simply because what we really are working with is not a normal state of affairs'. It's not a normal diplomatic relationship."
- Khaya Sithole, independent analyst
"What we need from this envoy is to figure out if there's a way of accessing the higher levels of the Trump administration, and certainly correcting the story and then figuring out how to manage the relationship.":
- Khaya Sithole, independent analyst
"If it turns out that the basis for this misinformation is the type of information that gets fed to those that are influential enough to convince the U.S president to avoid reading and simply tweet his way through what they tell him, then that's what you want to be focused on."
- Khaya Sithole, independent analyst
Scroll to the top of the article to listen to the full interview.