{PRESIDENT Jacob Zuma had arrived in Conakry, Guinea, for a meeting with counterpart Alpha Omar Condé, the presidency said on Tuesday.}
“The two leaders are expected to discuss matters relating to promoting bilateral relations as well as peace and security in the continent,” spokesman Mac Maharaj said.
The visit is expected to give impetus to trade and socioeconomic co-operation between SA and Guinea, the Department of International Relations and Co-operation said on Monday.
SA companies in Guinea include telecommunications giant MTN, Anglogold Ashanti, Alufer, Africa Lotto Company, Global Outdoor Systems and African Rainbow Minerals.
Guinea is in the grip of an Ebola epidemic, which is expected to feature in talks.
On Wednesday, Mr Zuma flies to Luanda, Angola, for consultations with President Jose Eduardo dos Santos.
As chairman of the Southern African Development Community’s security organ, Mr Zuma was to attend a summit of African leaders in Luanda. The meeting was to focus on Rwandan Hutu rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo who have refused to disarm, but the meeting was cancelled, Angola said Tuesday.
“The summit will not be held because the decision to take military action against the FDLR (Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda) has already been made and all that remains now is to implement it,” said Angolan Minister of International Affairs Joaquim do Espirito Santo.
The FDLR missed a January 2 deadline to turn themselves in. Several countries in the region have already declared their support for military action against the rebels. The FDLR is estimated to include between 1,500 and 2,000 ethnic Hutu fighters, some of whom are accused of having participated in the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
On Thursday, Mr Zuma is scheduled to attend the inauguration of Mozambique’s newly elected president, Filipe Nyusi.
Sapa, AFP, Staff Writer
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