“I am appealing to all of you to come and invest in South Africa. The relationship between India and South Africa is one of the best in the world. I would even hasten to say it’s the best in the world,” Ramaphosa said.
Without mentioning the notorious India-born Gupta family, he said businesspeople in India were outstanding. “People come to South Africa to run real businesses, and not to run funny businesses,” he said amid laughter at a business forum with his hosts.
The Guptas, who are now exiled in Dubai, have been accused of using their close relationship with former president Jacob Zuma to loot the state of billions by controlling members of Zuma’s executive and state-owned enterprises to access the wealth.
“Those who’ve come to our shores, 150 companies have been real, ethically driven businesses based on good governance and cooperate behaviour,” Ramaphosa said.
Ramaphosa visited India immediately following his participation at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
During his two-day stop in New Delhi which ended on Sunday, Ramaphosa interacted with Indian President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, stakeholders from India’s business sector and delivered the inaugural Gandhi-Mandela Freedom Lecture in honour of the two icons – Mahatma Gandhi and democratic South Africa’s founding President Nelson Mandela.