Gauteng Province（South Africa）

Gauteng Province（South Africa）

[Overview] Located at the center of South Africa, the Gauteng Province covers an area of 18,176 square kilometers with a population of about 12.3 million. Johannesburg, the capital of Gauteng Province, is also the largest city of South Africa. Tshwane, another major city in the province that used to be called Pretoria, is the administrative capital of the country.

[Politics] The premier of Gauteng Province is elected by the Provincial Legislature and the position is usually undertaken by the leader of the majority party in the legislature. The premier will select no more than 10 members of the legislature to form the Executive Council, which upon approval of the legislature will, along with the premier, constitute the leadership of the provincial government for a term of five years. The incumbent premier David Makhura came into office in May 2014.

[Economy] As the economic engine and commercial and industrial center of South Africa, Gauteng's Provincial GDP accounts for nearly 40% of the national total. Main sectors of the provincial economy include financial and commercial service, logistics, communication and mining, and great efforts are also made to develop high-tech industries and those with high added values.

[Culture and Education] As an important educational center of South Africa, Gauteng Province is home to the University of Pretoria, the country's largest boarding school, and the University of South Africa, one of the largest correspondence universities in the world. The province also abounds in cultural and entertaining facilities, including more than 60 museums. Gauteng Province was an important host for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, as the opening and closing ceremonies and the first and last matches were all held in the city of Johannesburg.

[Relations with Beijing] Beijing and Gauteng Province established the sister-city relationship on December 6, 1998, and they signed the memorandum of cooperation in March 2017. Both sides have maintained positive official ties in recent years, and worked closely in such areas as investment and trade, legislation, culture and people-to-people exchanges.

Investment and Trade: In September 2015, Beijing held an economic and trade cooperation forum in Pretoria (Tshwane now), at which participants had fruitful discussions about the prospects of cooperation between Beijing and South Africa, and their respective investment climate and preferential policies. The China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Beijing Sub-Council (CCPIT Beijing) and Sino Afro Progression Economic and Trading Association (SAPETA) signed a friendly cooperation agreement. In March 2017, the Beijing Capital Highway Development Group and South Africa's LANDPAC signed an agreement on deepening their strategic cooperation, whereby the two sides would focus on technologies of recycling waste tires, asphalt and rubber and work together to build eco-friendly roads and promote circular economy.

Legislation: In November 2019, a delegation led by the Chairperson of the Standing Committee of Chairpersons of Gauteng Provincial Legislature visited Beijing, and held in-depth talks with Beijing Municipal People's Congress on the work mechanisms and functions of local people's congress. The visit promoted the exchanges and cooperation between the two local legislative bodies.

Culture: In September 2009, a Beijing delegation consisting of about 90 performers participated in the Pale Ya Rona Carnival in Gauteng Province, where they were warmly welcomed by the local audience. In September 2015, the Beijing Week was launched as part of the 2015 Year of China event in South Africa, which brought the tie closer between Beijing and Gauteng, enriched the areas of cooperation between sister cities, and resulted in wide consensuses on mutual learning between cultures, business collaboration and other issues.

People-to-People Exchanges: In July 2014, the Gauteng Office of the Premier assigned people to attend the training session for Chinese language teachers from sister cities in Beijing. The two-week language training deepened their understanding of the city.

豪登省（南非）

【概况】豪登省位于南非中心，面积18176平方公里，人口约1230万，豪登省省会约翰内斯堡市是南非最大的城市。该省的主要城市茨瓦内（旧称比勒陀利亚）是南非行政首都。

【政治】豪登省省长由省议会选举产生。通常情况下，省长由省议会第一大党领导人担任，省长从省议员中挑选不多于10人组成执行委员会，执行委员会成员成为执行委员，经省议会批准后与省长共同组成省政府领导班子，任期5年。现任省长大卫·马库拉于2014年5月就职。

【经济】豪登省是南非经济的发动机，也是商业和工业中心。该省国内生产总值占南非全国的近40%。经济的主要组成包括金融商业服务、物流和通讯及矿业。现该省正致力于发展高科技和高附加值产业。

【文化教育】豪登省是南非重要的教育中心。比勒陀利亚大学是全国最大的寄宿制学校，南非大学是世界上最大的函授大学。省内文化娱乐设施丰富，有60多座博物馆。豪登省也是2010年国际足联世界杯赛的主要举办地，开闭幕式、首场及末场比赛均在约翰内斯堡市举行。

【两市交往】1998年12月6日，北京市与豪登省正式建立友好城市关系。2017年3月，两省市共同签署《北京市与豪登省友好合作备忘录》。近年来，我市与豪登省保持着良好的官方往来，经贸、立法、文化、人文交流等领域合作成果突出。

经贸交往：2015年9月，我市在比勒陀利亚市（现更名为茨瓦内市）举行了“北京—南非经贸合作论坛”，双方就北京与南非的经贸合作前景、各自的投资环境与优惠政策等方面进行了富有成果的对接洽谈，北京市贸促会与南非—中国经济贸易促进委员会签署了友好合作协议。2017年3月，首发集团与南非蓝派公司签署了《首发集团与南非蓝派公司深化战略合作协议》，聚焦利用废旧轮胎、沥青、橡胶技术，开展绿色环保道路和循环经济友好合作。

立法交流：2019年11月，南非豪登省议会全委会主席率团访京。期间，同市人大就地方人大工作机制、职能等方面进行深入交流，促进两个地区立法机构之间的交流与合作。

文化交流：2009年9月，我市组织了90余名文艺表演者赴豪登省参加帕尔雅罗纳狂欢节有关活动，受到当地民众的热烈欢迎。2015年9月，我市在南非举办了2015南非中国年“北京周”主题活动，两省市以此为契机，进一步开展友好合作，在加强文化互鉴、产业合作等领域的合作达成广泛共识，丰富了友城内涵。

人文交流：2014年7月，豪登省省长办公室派员来京参加了我市主办的“友城汉语教师培训班”，通过为期两周的汉语培训，增进其对我市了解。

（Source: Foreign Affairs Office of Beijing Municipal Government）