Madam Chair, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers, hon members and guests, our Freedom Charter states that there shall be peace and friendship. Therefore, the Department of International Relations and Co-operation, Dirco, has formed relationships and worked for peace on the continent and in the world whilst pursuing South Africa's national interests.
Our struggle for a better life in South Africa is intertwined with our pursuit of a better Africa and a better world. Therefore the ANC's focus is to contribute towards building a better Africa and thus a better world. [Applause.] The vision of building a better world can be realised through the strengthening of our South-South co-operation and its strategic relationships. Partnerships with countries of the South continue to be critical in advancing not only South Africa's own development needs, but also those of Africa and, in so doing, creating political, economic and social convergence for the fight against poverty, underdevelopment and the marginalisation of the South. The department therefore promotes the strengthening of South-South co-operation and supports the agenda of the South through participation in the activities of all South African forums.
South Africa conducts its foreign policy against the background of an ever- changing political and economic environment. This global environment has experienced major shifts in global politics, economics, social and cultural dynamics that impacted on different parts of the world. This impact includes the realignment of new economic powers, new media and social networks, innovations, environmental changes, and a heightened demand for scarce resources and also the changing nature of conflicts and insecurities.
Co-operation between developing countries in the South began in the 1950s during a conference of Asian countries and independent African states. This conference took place in Bandung in Indonesia in April 1955. This was the first attempt to create co-operation between developing countries with the aim of restoring economic and cultural links within the South, which had been severed due to colonialism, while at the same time further strengthening the relationships between the North and the South.
Six years later this led to the creation of the Non-Aligned Movement, NAM, in 1961 and the Group of 77, G77, founded in 1964, which accelerated developing countries' drive for collective self-reliance, focusing ... [Inaudible.]