PRIME MINISTER Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim arrived in Pretoria on Thursday evening to begin a four-day working visit to South Africa, where he will participate in the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Johannesburg as an invited guest of President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa.
Anwar’s aircraft touched down at the Waterkloof Air Force Base at 6.38 pm local time and he was received by Malaysia’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Datuk Yubazlan Yusof, South Africa’s Deputy Defence and Military Veterans Minister Major-General (R) Bantubonke “Bantu” Harrington Holomisa, and the Department of International Relations and Cooperation’s chief director for East Asia and Oceania, Thandiwe Fadane.
The delegation is travelling onwards to Johannesburg, a journey of roughly an hour from Pretoria, the country’s administrative capital.
The trip from 20 to 23 November underscores Malaysia’s elevated diplomatic profile as it prepares to assume the ASEAN Chair in 2025.
Anwar’s invitation to the summit, themed “Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability”, signals South Africa’s intent to ensure that emerging economies contribute meaningfully to shaping global governance.
In Johannesburg, the Prime Minister will deliver Malaysia’s national statements in two sessions.
The first, held on the morning of 22 November, addresses inclusive and sustainable growth, trade, development financing and global debt challenges.
His second intervention, scheduled for the afternoon, focuses on disaster resilience, climate action, energy transitions and food systems. Anwar will later join fellow leaders at a dinner hosted by President Ramaphosa at the NASREC Expo Centre.
A bilateral meeting with the South African President is planned for the second day of the visit. Anwar will also engage South African Muslim leaders, meet Malaysian diaspora members, and attend a business forum involving senior South African industry figures.
He is additionally slated to meet Botswana’s Vice-President, Ndaba Nkosinathi Gaolathe, and to record an interview with academic and commentator Dr Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh on Malaysia–South Africa relations, Malaysia’s position on Palestine, the country’s aspiration for full BRICS membership, and global governance reforms.
Before arriving in South Africa, Anwar concluded a three-day visit to Ethiopia, marking the first official trip by a Malaysian Prime Minister to the Horn of Africa. Addressing the Afro-Malaysia Youth Forum in Addis Ababa, he urged ASEAN–African Union relations to evolve into substantive, people-centred cooperation.
He emphasised that both regions must draw on shared experiences of resilience and reform to develop mechanisms that move beyond symbolism.
“As the geopolitical realities of today compel us to recalibrate our strategic approaches, I am reminded of the spirit that saw the declaration for international cooperation adopted at the Asian-African Conference in Bandung, Indonesia, seven decades ago, laying the ideological foundation for the Non-Aligned Movement,” he said.
Calling for renewed vitality in inter-regional cooperation, Anwar added: “Therefore, the time has come for the African Union and ASEAN to breathe new life into that spirit, to forge a new compact of cooperation for mutual benefit, and shared prosperity – not as convenient slogans but as real and tangible aspirations capable of fulfilment.”
He underlined the urgency of Global South solidarity at a moment of shifting geopolitical alignments.
“Collectively, whether in Africa, Asia, Central and South America, and other parts of the world, we have never been presented with such an opportunity to reshape our roles and place in the global order.
“We need more representative and equitable leadership in the regional and global architectures that are taking shape today. Leadership that is both based on collaboration and accountable to all its stakeholders, not just the powerful and the wealthy.
“These are the conversations that we have in parts of Asia, with our like-minded partners in Europe, the Pacific and Latin America, and I believe that it can only be truly complete with Africa in the picture.”
The forum, themed “Youth Partnership for Shared Prosperity”, was co-organised by the Ethiopian Youth Council, the Pan-Africa Youth Union and Majlis Belia Malaysia, drawing 250 participants. Among those present were Ethiopia’s Minister of Women and Social Affairs Ergoge Tesfaye, Malaysia’s Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) Datuk Seri Zaliha Mustafa, and Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Mohd Afandi Abu Bakar.
Following the G20 Summit in South Africa, Anwar will continue to Nairobi, Kenya, for an official visit before returning to Malaysia. - November 21, 2025
