South Africa will become the first African country to host the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD’s) Steel Committee Conference when the committee’s seventy-seventh session takes place in Cape Town on December 11 and 12.

The committee’s participants accounted for the bulk of the world’s steel-producing countries and global steel trade players and was viewed as a think-tank and platform to understand policy decisions and instruments deployed by participating countries to support the growth and development of the global steel industry.

South Africa, which became a member of the OECD in 2008, had observer status in the Steel Committee through its multilateral relations commitments in the OECD.

The committee was comprised of 27 OECD country members, four associates, namely Brazil, Romania, Russian Federation and Ukraine, as well as seven participants: Argentina, Bulgaria, Egypt, India, Malaysia, South Africa and Chinese Taipei.

China, meanwhile, participated in committee discussions as an invitee.

Trade and Industry Minister Dr Rob Davies said the conference would put the spotlight on the South African steel industry by highlighting investment opportunities in the sector in an attempt to entice prospective investors.

“The conference will bring together 250 international government and industry representatives from importing and exporting economies to assess emerging market trends and policy developments affecting trade in steelmaking raw materials.

“The objective of the workshop is to discuss policy interventions implemented globally in the iron-ore and steel markets. These activities are important as there is an increasing drive to strengthen global steel trade,” he said in a statement on Friday.

It would only be the second time that the Steel Committee Conference for the OECD was held outside its headquarters in Paris, France, and would be organised by the Department of Trade and Industry.