Trade and Industry Minister Dr Rob Davies
Photo by: Duane Daws
Investors from all countries, including those that formed part of the European Union, were still granted strong investment protection through the legal framework governing investment in South Africa, and were also guaranteed property protection by clauses in South Africa’s Constitution, despite the termination of bilateral investment treaties (BITs), Trade and Industry Minister Dr Rob Davies said in a parliamentary reply.
The decision to terminate South Africa’s BITs was made by Cabinet in 2010 following a BIT review initiated by the Department of Trade and Industry in 2007.
Responding to a question posed by the Freedom Front Plus, Davies pointed out that protection under terminated BITs for existing investments could also extend for between 10 and 20 years.
Further, he said the Protection and Promotion of Investment Bill, which was published for public comment on November 1, also reconfirmed all the protections currently granted to investors in South Africa under the existing legal framework.
“The Bill also clarifies how provisions ordinarily found in BITs are interpreted in South African law,” he said.
Davies further pointed out that the Bill specified the strong standards of protection granted to all investors in South Africa in a nondiscriminatory manner, adding that it was not limited to countries with which South Africa had previously maintained BITs.