South Africa: The Italian Trade Agency has officially signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with South Africa-Italy Agricultural Business Forum. Wesgro, the official tourism, trade and investment promotion agency for the Western Cape, participated in the signing ceremony.
The MoU establishes a framework for enhanced collaboration in trade promotion, investment facilitation, sector partnerships and business-to-business connectivity between Italy and the Western Cape.
This agreement strongly aligns with Wesgro’s strategy to:
- Attract new investment from key global source markets into priority sectors
- Support Western Cape businesses to expand across tourism, trade and investment
- Leverage strategic partnerships to unlock access to high-growth global markets, strengthen networks and crowd in private sector funding
Wesgro noted that they are proud to support a pipeline of Italian companies investing in the province, particularly in agricultural equipment and the circular economy. The recent announcement of SDF Group’s first South African office in Paarl (Drakenstein Municipality) further reinforces the Western Cape’s position as a globally competitive agricultural hub.
Key insights on the Italy-Western Cape relationship include:
Tourism: Italy remains a high-value source market and ranks among the Western Cape’s top-10 international source markets. It welcomed 32,258 tourists from Italy, who visited the province in 2025 and contributed USD29.08 million (SA Tourism, 2026).
Trade: The Western Cape exported USD196.40 million worth of goods to Italy in 2025. With growth driven by agri and marine products such as fish, citrus and value-added goods (Quantec, 2026).
Investment: Italian investment in South Africa counts USD2.07 billion across 25 projects between January 2016 and April 2026, with USD103 million invested in the Western Cape. Especially in renewable energy and textile according to data from fDi Markets, a service from The Financial Times (2026).
Notably, the signing ceremony between the CEO of Wesgro – Wrenelle Stander and the President of Italian Trade Agency – Matteo Zoppas was attended by Minister for Agriculture of South Africa – John Steenhuisen; Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry of Italy – Francesco Lollobrigida; Ambassador of South Africa to Italy – Nosipho Jezile, and Ambassador of Italy to South Africa – Alberto Vecchi.