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The South African Institute of International Affairs cordially invites you to a Speaker’s Meeting to be addressed by HE Dr Nicola Brewer, British High Commissioner to South Africa, on “Africa in the 21st century: a view from London”.
‘Africa is the second fastest growing region in the world. There has been significant and sustained growth across the continent in retail, agriculture, transport and telecoms, bringing much needed investment and development to African economies. And further opportunities will open up as economies diversify, expand and reach more people.
Britain wants to be a trusted partner for governments and businesses working to realise Africa’s immense potential and we will focus our efforts in three areas:
- firstly, ensuring that British businesses are able to make the most of the trade and investment opportunities on offer;
- secondly, helping Africa trade more across the continent; and
- thirdly, removing barriers to Africa’s goods in global markets, including our own and the EU.
But let me be clear: our support for trade will not come at the expense of our values. We will never shy away from challenging human rights abuses and raising our concerns over human rights whenever and wherever those concerns arise.’
Minister for Africa, Henry Bellingham, 16 December 2010
The UK occupies various roles in its engagement with Africa - as a major aid donor to Africa, as a leader in the Commonwealth, and as a member of both the G8 and the United Nations Security Council. How is the traditional engagement of the UK changing towards Africa in a new era where Britain’s foreign policy in Foreign Secretary William Hague’s words ‘seeks to build up our standing and influence in the world and to support our economy’?
Dr Brewer has been British High Commissioner to South Africa since July 2009 and is also accredited to Lesotho and Swaziland. She is a career diplomat who has held senior public sector appointments both inside and outside the Diplomatic Service.
From 2007-2009 she was the first Chief Executive of the Equality and Human Rights Commission which she created out of the merger of three legacy bodies while taking on a new and much wider remit. She was Director General for Europe at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office from 2004-07 where she led the FCO’s contribution in London to the UK’s Presidency of the European Union and was an executive member of the FCO Management Board.
Dr Brewer was Director General for Regional Programmes at the Department for International Development (2002 – 2004), where she supervised all UK overseas bilateral aid programmes in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Latin America. Prior to that she held the position of Director for Global Issues in the FCO (2001 – 2002) dealing with UN, Commonwealth, environment, energy, science and human rights issues.
She has previously served overseas in New Delhi (1998–2001), Paris (1991-1994) and Mexico City (1984-87). In London, she worked in several FCO departments having joined the department in 1983 after postgraduate study and teaching.
She has a BA in English (1980), a PhD in Linguistics (1988) and an honorary Law degree (2009) from the University of Leeds. She was awarded the CMG in 2002.
Date: Monday 20 June 2011
Time: 18:00 – 19:30 to be followed by a cocktail reception
Venue: Jan Smuts House, East Campus, Wits University
RSVP: Ndumi Nqunqa
Tel: (011) 339 2021
Email: Nondumiso.Nqunqa@wits.ac.za |
