ABSTRACT
Integrating South African foreign policy with domestic policies and capabilities was one of the hallmarks of the search for a post-Mandela approach to international relations. The shift from Reconstruction and Development Programme to Growth, Employment and Redistribution had important implications for South Africa’s foreign policy, since getting the ‘economic fundamentals’ right was meant to improve global competitiveness and export efficiency as well as inspire confidence among foreign investors. The reconfiguration of South African foreign policy began in earnest in February 1999 when the new Director-General, Jackie Selebi, led an initiative that reformulated the Department of Foreign Affairs mission statement. South Africa under Thabo Mbeki had decided to engage more earnestly and vigorously with the forces of globalisation as a means of improving economic growth, generating employment and addressing inequality. Rising poverty, chronic unemployment, poor economic growth, a fluctuating currency and increasing xenophobia are interwoven in a fragile social fabric, impeding the realisation of lofty foreign-policy goals.
