South Africa is Germany’s most important partner in sub-Saharan Africa. In 1996, the two governments set up a Binational Commission, thereby providing the framework for nurturing and deepening bilateral cooperation on an ongoing basis.

Germany is South Africa’s second largest bilateral trading partner; meanwhile, with trade worth more than 20 billion euro, South Africa is among Germany’s important trading partners in Africa. South Africa is the only African member of the G20 (alongside the African Union) and served as chair in 2025. One significant shared initiative is the G20 Compact with Africa. It aims to improve economic conditions in participating countries and contribute to greater private investment.

Over 600 German companies are doing business in South Africa. In 2023, German direct investment totalled 7.99 billion euro, with South African investment in Germany at 2.6 billion euro (Germany Trade & Invest figures). German businesses employ some 100,000 people in the country, creating just as many jobs indirectly.

Development cooperation covers the fields of energy and climate, vocational training, governance, preventing violence, as well as health. South Africa has received funding of approximately 2.9 billion euro in the form of grants and low-interest loans since 1994. A total of 276.5 million euro was pledged in November 2024 during the intergovernmental negotiations.

The German-South African energy partnership has been coordinating a wide range of bilateral cooperation projects in the energy sector since 2013. On the margins of the 2021 climate summit in Glasgow, the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JET‑P) was launched, a long‑term partnership between Germany, the EU and other partners with South Africa as a pilot partner to further a socially just energy transition.

Ties in the fields of culture, academia and education are very broad and intensive. For example, Germany supports and assists South Africa with the ongoing transformation process in basic, vocational and higher education. The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is represented at six universities in South Africa. The Goethe-Institut runs the regional institute for sub-Saharan Africa in Johannesburg and supports a Goethe-Zentrum in Cape Town.