Parliament, Wednesday, 6 May 2026 – The Portfolio Committee on International Relations and Cooperation today received a briefing from the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) and the African Renaissance Fund on their annual performance plans for the 2026/27 financial year.
The committee noted that DIRCO requires strategic plans that can operate in a complex and dynamic global environment and which position South Africa to engage effectively in global politics, trade and development.
The committee also noted that DIRCO’s budget allocation increases by 2% from R7.090 billion in (2025/26) to R7. 227 billion in (2026/27), and that the increase does not fully match the departments expanding mandate.
Furthermore, the committee noted that the compensation of employees remains a pressure point, as the 2026/27 increase is not sufficient to address high vacancy rates at headquarters and missions (115 missions in 102 countries), where staffing costs are the main cost driver. During oversight visits to missions, the committee noted that some are under-resourced to the extent that staff sometimes share one laptop among five people. It called for all missions to be properly resourced.
The committee recommended that the department engage with National Treasury to address budget pressures and exchange-rate volatility. The committee also requested feedback on discussions with Treasury and further requested the department to consider benchmarking with peer committees or resident embassies on managing currency fluctuation risks.
The committee Chairperson, Mr Supra Mahumapelo, requested that the department focus on enabling missions to become strategic partners and prioritise the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area to increase South Africa’s exports to the rest of the continent and the world.
Embassies and consul generals should be sufficiently capacitated to strengthen economic diplomacy with current and potential trading partners. Moreover, the department should consider setting targets for missions to accomplish trade agreements. The Chairperson said that the department should ensure the implementation of the Johannesburg G20 outcomes, especially cooperation in operationalisation of the AfCFTA.
Moreover, the department should accelerate the finalisation of the transition of the African Renaissance Fund into a fully-fledged agency to drive cooperation and economic development in African countries where a need arises.
The committee also encouraged efforts to introduce the youth to diplomacy through youth employment. The committee further noted that ICT challenges continue in South African missions abroad, which increases operational risk, and it called on the department to prioritise this challenge during the 2026/27 financial year.
ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND COOPERATION, MR SUPRA MAHUMAPELO.
For media inquiries or interviews with the Chairperson, please contact the committee’s Media Officer:
Name: Sureshinee Govender (Ms)
Cell: 081 704 1109
E-mail: sugovender@parliament.gov.za
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