Nomaindia Mfeketo to step down as SA’s ambassador to the US — a year before term ends

Nomaindia Mfeketo, South Africa’s ambassador to the United States, is to step down in the middle of August, more than a year before her scheduled term ends.

The departure of Mfeketo, who is believed to be gravely ill, was announced to staff at the embassy on Monday.

She has been largely absent during a period of major strain in relations with the US over South Africa’s perceived alliance with Russia in the Ukraine war.

The matter came to a head in May when the US ambassador to SA, Reuben Brigety, accused South Africa of exporting weapons to Russia on the sanctioned Russian cargo ship the Lady R.

Though both sides have since sought to limit the damage, relations have reached a low point amid fears that South Africa might lose its duty-free access to the US market via the African Growth and Opportunity Act, or Agoa.

The decision by Russian President Vladimir Putin not to attend the BRICS heads of state summit in South Africa in person next month, after an arrest warrant was issued against him by the International Criminal Court, has removed one of the US’s grievances.

However, the US is still insisting that there be accountability for the Lady R. A three-person panel under retired Judge Phineas Mojapelo conducted an investigation behind closed doors into what happened.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Independent panel completes investigation into Lady R’s Simon’s Town sojourn

South Africa sent a delegation to Washington, DC, two weeks ago, led by Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel and Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, who faced questions about the Lady R that they were unable to answer.

No successor has been announced for the key US ambassador post, but the lobbying has been going on for months.

Two deputy directors-general of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco), Maude Dlomo and Clayson Monyela, are reportedly on their way to Washington, DC.

The downward slide in relations between South Africa and the US has been going on for more than a decade and did not begin during Mfeketo’s tenure. There remain a number of outstanding hot-button issues.

For instance, the massive tariffs that were imposed on imported steel and aluminium during the presidency of Donald Trump have been lifted for all the affected countries except South Africa.

There is a general sentiment in Washington that the appointment of a new ambassador offers an opportunity for a reevaluation and a new attempt at mending the relationship with the US, which is SA’s second-largest trading partner. DM