Ramaphosa hoping to drive investment at G7 summit
President Cyril Ramaphosa arrived in France on Sunday ahead of the annual G7 summit of world leaders.
The Basque resort of Biarritz, which at this time of year usually teems with surfers, sunbathers and tourists, has been turned into a fortress for the event with over 13,000 police on duty and its gleaming beaches out of bounds to the public.
Ramaphosa, who was invited to attend the summit by French President Emmanuel Macron, will use his meetings to drive investment in the sluggish South African economy by convincing bigger countries to trade and invest locally.
During a parliamentary Q&A session this week Ramaphosa identified unemployment being the biggest risk currently facing South Africa.
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G7 chiefs are hoping to soothe tensions over Iran's nuclear programme and persuade US President Donald Trump to ease his policy of "maximum pressure", for example by lifting sanctions on Iranian oil sales to China and India.
Macron is also pushing for action against fires in the Amazon rainforest, despite Brazilian right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro's angry response to what he sees as outside interference.