The arrival of Leo Brent Bozell III as the new US ambassador to South Africa came at a moment of unusual, but not unfounded, diplomatic tension between Pretoria and Washington.
Relations between the two countries were historically robust when it came to trade and investment, but in recent years they have frayed amid disagreements over foreign policy, geopolitical alignment and domestic political rhetoric at the hands of the ANC.
This strained relationship was the unavoidable backdrop against which Bozell began his tenure, and it hardly improved after South Africa issued a formal diplomatic rebuke to the new ambassador less than a month after he arrived in the country over “undiplomatic” remarks he made regarding South African policy positions, including BEE and land expropriation.
While a strained relationship between the two national governments is far from ideal, it does create an interesting opportunity for South Africa’s sub-national governments, perhaps especially those not governed by the ANC, to redefine US engagement with South Africa.
If handled wisely this moment could strengthen economic co-operation where it matters most: in the provinces and cities that are actively trying to grow their economies, improve governance and remain aligned with their Western trading partners.
Relationship on thin ice
There is no point pretending the bilateral relationship between SA and the US is healthy — it clearly is not. Our national government has made diplomatic choices that have irritated and in some cases knowingly antagonised policymakers in Washington.
Our alignment with governments such as Iran, Russia and Venezuela has raised eyebrows all over the West, and in addition Pretoria’s decision to pursue a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice remains deeply controversial in the US.
South Africa’s governance is layered in a fashion that is not dissimilar to that of the US. For a US ambassador arriving in a moment of political friction with the national government, this matters. It means engagement with South Africa need not be confined to Pretoria and its ANC-headed government
Public remarks by our leaders have added insult to injury, with President Cyril Ramaphosa labelling some of US President Donald Trump’s policies racist, among other things. This may have played well in certain domestic political circles, but it was never likely to contribute to constructive diplomacy with Washington.
Bozell arrives on our shores not simply as a diplomatic representative, but as a figure expected to challenge Pretoria’s current course. It must be stated, however, that South African politics can no longer be expressed as a universal expression of the diplomacy of its national government, simply rubberstamped by provinces and cities. The rise of coalition politics has seen the birth of diverse opinions in our offices of leadership.
SA is not politically uniform
One fact often underappreciated in Washington is that South Africa is not a unitary political landscape. Our constitutional system contains meaningful elements of federalism, elements that are being rediscovered in this new era of our democracy.
While national government controls critical functions such as macroeconomic policy, foreign affairs and policing, provinces and municipalities exercise significant authority in areas that matter enormously for economic development. These crucially include planning approvals, infrastructure, local regulation, utilities, transport systems (to an extent) and the everyday ease of doing business.
In other words, South Africa’s governance is layered in a fashion that is not dissimilar to that of the US. For a US ambassador arriving in a moment of political friction with the national government, this matters. It means engagement with South Africa need not be confined to Pretoria and its ANC-headed government.
For governments such as those led by the DA in the Western Cape, including Cape Town metro and 34 municipalities across South Africa where the party governs, it presents a strategic opportunity. If there is one message DA-governed administrations should communicate clearly to Bozell, and through him to Washington, it is that South Africa contains functioning, reform-oriented pockets of governance that differ markedly from the national picture.
Nowhere is this more visible than in labour market outcomes. South Africa’s national unemployment rate sits at an alarming 31%. Yet the Western Cape records about 18%, while Cape Town sits just under 20%. The difference is not marginal. This big employment gap reflects policy choices in investment in infrastructure, efforts to improve municipal governance, streamlined planning processes and an emphasis on economic growth rather than the ideological crusades for which the ANC has become known.
Ease of doing business matters
American companies wanting to do business in South Africa are not primarily concerned with ideological debates about transformation and the lofty policy ideals contained in South African policy documents. They are concerned with practical questions such as the turnaround time on a work permit, the stability of internet delivery, the safety of employees and the predictability of regulations. This is precisely where provincial and municipal governments have leverage.
Rural safety cannot be ignored
Another issue that resonates strongly in Washington, and increasingly in international media, is rural safety. Crime in rural areas of South Africa has become a deeply sensitive topic in America’s domestic political debate. Whether fairly or unfairly portrayed, farm attacks and rural violence frequently appear in American political discourse. The most constructive response from non ANC-led governments should not be defensiveness but evidence.
Rather than treating this as purely a diplomatic crisis, DA-governed administrations should view it as a moment to highlight a different story about South Africa, one rooted in competent governance, economic openness and alignment with democratic market economies
The Western Cape has taken steps to strengthen rural safety structures, including co-operation between agricultural communities, law enforcement and provincial authorities. Highlighting measurable improvements in rural policing and safety outcomes could help counter the perception that South Africa is indifferent to the issue. More importantly, it would demonstrate competent governance can make tangible differences in public safety.
Thinking creatively about trade
Perhaps the most delicate issue looming over the relationship is the future of the African Growth & Opportunity Act (Agoa), which provides preferential access to the US market for qualifying African countries and has been a significant driver of South African exports, particularly in the automotive and agricultural sectors. It has been extended recently, but remains in the crosshairs as South Africa’s eligibility has increasingly come under scrutiny in Washington.
One possibility — admittedly unconventional but not impossible — would be to advocate for a form of provincial or sub-national Agoa eligibility. Such arrangements are rare but not unheard of in global trade practice. Special economic zones, territorial trade preferences and sub-national export arrangements exist in different forms around the world.
For the Western Cape, whose export economy is highly integrated with Western markets, such an approach could safeguard trade links even if national diplomacy falters, including helping keep businesses such as wine farms afloat.
What next?
For the first time in years, the US is paying extremely close attention to South Africa’s political trajectory. Rather than treating this as purely a diplomatic crisis, DA-governed administrations should view it as a moment to highlight a different story about South Africa, one rooted in competent governance, economic openness and alignment with democratic market economies.
If that message is communicated effectively, Bozell may come to see South Africa not as a single political entity drifting away from the West, but as a complex federal system in which alternative models of governance are emerging.
If Washington begins to recognise that distinction it could reshape the way the US engages with South Africa for years to come.
• Maritz is a director at Free SA
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