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Dear fellow citizens, colleagues and friends, As my tour of duty is coming to an end, I am proud to share with you the highlights of my nearly three-year ambassadorial service in South Africa. Representing Lithuania's interests, developing diplomatic, political, economic, and cultural relations, promoting tourism to Lithuania, and providing development assistance to South Africa have been the Embassy's most important priorities. I am extremely satisfied with the results of our consistent work and efforts that will benefit my country as well as the Lithuanian citizens.

My favorite and the most tangible achievement by our diplomatic service is the simplification of travel formalities to South Africa for the Lithuanian citizens. Although visas are still required, but since April this year, Lithuanians can apply for an E-visa online instead of sending the documents physically to the South African embassy in Stockholm, Sweden. We will not stop there and continue to work to ensure that Lithuanian citizens can travel visa-free to South Africa.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected trade between Lithuania and South Africa, we are already seeing signs of recovery. The embassy has been actively engaged with the Lithuanian producers and exporters in various sectors of the economy to encourage and assist them in entering the South African market. I am pleased to note that more and more Lithuanian businesses are discovering South Africa not only as the export, but also as the investment destination. Several Lithuanian companies are contributing to the circular as well as the digital economy in South Africa. The most recent new arrival is the Lithuanian high-tech company, operating globally, “Teltonika”, who has opened its new office in Johannesburg this year. I am particularly encouraged by the growing interest of the South African companies to explore business and investment opportunities in Lithuania. After having engaged with multiple South African businesses during a few years of my work in South Africa, I will be delighted to see South African investment projects successfully implemented in Lithuania in the nearest future.

Strengthening bilateral cooperation between Lithuanian and South African universities is yet another accomplishment. After having hosted a delegation of Lithuanian universities at the beginning of this year, I hope to see developing meaningful partnerships with increased exchanges of students, professors, and researchers as well as cooperation in scientific field between Lithuania and South Africa. I look forward also to increased numbers of South Africans studying in Lithuania already this academic year.

I can confidently state that Lithuania has become more visible and better known to South Africans over the recent years. Not least because of its uncompromising stance in the face of Russia's attack on Ukraine that has not gone unnoticed in South Africa as well as elsewhere in the world, but also because of the embassy’s consistent efforts. To raise awareness about Lithuania, the Embassy organized visits of South African journalists and think tank analysts to Lithuania. A number of cultural and historical memory exhibitions arranged by the Embassy in partnership with various South African cultural institutions in Johannesburg, Pretoria, and Cape Town, I hope have contributed to better understanding of Lithuania, its people as well as its history.

Improving consular service has been on top of my priorities. Thanks to the professionalism and dedication of our Embassy’s consular team headed by the Consul Ms Diana Kopilevič, the standard of our services has been enhanced:  the queue for an appointment for consular services is considerably reduced while the number of clients having received the service has steadily increased. I am pleased to note that the feedback from our clients has been progressively positive.

I would like to emphasize that South Africa is home to two very different communities of Lithuanian citizens, both equally important and dear to us. A few dozens of Lithuanians have arrived in South Africa from independent Lithuania over the past decades for business or family reasons.  They speak the Lithuanian language and organically maintain links with Lithuania. The other group are descendants of Jewish Lithuanian citizens who left Lithuania between 1918 and 1940 and have reinstated Lithuanian citizenship recently. Although of different background, both are Lithuanian citizens of equal right who are entitled to citizenship’s privileges but also have duties towards the state, stipulated in the oath of citizenship. There are currently more than three thousand citizens of South Africa who also hold a Lithuanian passport. Building trust and strengthening ties between those who have regained Lithuanian citizenship and Lithuania is and will remain one of the most important tasks of the embassy. We will continue encouraging those Lithuanian citizens to visit their ancestral country more often and get to know it better.

 As I am bidding farewell in my capacity as the Lithuanian ambassador, I am happy to announce about some positive changes in our Embassy. First of all, we have upgraded our consular section space by moving it to newly renovated premises to make it more accessible and convenient for our visitors. Secondly, from the beginning of August the embassy will welcome a new member of our consular team Ms Ligita Jakučionytė who will take over from Ms Eglė Burbaitė. As I say goodbye to Eglė, I would like to express my sincere appreciation for her excellent one-year service at the consular section of our embassy. I hope the change of staff will be seamless and you will continue experiencing only the highest standard of our service.

Thirdly, after four years of diplomatic service at the embassy in Pretoria Ms Inga Stankaitė, a diplomat responsible for political and economic cooperation, returns to the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Vilnius. She will be succeeded by the new colleague Minister Counsellor Ms Vaida Stankevičienė, who will come to South Africa from the Lithuanian embassy in Turkey.

The current phase of the Embassy's renewal will be completed when the new Lithuanian Ambassador-designate arrives in Pretoria in September.

In closing, let me sincerely thank to my colleagues at the Embassy for our excellent work together and to express my great appreciation to everyone I have met in South Africa for making my time here something I will remember with great pleasure.

Truly Yours,

Ambassador Dainius Junevičius