Poland in South Africa

The Minister of Foreign Affairs announces a contest for the best foreign language publication promoting the history of Poland and the best Polish language publication on the history of Polish diplomacy. The contest welcomes works which were published in 2021. Historians can submit their works until 31 August 2022.

On June 12, 2022, the annual Polish Sports Day took place at the Lynwood Tennis Club in Pretoria. After the Polish national anthem was played, Mr. Michał Gierwatowski Consul of the Republic of Poland in Pretoria opened the meeting. He gave an introductory word and wished all participants a good time.

Please be informed that due to the Polish public holiday the Embassy of the Republic of Poland and Consular Section in Pretoria will be closed on 16 June 2022.

The Polish School year 2021/2022 in South Africa officially ended on 5 June 2022. The students of the Polish School at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Pretoria received their awards and school certificates and started their holidays, despite the fact that the school calendar in South Africa is different than in Poland.

The Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Pretoria celebrated the Children's Day at the Mary Immaculate Nursery School in Johannesburg on June 1, 2022. The kindergarten is run in an exemplary manner by Polish and South African nuns from the Congregation of the Sisters Servants of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Lyndhurst in Johannesburg.

The Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to South Africa, Andrzej Kanthak, met with a group of South African artists who will perform within a framework of the MusicXwords project at the Globaltica festival in Gdynia on 14-16 July 2022.

The Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) hereby announces the eight edition of the international „Witness of History" award. This is an honorary distinction established in March 2009 by ordinance of the IPN's President and conferred by the Institute.

On 18 May 2022, we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty on Good Neighbourliness, Friendly Relations and Cooperation between Poland and Ukraine. Given our centuries of shared history, close cultural affinities and long-lasting social bonds, along with common and complementary interests in the face of security challenges in Central and Eastern Europe, no-one in Warsaw or Kyiv doubted back in the early 1990s that the only way forward for Poland and Ukraine was a strategic partnership between our two countries. Hence, Poland was the first country to recognise Ukraine’s declaration of independence, showing solidarity with a state that was just embarking on its path to freedom and democracy.

The Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Pretoria hosted a solemn farewell to Father Bogdan Wilkaniec, who served as a priest in South Africa in the years 1999 - 2022. The meeting was attended by the Polish Ambassador to South Africa, Andrzej Kanthak, and the Consul of the Republic of Poland, Michał Gierwatowski.

On April 25 - May 1, 2022 a delegation from the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) paid a working visit to South Africa and Zimbabwe. The main purpose of the trip was to promote the flagship project of the Institute - "Trails of Hope. The Odyssey of Freedom” - and the opening of the restored Polish cemetery in Rusape (Zimbabwe).