Ireland–South Africa relations as premature. The Irish embassy opened in Pretoria in 1994. From the early 1960s Ireland vehemently opposed apartheid in South Africa. South African Nelson Mandela, then a dissident, later president, was awarded the Freedom of the City of Dublin in 1988 while a political prisoner; he collected the award upon his release in 1990. Diplomatic ties between the two countries were established in 1994. In November 2003, Brian Cowen, while touring Africa as Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs, promised South African President Thabo Mbeki that Ireland would highlight African problems when it ascended to the Council Presidency of the European
Malnutrition in South Africa time). In the 1960s, the Apartheid-centered government created African reserves where blacks could live and have a chance at "separate development." Although the majority of South Africans were (and continue to be) black, the reserves compromised a disproportionally small amount of land (13% of South Africa). The reserves were geographically isolated and had poor healthcare, infrastructure and irrigation. Although the first multiracial election in 1994 brought an immediate end to Apartheid, the detrimental effects of Apartheid in South Africa continue to be felt today. The poorest South African provinces today are those that encompass former African reserves ( Eastern Cape,