# tblSANF

Abstract:
SADC HAS committed to embark on radical
measures to strengthen infrastructure development
and speed up the process of implementing
its regional integration programme.

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SADC HAS committed to embark on radical
measures to strengthen infrastructure development
and speed up the process of implementing
its regional integration programme.
At the 27th SADC Summit of Heads of State
and Government held in Lusaka, Zambia from
16-17 August, southern African leaders expressed
concern at the slow pace of implementing
goals and targets to achieve regional integration
and eradicate poverty.
To this end, the Summit directed
the SADC Secretariat to
work out the details of a regional
Master Plan for Infrastructure
Development in close cooperation
with Member States.
The SADC Chairperson,
President Levy Mwanawasa of
Zambia said regional integration
is hampered by inadequate
infrastructure in the key sectors
of energy, transport, communication,
water and tourism.
Electricity generation capacity
in SADC at present is only
52,743 MW of which 41,000
MW is secured capacity available
for distribution to consumers
against demand
of 42,000 MW.
The mismatch between
demand and
supply is a result of a
number of factors including lack of investment
over the
last 10 years,
growing population
as well as
expanding industries.
The existing
road and rail transport
infrastructure in SADC needs
rehabilitation to meet the region's
current objectives of
deeper regional integration.
This includes increased intraregional
trade in line with the
targets of a Free Trade Area by
2008, Customs Union in 2010
and Common Market by 2015.
In response to the acknowledged
urgent need for suitable
infrastructure and services as
the region moves to strengthen
regional integration, the southern
African leaders held a brainstorming
session during
the Summit, in
line with the Summit
theme, “Infrastructure
Development
in Support of
Regional Integration.”
The leaders noted that
Member States lack financial capacity
to rehabilitate regional
infrastructure and fund new
projects, despite the region
being well placed to receive
long-term investment necessary
for infrastructure development
given the peaceful environment.
The Summit called for financial
support from the private
sector and the international
community to complement
regional efforts.


title:
Gender Protocol referred to Member States for more consultations

Abstract:
SADC LEADERS have deferred
the signing of the Protocol on
Gender and Development to
give Member States more time to
conclude national consultations.
The draft protocol is now
being circulated widely so that
consensus can be reached at the
national levels, early enough to
be considered for signing at the
next Summit of Heads of State
and Government in 2008.

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SADC LEADERS have deferred
the signing of the Protocol on
Gender and Development to
give Member States more time to
conclude national consultations.
The draft protocol is now
being circulated widely so that
consensus can be reached at the
national levels, early enough to
be considered for signing at the
next Summit of Heads of State
and Government in 2008.
A communiqué presented at
the end of the 27th SADC Summit
of Heads of State and Government
in Lusaka on 17 August
2007 read, “…Summit noted
progress on the negotiations of
the protocol on gender and development
and agreed to defer
its signature to allow some Member
States to conclude their internal
consultations.”
The new SADC Chairperson,
President Levy Mwanawasa of
Zambia, said after the Summit
that he is hopeful the Protocol will
be considered for signing in 2008.
“It came to our attention during
Summit that some countries
needed to consult before they
could sign the protocol. There
were some amendments to the
document that were added at the
last minute,” Mwanawasa said.
Member States have been requested
to engage further in national
consultations with all relevant
partners to ensure ownership
of the draft by all stakeholders.
In addition, the SADC Secretariat
plans to hold a strategy
meeting on the protocol in November,
for senior officials.
Wider dissemination of the
draft protocol is pivotal to increasing
awareness on the contents
of the document and facilitating
debate to reach consensus.
It is now critical for the national
gender machineries to facilitate
in-depth and thorough
consultations at national level.
A protocol is the most binding
of SADC legal instruments.
Once it is signed and comes
into operation, the SADC Protocol
on Gender and Development
will provide a legal and
institutional framework for the
region to accelerate implementation
of commitments to gender
equality and women's empowerment.
Despite some progress, implementation
of gender targets in
southern Africa still falls short of
stated commitments as gaps and
obstacles that prevent gender  equality from being a reality still
prevail.
This has caused governments
to reflect on their commitments
in a very practical manner and to
request more time to consider the
contents of the protocol and the
targets.


title:
Key elements of Draft Protocol on Gender and Development

Abstract:
THE DRAFT SADC Protocol on
Gender and Development proposes
specific goals and targets to
ensure accountability in addressing
inequalities in constitutional
and legal rights; governance; education
and training; productive resources
and employment; genderbased
violence; health; HIV and
AIDS; peace building and conflict
resolution; and in the media, information
and communication.

body:
THE DRAFT SADC Protocol on
Gender and Development proposes
specific goals and targets to
ensure accountability in addressing
inequalities in constitutional
and legal rights; governance; education
and training; productive resources
and employment; genderbased
violence; health; HIV and
AIDS; peace building and conflict
resolution; and in the media, information
and communication.
Proposed targets in the Draft
Protocol currently being circulated
to facilitate wider consultations
at national level include the
following:
 Enshrine gender equality in
national constitutions by 2015.
 Review, amend or repeal all
discriminatory laws by 2015.
 Abolish the minority status of
women by 2010.
 Endeavour to have women
holding 50 percent of decisionmaking
positions in the public
and private sectors by 2015.
 Ensure that men and women
participate equally in decision-
making by putting in
place policies and strategies
that ease the burden of multiple
roles played by women.
 Enact laws and promote equal
access to primary, secondary,
tertiary and vocational education
in line with the Protocol
on Education and Training by
2015.
 Enact and enforce legislation
prohibiting all forms of gender-
based violence by 2015.
 Take measures to protect
women, men, girls and boys against HIV and AIDS infection
and other sexually transmitted
infections contracted as
a result of any sexual violation.
 Eradicate harmful traditional
norms, practices and religious
beliefs that legitimise and exacerbate
the persistence and
tolerance of gender-based violence.
 Enact and adopt specific legislative
provisions by 2010 to
prevent human trafficking.
 Introduce a composite index
for measuring the reduction
in gender-based violence.
 Allocate the necessary resources
to ensure the implementation
and sustainability
of the programmes set out in
the Protocol.
 Adopt and implement legislative
frameworks, policies,
programmes and services to
enhance gender sensitive, appropriate
and affordable quality
health care particularly in
maternal health, sexual and
reproductive health, in line
with the SADC Protocol on
Health, by 2015.
 Adopt and implement gender
sensitive policies and programmes
in prevention, treatment,
care and support in accordance
with the Maseru Declaration
on HIV and AIDS.
Put in place measures to ensure
that women have equal
representation and participation
in key decision-making
positions in conflict resolution
and peace building processes
by 2015 in accordance with UN Council Resolution 1325
on peace-building, peacemaking
and peace-keeping.
 Recognise gender equality as
intrinsic to freedom of expression
and ensure that all
women and men have the
right to communicate their
views, interests and needs.
 Put in place public education,
information, and education
and communication strategies
to modify the social and cultural
patterns of conduct of
women and men, which are
based on stereotyped roles for
women and men.
 Adopt legislative measures to
enforce 50 percent representation
of women in decisionmaking
positions in both the
public and private media by
2015.
 Increase the number of programmes
for, by and about
women, on gender specific
topics, and that challenge
gender stereotypes.
 Ensure access to education
and training in information
and communication technologies
including a commitment
to specifically provide opportunities
to increase girls' literacy
and to ensure participation
by girls and women in
technology education and
training at all levels.
 Ensure the use of information
and communication technologies
in the health, education,
trade, employment and other
development arenas for
women's empowerment.


title:
SADC braces for climate change challenge

Abstract:
SADC MEMBER States are taking
bold steps to ease the impact
of climate change as evidence
points to continued
warming and drier conditions
across the mainland countries.
Increasingly violent cyclones
are forecast to hit the island and
coastal states, especially in the
Mozambique Channel.

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SADC MEMBER States are taking
bold steps to ease the impact
of climate change as evidence
points to continued
warming and drier conditions
across the mainland countries.
Increasingly violent cyclones
are forecast to hit the island and
coastal states, especially in the
Mozambique Channel.
Announcing various measures
to address global warming
in the region, SADC leaders
attending the high-level
meeting on climate change at
the United Nations Headquarters
in New York in September
called for urgent global action,
and local solutions to the climate
menace.
The discussion, which drew
more than 100 Heads of State
and Government and about 80
Ministers of Foreign Affairs,
was the largest-ever gathering
on climate change.
Delegates witnessed a bold
show of political will to tackle
climate change by the region's
leadership who stressed the
need for action.
They announced various
measures being taken by SADC
Member States as they prepare
to deal with the impacts of climate
change, while also noting
the challenges of low adaptive
capacity.
Angolan President José Eduardo
dos Santos reiterated his
country's commitment to the
United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol
- the current global framework
for reducing greenhouse
gas emissions by 2012.
Among measures to reduce
emissions, dos Santos told delegates
that the oil-rich southern
African country plans to cut the
burning of gas resulting
from oil production.
“My government is committed
to the total elimination,
by 2010, of
such gas by transforming it into liquefied natural
gas,” dos Santos said.
Botswana indicated that it
fully supports the UNFCCC as
the Convention provides an appropriate
global framework for
addressing the challenges of climate
change.
“What we need is the political
will to mobilise resources to facilitate
effective implementation
of the Convention,” said Mopati
Merafhe, Botswana's Minister of
Foreign Affairs and International
Cooperation, adding that his
government has established “a
multi-sectoral national committee
on climate change” to advise
on relevant issues.
Marco Hausiku, the Foreign
Minister of Namibia said climate
change is a global issue with serious
implications for economic
growth, sustainable development
and the achievement of the
Millennium Development Goals.
Hausiku called upon “the
private sector to join hands
with governments to develop
and apply technologies that can
mitigate climate change."
"The international community
has to live up to its commitment
to provide resources to developing
countries to adapt to the effect
of climate change," he told
the high-level meeting. "Namibia
is not happy with the rate at
which investments are made in
the development of renewable
and clean energy sources."
President Levy Mwanawasa
of Zambia, who is the current
SADC Chairperson, stressed the
low adaptive capacity to climate
change by developing countries.
“Our early warning systems
are inadequate to face the new
challenges by climate change.
These include weather forecasting,
disaster prediction and preparedness,”
he said.
“The inadequacy in early
warning systems makes it difficult
for us to plan for our farming.
It also undermines our ability
to respond timely to crisis
situations induced by adverse
effects of climate change.”
Madagascar's President Marc
Ravalomanana implored some
industrialised nations who have been “dragging their feet”
to move to enable the creation
of an “ecological
partnership” with Africa.
“The mission of this
partnership would be to
find creative solutions to
these climate and environmental
problems. Priority
actions need to be
agreed upon. A funding
and investment strategy
needs to be developed.
And a strategy for monitoring
progress needs to
be formulated,” said
Ravalomanana.
Over the past decade,
Madagascar has experienced an
increase in the number of violent
cyclones from an average of two
to five cyclones a year, to five to
eight cyclones a year.
Madagascar's records going
back 50 years show that the average
temperatures have increased
by 0.65 degrees Celsius.
During the same period, the
length of the growing period
in the rice fields on the Madagascar
Highlands has decreased
as the number of days
without rain has increased by
one day per year.
In the United Republic of
Tanzania, climate change studies
reveal that there has been a
general increase in temperature
over the last 40 years, and
rainfall has been decreasing in
most parts of the country during
this same period
With recent research showing
that, due to global warming, the  glaciers at the summit of Mt Kilimanjaro
are melting so quickly
that they will be gone by 2020,
there is concern that human activities
may have set in motion
irreversible climatic changes.
Studies conducted in Zimbabwe
show that the monthly
highest daily maximum temperatures
for most of the country
are on the increase, by about
2 degrees Celsius per century.
Data shows that the length of
the cold winter spell is decreasing
by about 15 days per century.
“With predictions that agricultural
productivity in Zimbabwe
could decrease by up to 30
percent this century and marked
by severe drought, climate
change poses one of the most serious
food security challenges of
the 21st century in the country,”
said Francis Nhema, Zimbabwe's
Minister of Environment
and Tourism and current chair of
the UN Commission on Sustainable
Development.
Nhema called for the setting
up of a 'Special Adaptation Fund
for Africa' in order to build adaptive
capacity on the continent.
A number of countries confirmed
that they have completed
their National Adaptation Plans
of Action (NAPAs) on climate
change. These include Lesotho,
Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia.
The NAPAs identify priority areas for which urgent and immediate
action is required for the
countries to adapt to the effects
of climate change.
The New York event was
aimed at securing political commitment
and building momentum
for the UN Climate Change
Conference to be held in Bali, Indonesia
in December, where negotiations
on a new international
climate agreement should start.
That meeting will seek to determine
future action on mitigation,
adaptation, the global carbon
market and financing responses
to climate change after
the expiry of the Kyoto Protocol.
Commenting on proceedings,
the UN Secretary-General,
Ban Ki-moon, said, “I sensed
something remarkable happening,
something transformative -
a sea-change, whereby leaders
showed themselves willing to
put aside blame for the past and
pose to themselves more forward-
looking questions.”
“Our job is to translate the
spirit of New York into deeds in
Bali,” said Mr. Ban.


Abstract:
EVIDENCE OF climate change
is starkly visible in the disappearance
of glaciers on mountains
near the equator in East
Africa.

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EVIDENCE OF climate change
is starkly visible in the disappearance
of glaciers on mountains
near the equator in East
Africa.
Glaciers are found on three
mountains in Africa - the Rwenzori
mountains on the DRC-Uganda
border, Mount Kenya
in Kenya, and Mt Kilimanjaro
in the United Republic of Tanzania.
Retreat of these glaciers
began around the 1880s as a result
of a decrease in precipitation
and an increase in solar radiation
from reduced cloudiness.
Later in the 20th century,
increased temperature became
an additional driver, although
its relative importance is still
debated.
Close to 50 percent of the
glaciers on the Rwenzori mountains,
Mount Kenya and Kilimanjaro
have disappeared,
while larger glaciers, particularly
on Kilimanjaro, have been
fragmented.
(Global Outlook for Ice & Snow,
UNEP, 2007, p. 144)


title:
GEO 4: Climate change reaches a tipping point

Abstract:
THE GLOBAL Environment
Outlook (GEO 4) acknowledges
that climate change has reached
a tipping point with widespread
impacts on both people and the
environment.

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THE GLOBAL Environment
Outlook (GEO 4) acknowledges
that climate change has reached
a tipping point with widespread
impacts on both people and the
environment.
According to the report, climate
change, including global
warming, is well underway
with average world temperatures
having risen by 0.74°C
over the last century. This trend
shows that 11 of the warmest
years in the last 125 years have
occurred since 1990.
The Inter-Governmental
Panel on Climate Change projects
an increase in the average
global temperature of 1.8 - 4°C
by the end of this century.
Climate change impacts are
already evident and include
changes in water availability,
food insecurity, sea-level rise
and the melting of ice cover and snow in the Greenland ice sheet
and on mountains such as the
Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.
The projected increase in frequency
and intensity of heat
waves, storms, floods and
droughts would affect millions
of people across the world.
Africa is one of the regions most
vulnerable to climate change.
The array of adaptive responses
ranges from purely
technological such as sea defences
to managerial such as
modified farm practices, to policy
including regulation of
greenhouse gas emissions.
Carbon dioxide is the principal
greenhouse gas that causes
climate change. Ozone depleting
substances also cause climate
change and are responsible
for the hole in the stratospheric
ozone layer over the
Antarctic which protects people from harmful ultraviolet radiation.
The hole is now the largest
ever seen.
Due to decreased emissions
of ozone depleting substances,
the ozone layer is expected to recover,
but not until the period
2060 to 2075. This projection assumes
full compliance with the
Montreal Protocol on Substances
that Deplete the Ozone
Layer.
The ozone depleting substances
have undergone a massive
phase out over the last 20
years, with 2004 emissions
being 20 percent of the 1990
level.
The GEO 4 report is set for
launch in October in 40 cities,
including Johannesburg, South
Africa and Port Louis, Mauritius,
with the main launch at
the UN Headquarters in New
York.


Abstract:
THE FORTHCOMING Southern
Africa Environment Outlook (SAEO)
projects serious climate change impacts
in this region, as records from
SADC countries show that average
temperatures have risen by more
than 0.5°C over the past 100 years,
and the 1990s were the warmest
and driest ever.

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THE FORTHCOMING Southern
Africa Environment Outlook (SAEO)
projects serious climate change impacts
in this region, as records from
SADC countries show that average
temperatures have risen by more
than 0.5°C over the past 100 years,
and the 1990s were the warmest
and driest ever.
With eight of SADC's 14 Member
States having a total of more
than 15,000 km of coastline, the
region would also be affected by a
rise in the sea level, estimated to
reach 15-95 cm by 2100. Much of
the global rise in sea levels will be
due to the melting of ice cover in
the Greenland ice sheet.
Mountain glaciers around the
world also continue to melt. Southern
Africa's beacon in this regard is
Mt Kilimanjaro in northern Tanzania.
The total area covered by snow
on Mt Kilimanjaro decreased by
six-fold from about 12 sq km in
1900 to two sq km in 2000.
With increasing atmospheric
emissions of greenhouse gases
such as carbon dioxide and resultant
climate change, summer rainfall
is expected to decrease over
subtropical regions of southern
Africa, while increasing over
tropical regions. A decrease in the
winter rainfall region of the
southern Cape is also probable.
The anticipated five percent
decrease in rainfall due to climate
change will affect people and all
forms of wildlife, including
plants and animals.
The Southern Africa Environment
Outlook projects crop yields
to drop by as much as 10-20 percent
in some parts of southern
Africa as the region becomes
more arid, and predicts the
spread of the malaria-carrying
Anopheles female mosquito to
parts of Namibia and South
Africa where it has not been
found before.
The report cautions that it is
not possible to predict with any
degree of certainty the exact timing,
magnitude and nature of expected
climate changes under the
effects of global warming.


title:
Madagascar elects legislators as economy resurges

Abstract:
MADAGASCAR WENT to the
polls on 23 September to choose
parliamentary representatives as
the country's economy registered
yet another remarkable improvement
in five years.

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MADAGASCAR WENT to the
polls on 23 September to choose
parliamentary representatives as
the country's economy registered
yet another remarkable improvement
in five years.
The elections held in September
were to choose 127 national
assembly representatives in 119
districts.
The number for parliamentary
seats was reduced from the
previous 160.
President Marc Ravalomanana's
ruling party, I Love
Madagascar (TIM), captured all
the seats in the capital Antananarivo,
as it claimed 106 out of
the 127 seats in parliament.
The election was observed by
teams from the Southern African
Development Community
(SADC), and the African Union
(AU). South Africa also sent an
observer team.
The September elections
came a month after SADC leaders
met during an ordinary Summit
in Lusaka, Zambia, where
they expressed satisfaction with
a growing culture of multiparty
democracy in the region. Most
Member States are holding regular
elections.
According to the SADC Summit
2007 Communiqué, the leaders
noted the peaceful and orderly
manner in which the people of
the DRC, Lesotho, Madagascar
and Zambia exercised their democratic
right in the elections.
Madagascar held its presidential
elections in December 2006 in
which President Ravalomanana
was elected, defeating 13 other
presidential candidates to retain
the position he won in 2002.
It was during these presidential
elections that Madagascar
first embraced the SADC Principles
and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections since they
were adopted in 2004.
Madagascar was formally admitted
to SADC at the 25th Summit
in Botswana in 2005.
Under the principles and
guidelines, SADC member states
seek to uphold full participation
of all their citizens in their country's
political processes.
The guidelines also call on
the countries to ensure that their
citizenry has equal opportunity
to exercise the right to vote and
be voted for.
Using the guidelines, a SADC
Election Observation Mission is
dispatched to observe an election
in the region, made up of
representatives from government
or opposition parties in
various Member States and
headed by a Minister from the
country that chairs the SADC
Organ on Politics, Defence and
Security, currently Angola.
Since coming to power in
2002, Ravalomanana has embarked
on widespread economic
and social reforms that stirred
the southern African country out
of decades of recession.
Speaking during the UN
General Assembly in New York
on 26 September, Ravalomanana
said his country recorded five
percent economic growth five
years ago, six percent over the
last few years, rising to seven
percent in 2007.
“Poverty rates are dropping
dramatically. In 2002, 80 percent of
our population was living in
poverty, last year this rate stood at
67 percent,” said Ravalomanana.
The parliamentary elections
are the third to be held since
President Ravalomanana, was
given his second mandate in the
December 2006 presidential elections.
Madagascar held a constitutional
referendum in April 2007
that subsequently led to the national
assembly being dissolved
close to a year before the time the
legislators' term was supposed to
expire. The National Assembly
was dissolved on 24 July 2007.
The landslide victory in the
referendum allowed the government
to go ahead with the abolition
of the six provinces replacing
them with 22 smaller developmental
administrative areas.
English was also added as a
third official language in Madagascar
after the referendum in
April. Malagasy and French are
the other official languages.


title:
Mozambique leads the way to visafree region

Abstract:
MOZAMBIQUE IS moving rapidly
towards visa-free borders and
leading the way to meet SADC
targets for easing the movement
of people and goods in the region.
Over the past few years,
Mozambique has shed visa requirements
for neighbouring
countries, with the final agreement
for Zimbabwe taking effect
on 1 November.

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MOZAMBIQUE IS moving rapidly
towards visa-free borders and
leading the way to meet SADC
targets for easing the movement
of people and goods in the region.
Over the past few years,
Mozambique has shed visa requirements
for neighbouring
countries, with the final agreement
for Zimbabwe taking effect
on 1 November.
Mozambique and Zimbabwe
signed a visa waiver agreement
for the citizens of both countries
in a move seen as “the re-meeting
of the two peoples.”
The agreement was signed in
Maputo by the Minister of the
Interior, José Pacheco, and his
Zimbabwean counterpart, the
Minister of Home Affairs,
Kembo Mohadi.
Mozambique has novisa
agreements with its
immediate neighbours
of Malawi, South
Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania
and Zambia, as well as the host country of the
SADC headquarters, Botswana.
The agreement is in line with
the spirit of the SADC Protocol
on the Facilitation of Movement
of Persons, adopted in a watershed
decision by the 2005 SADC
Summit in Botswana.
The protocol still needs to be
ratified by two-thirds of the 14
Member States to come into effect,
and countries have been encouraged
to sign visa waiver
agreements bilaterally.
Certainly the move will benefit
small-and-medium-scale
businesses. However, another
group that the agreement seeks
to target is women who account
largely for the thriving informal
trade in border areas.
The no-visa agreements enable
citizens of each country who
are holders of valid passports to
enter and settle temporarily or
transit through the territories of
both countries without any hindrance,
for a period of 30 days.


Abstract:
SADC CONTINUES with its
programme of involving the
youth in regional integration
with winners of the 2007 SADC
Secondary Schools Essay Competition
receiving their prizes

body:
SADC CONTINUES with its
programme of involving the
youth in regional integration
with winners of the 2007 SADC
Secondary Schools Essay Competition
receiving their prizes
during the 27th Summit in August.
The winners of the regional
competition were presented with
prize money of US$1500,
US$1000 and US$750 for first,
second and third prizes respectively.
The top prize was won by
Diana Kawendu of Zimbabwe.
Diana's winning essay addressed
various issues that affect
poverty in southern Africa, including
HIV and AIDS as well as
the colonial legacy. She also discussed
the measures being taken
by southern African countries to
address these challenges.
The prizes were presented
by Lesotho Prime Minister
Pakalitha Mosisili, the outgoing
Chairperson of SADC.
In its ninth consecutive year
running, this year's competition
was sponsored by Southern
Africa Trust.


title:
Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere 1922 - 1999

Abstract:
IN OCTOBER 1959, speaking to the Legislative Assembly
two years before Tanganyika's independence, Julius
Nyerere expressed the essence of his beliefs:
“We, the people of Tanganyika, would like to light a
candle and put it on top of Mount Kilimanjaro which
would shine beyond our borders giving hope where there
was despair, love where there was hate, and dignity where
before there was only humiliation.”

body:
IN OCTOBER 1959, speaking to the Legislative Assembly
two years before Tanganyika's independence, Julius
Nyerere expressed the essence of his beliefs:
“We, the people of Tanganyika, would like to light a
candle and put it on top of Mount Kilimanjaro which
would shine beyond our borders giving hope where there
was despair, love where there was hate, and dignity where
before there was only humiliation.”
Faced with a choice between teaching and politics, Nyerere
had chosen the latter, though he remained committed
to both. He was nominated to the Tanganyika Legislative
Council in July 1957, but resigned in December in
protest at Britain's delaying of independence.
In Tanganyika's first elections in 1958, he was elected to
Parliament and was returned unopposed in the 1960 general
election. He formed the first Tanganyika Council of
Ministers and became the first Chief Minister.
In May 1961, Nyerere became Prime Minister, resigning
six weeks after independence to bridge the potential
gap between government and party.
Tanganyika became independent on 9 December 1961
and a year later when the country became a republic, Nyerere,
elected by over 96 per cent of the voters, became its
first President. He had offered to delay independence for
the sake of unity with Kenya and Uganda, and was deeply
committed to the unity of Africa, a reality that is coming to
pass after his death.
“IN HIS 77 years of mortal life, Mwalimu did
much for our nation, for the African continent,
and for the world. He made us free and contributed
to the freedom of others beyond our
borders. Like Nkrumah he believed the indignity
of one African was the indignity of all
Africans; and that as long as there was an
African country under colonial domination, the
freedom of one African country was meaningless.
He mobilised our national will, spirit and
resources for the total liberation of Africa. …
His view of freedom was all-encompassing.
It was not restricted to political independence,
but extended to a vision of a totally liberated
human being - in political, economic, social
and cultural terms. ...
I am sure if Mwalimu could speak to us
now, he would be exhorting us to pick up his
mantle and carry on the struggle against poverty,
against injustice, against bigotry. … He
would urge us to move much more quickly to
integrate African economies, and promote
African unity. He would appeal for collective
South-South self-reliance. ”
HE Benjamin Mkapa, then President of the United
Republic of Tanzania, speaking at the State Funeral
for Mwalimu Nyerere, on 21 October 1999 in Dar
es Salaam.
He was a founding father of the Southern African
Development Community, the East African Community
and the Organisation of African Unity (OAU).
While those in the developed world walked, his brisk
and sprightly stride implied, as he repeatedly said, that
Africa had to run to catch up. Once political freedom was
attained, unity and development, coupled with hard work,
were essential pre-requisites in nation building.
He was the champion of the liberation of southern
Africa becoming the first chairman of the Front Line
States. In Tanzania, Africa and the world he was regarded
almost with awe.
Such reaction was contrary to that which Nyerere
wanted. He was above all a simple man combining this
with formidable discipline.
Apart from his simplicity and piercing intellect, one
of Nyerere's most endearing traits was his honesty.
Today it is no longer fashionable among journalists to
take politicians at their word or even imagine in advance
what those words might be.
Yet if you applied obvious logic, Nyerere was highly
predictable. Once I said on the BBC that he would take the
extreme step of leaving the Commonwealth if British Prime
Minister Edward Heath resumed arms supplies to South
Africa. Some days later Nyerere asked me how I knew that
was his decision. To this day I have never been sure whether
he was flattered or not at being told he was that obvious.
For the next 24 years Nyerere filled the African and international
stage like a colossus, before stepping down as
President in 1985 to concentrate on development of the
South Centre, of which he was the first chairman.
When he met the astute US Secretary of State, Henry
Kissinger, for the first time in Dar es Salaam in 1976, the
two men began a mental verbal fencing match of mammoth
proportions, often using quotations from Shakespeare
(several of whose works Nyerere had translated
into Swahili setting them in an African context).
Neither man trusted the other. Kissinger wanted the
negotiations kept secret. Nyerere wanted transparency,
and as Africa correspondent of the London Sunday
newspaper, The Observer, I had the benefit of his strategic
briefings. That year, thanks to Mwalimu, Africa was
the main story on the front page of the newspaper on an
unprecedented 16 occasions, as one political fox temporarily
outwitted the other.
Nyerere's distinctive grey hair atop a slight but athletic
body always stood out from the crowd. When he was in
his seventies, young security officers had to run to keep up
with him and the sound of his mercurial voice, raised and
then whispered, was still resonant and haunting.
I was fascinated by the man who was to become my informal
professor, teaching me the principles of African liberation,
non-racialism, and “thinking South”.
South, he said, was not a geographical description
but a way of thinking. Nyerere, as his record testifies,
recognised the equality of all human beings irrespective
of race, ethnicity, gender or religion.
It was a year after my arrival in Dar es Salaam in January
1964 that I met Nyerere for an interview and when
I did so it was strictly on his terms.
I learned two things about the man from that meeting.
The first was that he was a master media manager,
a quality some other contemporary leaders could well
emulate. He spoke to journalists on his terms when he
had something to say.
At another meeting I recall commenting on the number
of African countries who were not paying their dues
to the OAU Liberation Committee, which was based on
Dar es Salaam. He looked at me, thoughtfully chewing
the inner corner of his cheek in the characteristic way he
had when concentrating.
Having made his decision, he passed across a file
swearing me to secrecy as to its details. It contained Tanzania's
budget for that year for the liberation movements
fighting colonialism and minority rule in Angola,
Guinea Bissau, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Namibia,
South Africa and the Comoro islands.
I was astounded by just how much Tanzanians were
paying; a sum well beyond the country's publicised contribution.
Therein lies Nyerere's greatest contribution. All of
the countries of the continent, with the exception of Saharawi,
are now fully independent. When Nyerere had
spoken to the Legislative Assembly in 1959 only nine
countries were independent; today the number is 54.
All of southern Africa's liberation movements at one
time had their headquarters in Dar es Salaam. In the
heady days of the 1960s through to the somewhat
calmer 1980s, Tanzania was to be the crossroads of
Africa.
Domestically, Nyerere's most enduring legacy must
be Tanzania's unity and stability. From over 120 ethnic
groups, Nyerere forged a united nation bonded by a single
language, Swahili, and he united the sovereign states
of Tanganyika and Zanzibar into the single country now
called the United Republic of Tanzania. (sardc.net)
David Martin (1936-2007) was a journalist and photographer
who lived in Tanzania for 10 years from 1964 before
moving to Zambia and then Zimbabwe, and he talked frequently
with Nyerere during the next 35 years.


body:
Public holidays in SADC for the period 
 October - December 2007
1 October Public Holiday Botswana
4 October Independence Day Lesotho
4 October Peace Day Mozambique
8 October Mother's Day Malawi
12 October Eid - Ul Fitr* Mauritius, Tanzania
14 October Mwalimu Nyerere Day and Climax of “The Uhuru
Torch Race” Tanzania
24 October Independence Day Zambia
1 November All Saints Day Madagascar
2 November All Saints Day Angola
2 November Arrival of Indentured Labourers Mauritius
9 November Divali Mauritius
11 November Independence Day Angola
9 December Independence Day Tanzania
10 December International Human Rights Day Namibia
16 December Day of Reconciliation South Africa
22 December National Unity Day Zimbabwe
25 December Christmas Day All SADC
26 December Boxing Day Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland, Malawi,
Tanzania
26 December Family Day Mozambique, Namibia
26 December Day of Goodwill South Africa
26 December Public Holiday Zimbabwe
* Depends on sighting of the new moon


body:
EVENTS DIARY 2007
October 2007


17 Ghana
African Business Leaders Forum

The forum aims to identify and propose implementation of sustainable solutions to the continent's developmental challenges. The forum will have leaders from both public and private sectors to deliberate on critical issues such as service delivery, infrastructure development and poverty alleviation



25 Mauritius, South Africa
Simultaneous launch of GEO-4

The Global Environment Outlook (GEO) is a UNEP project aimed at providing environmental information for decision-makers, early warning and capacity building at the global and sub-regional levels. Issued every four years, GEO is in its 4th phase. GEO 4 will be simultaneously launched in 40 cities around the world, with the main launch at UN headquarters in New York.


31 Oct-2 Nov Kenya
Powering Africa: the financial options

Experts in the finance sector will meet with government officials and senior power and gas executives to talk money. What is happening in the financial markets, and how will it impact the expansion of Africa's power sector? These are some of the questions that will be discussed at the meeting in Mombasa.


November 2007


5-9 Zambia
SADC Extraordinary Council of Ministers

The Council is responsible for supervising and monitoring the functions and development of SADC and ensuring that policies are properly implemented. Council comprises the ministers for foreign affairs, international cooperation, economic development or planning and finance from Member States. Council is preceded by the Standing Committee of Senior Officials of SADC, which plays an advisory role.

20-21 Egypt
Africa/Middle East Renewable Energy Summit

The meeting will discuss the economics of renewable energy including markets, government policies, technological issues as well as demand and supply questions.

22-29 Zimbabwe
The Zambezi Basin-wide Stakeholder Forum

The forum will track progress made in managing water resources in the basin; learn from the basin-wide experiences in water resources management; build alliances and synergies; and promote stakeholder dialogue.
23-25 Uganda
Commonwealth Heads Of Government Meeting
Under the theme “Transforming Commonwealth Societies to Achieve Political, Economic and Human Development,” leaders of the 52-member grouping will meet in Kampala for CHOGM, held every two years.


December 2007

8 Portugal
EU-AU Summit
 The summit will discuss issues of mutual interest to the two
continents with a view to strengthening existing and future cooperation. The summit is expected to adopt a joint EU-AU strategy for cooperation and aimed at building an effective partnership between the two continents.


fullvolume:
SADC Today Volume 10 No.4, February 2008

Abstract:
THE YEAR 2008 is a milestone for the SADC region
with the official launch of the Free Trade
Area, and a target of 85 percent of all product
lines trading at zero tariffs.

body:
THE YEAR 2008 is a milestone for the SADC region
with the official launch of the Free Trade
Area, and a target of 85 percent of all product
lines trading at zero tariffs.
The tariff phase-down has been done on a
step-by-step basis with each schedule taking effect
every January since 2001. Thus, as of January
2008, the 85 percent target was deemed effective.
The remaining 15 percent, constituting sensitive
products, will have tariff barriers removed
from 2008 to 2012.
While the agreed tariff phase-down took effect
in January, the official launch of the SADC Free
Trade Area will be in August, coinciding with the
annual Summit of Heads of State and Government.
South Africa, which takes over the rotating
SADC chair in August, is preparing to host the
Summit.
Progress on the Free Trade Area was discussed
at a number of SADC meetings during 2007 with
positive reports on the preparedness of the regional
body and its Member States.
The most recent was the Extra Ordinary
Council in November in the Zambian capital
Lusaka, which “noted with satisfaction that,
the region is indeed ready to launch the SADC
Free Trade Area in 2008 as per the set milestones.”
Since 2000, the 14-member regional bloc has
been implementing the SADC Trade Protocol,
which provides the framework for deeper economic
integration. It is hoped that come August,
all parties to the Trade Protocol would have
complied.
However, not all SADC Member States are
members of the Free Trade Area as Angola and
the Democratic Republic of Congo are currently
not applying the Trade Protocol, and have asked
for more time.
To qualify for duty free access, traders would
have to produce a certificate of origin to customs
officials which guarantees that the goods
indeed originate from within the SADC region.
This is based on a detailed list of product-specific
rules of origin.

Energy in southern Africa

AS THE demand for electricity
in southern Africa surpasses
generation capacity,
massive short-term projects
costing US$8 billion need to
be fast tracked over the next
two years. Electricity shortages
have severely affected
several SADC Member States
leading to scheduled and, in
some cases, unscheduled
power cuts. See special review, on ENERGY.

Concerns have been raised
by the business community
about the need to decentralise
the certification process so as
to reduce transaction costs.
Exporters would not want to
travel far from their operational
bases for them to have
their SADC Certificate of Origin
endorsed by the relevant
authority.
Moreover, with all its good
intentions, the current certification
process does not suit
small traders or the multitude
of informal cross-border
traders precisely due to the
quantities that they deal in. It
simply would not make economic
sense for most such
traders to run between suppliers
and relevant authorities
for certification where small
quantities are involved.
The main purpose of adopting
rules of origin in a Free
Trade Area is to ensure that the
benefits of participating in the
trading zone do not extend to
non-members. In theory, however,
the significance of rules of
origin on goods traded in a particular
sub-region falls away as
its members move towards a
common external tariff, that is,
in higher levels of economic integration
such as a Customs
Union.
In the case of SADC, the
Free Trade Area is a step towards
higher levels of economic
integration which are to
be achieved on an incremental
basis, leading to a Customs
Union in 2010, a Common
Market in 2015 and Monetary
Union in 2018.
Meanwhile, media reports
in the region during the first
weeks of 2008 have expressed
guarded optimism about the
coming into effect of the
SADC Free Trade Area.
Noting that most
goods produced in
the region can now
enter Member States free of customs duties, the
South African Broadcasting
Corporation (SABC) added a
note of concern about the potential
skewed distribution of
benefits accruing from the
intra-regional trade.
SABC reported that “…
some SADC states are concerned
that South Africa will
benefit the most as it is the region's
economic powerhouse
and exports more than it imports
from SADC countries.”
South Africa accounts for
about two-thirds of the region's
total Gross Domestic
Product (GDP), according to
available SADC statistics.
However, to minimise the
potential negative impacts
arising from the tariff phasedown,
SADC has opted for an
arrangement that is based on a
variable geometry model, taking
into account the asymmetrical
level of development in
Member States.
The model is such that
countries in the Southern
African Customs Union -
Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia,
South Africa and Swaziland -
are liberalising faster, followed
by Mauritius and Zimbabwe,
while the rest follow.
The Mozambique news
agency, AIM, reported that the
country is implementing the
relevant changes in line with
the Trade Protocol, and quoted
a government minister allaying
fears that Mozambique would be swamped with
South African imports to the
detriment of local industries.
António Fernando, the Minister
of Industry and Trade was
quoted by AIM as saying “the
country can only gain from integration,
since the suppression
of customs barriers will make
goods much cheaper, stimulating
greater production and
consumption.”
While the liberalisation of
trade often leads to a wider
choice for consumers and
sometimes greater competitiveness
of local industries, it does
not always lead to lower prices
as experienced during past
World Bank/International
Monetary Fund-sponsored economic
reform programmes.
Reporting that Zimbabwe
has aligned its import tariffs in
line with the SADC Trade Protocol,
The Herald quoted local
experts expressing optimism
on the development.
“The secondary industry is
set to benefit from the tricklingin
of raw materials and would
mean containing or even reducing
inflation given the
availability of stable and affordable
prices of basic commodities,”
the Zimbabwean
daily quoted a local economist.
“Competition is of importance
in business but the impending
rivalry is regarded as
unfair for the local manufacturing
industry since we are
not operating on equal terms,” cautioned another member of
the business community.
Analysts say that, as
SADC progresses towards
higher levels of economic integration,
in particular the
Customs Union, the question
of overlapping membership
becomes more pertinent.
This is because World
Trade Organisation rules do
not allow a Member State to
belong to more than one Customs
Union.
Yet some SADC Member
States belong to regional economic
communities that already
have or plan to have
Customs Unions. These include
the Common Market
for Eastern and Southern
Africa (COMESA) and the
East African Community.
The challenges of overlapping
memberships were a
major impediment to
progress during negotiations
on Economic Partnership
Agreement (EPA) between regions
in the African, Pacific
and Caribbean (ACP) group
and the European Union
(EU), which officially ended
in June.
EPAs were to be concluded
by December 2007 but with
the substance of the overall
economic agreement between
Africa and the EU having
failed to see the light of day
during the December Summit
in Lisbon, Portugal, the fate of
EPAs remains unclear.

SADC Economic Integration Targets by 2015
2008 2010 2015

Free Trade Area completed

(Tariff & non-tariff barriers
removed on 85% of goods*) Customs Union established

(Common external tariff on
third countries) Common Market Achieved
(Free movement of all factors
of production, common trade
policy on third countries)

*Excludes sensitive products whose tariffs fall away by 2012. Examples include:
Sugar
Chemicals and plastics
Textiles and clothing
Dairy products
Motor vehicles
Footwear


title:
SADC International Consultative Conference on
Poverty and Development

Abstract:
SADC WILL host a regional conference
on poverty and development
to raise awareness on the
regional dimensions of poverty
and to develop programmes that
generate pro-poor growth.

body:
SADC WILL host a regional conference
on poverty and development
to raise awareness on the
regional dimensions of poverty
and to develop programmes that
generate pro-poor growth.
The conference will provide a
platform for SADC, International
Cooperating Partners (ICPs), civil
society and the private sector to
engage in policy dialogue, forge
consensus and review progress of
the SADC economic integration
agenda with a view to focus on
poverty eradication and sustainable
development.
The objectives of the SADC
Conference on Poverty and
Development are to:
 maintain the momentum for
the region to continue striving
to achieve the MDGs;
 discuss the regional dimensions
of poverty and their
linkages with national
poverty-reduction strategies;
 establish the interdependence
between poverty
eradication strategies and
trade opening policies;
 forge consensus on the key
elements of a regional
poverty reduction and economic
integration strategy
with the stakeholders,
namely the SADC governments,
private sector and
civil society;
 develop an action
plan/roadmap on poverty
and development, outlining
a series of specific tasks
and actions in the short,
medium and long terms;
 remobilise the international
community, in particular
the developed countries,
to live up to their
commitments with regard
to increasing the levels of
development aid, including
aid for trade;
 secure resources, both at
regional and international
levels, to meet economic
and social adjustment
costs and implement regional
poverty-oriented
programmes/projects; and
 lay the foundations for a
new global partnership for
SADC to achieve the MDG
targets.




The conference will be held
from 18-20 April 2008 in Mauritius,
with the theme, “Regional
Economic Integration: A Strategy
for Poverty Eradication towards
Sustainable Development.”
The conference is expected to
develop consensus on a regional
poverty-reduction strategy and
produce an action plan to guide
the region on creating the conditions
necessary to eradicate
poverty and achieve the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs).
Expected outputs from the
conference include increased
commitment towards achievement
of the MDGs; and development
of a Regional Poverty
Reduction Strategy Framework
based on SADC's Regional Indicative
Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP) and national
poverty reduction strategies.
The conference is expected to
produce a regional poverty reduction
monitoring and evaluation
framework, and to accelerate
collaboration by Member
States and ICPs in implementing
the RISDP and the Strategic
Indicative Plan of the Organ on
Defence, Politics and Security
Cooperation (SIPO).
It is intended to raise awareness
among ICPs of the efforts
being made in the SADC region
to eradicate poverty, and encourage
them to commit additional
resources for regional economic
reforms and the integration
agenda.
The decision to hold the conference
was taken at the Summit
of Heads of State and Government
in August 2006 in Maseru,
Lesotho, following a proposal by
Mauritius.
Poverty remains one of the
major challenges facing the
SADC region.
About 40 percent of the population
lives in abject poverty as
reflected by poor regional social
indicators such as high levels of
malnutrition, illiteracy, unemployment,
underemployment,
declining life expectancy and
unsatisfactory access to basic
services and infrastructure to
sustain basic human capacities.
In deciding to hold a conference
on poverty and development
in such a context, the
Maseru Summit reaffirmed that
SADC's main strategy for
poverty eradication is regional
economic integration.
The SADC Treaty (1992) asserts
that regional integration
will be pursued as a vehicle for
accelerating economic growth,
eradicating poverty and achieving
sustainable development.
The Maseru Summit further
noted that the RISDP accords top
priority to poverty eradication
and is the vehicle through which
the region can achieve the MDGs.
The RISDP is SADC's 15-year
development blueprint and has
a target to halve the proportion
of poverty in line with Goal 1 of
the MDGs, by 2015.
It is widely acknowledged
that the starting point for the
fight against poverty is the implementation
of economic policy reforms
geared to removing constraints
to business development
and deeper integration into the
regional and global economy.
This will enable higher levels
of trade and investment flows
leading to new income-generating
activities and higher economic
growth that will create
more resources for developing
social integration projects targeting
the poor.
Integration into the regional
and global economy will, however,
imply important transformations
in the national and social
structures.
It will be accompanied by
two major kinds of adjustment
costs: economic adjustment
costs as the production and
human resources adjust to new
demands, and social adjustment
costs as the economic transformation
is accompanied by
changing employment and income
distribution patterns that
may impact on vulnerable
groups.


Abstract:
THE SADC Gender Unit is
preparing a plan for consultations
throughout the region on
the draft gender protocol to enable
the involvement of all
stakeholders.

body:
THE SADC Gender Unit is
preparing a plan for consultations
throughout the region on
the draft gender protocol to enable
the involvement of all
stakeholders.
The draft Protocol on Gender
and Development is under
review after the 2007 Summit of
Heads of State and Government
referred it back to SADC
ministers responsible for gender
to allow for further national
consultations.
Consultations will be undertaken
in the first half of 2008 so
that the protocol can be finalised
and submitted to Summit
in August.

The immediate action to be
taken by the SADC Gender
Unit is to finalise the roadmap
for national activities, including
specific activities that will
be undertaken, what partnerships
will be entered into, and
which stakeholders to consult,
as well as setting timeframes
for all the activities to be undertaken
to ensure sufficiently
wide consultations.
The key stakeholders to be
involved from the beginning of
the process include SADC senior
officials, officials from ministries
of justice, foreign affairs,
finance, members of parliament,
and development partners.


title:
African unity and industrial development
the focus of 10th African Union Assembly

Abstract:
THE AFRICAN Union has accelerated
plans for unification
through establishment of a
high-level group of heads of
state and government, under
the leadership of President
Jakaya Kikwete of the United
Republic of Tanzania, who is
the new AU chairperson.

body:
THE AFRICAN Union has accelerated
plans for unification
through establishment of a
high-level group of heads of
state and government, under
the leadership of President
Jakaya Kikwete of the United
Republic of Tanzania, who is
the new AU chairperson.
The high-level group,
made up of Kikwete and President
John Kufuor of Ghana as
the outgoing AU chairperson,
includes 10 other leaders, two from each of the five regions
of Africa.
This group was established
at the 10th Ordinary Session of
the African Union Assembly
of Heads of State and Government
held in Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia, at the end of January.
The high-level group is
mandated to study the issues
that have hampered progress,
identified by a ministerial
committee that presented its
report to the Assembly. The
new higher level committee is
expected to present recommendations
on a union government
to their colleagues at
the next AU Assembly, set for
Cairo in July.
The areas of divergence recall
the original debates at the
founding Summit of the Organisation
of African Unity
(OAU) in May 1963 when
President Kwame Nkrumah
of Ghana wanted immediate
unification of the few countries
that were independent, in
a pan-African government.
President Julius Nyerere of
Tanzania was equally eloquent
in advocating a “brickby-
brick” approach, starting
with the pursuance of political
independence for the remaining
countries under colonial
rule or apartheid, including
the whole of southern Africa.
It is ironic that the two
leaders who handed over the
torch in January as incoming
and outgoing chairperson of
the AU, represent the same
two countries.
The new debates arose after
the completion of political independence
with the end of
the apartheid government in
South Africa in 1994, thus the
achievement of political independence
by the OAU and the
subsequent establishment of
the African Union.
The protagonists this time
are the Libyan President, Col.
Muammar Gaddafi, insisting on immediate transformation
to a United States of Africa,
while southern Africa advocates
strengthening the Regional
Economic Communities
(RECs) as building blocks.
While the AU is agreed on
the movement towards a
union government, there are
different views on the timing
and model of governance.
There are four areas of divergence,
focusing essentially
on whether to move rapidly to
political unity of the continent,
or to strengthen regional
economic development first,
as building blocks.
The timing of the establishment
of a union government
has two schools of thought.
One is the gradual approach
from the bottom up, advocated
by eastern and southern
Africa, based on the RECs and
taking time to build regional
economies.
The other school of
thought, comprising mostly
west African states and Libya,
is for a top-down approach
starting with the formation of
a union government and election
of its leader as a matter of
urgency, to replace the current
AU Commission.
The latter group wants a
union president in place with
a small cabinet to cover trade,
defence and foreign policy;
and expansion of the cabinet
up to 2015.
In addition to timing, the
other sticking point is the
model of governance to adopt:
a federal model like the United
States of America; a coalition
of states cooperating in
specific areas with clearly defined
state sovereignty, similar
to the European Union; or a
gradual approach that will
eventually lead to one continental
government.
While this complex issue of
the form and timing of African
governance was again deferred to committee, the discussions
during the three-day
Summit were based on the
theme of “Industrial Development
of Africa,” with emphasis
on the need to strengthen
national economies by engaging
in economic co-operation
partnerships.
Other issues addressed included
peace resolution and
security, climate change, and
the role of the youths in
African development.
Tanzania's President Kikwete,
elected as the new AU
chairperson, pledged to work
hard in changing Africa's current
image as a continent
stereotyped for civil wars,
political turbulence and instability.
“There is a lot of bad news
coming from Africa, despite
the continent's enormous resources.
It is my hope that we
can turn things around. This is
the major challenge ahead of
us,” Kikwete said.
“Time has come for us to
bring about development on
the continent. We (African nations)
must forge closer unity
and have a common voice in
dealing with the prevailing
unfair global trading and financial
framework.”
The selection of Kikwete
was anticipated as the rotating
presidency had to be taken by
an east African nation.


Abstract:
THE FORMER foreign
minister of Gabon, Jean
Ping, has been appointed
as the new chairperson of
the AU Commission to replace
Alpha Omar Konare,
whose term has expired.

body:
THE FORMER foreign
minister of Gabon, Jean
Ping, has been appointed
as the new chairperson of
the AU Commission to replace
Alpha Omar Konare,
whose term has expired.
Seven commissioners
out of the eight portfolios
of the AU Commission
were appointed at the recent
AU Assembly. The
two commissioners from
southern Africa were reappointed:
Economic Affairs, Dr.
Maxwell Mkwezalamba
(Malawi); and
Social Affairs, Adv.
Bience Philomina
Gawanas (Namibia).


The AU Commission
also elected nine new
members of its Peace and
Security Council (PSC):
Burundi, Chad, Rwanda,
Uganda, Tunisia, Swaziland,
Benin, Burkina Faso
and Mali.
The new council was
urged to prioritise the
protection of civilians
and in particular,
women and girls in
Sudan, Somalia, and
the DRC.


Abstract:
THE SADC region will spend
about US$7.9 billion over the
next two years to boost power supplies
while a further US$32 billion
is earmarked for longer-term electricity
generation projects.

body:
THE SADC region will spend
about US$7.9 billion over the
next two years to boost power supplies
while a further US$32 billion
is earmarked for longer-term electricity
generation projects.
SADC energy ministers resolved
at a meeting in Harare, Zimbabwe,
in 2007 that Member States
should undertake short-term generation
projects that will add 6,700
megawatts (MW) of power to the
regional network.
The short-term projects will cost
US$7.88 billion and should be ready
by 2010, according to the ministers.
The regional network is administered
by the Southern African
Power Pool (SAPP) Coordination
Centre in Harare.
“The regional generation surplus
is expected to increase by
5,000MW from generation projects
in progress by 2010,” the energy
ministers said in a statement.
The SADC region was projected
to run out of surplus generation capacity
in 2007. Current installed capacity
in the region is 53,000MW but
the dependable capacity is only
about 41,000MW, the ministers said.
The region's electricity generation
capacity has not increased in
tandem with the growth in demand
for power occasioned by the rapid
expansion of the regional economy.
Power demand growth has averaged
three percent a year over the past decade, spurned on by economic
expansion of around five
percent.
Since 2004, SAPP members have
commissioned rehabilitation projects
that have contributed 1,810
MW to the regional grid.
“The regional energy shortfall is
currently 1,000MW, without a reserve
margin of 4,000MW,” the
ministers revealed, adding that the
shortfall is expected to be reduced
to zero through the implementation
of short-term projects over the next
two years.
A number of long-term generation
projects are also lined up, some
of which will be ready by 2020.
“The SAPP members shall undertake
long-term generation projects,
which shall add 32,000 MW to
the SAPP network at a cost of
US$32 billion,” the energy ministers
said.
The region's flagship long-term
project is the Western Corridor
Power Project (WESTCOR), a giant
five-country initiative that will exploit
the environmentally friendly,
renewable, hydroelectric energy of
the Inga rapids site in the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC).
The energy ministers acknowledged
the “likely contribution of
WESTCOR as a renewable largescale
hydroelectric power generation,
power transmission and broadband
telecommunications project.”
The project will add about
3,500MW to the regional power
grid and will result in the development
of associated telecommunications
and transmission infrastructure
in the western part of SADC at
an estimated cost of US$7 billion.
The WESTCOR project is a joint
venture involving the power utilities
of Angola, Botswana, DRC,
Namibia and South Africa.
SAPP has 12 member countries
represented by their respective
power utilities, although three of
these countries - Angola, Malawi
and the United Republic of Tanzania
- are accorded non-operating member
status as they are not connected
to the regional electricity grid.
The island states of Mauritius
and Madagascar are not members
of SAPP.
A Revised Inter-Governmental
MOU was signed in 2006 and the
Revised Inter-Utility MOU in 2007.
The SAPP has transmission projects
that aim to connect Angola, Malawi
and the United Republic of Tanzania
and to bring on board private
investors to widen supply of electricity.
The revision of the IGMOU and
the IUMOU was meant to recognise
other new developments in the region
such as the restructuring of
SADC and its institutions, particularly
the dissolution of the electricity
sub-committee.


title:
To end power shortages Southern Africa has to “run while others walk”

Abstract:
As Southern Africa enters its second year of
crippling energy shortages as accurately
predicted by the Southern African Power Pool
about a decade ago, massive short-term projects
of close to US$8 billion must be fast tracked over
the next two years.

body:
As Southern Africa enters its second year of
crippling energy shortages as accurately
predicted by the Southern African Power Pool
about a decade ago, massive short-term projects
of close to US$8 billion must be fast tracked over
the next two years.
Electricity shortages have in recent weeks
severely affected several SADC Member States
leading to scheduled and, in some cases, unscheduled
power cuts.

From last year, load shedding has been introduced
in countries such as Namibia, South
Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Faced by mounting pressure from industry
and domestic consumers, South Africa's power
utility Eskom announced mid-January that it
would discontinue electricity exports to neighbouring
countries to meet local demand, although
a significant amount of its supply is
drawn from neighbouring countries, especially
Mozambique.
The Sunday Independent quoted Andrew Etzinger,
Eskom's chief of demand side management
as saying South Africa's electricity reserves
had dropped during the past year from
seven percent to minus 17 percent due to a decline
in generation performance. Etzinger said
it would take at least another seven years before
the situation could get back to normal.
“The fact is in this country, for a long time
we have had a surplus of electricity at a cheap
price – far cheaper than in other industrial nations.
So it has made sense for the giant investors,
whose plant needs massive amounts of
electricity, to invest here,” Etzinger told the
South African weekly.
“All that's happened now is that we have to
manage the resource differently. It is simply
going to cost investors more – this does not
mean that they have to halt their future projects,”
he added.
South African industrialists say the power
shortages have cost them billions of rands, especially
the mines and smelters which consume
most of the country's electricity.
Neighbouring countries such as Botswana,
Namibia and Swaziland, which relied on South
Africa for their energy supplies, have had to
turn to other sources in the region.
Swaziland, which imports 80 percent of its
electricity from South Africa, is currently in
talks with Mozambique; while Namibia and
Zimbabwe have put in place a power-sharing
deal that involves Nambian investment of
US$40million in the refurbishment of the
Hwange power station.
In a major development for the southern
African region, Mozambique recently took over ownership of the giant Cahora Bassa Dam and
the hydroelectric power company from former
colonial power, Portugal.
SADC member states agreed last year to fast
track short-term generation projects, which will
add 6,700 megawatts (MW) by 2010 to the regional
power grid at a cost of US$7.88 billion.
SAPP, which administers the regional power
network, predicted that beginning 2007, the
combined power generation reserve capacity in
the region would be lower than the peak demand.

In response, SADC Member States have initiated
a number of short, medium to long term
generation projects as well as some rehabilitation
projects that will guarantee the region the
much needed energy security.
Current installed capacity in the region is
53,000 MW of which dependable capacity is
only about 41,000 MW against demand of
42,000 MW.
The region requires a reserve margin of 10
percent if its economies are to operate smoothly.
With some of Africa's fastest growing
economies, SADC's electricity generation capacity
has not increased in tandem with the
growth in demand.
Available statistics show that power growth
demand in the region has averaged three percent
a year over the past decade on the back of
economic expansion of around five percent.
With the region having already run out of surplus
capacity, SAPP says the problem would likely
be overcome by 2010 if planned projects are
implemented and commissioned on schedule.
Energy security becomes more pertinent
given that the SADC Free Trade Area, which takes effect this year, is set to spur even more
growth in the region. SADC would also be seeking
to enhance its preparedness ahead of the
2010 Soccer World Cup.
If the current situation is to be brought
under control, southern African countries may
need to take heed of a famous statement by the
visionary Mwalimu Julius Nyerere.


Abstract:
SAPP, which manages the Southern African
energy grid connecting most of the landlocked
SADC Member States, has developed a
roadmap which seeks to address current challenges.

body:
SAPP, which manages the Southern African
energy grid connecting most of the landlocked
SADC Member States, has developed a
roadmap which seeks to address current challenges.
The SAPP roadmap seeks to boost southern
Africa's electricity generation capacity, with almost
50 short and long term projects underway
or planned for future development.
The long term generation projects alone are
expected to add 32,000 MW to the regional grid
at a cost of US$32 billion.
Notable inter-connectors include the Westcor
inter-connector extending from the Inga III
in DRC to Angola, Namibia, Botswana and onward
to South Africa.
Regional energy cooperation also seeks to
facilitate the development of other energy resources
such as biomass and biofuels, to augment
the power sector capacity.
There is also potential for the region to
strengthen self-sufficiency in petroleum and
gas resources by undertaking joint regional exploration
and development. sardc.net


Abstract:
THE SOUTHERN African Power Pool
(SAPP) was created in August 1995 at the
SADC summit held in Kempton Park, South
Africa, when member governments of SADC
(excluding Mauritius) signed an inter-Governmental
Memorandum of Understanding
for the formation of an electricity power pool
in the region.

body:
THE SOUTHERN African Power Pool
(SAPP) was created in August 1995 at the
SADC summit held in Kempton Park, South
Africa, when member governments of SADC
(excluding Mauritius) signed an inter-Governmental
Memorandum of Understanding
for the formation of an electricity power pool
in the region.
The ministers responsible for energy in
the SADC region signed the Revised Inter-
Governmental Memorandum of Understanding
on 23 February 2006.
The creation of SAPP confirmed the region's
commitment to expanding electricity
trade, reducing energy costs and providing
greater supply stability for the region's 12 national
utilities:
 Botswana Power Corporation (BPC);
 Electriçidade de Moçambique (EDM);
 Angola's Empresa Nacional de Electriçidade
(ENE);
 Electricity Supply Commission of
Malawi (Escom);
 South Africa's Eskom;
 Lesoth Electricity Corporation (LEC);
 Namibia's NamPower;
 Swaziland Electricity Board (SEB);
 Societe Nationale d'Electricite (SNEL) of
DRC;
 Tanzania Electricity Supply Company
(Tanesco);
 Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority
(ZESA); and
 Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation
(ZESCO).


The SAPP is governed by four agreements:
 Inter Governmental Memorandum of
Understanding which enabled the establishment
of SAPP;
 Inter-Utility Memorandum of Understanding,
which established SAPP's basic
management and operating principles;
 Agreement Between Operating Members
which established the specific rules
of operation and pricing; and
 Operating Guidelines, which provide
standards and operating guidelines.


title:
Status of the generation projects in the Southern African Power Pool

body:
Status of the generation projects in the Southern African Power Pool


Country Project Name Capacity [MW] Project Description Expected Date Expected Project Cost USD [million]



Angola Benguela 83 Gas Turbine Project. 2007 -
Capanda Phase 2 260 Development of the hydro-powerstation at Capanda. 2007 344


Gove 60 Rehabilitation of the dam and installation
of the power station. 2010 180



Botswana Morupule Expansion 600 Expansion of the
existing coal-fired plant. 2010 900



DRC Inga 2 800 Refurbishment of Inga hydro-electric project. 2007 452

Inga 1 110 Refurbishment 2007 78

Nseke 62 Starting project 2009 56
Koni 42 Refurbishment 2008 15
Mwadingusha 12 Refurbishment 2010 30
Zongo 75 Starting project 2010 6
Nzilo 27 Refurbishment 2009 28
Sanga 8 Refurbishment 2010 6



Malawi Tedzani 1&2 40 Rehabilitation 2007 17
Kaphichira
Phase-2 64 New hydro-plant 2009 50



Mozambique Mavuzi and Chicamba Projects 34 Long-term rehabilitation Projects 2009 30

Namibia Kudu 800 Construction of the power station 2010 640


South Africa Camden 1140 Rehabilitation 2008 848

Grootvlei 1140 Rehabilitation 2010 777

Komati 909 Rehabilitation 2010 987

Arnot 120 Upgrading 2007 63

Ankerlig OCGT 600 Upgrading 2007 240
Gourikwa 450 Upgrading 2007 180



Swaziland Maguga 20 Starting Project 2007 -


Tanzania Ubungo 60 Starting Project 2007 -
Kinyeredzi 200 Construction of gas powered project. 2007-9 190



Zambia Kafue Gorge 90 Upgrading 2008 50

Kariba North Bank 120 Upgrading 2009 60




Kariba North Bank Extension 360 Construction of a hydro-electric power
station. 2009 300


Itezhi-Tezhi 120 Construction 2010 142



Zimbabwe Hwange Rehabilitation 400 Implementation in progress. 2008 40


Kariba South Extension 300 Expansion of Kariba power station 2010 300

Hwange Expansion 600 Expansion of existing generation station 2010 600

Mini-hydro Generation 120 Construction of mini-hydro-power 2009 -

KEY New Short and Long Term Generation Projects Rehabilitation Projects
The table deals with the rehabilitation, short-term generation projects and long-term generation projects up to 2010. Due to the
current power shortages faced in the SADC region, the table provides the projects that are underway, but not those beyond 2010.
Source Southern African Power Pool


title:
Namibia reaps benefits of regional energy cooperation

Abstract:
NAMIBIA STARTED receiving
40 megawatts of power from
Zimbabwe's Hwange Power Station
in January as part of a multimillion-
dollar deal signed in 2007
between NamPower and Zimbabwe
Electricity Supply Authority
(Zesa).

body:
NAMIBIA STARTED receiving
40 megawatts of power from
Zimbabwe's Hwange Power Station
in January as part of a multimillion-
dollar deal signed in 2007
between NamPower and Zimbabwe
Electricity Supply Authority
(Zesa).
The power started flowing on
3 January following the completion
of the refurbishment of the
Hwange Power Station in northwestern
Zimbabwe.
Last year NamPower signed a
US$40 million power purchase
agreement with Zesa under
which it extended a loan to the
power utility to resuscitate four
units at Hwange Power Station.
NamPower is responsible for
funding equipment procurement
and labour costs while ZESA
caters for local costs. Under the
agreement Namibia would receive
150 megawatts from the
coal-fired power station.
NamPower managing director,
Paulinus Shilamba said the
power purchase agreement with
Zimbabwe was a timely arrangement
for a country that has previously
solely relied on South
Africa for electricity imports.
South Africa's power utility,
Eskom, has since the beginning of
the year struggled to meet both
domestic and regional demand.
Shilamba said the 40
megawatts would cushion
Namibia when Eskom fails to
supply the required amount of
power.
Electricity from Hwange
Power Station is being routed to
Namibia through South Africa
until NamPower's Caprivi Link
Interconnector is operational.
The Namibian economy was
severely crippled by the shortage
of power in South Africa over the
past three years, including an incident
two years ago when
Eskom's Koeberg Power Station
was damaged and had to be shut
down for several months.


Namibia has been forced to activate
its old power stations in
Walvis Bay and Windhoek to  avert serious electricity shortages
during the past three years. However,
the output from the two
power stations remains insufficient
to meet domestic demand.
The south-west African country
has in recent years pursued alternative
sources of power such
as Mozambique's Cahora Bassa as
well as Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The government is also focusing
on major projects such as the Kudu gas-to-power project, the
Lower Kunene hydropower
scheme and the Caprivi Link interconnector
into Zambia.
NamPower last year announced
plans involving
Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and
Zimbabwe to link Hwange Power
Station to Victoria Falls via
Botswana and Namibia.
The project, known as Zizabona,
will complete the link and create a corridor for power import
and export to the four countries.
“Zizabona will create the alternative
route for power import
from neighbouring countries,”
NamPower spokesperson, John
Kaimu said.


title:
Countries turn to bio-diesel as
volatility hits international oil market

Abstract:
SADC Member States are turning
to bio-diesel as volatility
rocks the international oil market.
Zimbabwe, Mozambique and
South Africa have led the search
for alternative sources of fuel to
cushion their economies from
the wild swings in international
oil prices.

body:
SADC Member States are turning
to bio-diesel as volatility
rocks the international oil market.
Zimbabwe, Mozambique and
South Africa have led the search
for alternative sources of fuel to
cushion their economies from
the wild swings in international
oil prices.
Zimbabwe pioneered Africa's
commercial bio-diesel production
when it launched the continent's
first bio-fuels plant in the
capital, Harare.
The plant uses seeds from the
fuel-rich jatropha shrub and is
expected to produce about 100
million litres of bio-diesel at full
throttle.
Mozambique's state-owned
petroleum company, Petromoc,
has also announced plans to implement
a US$550-million biofuels
project expected to produce
up to 226 million litres of fuel
and create about 800 jobs.
The plant will use sugar cane
and jatropha which will be
planted on about 74,000 hectares
of land as part of the joint project
with Cofamosa, which represents
200 Mozambican and
South African farmers.
In addition to domestic consumption,
Mozambique also
hopes to export biofuels to fellow
SADC Member States and
other African countries.
South Africa has also been exploring
prospects of full-scale
bio-diesel production amid indications
that world oil prices
could continue to rise.
International fuel prices have
hovered around US$90 per barrel
since peaking at US$100 at
the beginning of the year.


Abstract:
An international mining company
has announced initial
results of prospects containing 20
million pounds of uranium, giving
further impetus to the opening
of the first-ever uranium mine
in Botswana.

body:
An international mining company
has announced initial
results of prospects containing 20
million pounds of uranium, giving
further impetus to the opening
of the first-ever uranium mine
in Botswana.
The prospects, which form
part of the larger Letlhakane
project in the northeast of the
country, come from a resource
covering an area of approximately
six kms by three kms, and extends
from the surface to a depth
of 45 metres.
The company, A-Cap Resources,
announced last year that
it had discovered new uranium
deposits in Serule and intended to
fast-track the exploration programme
in Botswana on the back
of positive drilling results. It encountered
high-grade uranium
mineralisation of up to 10,000
parts per million in a new zone on
the eastern edge of the Mokobaesi
prospect.
Uranium, which is used in nuclear
weapons manufacturing
and as an alternative source of energy,
is currently in huge demand
the world over. Due to its increased
demand which outstrips
supply by a wide margin, prices
of the mineral has rose sharply
from about $10 per lb in 2002 to
over $100 per lb at present.
With world net electricity consumption
expected to nearly double
over the next two decades,
some 30 new nuclear reactors are
being built with expansion fastest
in developing Asia, including
China and India.
A-Cap Resources has operations
in Botswana, Australia and
China.


title:
Learning to live with floods -
Early warning and communication vital

Abstract:
“WITH THE floods we learn not
only how to deal with the land,
the water and the grass, but also
how to think of the use of physical
space for economic growth,
and reorganise the community in
terms of the challenges and opportunities
that arise…”

body:
“WITH THE floods we learn not
only how to deal with the land,
the water and the grass, but also
how to think of the use of physical
space for economic growth,
and reorganise the community in
terms of the challenges and opportunities
that arise…”
Speaking at Mozambique's
Eduardo Mondlane University in
2001, the late Dr José Negrão told
his audience that the country had
to learn to live with the floods.
This was instructive because
the previous year Mozambique
had suffered its worst floods
since the mid-1970s.
Fast-forward to 2008.

Fresh floods have hit southern
African countries throughout
the Zambezi River basin.
Angola, Malawi, Mozambique,
Zambia and Zimbabwe are the
most affected thus far.
Following forecasts of above
normal rainfall by the Southern
African Climate Outlook Forum
last year, governments made
contingency plans to offset and
mitigate the impacts of the possible
floods, in line with SADC
recommendations.
The SADC Secretariat has
been in the forefront of plans to
establish an improved communications
and early warning system
in the region.
SADC Executive Secretary
Tomáz Salomão told reporters
in the Mozambican capital, Maputo,
that it is important for
countries upstream and downstream
of major regional rivers
to exchange information in
order to plan joint action as
agreed in the SADC Revised
Protocol on Shared Watercourses.
Salomão said that in planning
for development, SADC countries
must put into place mechanisms
designed to tackle natural disasters,
which encompass mitigation
activities such as rescue operations
and assistance to the victims.
The Executive Secretary was
heading a SADC mission travelling
through the five countries
to learn firsthand of the impacts
of the floods.
He said that countries have
strengthened their disaster preparedness
mechanisms, and that
most of the populations living
along river banks have been rescued
and placed in safer places.

A more effective early warning
response and better cooperation
between regional governments
has led to a dramatically
reduced death toll in the flooding
that has hit the region this season.
Although this season has
brought some of the “heaviest
rains in living memory” in most
countries in the region, the
death toll and damage to infrastructure
and property has been
vastly reduced compared to previous
seasons.
Mozambique has been
praised by the international community
for its preparedness, rooted
in its previous harsh experiences.
As a downstream country
which suffers most from flooding,
Mozambique has managed
the 2008 floods without declaring
an emergency, a sign that it is
possible to live with the floods.
The SADC Council of Ministers
meeting at the end of February
is expected to approve a draft
recommendation to Heads of
State and Government to ensure
that each country's efforts are
complemented by the Secretariat
activities to attract financial institutions
into backing them.


Abstract:
NATIONAL METEOROLOGICAL
service departments in
the region are driving a process
to establish a Meteorological
Association of Southern Africa.

body:
NATIONAL METEOROLOGICAL
service departments in
the region are driving a process
to establish a Meteorological
Association of Southern Africa.
The process has been adopted
by SADC and currently includes
10 of the 14 Member
States with four others still consulting
at national level.
Climate expert and director
of the Zimbabwe Meteorological
Services Department,
Amos Makarau commended
the decision by regional meteorological
departments to establish
the association which
will be responsible for issuing
regional climate forecasts.
The association will also
look at issues of climate variability
and climate change in
southern Africa.
“Many climate models are
indicating that the region will
be drier but we are constantly
experiencing floods so this as association
will be of great value
to the study of climate change
and variability with important
implications for planning in the
region,” said Makarau.
This season's floods have
been attributed to the La Niña
phenomenon which is characterised
by a cooling of sea surface
temperatures in the equatorial
Pacific Ocean and has significant
impacts on rainfall patterns
in the whole world, causing very
heavy rains in southern Africa.
“Unlike the El Niño effect
which is more periodical, occurring
every four to five years,
La Niña events are less frequent,
irregular and when they
occur their impacts can be quite
significant” said Makarau.
The efforts by the region's meteorological
experts resonate
with efforts at the global level to
improve the ability to forecast
changes in climate and cope with
extreme weather patterns.


title:
SADC region on high
alert as more flooding
is forecast

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA has
been warned to brace for
more and heavier rains as the
peak of the rainfall season approaches.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA has
been warned to brace for
more and heavier rains as the
peak of the rainfall season approaches.
The rainfall season
in most of southern Africa
stretches from October to
March with a peak in late February.
A forecast for the period
January to March 2008 issued
by the SADC Drought
Monitoring Centre warns of
heavy rainfall across most
parts of mainland SADC and
Madagascar. Mauritius is expected
to receive normal to
above normal rainfall during
the same period


Abstract:
DELEGATES GATHERED at the UN World Meteorological Organisation
(WMO) meeting in Geneva in early February stressed
the importance for governments and scientists to improve climate
prediction capabilities to save lives and protect economies.

body:
DELEGATES GATHERED at the UN World Meteorological Organisation
(WMO) meeting in Geneva in early February stressed
the importance for governments and scientists to improve climate
prediction capabilities to save lives and protect economies.
The three-day meeting sought to prepare for the third World
Climate Conference, to be held next year in Switzerland. The previous
conferences have been major events:
 the first, in 1979, led to the creation of the UN Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change in 1988; and
 the second, in 1990, helped to generate momentum towards
the establishment of the UN Framework Convention on Climate
Change in 1992.


The 2009 conference will focus on climate prediction and its
impact on decision-making.


title:
New impetus to regional infrastructure
development

Abstract:
SADC HAS committed to embark
on radical measures to
strengthen infrastructure development
and speed up the
process of implementing its regional
integration programme.

body:
SADC HAS committed to embark
on radical measures to
strengthen infrastructure development
and speed up the
process of implementing its regional
integration programme.
At their Summit last year in
Zambia, SADC leaders expressed
concern at the slow
pace of implementing goals
and targets to achieve regional
integration and eradicate
poverty.
Summit directed the SADC
Secretariat to work out the details
of a regional Master Plan
for Infrastructure Development
in close cooperation with Member
States.
The SADC Chairperson,
President Levy Mwanawasa of
Zambia said regional integration
is hampered by inadequate
infrastructure in the key sectors
of energy, transport, communication,
water and tourism.
The leaders noted that Member
States lack financial capacity
to rehabilitate regional infrastructure
and fund new projects,  despite the region being well
placed to receive long-term investment
necessary for infrastructure
development given
the peaceful environment.
The Summit called for financial
support from the private
sector and the international
community to complement regional
efforts.
Efficient and effective transboundary
infrastructure facilities
in all key service sectors including
assured energy security
is vital if southern Africa is to deepen regional integration and
improve access for the benefit of
its 240 million citizens, thereby
reducing poverty.


title:
DRC signs oil exploration
agreement with
Brazilian firm

Abstract:
A PRIVATE Brazilian company
has signed an agreement with
the DRC government to assess
the oil potential of the country's
central basin.

body:
A PRIVATE Brazilian company
has signed an agreement with
the DRC government to assess
the oil potential of the country's
central basin.
Under the agreement, High
Resolution Technology (HRT)
will subdivide the basin into exploitation
blocks, build up an oil
data base and create a petroleum
laboratory in the central basin.
The data will be used by the DRC
government to determine the size
of reserves in the region before
inviting explorers.
An oil-producing country
since 1975, DRC has three oil
basins: the coastal basin (west)
which ensures the present oil
production of the country of
around 25,000 barrels a day; the
central basin; and the Tanganyika
Graben (east).
Last year, DRC signed joint
exploitation agreements for the
oil in the coastal basin with Angola,
and in Lake Albert with
Uganda.


title:
SA to get 20 percent
more gas from
Mozambique

Abstract:
THE SOUTH African energy
giant, Sasol - the world's biggest
producer of commercial scale
synthetic fuel from coal - in
partnership with the South
African and Mozambican governments,
is to invest
US$600,000 to build a gas compression
station at Komatipoort
to increase the supply of gas
from Mozambique to South
Africa by 20 percent by the end
of 2009.

body:
THE SOUTH African energy
giant, Sasol - the world's biggest
producer of commercial scale
synthetic fuel from coal - in
partnership with the South
African and Mozambican governments,
is to invest
US$600,000 to build a gas compression
station at Komatipoort
to increase the supply of gas
from Mozambique to South
Africa by 20 percent by the end
of 2009.
The move is meant to boost
power energy supply into South
Africa in the wake of the current
electricity shortage. Construction
will start in the second half
of this year.
The additional gas will be
used by South Africa in the first
phase of a government electricity
expansion project to increase capacity
to 20 percent over the next
eight years, according to Sasol.
Sasol said 75 percent of the additional
synfuels capacity would
use environmentally more benign
natural gas as feedstock,
while the rest of
the feedstock for the
expansion would
come from fine-coal
reserves.


title:
Tanzania signs US$112 million deal with
World Bank for power supply

Abstract:
THE UNITED Republic of
Tanzania has signed loan and
grant agreements with the
World Bank worth US$111.5
million to support transmission
and distribution capacities
of the Tanzania Electricity
Supply Company (Tanesco) in
order to improve the quality
and efficiency provision of
electricity.

body:
THE UNITED Republic of
Tanzania has signed loan and
grant agreements with the
World Bank worth US$111.5
million to support transmission
and distribution capacities
of the Tanzania Electricity
Supply Company (Tanesco) in
order to improve the quality
and efficiency provision of
electricity.
The improvements will be
done by supporting the upgrading
of investments in the
power transmission and distribution
system, supporting grid
access expansion, and the provision
of technical advisory services to support commercial
and institutional capacity development
to improve the
power utility's revenue and reduce
losses.
The permanent secretary in
the Treasury, Gray Mgonja,
said the government believes
that Tanesco will be in a better
position to improve its finances
and implement its
strategic plans as a result of
this funding.
"We all know that energy is
a necessary infrastructure for
realisation of any economic development,"
said Mgonja. (APA)


title:
Mozambique, Malawi to build cross-border oil pipeline

Abstract:
MOZAMBIQUE HAS awarded
a contract to build an oil
pipeline between the city
of Beira, and Nsanje in
Malawi.

body:
MOZAMBIQUE HAS awarded
a contract to build an oil
pipeline between the city
of Beira, and Nsanje in
Malawi.
A brief statement from the
energy ministry says the contract
was signed with a Qatarbased
company in January. The
project, to be completed over 36
months, includes pipeline and
storage facilities to increase the country's oil reserves from
10 to 90 days supply.
"Fuel is currently transported
from Beira in tanker trucks, which
travel through Tanzania, and this
project aims to reduce the cost of
importing fuel to Malawi."
Malawi is also following with
interest the recently approved $5
billion Nacala refinery project,
which is expected to serve the regional
market.
Construction and operation
of this ambitious refinery will be
the responsibility of a US oil
company from Texas, together
with three South African and
one Mozambican investors.
The refinery will have a
production capacity of 100,000
barrels per day of several types
of fuel such as gasoline, lighting
oil, aircraft fuel, and others.


title:
Ownership of Cahora Bassa dam
“a second independence to
Mozambique”

Abstract:
IN A major development for the southern African region, the ownership of the Cahora
Bassa dam on the Zambezi river was finally transferred from the former colonial power,
Portugal, into Mozambican hands late last year at a ceremony witnessed by seven regional
leaders.

body:
IN A major development for the southern African region, the ownership of the Cahora
Bassa dam on the Zambezi river was finally transferred from the former colonial power,
Portugal, into Mozambican hands late last year at a ceremony witnessed by seven regional
leaders.

This transaction offers some economic independence as well as control of one of
the major sources of electricity in southern Africa.
Mozambican President Armando Guebuza said the transfer of ownership marks
“a second independence to Mozambique.”
Guebuza said that after all the debts have been repaid, Cahora Bassa would bring
the country benefits that would contribute significantly to the balance of payments,
reduction of the budget deficit, and improvement of the country's finances.
Obviously elated when he spoke at the handover ceremony in the village of
Songo, in the central province of Tete, Guebuza said, “Mozambicans have won an important
battle towards their well-being.”
The agreement means that Mozambique is now in charge of a major development
project located on its soil but over which it has had no control since independence
more than 30 years ago, due to contractual obligations with Portugal.


Cahora Bassa was constructed in the 1960s by a consortium of South African, Italian,
and German investors headed by the Anglo American Trust.
Since construction ended in 1974, during Mozambique's transition to independence,
Portugal has retained control of the dam. The ownership structure gave Portugal
82 percent of shares in the state-run Hidroeléctrica de Cahora Bassa (HCB).
When HCB initiated operations in 1975, the new Mozambican government and its
Portuguese counterpart had an understanding that the shares would be transferred
as soon as the debt incurred in building the dam was paid off, then estimated at a period
of three years.
Previous attempts to transfer ownership have faltered on the complexity of the negotiations,
changes of government in Portugal, and the 16-year civil war in Mozambique
which resulted in serious damage to the transmission infrastructure when the former
rebel movement Renamo destroyed hundreds of pylons carrying power to South Africa.
This meant that HCB remained unprofitable as it could not sell power to its main
client, the South African utility company, Eskom. No sales meant further debts for
HCB and the Portuguese state ended up claiming that the company owed to its treasury
more than US$2 billion. Mozambique could not be held responsible for this debt
and hence the new arrangement.
Mozambique and Portugal eventually signed a Memorandum of Understanding
in 2005 to substantially alter the ownership structure of HCB, but implementation
was blocked when the European Union decided to investigate the deal to verify
whether EU rules had been complied with by Portugal.
The delay in implementing the MoU caused “public impatience, expressed by citizens,
by the media, by political parties and civil society organisations, as well as by
friends of Mozambique and its people,” Guebuza said.
He added that the negotiations had been complex but there was always a belief
that an agreement would not only strengthen relations between Mozambique and
Portugal, but that “its conclusion would be irreversible.”
Portuguese Prime Minister José Socrates had said the agreement was “closing the
final chapter of the history of the past, and opening the first chapter of the history of the
future.”
Guebuza agreed, saying that the agreement marks a new era in relations and
“removes from our soil the final redoubt, the landmark of 500 years of foreign
domination.”
THE NEW arrangement gives Mozambique 85 percent of HCB as
the majority shareholder while Portugal will retain 15 percent.
The final cost was US$950 million, paid as compensation for the
post civil-war reconstruction and maintenance of the dam.
A sum of US$250 million was paid in 2006 with funds from
the state budget, while US$700 million was borrowed from the
Canadian consortium, Calyon, and the Portuguese bank, BPI,
with the loan to be repaid from future earnings.
Cahora Bassa contributes significantly to Mozambique's GDP,
earning about US$150 million per year from power sales.
The dam has an installed capacity of 2,075 MW and its economic
significance reaches far beyond the borders of Mozambique,
as one of the main suppliers to the Southern African
Power Pool.
HCB is currently selling 1,100 Mw of power to South Africa
and 450 MW to Zimbabwe, but the tariffs are very different due
to the historical agreements between Portugal and South Africa.
Other neighbouring countries are also seeking power imports
from Mozambique.


body:
Public holidays in SADC for the period 
 February - April 2008

1 February Abolition of Slavery Mauritius
3 February Heroes Day Mozambique
4 February National Armed Struggle Day Angola
16 February Maha Shivaratree Mauritius
3 March Martyrs Day Malawi
8 March International Women's Day Angola, Madagascar
11 March Moshoeshoe's Day Lesotho
12 March National Day Mauritius
12 March Youth Day Zambia
21 March Independence Day Namibia
21 March Human Rights Day South Africa
21 March Good Friday All except DRC, Madagascar,
Mauritius, Mozambique
21 March Maulid Day* Tanzania
22 March Public Holiday Botswana
22 March Holy Saturday Zambia
22 March Easter Saturday Zimbabwe
23 March Easter Day Namibia
24 March Easter Monday All except DRC, Madagascar,
Mauritius, Mozambique
24 March Family Day South Africa
29 March Commemoration of the 1947 Rebellion Madagascar
4 April Peace and National Reconciliation Day Angola
7 April Women's Day Mozambique
7 April Sheik Abeid Amani Karume Day Tanzania
18 April Independence Day Zimbabwe
19 April King's Birthday Swaziland
25 April National Flag Day Swaziland
26 April Union Celebrations Tanzania
27 April Freedom Day South Africa

* Depends on sighting of the new moon


body:
EVENTS DIARY 2008
January/February


31- 2 Feb Ethiopia
Africa Union Summit

 10th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and
Government from the AU's 53 member countries. The summit
agenda focused on “Industrial Development of Africa.”



February 15-17, Algeria
African Energy Ministers Conference

The African Union Commission and the People's Democratic
Republic of Algeria will jointly organise and host the
Conference of African Ministers responsible for Energy in
Algiers. The official launch of the African Energy Commission
(AFREC) will be held during the meeting, given that the AFREC
has obtained the required signatures from AU member States for
its ratification.


27-29 Zambia
SADC Council of Ministers

Ministers from each of the member state sit in Council, usually
from the ministries of foreign affairs, economic development,
planning or finance. The council is responsible for supervising
and monitoring the functions and development of SADC, and
ensuring that policies are properly implemented, as well as
making recommendations to Summit


March 2008


3- 7 Ethiopia
Science with Africa Conference

Organised by United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
(UNECA) and Intelligence in Science (ISC), this meeting will
bring together African and international scientists seeking to
promote and enhance the role of science and technology in the
continent's development.

10-12 South Africa
International Conference on Integrated Water Resources
Management

The event is aimed at sharing the experiences and lessons of
developing countries on Integrated Water Resources
Management (IWRM). The conference provides an opportunity
for dialogue between developing and developed countries on
IWRM implementation that can shape new concepts or adapt
existing ones.

10-14 Ghana
2nd Global Summit on HIV and AIDS, Traditional Medicine and
Indigenous Knowledge

The symposium will serve as a forum to identify traditional
medicines and practices in the management of HIV and AIDS, and
to promote respect for traditional healing practices.

April 2008

18-20 Mauritius
SADC Consultative Conference on Poverty and Development

Under the theme “Regional Economic Integration: A Strategy for
Poverty Eradication Towards Sustainable Development” the
conference will adopt a multi-stakeholder approach to allow for
strategic dialogue that recognises the necessity of regional multidimensional
strategies and approaches to tackle poverty. The
two key outputs Member States expect from this conference are
the adoption of a SADC Regional Poverty Reduction Framework
(RPRF) and the establishment of a SADC Poverty Observatory.


May 2008

14-15 Mozambique
Annual Meeting of the African Development Bank

Mozambique will this year host the 43rd Annual Meeting of the
Board of Governors of the African Development Bank (ADB)
and the 34th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the
African Development Fund (ADF) under the theme “Fostering
shared growth: urbanization, inequality and poverty.” These
meetings are the most important gathering of finance and
development experts in Africa.


Abstract:
SADC STAKEHOLDERS meet in Mauritius in
April for high-level consultations on the poverty
and development challenges facing the region.

body:
SADC STAKEHOLDERS meet in Mauritius in
April for high-level consultations on the poverty
and development challenges facing the region.
The SADC International Consultative Conference
on Poverty and Development is a highlevel,
multi-stakeholder dialogue at ministerial
level and involving senior business and civil society
leaders from the region to engage in policy
dialogue, forge consensus, and review
progress of the SADC economic integration
agenda, with emphasis on poverty eradication.
The theme of the conference is “Regional
Economic Integration: A Strategy for Poverty
Eradication towards Sustainable Development”
and discussions will focus on strategies, commitments
and resources needed to accelerate
SADC's economic targets to facilitate implementation
of the UN Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs).
SADC Heads of State and Government will
be in attendance for the third day of the conference
to participate in a number of panel discussions,
together with selected Heads of State and
Government from other regions of Africa, Asia,
South America and Europe.
International Cooperating Partners (ICPs)
have been invited to participate, at senior government
level.
The conference will have two main parts.
The first part, on 18-19 April, will be the SADC
Consultative Conference, which is a policy dialogue
that takes place every two years between
SADC and ICPs. The second part is the SADC
International Conference on Poverty and Development,
at Summit level, and this will take
place on 20 April 2008.
Civil society groups will hold a pre-conference
workshop on 16-17 April in Mauritius.
The international conference is expected to
be a milestone towards poverty eradication in
the region, and to lay the foundations for a new
global partnership with SADC for this purpose.
The conference will also assess the challenges
toward achievement of the MDGs in the SADC
region.
Addressing journalists at
the launch ceremony of the
final preparatory phase in
Mauritius a month before the
conference, SADC Executive
Secretary Tomaz Salomão said
the event is being held against
the backdrop of serious poverty
challenges in the region.
“About 45 percent of the
population in the SADC region
lives in abject poverty,” Salomão
said. “This is reflected in
poor social indicators such as
high levels of malnutrition, illiteracy,
unemployment, underemployment,
declining life
expectancy and unsatisfactory
access to basic services and infrastructure
needed to sustain
basic human capacities.”
The scope of the conference
is in the context of the SADC
agenda as articulated in the
1992 SADC Treaty which says
that regional integration will
be pursued as the vehicle for
accelerating economic growth,
eradicating poverty and
achieving a sustainable pattern
of development.
The World Summit for Social
Development in 1995 defined
absolute poverty as “a
condition characterized by severe
deprivation of basic
human needs, including food,
safe drinking water, sanitation
facilities, health, shelter, education
and information.”
The conference in Mauritius
is expected to propose
and adopt a Regional Poverty
Reduction Framework (RPRF)
with SMART targets and clear
monitoring and evaluation
plans.
SMART targets are: Specific,
Measurable, Attainable, Realistic
and Time-bound.
The consultations toward
this framework
will focus on innovative
programmes and time-specific tasks and actions
to strengthen national poverty
reduction programmes and accelerate
progress toward
MDGs targets such as halving
by 2015 the number of people
who were living in absolute
poverty in 1990, as well as
other education, health, gender,
environment and infrastructure
goals.
The conference is expected
to launch the SADC Poverty
Observatory, which is intended
to keep the poverty eradication
agenda in the forefront of
SADC's programme of action.
SADC expects to receive
concrete pledges of technical
and financial support from the
international community, development
partners and the
private sector in line with international
development commitments.
One objective of the April
conference is to re-mobilize
the international community,
in particular the developed
countries, to meet their commitments
to increasing the
levels of development aid.
The process leading to the
conference has been wideranging
with a number of research
projects for key poverty
reduction challenges and
strategies, stakeholders consultations
at national level, a
regional technical workshop
and various policy meetings.
Sub-themes of conference are:
 trade including informal
cross-border trade;
 infrastructure support;
 education, skills and technologies;
strengthening the role of
agriculture, gender and development;
and
 the economic cost of HIV
and AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis
in the SADC region.


SADC is currently implementing
a long-term plan for the region called the Regional
Indicative Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP), which
identifies poverty as “one of
the major development challenge
facing the SADC region”
and assigns top priority
to poverty eradication, achieving
sustainable economic
growth, and deepening economic
integration.
The RISDP identifies regional
economic integration
as a key strategy for this objective
and sets targets for
deepening economic integration.
These targets include the
establishment of a SADC Free
Trade Area in 2008, and a
Customs Union by 2010,
Common Market by 2015,
Monetary Union by 2016 with
a regional currency by 2018.
Salomão said “it is expected
that the conference will
reaffirm SADC's regional integration
agenda as a necessary
strategy to complement
national poverty strategies
for fostering economic
growth and the achievement
of a sustainable development
pattern.”


title:
Revisiting the G8 Gleneagles commitments

Abstract:
THE G8 industrialized countries
reaffirmed, during their
2005 Summit at Gleneagles in
Scotland, their commitment
towards ensuring that the UN
Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs) will be
achieved by 2015 as agreed.

body:
THE G8 industrialized countries
reaffirmed, during their
2005 Summit at Gleneagles in
Scotland, their commitment
towards ensuring that the UN
Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs) will be
achieved by 2015 as agreed.
The MDGs include targets on
reducing poverty, combating
hunger and disease, among
others.
Progress towards meeting
these goals is expected to feature
in discussions at the
SADC International Conference
on Poverty and Development
in April 2008.
The commitments made by
the G8 at Gleneagles include:
 Doubling of aid by 2010 -
an extra US$50 billion
worldwide and US$25 billion
for Africa;
 Writing off immediately
the debts of 18 of the
world's poorest countries,
most of which are in
Africa. This was worth
US$40 billion in 2005, and
as much as US$55 billion
as more countries qualify;
 Commitment to end all export
subsidies, and to reduce
domestic subsidies,
which distort world trade;
 Developing countries
would “decide, plan and
sequence their economic
policies to fit with their
own development strategies,
for which they
should be accountable to
their people;”
 As close to universal access
to HIV and AIDS treatment
as possible by 2010;
 Funding for treatment and
nets to combat malaria,
saving the lives of over
600,000 children every year;
 Full funding to totally
eradicate Polio from the
world;
 All children to have access
to good quality, free and
compulsory education and
to basic health care by
2015, free where a country
chooses to provide it;
 Although the comprehensive
package agreed at Gleneagles
would have improved
progress for Africa
towards meeting the MDGs
- a lot of these promises
have remained on paper.


If the SADC region is to
meet the MDGs by 2015, then
much more needs to be done
to meet and implement these
commitments.


Abstract:
THE SADC Council of Ministers
is responsible for supervising
and monitoring the functions
and development of
SADC, and ensuring that policies
are properly implemented,
as well as making recommendations
for Summit. We highlight
the key issues discussed and decisions
taken during the 28-29
February Council held in Lusaka,
Zambia.

body:
THE SADC Council of Ministers
is responsible for supervising
and monitoring the functions
and development of
SADC, and ensuring that policies
are properly implemented,
as well as making recommendations
for Summit. We highlight
the key issues discussed and decisions
taken during the 28-29
February Council held in Lusaka,
Zambia.
COMESA-EAC-SADC Summit for
October

Some SADC Member States also
belong to the Common Market
for Eastern and Southern Africa
(COMESA) or the East African
Community (EAC).
In view of the challenges presented
by overlapping membership
of the three Regional Economic
Communities (RECs), the
SADC Summit in August 2007
approved the convening of a
Tripartite Summit to promote
dialogue on issues of common
interest.
Following that decision,
Council has approved a proposed
agenda for the joint
COMESA-EAC-SADC Summit
tentatively scheduled for October
2008 at a venue to be determined.
The proposed agenda
centres on:
 economic regional integration
including the status of
trade liberalization; and infrastructure
support for regional
integration and development;
and
 geo-political issues where
matters relating to cooperation
with the European
Union and overlapping
membership among RECs
will be considered.


EPA negotiations

Council noted that 31 December
2007 was the original deadline
for the conclusion of World
Trade Organisation (WTO) compatible
Economic Partnership
Agreements (EPAs) between the EU and African, Caribbean and
Pacific (ACP) regions that
would become effective on 1
January 2008. The WTO waiver
also expired on 31 December.
To prevent trade disruption
for goods destined to the European
market owing to the expiry
of the waiver, some Member
States - Botswana, Lesotho,
Mozambique, Namibia and
Swaziland -- negotiating under
the SADC umbrella initialled an
Interim Economic Partnership
Agreement (IEPA) with the EU.
Namibia initialled with reservations
on some of the provisions
of the agreement.
The other Member States are
negotiating under the East and
Southern Africa (ESA) group.
The interim agreement is expected
to come into force by 1
July 2008 once ratified by all the
relevant parties. To facilitate the
completion of all outstanding
work with respect to signature,
ratification and entry into force
of the IEPA, Council approved
the convening of a high-level
technical workshop not later
than 30 March 2008.
Energy situation

Having reviewed the status of
power generation capacity in
the region and considering the
report of the 20-21 February
2008 meeting of the Energy Ministerial
Task Force, Council mandated
the SADC Secretariat to liaise
with Member States in exploring
alternative low-cost
sources of energy to address the
current shortages.
Council also adopted emergency
short-term and long-term
measures to address current
power shortfalls.
Concerning the power sector
growth and sustainability,
Council noted that an enabling
environment is required to stimulate
private sector participation
and additional investment
in the sector, which calls for harmonized
national electricity policy
frameworks and accelerating
sector reforms as well as implementing
principles of cost-reflective
tariff structures.
These would allow utilities
and Independent Power Producers
to recover production
costs and facilitate re-capitalization
to sustain existing power
networks.
Expressing concern on the
shortage of finance for investment
in the power sector, Council
directed the Secretariat to explore
financing models that
would facilitate joint financing
and development of cross-border
power sector projects.
Council also directed the
SADC Ministers responsible for
Energy to review the pace of implementation
of projects and report
back on progress made.
(See pages 5-7 for update on Energy
issues).
Emergency situations
In the wake of persistent emergency
situations in the region,
Council directed the Secretariat
to operationalise the Disaster
Management Unit as approved
in 2001. This will enable the region
to consolidate disaster
management efforts.
Council noted the devastating
effects caused by extensive
flooding in DRC, Malawi,
Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland,
Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Angola and Namibia experienced
drought conditions in
some regions while Madagascar
experienced devastating cyclones.
DRC has also been affected
by an earthquake in the Kivu region
which caused fatalities and
damage to property.
Poverty and development
conference

Council expressed satisfaction
on preparations for the SADC International
Conference on Poverty
and Development set for 18-20
April in Mauritius under the theme “Regional Economic Integration:
A Strategy for Poverty
Eradication Towards Sustainable
Development.”
Council noted that in addition
to serving as a platform for
policy dialogue, the expected
outcome of the conference includes
a SADC Poverty Observatory
and a Regional Poverty
Reduction Framework. (See
cover story)
Upcoming elections

In view of a busy 2008/2009
election calendar, Council noted
that SADC remains committed
to ensuring that all the electoral
processes take place within the
auspices of the SADC Principles
and Guidelines Governing Democratic
Elections to sustain
peace, stability and security. Two
countries holding elections in
2008 are Zimbabwe (29 March)
and Angola (September) while
Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique,
Namibia and South Africa
will go to polls in 2009.
2008-2009 Budget

For the financial year 2008/2009,
a budget of US$49,984,279 was
approved. Member States will
contribute US$24,770,000 towards
the budget while International
Cooperating Partners
grants will amount to
US$24,534,279 while the remainder,
that is, US$680,000 will come
from other sources.
Job evaluation

Following a job evaluation over
the past year, Council approved
a new management structure for
the SADC Secretariat which includes
new positions of Deputy
Executive Secretary for Regional
Integration and a Director for
Budget and Finance. Implementation
will commence after completion
of the skills audit of incumbent
staff, and will be in
strict adherence to the quotabased
system and equitable gender
representation.


title:
Cross border trade is booming across southern Africa -  study

Abstract:
INFORMAL CROSS Border
Trade (ICBT) is a key livelihood
in southern Africa and many
people are making a decent living
from this type of business,
according to a recent survey
done in six SADC Member
States.

body:
INFORMAL CROSS Border
Trade (ICBT) is a key livelihood
in southern Africa and many
people are making a decent living
from this type of business,
according to a recent survey
done in six SADC Member
States.

ICBT, largely driven by
Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises
(SMMEs), is often
perceived as not only economically
non-viable but also as
socially undesirable.
The study reveals that
small-scale cross border trade,
commonly referred to as ICBT,
has become a profitable enterprise
for many citizens to the
extent that some have elected
to leave formal employment to
concentrate on their operations.
However, most policy-makers
at the national and regional
levels continue to ignore this
form of trade, argues the study,
and thus ICBT flows do not appear
in official trade statistics.
This leads to a situation where
official trade flows are understated.
Furthermore, ICBT is often
stigmatized and suffers from
stereotypes of smuggling and
lack of interest occasioned by
lack of data commonly due to
the secretive nature of smallscale
cross border trade.
Despite the lack of data,
some estimates have put ICBT
at between 30 to 40 percent of
intra-SADC trade, suggesting
that by ignoring informal
traders, SADC member states
could be overlooking a significant
proportion of their trade.
The survey was motivated
by the need to better understand
the dynamics of ICBT in
southern Africa and offer recommendations
to facilitate policy
responses and measures
that are pro-poor.
The study defined
informal cross border
trade as “consisting of
easily observable
goods that are traded across countries either by
avoiding customs points or
passing through the customs
points but with intentionally
undervalued declarations.”
It notes that informal traders
are a diverse group dominated
by women and generally comprising
the vulnerable, unemployed,
orphans, refugees, the
youth, school leavers and widows
among others.
Based on interviews carried
out in selected capital
cities and border points of six
SADC member states -
Malawi, Mozambique, South
Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and
Zimbabwe -- the study highlights
a number of challenges
faced by SMMEs as they conduct
cross border trade.
Among the obstacles is lack
of recognition of ICBT as a form
of business which often leads to
criminalisation of SMMEs by
authorities as well as harassment
and all forms of abuse.
Other challenges include
difficulties in obtaining passports
and visas; being refused
entry into countries that may
not require visas; excessive
customs charges; unwarranted
impounding of goods; unfair
treatment of traders as
smugglers and drug traffickers;
numerous check-points;
humiliating body searches;
limited access to formal credit schemes; lack of reliable transport;
weak associations; and a
generally unfavourable policy
and regulatory environment.
The study notes that that
while national and regional
policy initiatives, in particular
the SADC Trade Protocol, portray
intra-regional trade as an
important way of spurring
economic development and
poverty reduction, such policies
have largely ignored the
growing significance of small
scale cross border trade.
Thus one of the key recommendations
is the need for a regionally
recognised Common
Trader's Licence which would
address the problem of criminalization
of ICBTs in Member
States as well as work as an incentive
for traders to declare
their activities for official trade
records, among other positives.
The findings further revealed
that ICBT contributes
significantly to the well-being
of citizens and if deliberate
steps are taken to create an enabling
policy and regulatory
environment, the sector can
have a positive impact towards
the attainment of Millennium
Development Goals.
Not only does ICBT ensure
employment creation and income
generation especially for
people who are unable to find
formal employment due to various social and economic reasons;
but also plays an important
role in ensuring food security
by moving agricultural produce
and other foodstuffs
across borders.
Further, ICBT is a key
source of empowerment for
women who constitute the
majority. The findings showed
that on average over 70 percent
of informal cross border
traders are women who could
either be widowed, divorced
or who simply undertake this
business to supplement their
husbands' incomes.
However, ICBT has its own
undesirable implications primarily
because it can provide
fertile ground for a myriad of
illicit economic and social practices,
concludes the study.
These include drug trafficking;
smuggling for example of precious
minerals such as gold, diamonds,
etc; customs and tax
evasion thus depriving governments
of potential revenue; illegal
currency trading.
ICBT has also contributed
to violation of health, sanitary
and environmental requirements
through mishandling
by unqualified personnel,
as well as breakdown of
families often due to long absence
from home by either
spouse. The latter has resulted
in a high incidence of divorce often leading to single
parent families headed by
women.
The study thus urges
Member States to remain vigilant
and employ more innovative
ways of fighting illicit
trade practices so as to flush
out smugglers and drug traffickers
from well-meaning
ICBTs.
The study was done by the
Southern African Research
and Documentation Centre
(SARDC) with support from
the Southern Africa Trust and
was undertaken as part of the
process leading to the SADC
International Consultative
Conference on Poverty and
Development.


title:
Mozambique to further reduce poverty rates

Abstract:
THE MOZAMBICAN government
has adopted plans to
reduce the country's poverty
rate to 45 percent by 2009
through the creation of more
jobs in the agricultural sector.

body:
THE MOZAMBICAN government
has adopted plans to
reduce the country's poverty
rate to 45 percent by 2009
through the creation of more
jobs in the agricultural sector.
Currently some 54 percent
out of the estimated 20 million
population live below the
poverty line.
The drive to cut the poverty
rates through the establishment
of small and medium businesses
in agriculture is in line with
targets set in the country's 2005-2009 Poverty Reduction Strategy
(known simply as Parpa).
The emphasis on agriculture
is part of a nationwide
strategy to boost agricultural
production. This “Green Revolution”
will see the supply of
improved seeds and fertilizers
to peasant farmers, effective
and sustainable use of water
resources, as well as marketing
and commercialization.
Government hopes that
eventually peasant farmers
will be transformed into commercial
farmers. To this end,
there is a strategy in place to
simplify business procedures
and remove red tape that encumbers
the starting of a business.
Government is currently allocating
US$205 million to the
country's 128 districts in order
to empower and foster entrepreneurial
spirit.
Between 1999-2004 government
managed to reduce the
poverty rate by five percent, to
54 percent.


title:
Civil society prepare for dialogue
with SADC

Abstract:
REGIONAL CIVIL society
organisations are to meet in
Mauritius in a final preparatory
pre-conference workshop
ahead of the SADC conference
on poverty to thrash
out a common position.

body:
REGIONAL CIVIL society
organisations are to meet in
Mauritius in a final preparatory
pre-conference workshop
ahead of the SADC conference
on poverty to thrash
out a common position.
The two-day meeting on
16-17 April will afford the
civil society organisations an
opportunity to technically
prepare delegates who will
participate more effectively
as they articulate the broader
civil society mandate.
Ahead of the pre-conference
workshop and the conference
itself, the regional civil
society organisations held a
series of national and regional
meetings which resulted in
the production of three main
platform position papers:
 Civil Society Regional
Poverty and Development
Advocacy Platform: discussion
document;
<li<> Southern African Civil Society
Declaration on the
Eradication of Poverty for
the SADC Conference on
Poverty and Development;
and
 Southern African Civil Society
Poverty Advocacy
Programme of Action.


The pre-conference workshop
will allow civil society
groups to prepare and agree on
common positions so as to
present a collective approach
and strategies on the agenda
items for the discussion, as well
as developing a cohesive message
for the SADC Conference.
The conference held under
the theme “Regional Economic
Integration: A strategy for
poverty eradication and development”
is to discuss a
wide range of poverty and development
challenges facing
the region.
However, the overarching
objective of the SADC conference
is to improve and
strengthen the anti-poverty
commitments of the Regional
Indicative Strategic Development
Plan, and establish complementary
structures to support
regional poverty focus.
The civil society organisations
have been encouraged to
engage and sensitise their respective
governments and
delegates to Mauritius on
their positions.
Selected organisations have
been mandated to engage with
SADC Secretariat and the national
task team in Mauritius responsible
for the conference.


title:
Free Trade Area enters penultimate stage

Abstract:
WITH A few months remaining
before the inauguration of the
SADC Free Trade Area, final
preparations are being made for
this historic launch, expected to
coincide with the SADC Summit
in August 2008.

body:
WITH A few months remaining
before the inauguration of the
SADC Free Trade Area, final
preparations are being made for
this historic launch, expected to
coincide with the SADC Summit
in August 2008.
At the core of the Free Trade
Area (FTA) is economic liberalization
including the lifting of
tariffs and non-tariff barriers.
This process has been ongoing
since 2000 when implementation
of the SADC Trade Protocol came into force as the legal
framework within which the
FTA is to be achieved.
At the start of 2008, Member
States were effecting new tariff
regimes signalling the penultimate
stages of the gradual elimination
of customs barriers that
started eight years ago.
All SADC Member States are
applying the Trade Protocol, with
the exception of Angola and the
Democratic Republic of Congo
(DRC) who have asked for more
time before joining the FTA.
The protocol provides for
asymmetrical trade liberalization
based on the level of economic
development in each country.
The Member States have
agreed to liberalize 85 percent of
intra-SADC trade by 2008 while
liberalizing all sensitive products,
which constitute the remaining
15 percent, by 2012. These include
textiles and clothing, sugar,
dairy products, chemicals and
plastics, and motor vehicles.
In 2004 SADC undertook a
Mid Term Review which came
up with a number of recommendations
including ensuring that
tariff phase-downs are effected
on 1 January of each year as an
important step towards achieving
the FTA within the agreed
timelines.
However, not all Member
States are up-to-date in terms of
implementing their commitments,
and they are expected to
gear up if they are to be ready
by August.
South Africa, which takes
over the rotating SADC chair in
August, is preparing to host the
Summit.
The SADC Regional Indicative
Strategic Development
Plan envisages the creation of a
Free Trade Zone as from 2008,
followed by a Customs Union
in 2010, a Common Market by
2015 and a Monetary Union
with a single currency by
2018.


Abstract:
THE SADC Secretariat has announced
the death of Nokokure
Murangi, the Director of Trade,
Industry, Finance and Investment
(TIFI) who tragically
passed away in a car accident on
Good Friday, 21 March 2008.

body:
THE SADC Secretariat has announced
the death of Nokokure
Murangi, the Director of Trade,
Industry, Finance and Investment
(TIFI) who tragically
passed away in a car accident on
Good Friday, 21 March 2008.


He
was driving alone along the
Trans Kalahari Highway near
Lone Tree, about 150 km from
Ghantsi, Botswana. Murangi
was laid to rest in his home
country, Namibia. Murangi
joined the SADC Secretariat in
2005, having worked in the Ministry
of Industry and Trade, and
he was actively directing the process toward launch of the
SADC Free Trade Area, expected
in August this year. May his
soul rest in peace and his work
be honoured through effective
implementation of the FTA.


title:
Zambia eyes rail link to boost trade with Angola

Abstract:
ZAMBIA PLANS to construct a
railway line from its mineralrich
Copperbelt province to the
border with Angola to link up
with the Benguela railway line.

body:
ZAMBIA PLANS to construct a
railway line from its mineralrich
Copperbelt province to the
border with Angola to link up
with the Benguela railway line.

Zambian President and current
SADC Chairperson, Levy
Mwanawasa, said he is determined
to see the fruition of the
construction of a railway line
from Chingola on the Copperbelt
to Lumwana copper mine
and then to Angola before his
tenure of office comes to an end
in 2011.
Zambian officials say the first
phase of the railway link to Angola
will involve the construction
of 245 km of railway between the
new mining town of Solwezi
and Chingola in the northwestern
region.
The privately owned
Northwest Railways
said in 2007 it had secured
US$250 million in financing from investors in South
Africa, Britain and the United
States for the rail project.
Mwanawasa said the railway line
would enhance trade between
the two nations, the Democratic
Republic of Congo and other
countries in southern Africa.
He said Zambia is also keen
to construct a road network
from its northwestern town of  Kalabo to Angola to boost trade.
“Zambia has since embarked on
an ambitious programme to
construct rail and road infrastructure
linking Zambia with
Angola in a bid to promote
trade between the two nations
and beyond,” he said during a
visit to Angola in March.
The Benguela line used to
run through Angola to the Zambian
border, but was badly damaged
during the decades-long
civil war in the oil-rich nation.
Noting that Angola offered the
closest route to the sea for landlocked
Zambia, Mwanawaa said
resuscitation of the railway link
between the two countries
would significantly slash transaction
costs for Zambian exporters.
(ZANIS).


Abstract:
SADC COUNCIL of Ministers
has adopted measures
to address power
shortfalls prevailing in the
region. Council noted that
during this period, short
term projects costing US$5
billion will provide additional
power amounting to
6,550 MW. Long term projects
with a capacity of
44,000MW will be implemented
between 2008-2025
at a cost of US$41.5 billion.

body:
SADC COUNCIL of Ministers
has adopted measures
to address power
shortfalls prevailing in the
region. Council noted that
during this period, short
term projects costing US$5
billion will provide additional
power amounting to
6,550 MW. Long term projects
with a capacity of
44,000MW will be implemented
between 2008-2025
at a cost of US$41.5 billion.


Abstract:
THERE IS a growing realisation in
the region that the current energy
shortfalls will be around for some
time, prompting Member States to
adopt conservation programmes
to reduce electricity demand.

body:
THERE IS a growing realisation in
the region that the current energy
shortfalls will be around for some
time, prompting Member States to
adopt conservation programmes
to reduce electricity demand.
SADC Council of Ministers
has approved a regional power
conservation programme to facilitate
Demand Side Management
(DSM), following recommendations
by a ministerial task force on
energy.
The SADC Energy Ministerial
Task Force (EMTF) on Implementation
of Power Sector Programme
decided to formulate
and implement a SADC programme
on power conservation
and develop a SADC policy to ensure
efficient use of electrical energy.
They agreed, at an emergency
meeting held in Botswana in February,
that a power conservation
programme must be prepared by
June 2008.
The SADC road map includes
the development of minimum energy
efficiency standard for all
new electrical connections, implementation
of renewable energy
technologies, and the phasing out
of incandescent light bulbs in preference for the Compact Fluorescent
Lights (CFLs).
CFLs provide the same brightness
as incandescent lights but
use less than half the power.
The programme also entails
the “optimization of energy as a
matter of necessity” with measures
that include a 10-percent reduction
in consumption through
rationing, power-buy-back
arrangements and penalties.
The ministers welcomed
South Africa's Eskom commitment
to continue supplying
power to other SADC Member
States, albeit 10 percent less than
previously agreed in line with its
own programme of reducing supply
to consumers by the same
margin.
SADC Council noted that the
measures had “already started
paying dividends where they
have been implemented in the region.”
In most South African cities,
the government and local authorities
have discovered that some of
the biggest energy-saving opportunities
exist when buildings are
being constructed or renovated.
One such example was the
Cape Town Inn, which was renovated
with the assistance of
Eskom. The renovations included
replacing existing distribution
and metering boards, installing
new high-tech water heating system,
replacing old lights with
new energy saving ones. As a result
of these changes, the energy
saving costs per room were reduced
by half.
Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique,
Namibia, South Africa,
Zambia and Zimbabwe are involved
in a Biomass Energy Conservation
(BEC) programme, financed
by the German Agency
for Technical Co-operation.
The BEC programme, which
encourages the use of renewable
sources of energy in local communities
has shown that with a comprehensive
package of solutions
and use of energy-efficient devices,
it is feasible to achieve multiple,
long-lasting benefits at regional
level.
Other countries have turned to
solar energy, which is in abundance
in the region. Faced with
massive shortages of power, South
Africa is building a 100MW power
plant in Johannesburg, entirely
powered by the sun to add to its
power grid within the next year.
Namibia is subsidising the installation
of solar systems for domestic
use and there are plans to
roll out a solar heating programme
for all government houses
by 2009.
Besides being convenient for
rural populations who cannot afford
to pay monthly bills, solarpowered
electricity is cheaper in
the long term and can ease pressure
on the SADC region's overstretched
energy requirements.
DSM started in Brazil in the
late 1970s when the country was
faced with a critical power shortage,
and government implemented
legislation that encouraged
the efficient use of energy. The
most successful initiatives were
the minimum efficiency standards
for appliances and industrial
motors.
In all their efforts however, information
to the consumer was
pivotal in achieving success.
Thus there is need for all countries
in the SADC region to roll
out efficient electricity communication
campaigns nationwide, including
distribution of CFLs, as
these campaigns can be successful
if customers are made part of
the solution, not the problem.


title:
SADC Road Map to address power shortages

Abstract:
SADC HAS adopted a road map to
accelerate the region's recovery from
the current power shortages, stressing
the need for clear milestones and
timeframes to measure implementation.

body:
SADC HAS adopted a road map to
accelerate the region's recovery from
the current power shortages, stressing
the need for clear milestones and
timeframes to measure implementation.
Recognizing that the region is in
a power emergency situation, SADC
decided to formulate and implement
a SADC programme on power conservation
and to develop a SADC
policy to ensure efficient use of electrical
energy. The SADC Energy Ministerial
Task Force (EMTF) on Implementation
of Power Sector Programmes,
which convened an emergency
meeting in Gaborone,
Botswana in February, adopted supply
and demand management initiatives,
as well as the effective use of interconnectors.
The recommendations of the
SADC Energy Ministerial Task
Force (EMTF) on Implementation of Power Sector Programme were approved
by full Council of Ministers
which met later in February in Lusaka,
Zambia. Key results of the Task
Force meeting are as follows. It was
agreed that:
 SADC is to formulate and implement
a regional programme on
power conservation and to develop
a SADC policy to ensure efficient
use of electrical energy.
 SADC and the Southern African
Power Pool (SAPP) would assume
direct responsibility for coordinating
and monitoring project
implementation, and that
Member States should make full
use of project preparation facilities
to package projects.
 Astudy will be commissioned to
recommend a financing model
for cross-border projects, and to
follow up on international pledges made to finance regional
projects under the New Partnership
for Africa's Development
(NEPAD).
 There is need to accelerate private
sector participation and increase
investment in the power sector,
and to take action toward achieving
an enabling environment.


Council noted the short-term
measures instituted by Members
States and SAPP to overcome the diminished
surplus of installed capacity
and the expected impact of these
measures, including the recovery
plan developed by the South African
utility, Eskom, and the power capacity
availed by Mozambique for export
to the rest of the region.
It was agreed that the region
should work towards the harmonization
of national electricity policy
frameworks, and to accelerate the pace of electricity supply industry
reforms to improve governance and
performance.
Council agreed to develop and
implement the necessary national
policies and promulgate legislation to
ensure the promotion of power conservation
practices, and to provide financial
and fiscal incentives to the
utilities for demand-side management.
The recapitalization of power utilities
would be achieved through the
adoption and implementation of
cost-reflective tariffs to allow the utilities
and Independent Power Producers
to recover production costs.
The EMTF had noted that, in addition
to issues of supply and demand,
the power sector is facing additional
challenges in financing of
power projects and institutional
arrangements for implementation.


Abstract:
The SADC Energy Ministerial Task Force (EMTF) on Implementation
of Power Sector Programmes convened an emergency meeting
at Boipuso Hall in Gaborone, Botswana on the 21st February2008. In the absence of the Chairperson of SADC EMTF, theMinister of Mines and Energy of the Republic of Namibia, Mr.
Erikki Nghimtina, the meeting was Chaired by Honourable
Michael Nyambuya, Minister of Energy and Power Development
of the Republic of Zimbabwe and opened by Honourable P. H.
K. Kedikilwe, Minister of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources,
Botswana. The Executive Secretary of SADC, H.E. Dr. Tomaz Salomao
also gave brief remarks on the status of the power supply
situation in the SADC region.

body:
SADC ENERGY MINISTERIAL TASK FORCE
ON IMPLEMENTATION OF POWER SECTOR PROJECTS
GABORONE, BOTSWANA, 21 FEBRUARY 2008
The SADC Energy Ministerial Task Force (EMTF) on Implementation
of Power Sector Programmes convened an emergency meeting
at Boipuso Hall in Gaborone, Botswana on the 21st February2008. In the absence of the Chairperson of SADC EMTF, theMinister of Mines and Energy of the Republic of Namibia, Mr.
Erikki Nghimtina, the meeting was Chaired by Honourable
Michael Nyambuya, Minister of Energy and Power Development
of the Republic of Zimbabwe and opened by Honourable P. H.
K. Kedikilwe, Minister of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources,
Botswana. The Executive Secretary of SADC, H.E. Dr. Tomaz Salomao
also gave brief remarks on the status of the power supply
situation in the SADC region.
The Ministerial Task Force meeting was preceded by preparatory
meetings of the members of the Southern African Power
Pool (SAPP), the Regional Electricity Regulators Association
(RERA) and other parties on 19th February 2008 and Senior Energy
Officials on 20th February 2008.
The Ministers registered their recognition of the high electrici-ty demand which has outstripped supply due to, among otherfactors, the positive economic growth which averaged about
5% in most of the SADC Member States and rural electrification
projects in most Member States. 
The Ministers noted the current status of power supply within
the region, which has an installed capacity of 54,742 MW of
which only 46,391 MW is available. Although new generationamounting to 1,810 MW has been commissioned in the regionin 2007, the reserve margin is still in deficit against a required
reserve margin of 10.2%. The situation will continue until
2013 when all planned generation projects are commissioned.
The Ministers reviewed the status of implementation of SAPPgeneration, transmission and interconnector projects which
are categorized as rehabilitation and related infrastructure,
short term, medium term and long term projects. These proj-ects require a total of US$46.4 billion. In addition to theseprojects, the Ministers noted progress made on the Western
Corridor Project (WESTCOR).
The Ministers took cognizance of the proposed short-term meas-ures being instituted by Member States and SAPP to overcomethe diminished surplus installed capacity and the expected im-pact of these measures on the power supply situation. These
measures include respective utilities' short term projects,
ESKOM's Recovery plan and power capacity being availed by
Mozambique for export to the rest of the region. The Task Force
noted that ESKOM through the Recovery Plan has achieved a
10% load reduction in South Africa, a reduction of power supplied
through bilateral contracts by 10% and a saving of 600 MW
in ESKOM demand specifically in the Western Cape. In Mozam-bique the Ministers noted that HCB has recently concluded a re-habilitation project on all units, resulting in the availability of the
units increased to 90%, which has released 300MW to be usedon non-firm basis to alleviate the crisis that the region is facing.
Following the understanding that the SADC region is undergo-ing a power emergency situation, the Ministerial Task Force
adopted a road map to accelerate the region's recovery from
this power shortage through ensuring the effective connectivity
of the interconnectors, as well as Supply Side and Demand Side Management initiatives as follows:
 A Power Conservation Programme (PCP) be formulated and
implemented as a SADC programme
 a SADC policy be developed to ensure efficient use of electrical
energy;
 development of a minimum energy efficiency standard for
all new electrical connections
 phasing out of incandescent light bulbs in preference to
Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs)
 direct the recapitalization of power utilities
 implementation of renewable energy technologies


In addition to the initiatives above, the Ministerial Task Force
noted that an enabling environment is indispensable to accelerate
private sector participation and additional investment in
the power sector. In order to achieve an enabling environment
the SAPP will
 work towards the harmonization of national electricity policy
frameworks;
 accelerate the pace of Electricity Supply Industry (ESI) reforms
to improve governance and performance;
 develop and implement the necessary national policies and
promulgate legislation that will ensure:
 promotion of power conservation practices;
 provide financial and fiscal incentives to the Utilities
for Demand-Side Management (DSM)


 adopt and implement principles of cost reflective tariffs to
allow utilities and Independent Power Producers (IPP) to recover
production costs and allow for recapitalization.


The Ministerial Task Force noted that in addition to the supply
side and demand side issues, the power sector is facing additional
challenges in financing of power projects and institutional
arrangements for implementation. The Ministers therefore
agreed on the following actions:
 Commission a study to recommend a financing model
for cross border projects
 SADC/SAPP to assume a direct responsibility for
coordinating and monitoring project implementation
 Member States should make full use of project
preparation facilities to package projects
 SADC should follow up on international pledges made
to finance NEPAD regional projects


The Ministerial Task Force considered and approved structures
for implementing projects, which include SADC Ministers responsible
for Energy with ultimate oversight on the Power Sector
Projects Road Map, the Energy Ministerial Task Force, to review
the pace of implementation of projects; the SADC Secretariat
Project Coordination Unit, to be responsible for strategic
coordination of implementation of infrastructure projects,
which includes, project development, packaging, monitoring
and reporting process in conjunction with the Member States,
SAPP, RERA and Key International Partners. Project Teams and
Project Steering Committees will undertake day to day implementation
and review of specific projects.
In addition to the above structures, the Ministerial Task Force
agreed to strengthen SAPP to ensure that it has adequate capacity
to facilitate the implementation of the Roadmap; and
RERA to undertake capacity building within the regulatory and
institutional framework to ensure that an enabling environment
continues to obtain. In addition SAPP and RERA was given
new mandate to champion regional power projects in conjunction
with Member States.
The Ministerial Task Force underscored the importance of the proposed
measures as a response to address the emergency situation.
They impressed upon the SADC Secretariat, SAPP and
RERA, supported by the utilities and other cooperating partners,
the need to have clear milestones and timeframes for the proposed measures so that their status of implementation is meas-urable. In their reaffirmation for the support for the proposedmeasures the Task Force took note of the report of the SADC Sec-retariat on the Madagascar Power Sector and that the proposedsolutions for Madagascar are very similar to those made for therest of the SADC Member States.
The Task Force noted with appreciation the reassurance by South
Africa that she will honour her contractual obligations with regard
to the power supply to the rest of the region.
In conclusion and following the offer by RSA to host the next
Energy Ministerial Task Force Meeting at a date to be deter-mined during the SADC Energy Ministers meeting to be held30th April 2008 in DRC, the Ministerial Task Force conveyed
their appreciation to the People and Government of Botswana
for the conducive environment which led to the successfuloutcome of the meeting, the SADC Secretariat and the Min-istry of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources of Botswana for
the preparations they made for the meeting and all the stake-holders for their continued support.
Boipuso Hall, Gaborone, 21 February 2008


title:
SAPP grid operating as three
separate islands

Abstract:
THE SOUTHERN African Power Pool (SAPP) is working
round the clock to reintegrate the regional grid which is currently
working as three separate “islands” owing to technical
faults on the main interconnectors.

body:
THE SOUTHERN African Power Pool (SAPP) is working
round the clock to reintegrate the regional grid which is currently
working as three separate “islands” owing to technical
faults on the main interconnectors.
Presenting a status report on the region's power grid to
the SADC energy ministerial task force in February, the
SAPP Co-ordination Centre Manager, Lawrence Musaba,
said a total of 14 disturbances were recorded on the SAPP
grid in the period January to February 2008.
The disturbances occurred on 19-21 January and 2-3 February,
leaving Zimbabwe, Zambia and Botswana in darkness.
This resulted in the SAPP grid operating as three separate
“islands.” The problem was further aggravated by the fact that
govenor settings at Kariba North Bank (KNB) and Kariba
South Bank (KSB) were set differently, 55Hz for ZESAand
60Hzfor ZESCOand as a result, ZESA was experiencingtrippings
on govenorover-speeding while ZESCOwas experiencing
trippingson over-frequency.
The “islands” are:
 Zambia-Democratic Republic of Congo (ZESCO and
SNEL)
 Zimbabwe-Mozambique (ZESA and EDM/HCB)
 South Africa (Eskom, BPC, EDM, LEC, SEB and Nam-
Power)


This situation deprived some Member States of the electricity
purchased from other countries that should be transmitted
via the regional grid.
SAPP pointed out that it is “studying the problem to come
up with a technical solution” with a view to “bringing back the
interconnected network as quickly and as safely as possible.”
SAPP is in talks with Eskom, ZESCO and ZESA so that the
individual utilities can give updates on progress.
Musaba said SAPP was given 60 days by the SADC Ministerial
Task Force on Energy to resolve this issue and to restore
the interconnected grid.


Abstract:
CURRENT POWER shortages
facing the SADC region
could pose a serious threat to
the region's journey towards
achieving its Millennium Development
Goal (MDG) commitments,
according to the
Southern Africa Trust.

body:
CURRENT POWER shortages
facing the SADC region
could pose a serious threat to
the region's journey towards
achieving its Millennium Development
Goal (MDG) commitments,
according to the
Southern Africa Trust.
Power outages in countries
such as Zimbabwe,
Zambia and South Africa
have affected the way people
live and conduct business.
The Trust noted that “the
provision of reliable and
sustainable energy at the lowest cost for economic
and social development can
be a major contributor to the
eradication of poverty in the
southern Africa region.”
It further noted that the
provision of electricity to
key public facilities such as
clinics and schools was essential
to meeting some of
the region's MDG goals.
SADC countries have
been struggling to meet demand
for electricity caused
by a rapidly expanding regional
economy.
The Southern African
Power Pool (SAPP) advised
SADC Member States as
early as 1999 that demand
for power in southern Africa
was increasing at the rate of
about three percent per
annum due to increased economic
activities and up-scaling
of electrification programmes
while investment
into both power generation
and transmission infrastructure
remained stagnant.
SAPP said then that unless
immediate action was
taken, blackouts could be
expected in the region in
2007/8.
Regional integration advisor
at SAT, Themba Mhlongo,
said the objective of providing
affordable energy services
to rural communities
through increased access to
modern energy technologies
would remain a distant hope
unless more was done to prioritise
investments in electricity
generation and transmission
capacity.
Although SADC priorities
in the energy sector increased
access to modern energy especially
in rural communities,
biomass such as fuelwood
and cow dung are still
the primary sources for up to
80 percent of total energy
consumption for families and
informal businesses in most
southern African countries.
The Southern Africa Trust
is an independent, regional,
non-profit agency established
to support deeper and wider
engagement in policy dialogue
to overcome poverty in
southern Africa.


title:
Construction of Inga III dam to
start in 2009

Abstract:
CONSTRUCTION OF the
Inga Phase Three hydropower
plant in the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC) is expected
to start in 2009 at a
total cost of US$3.6 billion.

body:
CONSTRUCTION OF the
Inga Phase Three hydropower
plant in the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC) is expected
to start in 2009 at a
total cost of US$3.6 billion.
A pre-feasibility study by a
Canadian firm said the construction
work will be carried
out in two phases.
The first phase runs from
2009 to 2013 followed by a
second phase from 2014 to
2021.
The launch of the giant
Inga Falls electricity project is
one of several SADC initiatives
planned to ensure sustainable
energy supply in a region
that has faced persistent
power shortages since last
year.
The Western Power Corridor
(Westcor) project, drawing
electricity from Inga, is expected
to provide 35,000 MW
of power, initially targeted at
Angola, Botswana, DRC,
Namibia and South Africa.
The Inga Falls project is believed
to be the largest single
hydropower initiative in the
world and, when operating at
full capacity, is expected to
surpass Mozambique's Cahora
Bassa.
Cahora Bassa is one of
Africa's biggest hydroelectric
stations, producing an estimated
2,500 MW.
DRC has a vast hydropower
potential of more
than 100,000 MW. About
44,000 MW of that is found at
the Inga Falls and over 56,000
MW at other sites scattered
across the country.
An earlier pre-feasibility
study carried out by the DRC
state-run electricity company,
SNEL, showed that the first
phase of the Inga Phase Three
project would meet the energy
needs of southern, north,
and west Africa.


title:
Botswana courts SADC partners in
oil pipeline project

Abstract:
BOTSWANA IS courting
coastal SADC countries as it
searches for cost-effective
ways of transporting fuel
into the country.

body:
BOTSWANA IS courting
coastal SADC countries as it
searches for cost-effective
ways of transporting fuel
into the country.
One of the options being
pursued is the construction
of a giant underground oil
pipeline linking the landlocked
country to the sea.
The country's Ministry
of Minerals, Energy and
Water Resources has been
holding consultations with
Mozambique, South Africa
and Namibia to establish
where to build the
pipeline.
Acting Department of Energy
Affairs director, Buti
Mogotsi, said the plan to
construct the pipeline
should be finalised by June.
Botswana relies on fuel
from neighbouring South
Africa and consumes 800
million litres a year from
South African-based refineries
owned by multinational
oil companies.
Under the current
arrangement, fuel destined
for Botswana is ferried by
trucks and trains, a mode of
transport that has proved
uneconomical and unsafe.


Abstract:
COMMISSIONING OF
Malawi's first uranium mine
is expected to take place at
the end of the year, with actual
production of the mineral
set for early 2009.

body:
COMMISSIONING OF
Malawi's first uranium mine
is expected to take place at
the end of the year, with actual
production of the mineral
set for early 2009.
The Kayelekera mine will
be the country's first uranium-
producing mine and will
have a capacity of 3.3-million
pounds of uranium oxide annually,
according to the Australian
mining company that
owns an 85 percent stake in
Kayelekera and also has interests
in uranium mining in
Namibia. The remainder of
the shareholding is owned by
the Malawi government.
Malawi joins other SADC
Member States that have indicated
plans to develop
uranium mining projects for
electricity generation. These
include Namibia, Botswana
and Zimbabwe.
South Africa is the only
SADC country that is already
using uranium to produce
electricity at its Koeberg
power station in Cape
Town.


title:
Stunning turnaround for Mauritian textile sector

Abstract:
THE GOOD times are rolling
again for Mauritius' clothing
and textile sector after more
than two years of languishing in
the doldrums, thanks to self-belief
and an undying desire to see
the industry succeed.

body:
THE GOOD times are rolling
again for Mauritius' clothing
and textile sector after more
than two years of languishing in
the doldrums, thanks to self-belief
and an undying desire to see
the industry succeed.
A never-say-die attitude has
seen the Mauritians quickly regrouping
after suffering a
major setback in 2006 following
the removal of preferential
trade benefits with the European
Union (EU).
For about 40 years, Mauritius
had benefited from non-reciprocal
trade preferences
under successive conventions
signed with European states.
But in the current era of liberalized
trade the SADC Member
State suddenly found these
agreements falling away, leaving
the island with no choice but to
consolidate its economic pillars -
sugar, textiles and clothing,
tourism and services - while developing
new ones such as
seafood to survive in this globalized
world.
The country had almost lost
hope for its textile and clothing
industry after the closure of
several big factories over the
past few years. The sector
dropped to a negative growth
rate of minus 12.5 percent in
2006 but has since been revamped
to manufacture upmarket
goods.
The amazing turnaround in
the industry's fortunes happened
relatively fast with a
dramatic jump in its growth
rate to eight percent in 2007.
Employing 67,000 people,
the sector generated some
US$1.45 billion last year compared
to US$1.25 billion in
2006. The target is US$1.65 billion
for 2008.
Plenty of jobs are now available
in the textiles and clothing
sector but there are not enough
local takers. The island is importing
foreign labour from
India, China and Bangladesh
which now numbers more than
33,000.
The textile and clothing industry
works on small orders
of between 10,000 and 20,000
items delivered with short turnaround times of less than
two weeks.
Some large enterprises have
opened warehouses in Europe
and South Africa where they
stock their products. As soon as
an order is received, the goods
are shipped directly from there.
Apart from traditional markets,
the industry is also seeking
to conquer emerging markets
in India and Pakistan,
thanks to preferential trade
agreements with these two
countries. Foreign textile enterprises
are again showing a
keen interest in Mauritius.
Chinese company, Tianli, invested
US$600 million in a new
project at Riche-Terre near the
capital where a new industrial
park will accommodate highend,
value-adding industries.
Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam
has indicated that this
development project will provide
employment to 42,000
people in five years, starting
from April 2009.
Some 40 Chinese factories
will operate from the park, specializing
in activities ranging
from clothing manufacturing to hardware assembly and food
processing and generating an
income of about US$200 million.


title:
Tanzania signs power
supply agreement with
AfDB

Abstract:
THE UNITED Republic of Tanzania
has signed a US$48 million
loan and grant agreement with
the African Development Bank
(AfDB) to finance the country's
electricity expansion programme.

body:
THE UNITED Republic of Tanzania
has signed a US$48 million
loan and grant agreement with
the African Development Bank
(AfDB) to finance the country's
electricity expansion programme.
The funds will be used
to secure, improve and extend
sustainable supply of power to
businesses and households in
rural towns and suburban areas
in Mwanza, Shinyanga, Arusha
and Dar es Salaam regions.
The United Republic of Tanzania
boasts ample power-generating
sources but so far about
90 percent of its rural population
and 30 percent of its urban residents
do not have access to reliable
and affordable electricity.


title:
South Africa to purchase more
power from Mozambique

Abstract:
THE STATE-OWNED South
African power utility Eskom is
negotiating to buy more electricity
from Mozambique's Cahora
Bassa Dam power station
in a bid to ease an energy shortage
threatening Africa's largest
economy. Chief Executive Jacob
Maroga said that Eskom, the
sole national electricity supplier
in South Africa, is negotiating to
purchase an additional 250
megawatts per day.

body:
THE STATE-OWNED South
African power utility Eskom is
negotiating to buy more electricity
from Mozambique's Cahora
Bassa Dam power station
in a bid to ease an energy shortage
threatening Africa's largest
economy. Chief Executive Jacob
Maroga said that Eskom, the
sole national electricity supplier
in South Africa, is negotiating to
purchase an additional 250
megawatts per day.
Mozambique currently provides
1,100 MW of power to
Eskom, which has been forced
to cut power across South Africa
since the beginning of the year.
The resulting blackouts caused
large mines to shut down for
five days and raised fears of an
economic slowdown.


title:
South African professor advances solar technology

Abstract:
THERE IS light at the end of
the tunnel - but it is not being
generated by the national electricity
supplier Eskom, rather
by revolutionary solar-powered
technology developed by
University of Johannesburg
professor, Vivian Alberts.

body:
THERE IS light at the end of
the tunnel - but it is not being
generated by the national electricity
supplier Eskom, rather
by revolutionary solar-powered
technology developed by
University of Johannesburg
professor, Vivian Alberts.
Alberts has spent the past 13
years developing highly advanced
photovoltaic, or thinfilm,
solar panels that could be
the solution to South Africa -
and the region's - power shortages.
The panels are already
being constructed by a technology
company in Germany,
and will go on sale in Europe
this year, according to Alberts.
Due to the construction of the  cells, comparatively high
yields can be obtained even
under partially shaded or overcast
conditions.
Alberts, said plans to make
the photovoltaic panels commercially
available in South
Africa and the rest of the region
are at an advanced stage and
there would be a major announcement
at the end of April.
Based on improved temperature
co-efficients - which
means lower performance losses
at high temperatures -- thinfilm
modules were especially
suited to temperatures over
25°C, which was the case in
South Africa and the rest of the
region.


title:
Mozambique to build container terminal in Nacala

Abstract:
MOZAMBIQUE PLANS to
build an additional container
terminal in Nacala to ease congestion
at the existing facility. It
is expected that the addition of
the new terminal and a general
improvement in the cargo-handling
equipment will be a huge
step forward in Nacala's quest to
become a “mini-hub port” for a
number of feeder services to the
East African coast and Indian
Ocean ports.

body:
MOZAMBIQUE PLANS to
build an additional container
terminal in Nacala to ease congestion
at the existing facility. It
is expected that the addition of
the new terminal and a general
improvement in the cargo-handling
equipment will be a huge
step forward in Nacala's quest to
become a “mini-hub port” for a
number of feeder services to the
East African coast and Indian
Ocean ports.
Nacala international harbour
serves the bulk of Mozambique's
shipments in the northern
parts of the country attracting
users, not only from Malawi,
but also from Zambia and the
United Republic of Tanzania in
serving as an alternative port
alongside Dar es Salaam and
Mombasa in Kenya.


title:
New President for Botswana
Botswana's Khama: “Democracy,
Development, Dignity and Discipline”

Abstract:
WHILE THE international
spotlight has focused on Zimbabwe,
its neighbours in
Botswana quietly changed
their President almost unnoticed,
in a planned transition
through an election in Parliament.

body:
WHILE THE international
spotlight has focused on Zimbabwe,
its neighbours in
Botswana quietly changed
their President almost unnoticed,
in a planned transition
through an election in Parliament.
Festus Mogae, who has been
president for the past 10 years,
resigned on 31 March, handing
over to the former vice-president,
Ian Khama, who is the
eldest son of the late founding
President and father of the nation,
Seretse Khama.
Ian Khama has been vicepresident
for the past decade,
and chairperson of the ruling
Botswana Democratic Party
(BDP) since 2003. He is a graduate
of Sandhurst, the officer
training college in Britain, and
was previously commander of
the Botswana Defence Force
(BDF).
Khama, 55, who took over
from Mogae, 69, on 1 April,
said in his inaugural address
that there would be no policy
change but his roadmap would
be “underpinned and characterized
by the principles of
Democracy, Development, Dignity
and Discipline.”
He moved quickly to allay
any fears of change, saying “a
change of leadership does not
mean radical changes in the
way we have been setting out
our objectives as agreed upon
by the ruling party and government
for this nation.
“Our party has a manifesto
that I signed on to and the government
has a national development
plan that I am also a
party to. However, in the
course of the incoming administration
you may
detect a change in style
and special emphasis
on a number of issues.
This should not
cause any alarm or
uncertainty.
“Batswana have every right
to reflect with pride on four
decades of independence, stability
and major economic and
social development,” Khama
said.
His inauguration was attended
by two former presidents
(Mogae and his predecessor,
Sir Ketumile Masire), traditional
leaders, judges, members
of parliament and the diplomatic
corps.
Khama chose as his Vice-
President, the former Foreign  Minister, Mompati Merafhe; retained
the respected finance
minister, Baledzi Gaolethe; and
returned to cabinet in senior
positions other experienced
leaders.
Four women are in cabinet
out of 16 members, for a total of
25 percent. All are senior and
have been in cabinet before.
They hold the influential ministries
of local government;
health; communications, science
and technology; and
youth, sports and culture.
The BDP has been in power
for more than 40 years since
Botswana, a former British protectorate,
gained independence
in 1966, and goes to the electorate
every fives years.  sardc.net


title:
SADC observers say Zimbabwe polls “peaceful and credible”

Abstract:
A PRELIMINARY statement
from the SADC Electoral Observer
Mission (SEOM), issued
before the announcement of results,
concluded that Zimbabwe's
harmonized polls “held
on 29 March 2008 for President,
Senate, National Assembly and
local government have been a
peaceful and credible expression
of the will of the people of
Zimbabwe.”

body:
A PRELIMINARY statement
from the SADC Electoral Observer
Mission (SEOM), issued
before the announcement of results,
concluded that Zimbabwe's
harmonized polls “held
on 29 March 2008 for President,
Senate, National Assembly and
local government have been a
peaceful and credible expression
of the will of the people of
Zimbabwe.”


The head of the SEOM, José
Marcos Barrica said the elections
were “characterized by
high levels of peace, tolerance
and political vigour by party
leaders, candidates and their
supporters.”
Barrica, who is the Angolan
Minister of Youth and Sport,
said his mission was satisfied
with the conduct of the political
parties, candidates and the
electorate, who were conversant
with electoral laws and
procedures in the Electoral
Act and the SADC Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections.
The SADC Mission noted,
however, that “the elections
were held against a background
characterized by a
highly tense and polarized international
atmosphere where
some quarters of the international
community remain negative
and pessimistic about
Zimbabwe and its chances for
credible elections.”
The Mission noted and
pursued concerns and allegations
pertaining to bias on the
part of both the private and
public media, pronouncements
by senior officers in the
security forces, the presence of
police officers at polling stations,
and the delay in the
publication of the voters' roll,
among other issues.
However, the SEOM said
with regard to the overall voting
process, the elections were
conducted in an open and transparent manner, and commended
the Zimbabwe Electoral
Commission (ZEC) for
meeting the administrative
challenges of conducting the
harmonized elections and
demonstrating “high levels of
professionalism, resilience
and hard work.
“It is SADC's greatest hope
that the spirit of co-operation
and political tolerance which
prevailed thus far, will continue
to thrive amongst all parties
and candidates in the post
election phase.
“The greatest winner here
must be the people of Zimbabwe
and hence we call on all
political parties to accept the
election results. Any further
queries and concerns should
be pursued in line with the
laws of the country.”
In total the SEOM consisted
of 163 members from 11 of the
other 13 member states.
sardc.net


title:
Regional consultations initiated on SADC gender protocol

Abstract:
THE SADC Gender Unit has
a plan in place for consultations
throughout the region
on the draft gender protocol
to enable the involvement of
all stakeholders.

body:
THE SADC Gender Unit has
a plan in place for consultations
throughout the region
on the draft gender protocol
to enable the involvement of
all stakeholders.
The draft Protocol on Gender
and Development is
under review after the 2007
Summit of Heads of State and
Government referred it back
to SADC ministers responsible
for gender to allow for
further national consultations.
Consultations will be undertaken
in the first half of the
year so the protocol can be finalised
and submitted to
Council and Summit in August
2008.
A protocol is the most
binding of SADC legal instruments
and it is expected
that adoption of the gender
protocol, which proposes
specific targets and goals,
will accelerate the achievement
of gender equality in
the region.
A strategic meeting of senior
officials responsible for
gender and women's affairs in
SADC Member States was
held in mid-December 2007 in
Livingstone, Zambia as a first
step in reviewing the draft, to
update senior officials on
progress, and to develop a
framework for national activities
to advance discussions.
Delegates stressed the importance
of national consultations
on the protocol so as to
reach a consensus before it is
resubmitted to Summit.
Magdeline Mathiba-Madibela,
Head of the SADC Gender
Unit, underscored the importance
of reviewing the
draft so as to reach a consensus
before resubmission to
Summit. She stressed that it is
important to have a draft with
a “high level of clarity, consciousness,
and focus.”





		Roadmap towards the signing of the SADC draft Protocol on
Gender and Development


		Action
		Institution
		Timeframe

Regional strategy meeting for senior
officials responsible for Gender and
Women's Affairs Secretariat December 2007


National consultations with all
stakeholders on the draft Protocol on
Gender and Development Member States (Ministries
responsible for Gender and
Women's Affairs) National
stakeholders January-March 2008



Ministers responsible for gender meeting Secretariat Member States April 2008



Ministers of Justice meeting Secretariat Member States May 2008


Submit final draft to Senior Council of
Ministers Secretariat August 2008


Submit final draft to Summit Secretariat August 2008



Adopted and signed Protocol Secretariat August 2008





Some of the changes are intended
to address overlaps
with existing protocols or declarations
such as the Protocol
on Education and Training, the
Protocol on Health, the Maseru
Declaration on HIV and AIDS,
the UN Council Resolution
1325 on Peace-building, Peacemaking
and Peace-keeping,
and the Protocol on Culture, Information
and Sport.
These changes point to
challenges with articulating
gender issues in the protocol
and therefore there is need to
set a clear conceptual framework
of what the Protocol on
Gender and Development
should contain and why.
Delegates at the meeting
also defined which key stakeholders
need to be involved
from the beginning of the
process such as SADC senior
officials, officials from ministries
of justice, foreign affairs,
finance, members of parliament,
and development
partners.
Involving all key stakeholders
will ensure that all parties make an input into
the process and that any misunderstandings
on the document
are removed before
presentation to Summit for
approval.
Senior officials agreed on
the need to strategise on how
best national consultations
should be handled so that all
stakeholders take ownership
of the protocol.


title:
Guidelines for national consultations on the draft Protocol on Gender and
Development

Abstract:
National workshop to brief
the stakeholders on
progress and next processes
(The list of stakeholders
must include officers from
gender ministries, and all
other ministries and officers
mentioned below. This
will be in preparation for
ministerial level briefings
and consultations)

body:
National workshop to brief
the stakeholders on
progress and next processes
(The list of stakeholders
must include officers from
gender ministries, and all
other ministries and officers
mentioned below. This
will be in preparation for
ministerial level briefings
and consultations);
 Briefing of Minister(s) responsible
for Gender and
Women's Affairs;
 Consultations and consensus
building with the
SADC National Contact  Point (Ministry of Finance
and Development Planning
or Ministry of Foreign Affairs);
 Consultations and briefing
of the Women's Parliamentary
Caucuses;
 Consultations and briefing
of Parliament;
 Consultations and thorough
briefing of the Cabinet;
 Consultations and thorough
briefing of the Office
of the President including
the President and/or Prime
Minister.


title:
Artists establish SADC forum on HIV and AIDS

Abstract:
SADC ARTISTS have established
a forum to act as a platform
for the regional arts industry
in the fight against HIV
and AIDS.

body:
SADC ARTISTS have established
a forum to act as a platform
for the regional arts industry
in the fight against HIV
and AIDS.


The SADC Forum for
Artists Against AIDS was one
of the results of the SADC
Artists Workshop on HIV
and AIDS held in Zimbabwe
as part of the SADC Artist
AIDS Festival. The workshop
was attended by artists
from Lesotho, Mozambique,
Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The forum will network
with other HIV and AIDS
service organisations in the region
and individual Member
States to undertake research
and provide statistics and data
on artists living with AIDS
and needing anti-retroviral
therapy, as well as to provide
information, services and support
to artists in general and in
particular artists living with
HIV and AIDS.
It will also source funding
from SADC national governments,
international community,
corporations, foundations
and individuals to assist artists
in dealing with the HIV and
AIDS pandemic and to enable
the forum's steering committee
to achieve its objectives.
The forum will aim to provide
adequate information on
voluntary counselling and testing,
and champion the case for
all artists to go for counselling
and testing in order to receive
necessary support.
The forum's steering committee
is chaired by Zimbabwean
writer, Virginia Phiri,
and her deputy is Zambian
musician, Moses Sakala.
In a declaration issued at
the end of the workshop,
the artists observed that
many of them were
still in the denial
stage about the reality
of HIV and AIDS
and also noted that a lot needs to be done to fight
the stigma associated with
HIV and AIDS.
They observed that communities
were still unable to accept
artists and others who go public
about their HIV status.
The SADC artists said they
had undertaken a comprehensive
introspection as artists on how HIV and AIDS is impacting
on the industry and how
they must respond to the pandemic,
noting that artists are
currently used mainly as instruments
in campaigns to encourage
behavioural change
but need to be educated themselves
on ways of preventing
the spread of HIV.


title:
Zambian female boxing sensation scores a first for SADC

Abstract:
ZAMBIAN FEMALE boxer,
Esther Phiri, has become a role
model to young people in the
SADC region after winning
the World International Boxing
Federation (WIBF) title.

body:
ZAMBIAN FEMALE boxer,
Esther Phiri, has become a role
model to young people in the
SADC region after winning
the World International Boxing
Federation (WIBF) title.


Since her sensational victory
over then WIBF Intercontinental
Junior Lightweight champion,
American Kelli Cofer, in
2006, Phiri has become a household
name in Zambia.
Billboards with her picture
line streets and the government
television broadcaster
carries her fights live.
She also holds the Global
Boxing Union (GBU) super
featherweight title. Her last
fight was a GBU title defence
against American Belinda
Laracuente in December
2007.
She defeated the more experienced
American, adding
another victory to her impressive
run as the first female
boxing champion from southern
African.
To many observers, Phiri - a
single mother and former street
vendor with little education -
could provide the catalyst for
change in societal stereotypes.
Phiri acknowledges that
navigating the challenges of
fame has not been easy for her
and she has received advice
from all corners, including from
President Levy Mwanawasa.
 Aside from boxing, Phiri
wants to finish school and says
she has a "business mind".She
has also set her sights on securing
a bout in Las Vegas, the
world capital of boxing.


Abstract:
SADC MEMBER States
have agreed to speed up
the process of establishing
the Univisa, a single visa
for tourists visiting southern
Africa, and the removal
of obstacles to the
movement of SADC citizens
within the region.

body:
SADC MEMBER States
have agreed to speed up
the process of establishing
the Univisa, a single visa
for tourists visiting southern
Africa, and the removal
of obstacles to the
movement of SADC citizens
within the region.
The decision, taken at a
ministerial meeting in Luanda,
Angola in March,
was announced by Rejoice
Mabudafhasi, the deputy
tourism minister of South
Africa.
The Univisa is expected
to operate similarly to the
European Schengen visa
system. Member states still
have to resolve outstanding
issues such as costs,
policy agreements, procedures
and requirements
for issuing of the Univisa.
The removal of obstacles
to the movement of
SADC citizens can be done
through bilateral agreements,
including a waiver
of visas and many SADC
Member States have such
agreements.
The nine Member States
who have signed the protocol
on the movement of
citizens are Botswana,
DRC, Lesotho, Mozambique,
Namibia, South
Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania
and Zimbabwe.


title:
End of slavery opens new
horizons for Mauritius

Abstract:
THE ABOLITION of slavery in Mauritius in 1835 was as significant as
the end of apartheid in southern Africa's fight against poverty.

body:
THE ABOLITION of slavery in Mauritius in 1835 was as significant as
the end of apartheid in southern Africa's fight against poverty.
Happening 159 years apart, both events were defining points for a
region where institutionalised discrimination of one group by another
was common.
Both opened new horizons for the previously oppressed and ushered
in new opportunities for those hitherto denied rights to self-determination,
education, accommodation and good health facilities.
Slaves were shipped from India and parts of Africa to work on the
plantations in Mauritius owned by French settlers.
As with the fight against apartheid in South Africa, the march to
abolish slavery in Mauritius was not an easy one, often involving violent
conflict.
Finally, after much petitioning, the colonial authorities abolished
slavery in 1835 but not before agreeing to several concessions for the
plantation owners.
These included payment of €2.1 million and laws obliging freed
slaves to remain on their former owners' land as “apprentices” for six
years.
Today, Mauritius is one of Africa's strongest economies, with a vibrant
clothing and textile sector, export processing zone, and a model tourism
industry.
Mauritius this year commemorated the 173rd anniversary of the
abolition of slavery with the unveiling of a commemorative pillar in
memory of slaves who were brought to the country.
The first pillar was inaugurated in Fort Dauphin, Madagascar in 2004,
then at Saint Paul, Reunion Island in 2005, followed by the third one in
July 2007 at Mozambique Island, the ancient capital of Mozambique.
The next commemorative pillar will be erected in Pondicherry on
the East coast of India and a “Slave Memory Garden” will be established
in 2009 in Nantes, a French port from where hundreds of slave
ships set sail for the Americas in the 17th and 18th centuries.
The initiative is supported by UNESCO's project, “The Slave Route.”
Other events jointly organised by the Ministry of Arts and Culture, the
Le Morne Heritage Trust Fund, the Nelson Mandela Centre for African
Culture and the National Heritage Fund included a wreath-laying ceremony
at the Slave Monument at Pointe Canon in Mahebourg, 50 kilometres
east of Port Louis, the capital of Mauritius.



21 MARCH is a significant day in South Africa and Namibia's historical experience.
South Africa commemorates Human Rights Day, recognised after
the Sharpeville Massacre of 1960 where 300 black South Africans embarked
on protests against the pass laws of the apartheid era. Following a state of
emergency, which lasted for 156 days, 69 people were killed and 187 injured.
The Human Rights Day is but one step to ensure that the people of
South Africa are aware of their human rights and to ensure that such abuses
never again occur. In Namibia, this day marks 18 years of independence
from South Africa. The words of the first post-independent president of
Namibia, Sam Nujoma still reverberate, “our achievement of independence
imposes upon us a heavy responsibility, not only to defend our hard won liberty,
but also to set for ourselves high standards of equality, justice and opportunity
for all, without regard to race creed or colour.”


body:
Public holidays in SADC for the period 
 April - June 2008


4 April Peace and National Reconciliation Day Angola
7 April Women's Day Mozambique
7 April Ougadi Mauritius
7 April Sheik Abeid Amani Karume Day Tanzania
18 April Independence Day Zimbabwe
19 April King's Birthday Swaziland
21 April Maulid Day Tanzania
25 April National Flag Day Swaziland
26 April Union Celebrations Tanzania
27 April Freedom Day South Africa
1 May Labour/Workers Day All SADC
2 May Public Holiday Malawi, Zambia,
Zimbabwe
4 May Cassinga Day Namibia
5 May Ascension Day Botswana, Lesotho,
Namibia, Swaziland
17 May Liberation Day DRC
25 May Africa Day Angola, Lesotho,
Namibia, Zambia,
Zimbabwe
1 June International Children's Day Angola
14 June Freedom Day Malawi
16 June Youth Day South Africa
24 June Fishermen's Day DRC
25 June Independence Day Mozambique
30 June Independence Day DRC

* Depends on visibility of the moon


body:
EVENTS DIARY 2008
April/May

April 2008
April 12, Zambia
SADC Extra Ordinary Summit on Zimbabwe

 In consultation with the Chairperson of the SADC Organ on
Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation, Mr. Jose Eduardo
Dos Santos, the President of the Republic of Angola, SADC
Chairperson, Dr. Levy Patrick Mwanawasa (SC), the President
of the Republic of Zambia has called for an Extra Ordinary
Summit of Heads of State and Government.



14-18 South Africa
Africa Power and Electricity Congress

The 10th annual Africa Power and Electricity Congress 2008
aims to provide participants with an opportunity to interact
with industry leaders from 22 African countries and debate
the latest opportunities in the energy market.


16-17 Mauritius
SADC Civil Society Regional Poverty and Development

Advocacy Platform Pre-Conference Workshop
The workshop will prepare civil society delegates for the
SADC International Consultative Conference on Poverty and
Development. Delegates from umbrella civil society
organisations throughout the region will attend the
workshop.


18-20 Mauritius
SADC International Consultative Conference on Poverty and
Development

Theme: “Regional Economic Integration: A Strategy for
Poverty Eradication towards Sustainable Development”
The conference will adopt a multi-stakeholder approach to
allow for strategic dialogue that recognises the necessity of
regional multi-dimensional strategies and approaches to
tackle poverty. Expected outcomes include the adoption of a
SADC Regional Poverty Reduction Framework (RPRF) and
the establishment of a SADC Poverty Observatory.

28-30 DRC
SADC Energy Ministers

SADC Energy Ministers will meet to discuss the energy
situation in the region, and the prevailing power deficits. The
Ministers have ultimate oversight on the Power Sector
Projects Road Map. The ministers will also discuss the
phasing out of leaded petrol which is expected to take effect
in April. The ministerial meeting will be preceded by a
preparatory meeting of senior officials.

May 2008

07-09, Namibia
ICT-Africa 2008 Conference

ICT-Africa 2008 will bring together delegates from
commercial, government and research organisations across
Africa and from Europe to strategise on ways to bridge the
Digital Divide by sharing knowledge, experiences, lessons
learned and good practices. ICT-Africa 2008 will focus on
Applied ICT research topics addressing major societal and
economic challenges.



14-15, Mozambique
Annual Meeting of the African Development Bank

Mozambique will host the 43rd Annual Meeting of the Board
of Governors of the African Development Bank (ADB) and
the 34th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the
African Development Fund (ADF) under the theme of
“Fostering shared growth: urbanisation, inequality and
power.” These meetings are the most important meeting
place of finance and development experts in Africa.


title:
Economic growth essential Economic growth essential
but must be sustainable

Abstract:
ECONOMIC GROWTH in SADC Member
States is necessary but not sufficient to make
real impact on poverty eradication, especially
when such growth is erratic.

body:
ECONOMIC GROWTH in SADC Member
States is necessary but not sufficient to make
real impact on poverty eradication, especially
when such growth is erratic.
This was said by the President of the African
Development Bank (AfDB), Donald Kaberuka,
in a keynote address to the SADC International
Conference on Poverty and Development held
in Mauritius in April.
Kaberuka said while economic growth -
often simply measured by changes in Gross
Domestic Product (GDP) - is essential, it should
be sustained “over several years… broad based
and non-exclusive.”
The Mauritius conference gave fresh impetus
to regional integration, adopting a pro-poor
regional poverty Reduction Framework.
As explained by SADC Executive Secretary
Tomaz Salomao, the implementation framework
”articulates those activities that will have
direct impact on poverty which are currently
not or inadequately addressed in the implementation”
of SADC's Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan and the Strategic
Indicative Plan for the Organ.
The conference also endorsed the establishment
of a Regional Poverty Observatory which
will institutionalise the monitoring and evaluation
of poverty interventions, as well as tracking
of Millennium Development Goals.
Governments, private sector and some 120
civil society organisations represented in Mauritius
shared Kaberuka's call for a developmentconscious
state.
A capable developmental state is necessary to
support businesses and farmers, particularly during
this era of an “overloaded, frontloaded” global
agenda manifesting in Economic Partnership
Agreements (EPAs) and other global contexts.
To this end, civil society organisations made
representation urging member states to “adopt a
common approach to EPAs… and agree to only
those provisions that are pro-poor as opposed to
a wholesale approach that may negate… objectives
of job creation and poverty alleviation.”
A number of SADC countries
have been registering
positive GDP growth rates in
recent years. Despite this,
over 40 percent of SADC citizens
still live in acute poverty,
according to Zambian President
Levy Mwanawasa, who
is also SADC chairperson.
Mwanawasa said “poverty
can be ended by sharing
rising wealth,” adding that
there was a great sense of optimism
in most countries that
are currently achieving
progress in ending poverty,
no matter how modest the
progress might be.
“The challenge is to make
this progress to happen even
faster,” said the Zambian
president.
Most southern African
economies are dualistic and
characterized by, on one hand,
a foreign-dominated formal
sector and, on the other, a
marginalized, underdeveloped
informal and mostly
peasant indigenous sector.
As noted by economist
Godfrey Kanyenze, the formal
sector emerged as a foreign
implant whose modus
operandi was generally
linked to external factors
thereby preventing the need
for an internal accumulation
and transformation process
to emerge that would have
captured the majority of the
labour force into the capitalist
process of accumulation.
Kanyenze further argues
that this has had the effect of
impoverishing and marginalizing
the indigenous population,
thereby leading to the
creation of weak class formations
and weak internal
markets with low effective
demand, in turn
constraining the
growth of vibrant
intra-regional trade.

Furthermore, with few exceptions
such as South Africa,
SADC Member State exports
are mainly primary and unfinished
goods with about 90
percent of SADC exports
comprising of mineral and
agricultural goods, and its imports
are mainly capital and
intermediate goods, according
to official statistics.
Brazil offers one of the best examples of
successful diversification. The south American
country has since the 1990s been the world's largest
producer of coffee.
However, the country diversified into other areas
including manufactured goods, propelling itself into
being the tenth largest economy in the world.
Closer to home, countries such as Mauritius have
achieved sustained growth on the back of a diversified
economy, one that relies on tourism,
textiles, sugarcane and a steadily developing
manufacturing base.
To ensure long-term sustainability,
Member States
would need to diversify their
economies as a way of cushioning
themselves from inevitable
exogenous shocks
such as sudden changes in
world commodity prices.
Brazil offers one of the best
examples of successful diversification.
The South American
country has been for
many years the world's
largest producer of coffee.
Since the 1990s, however, coffee
is no longer central to the
Brazilian economy. The country
diversified into other areas
including manufactured
goods, propelling itself into
being the tenth largest economy
in the world.
Closer to home, countries
such as Mauritius have
achieved sustained growth
on the back of a diversified
economy, one that relies on
tourism, textiles, sugarcane and a steadily developing
manufacturing base.
Apart from diversification,
SADC Member States
face the challenge of deepening
intra-regional trade.
Kanyenze observes: “As
former colonies, the integration
of the economies of
SADC member states with
the world capitalist system
was determined by the mercantilists'
imperialist interests
of the European powers,
which created vertical linkages
between the European
metropoles/centre and the
SADC region/periphery.”
The dominance of an exogenously
planted formal sector has meant that African
countries in general and
SADC in particular trade
more with Europe than
among themselves.

As such, a lot rests on the
SADC Free Trade Area to be
launched later this year to correct
this historical imbalance.
The role of informal cross
border traders, who are part
of the regional and global
value chains, is very important
if intra-regional trade is
to have relevance in a region
where the informal economy
is still as significant as the
formal economy.
There can be no illusions
about the daunting challenges
facing the region today, and
Mauritian Prime Minister
Navinchandra Ramgoolam
summed it up when he said:
“The task is certainly immense
but so is our responsibility
to the millions who live
in absolute poverty in our
countries…
“The ultimate objective of
power over destiny of the
people we lead is precisely to
put those people first and take
decisions that will make a difference
to their lives and those
of future generations.”


title:
Mauritius conference affirms strategies for
sustainable development

Abstract:
THE SADC International Conference
on Poverty and Development
held in Mauritius in April
provided a platform for a wide
spectrum of stakeholders to dialogue,
but it did more than that.

body:
THE SADC International Conference
on Poverty and Development
held in Mauritius in April
provided a platform for a wide
spectrum of stakeholders to dialogue,
but it did more than that.
The intention of the conference
was to focus on southern
Africa's main challenge - poverty
- with leaders reaffirming commitment
to multi-pronged strategies
for sustainable development.
The conference noted that
comprehensive strategies to
eradicate poverty are already in
place at the national and regional
levels. What is lacking is holistic
implementation and a collective
regional approach.
To this end, the conference
declaration urged “all SADC
Member States to fully implement
their strategies aimed at
poverty eradication…” adding
that this would be done “in pursuance
of our commitment” to
SADC's long-term development
frameworks for deepening regional
integration.

The long-term frameworks
are the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development Plan
(RISDP) and the Strategic Indicative
Plan of the Organ (SIPO).
The conference agreed on the
need to combat and eradicate
poverty in “all its manifestations
and dimensions as a matter
of utmost urgency through
regional cooperation and integration,
sound political and economic
governance, the pursuit
of appropriate trade and growth
policies and gainful participation
in the world economy and
… recommit to mobilize the necessary
resources.”
In light of recent challenges
exacerbating poverty in the
region, the conference identified
six priority areas, summarized
in the declaration as:
 Achieving food security in
a situation of growing global
food shortages;
Addressing the adverse
impact of climate change in
the fight against poverty;
Increasing capacity in
power generation and transmission
as well as secure
greater use of renewable and
alternative sources of energy;
Achieving higher economic
growth through accelerated
regional integration, pro-poor
trade liberalization and economic
development;
Developing and sustaining
human capabilities through
sustained access of the population
to quality and appropriate
education, training welfare
and social development, nutrition,
health and sporting services
as well as information in
Member States; and
 Accelerating development,
rehabilitation and maintenance
of infrastructure for regional
integration.

Poverty statistics for Africa
in general and SADC in particular
have been repeated endlessly
to an extent that the numbers
have become mind-numbing
and almost meaningless. However,
this was one international conference on poverty that
avoided that same ground,
rather concentrating on priority
areas that require urgent attention.
The conference, attended by
political leaders from the region
and beyond, international cooperating
partners, private sector
and civil society representatives,
agreed to an array of measures
necessary to address these priority
areas.
To achieve food security, the
leaders agreed to “sustainably
improve” the production capacity
and productivity, facilitating
cross-border and internal flows of food products based on improved
infrastructure and networks.
A Task Force of Ministers of
Trade, Agriculture and Finance
will be set up to encourage regional
collaboration in this regard
and the task force was
mandated to “immediately
focus on the current food crisis.”
Regarding climate change,
the leaders committed to prepare
and implement national
and regional adaptation and
mitigation plans.
And to achieve sustainable
pro-poor economic development,
the conference noted the need to
promote relevant financial sector
development including micro-finance
and development of small
and medium enterprises with
particular emphasis on gender.
Further, priority must be
given to accelerating regional
integration including intra-regional
trade liberalization,
cross-border investment and
value addition by improving the
business and investment climate,
the leaders agreed.
The conference resolved to
“enhance, expand and upgrade
infrastructure” with emphasis
on labour-intensive methods
and Public Private Partnerships.
Relevant education and skills
development at all levels will be
promoted to ensure higher general
efficiency, productivity and
boosting the required innovative
processes by, among others,
bridging the digital divide.
Wide access to health services
including primary healthcare
should be emphasized in all
Member States while it is equally
urgent to step up efforts to
combat HIV and AIDS and
other communicable diseases.
The conference underscored
the need for strategic partnerships
with private sector and
civil society to mobilize financial
and technical resources “to
combat poverty at its roots”.
The conference further resolved
to “work towards the establishment
of a Regional
Poverty Observatory to monitor
progress made in the implementation
of actions in the main priority
areas of poverty eradication.”
And with all the measures in
place, the conference emphasised
the need to acquire and
develop adequate capacity both
at the SADC Secretariat and in
Member States to ensure effective
implementation of poverty
eradication programmes.


title:
Rising global food prices -
A challenge or an opportunity for southern Africa?

Abstract:
HEADS OF State and Government
of SADC Member States
meeting in Mauritius at the
SADC conference on poverty
and development, committed
themselves “to focus immediately
on the current food challenges
by increasing agricultural
production.”

body:
HEADS OF State and Government
of SADC Member States
meeting in Mauritius at the
SADC conference on poverty
and development, committed
themselves “to focus immediately
on the current food challenges
by increasing agricultural
production.”
This, they said, should be
done through “encouraging
regional collaboration, by sustainably
improving production
capacity and productivity,
and facilitating cross-border
and internal food flows, based
on improved infrastructure
and distribution networks.”
SADC is fully cognisant of
the need for sustainable food
security in the region in order
to achieve its vision of economic
well-being, improvement
of the standards of living
and quality of life, freedom
and social justice, and peace
and security for its people.
The mandate of SADC's
Food, Agriculture and Natural
Resources (FANR) Directorate
is to develop, promote, coordinate
and facilitate policies and
programmes aimed at increasing
agricultural and natural
resources production, and
productivity and trade with
the overall goal of improving
food security and fostering
economic development.
Thus an opportunity exists
for the region through the
FANR and other organs of
SADC to put in place measures
that would allow farmers
in the region to take advantage
of the global food price
increases to produce more for
the region and beyond.
Food prices could
derail Africa's growth,
or boost it
AFRICA'S GROWTH rate
could be derailed by the
global rise in food prices,
the AfDB chairperson,
Donald Kaberuka, told the
Bank's annual meeting
held in Maputo in May. He
said the food predicament
is an additional hurdle that
will put Africa's ability to
manage risks and overcome
new threats to great
test, but added that this
challenge can be turned
into an opportunity where
farming finally becomes a
viable business rather than
a meagre livelihood.
On the other hand,
millions of people in
southern Africa are currently
food insecure,
requiring food assistance
and the global
rise in food prices has raised the cost for some Member
States to import food.
The available figures as of
March 2008 show that there
has been an increase in the imports
of cereals in the region.
Prices of main cereals this
marketing year have been
much higher than at the same
period last year due to strong
international and regional demand
and weak supplies.
Current prices of maize, the
most important staple foodstuff
in most countries of the
sub-region, are generally
above their corresponding
levels a year earlier.

What this means is that the
region should seize the opportunity
afforded by the food
predicament to increase production.
The SADC region has plenty
of arable land, generally
favourable climatic conditions
and the expertise to expand
agricultural production, and
these can be maximised to avoid imports and produce a
surplus for export.
However, with the threat of
frequent droughts in the region
caused by a number of
factors including global
warming, the region needs to
continue to invest heavily in
irrigation.
There is also a need to diversify
food production, especially
in the area of small
grains, which are drought resistant
so that there is reduced
dependence on imports.
However, for the region to
increase production there is an
urgent need to review and
track progress toward commitments
adopted by SADC leaders
four years ago in the Dar es
Salaam Declaration on Agriculture
and Food Security.
In Dar es Salaam in May
2004, Member States reaffirmed
their commitment to
accelerate agricultural development,
upon which more
than 70 percent of the people in the region depend for food,
income and employment.
The multi-sectoral Dar es
Salaam Declaration's strategy
contains an agreed set of shortterm
(2004-2006) objectives.
These include the provision of
key agricultural inputs; agroindustrial
development and
processing; control of crop and
livestock pests and diseases;
crop, livestock and fisheries
production; and water management
and irrigation.
In the medium-to-longterm
commitments (2004-
2010), SADC leaders agreed to
address the sustainable use
and management of natural
resources; disaster preparedness;
research, technology development
and dissemination;
agricultural financing and investment;
training and human
resources development; gender
equality; and human
health and mitigation of HIV
and AIDS, and other chronic
diseases.
As Member States step up
the implementation of the Dar
es Salaam Declaration and
Plan of Action, there still is
need to buttress the mediumto-
long-term measures that
were agreed on as a way of
eliminating deficits in the production
of staple foods such as
maize, wheat and rice.
The coordination of collective
and timely actions in response
to the region's challenges
in food production can
be provided by the FANR Directorate
of the SADC Secretariat.
FANR can also play a significant
role in creating a conducive
environment for regional
integration and prosperity
through the establishment
of institutional and policy
frameworks and harmonisation
of rules and regulations
for the conservation of the region's
plant and animal genetic
resources.


title:
Improved prospects for food security in
southern Africa this season

Abstract:
IN SOUTHERN Africa, the
2007/08 agricultural season is
coming to an end with harvesting
and movement of produce
to markets underway.

body:
IN SOUTHERN Africa, the
2007/08 agricultural season is
coming to an end with harvesting
and movement of produce
to markets underway.
Although the planting
rains started later than usual,
excessive precipitation persisted
during December and
January throughout the region
causing serious flooding in
many low-lying areas.
This was particularly the
case along the river basins in
Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe,
Malawi and Madagascar.
Since February the rains
have diminished, and unfavourably
dry weather has returned
to some countries including
Zimbabwe, parts of
Botswana, southern Malawi,
southern Mozambique, eastern
Swaziland and central Zambia.
Pockets of moderate food insecurity
are projected in areas
affected by localized flooding
that was followed by the unexpected
dry spell between February
and March 2008.
Despite these weather vagaries,
overall prospects for
the sub-region as a whole are
considered favourable, marking
a recovery from the
2006/7 drought-affected season.
However, significant rises
in international prices of fuel
and fertilizers have affected
the use of key inputs in agriculture,
somewhat dampening
yield prospects.
Post-harvest assessments
conducted by the Famine
Early Warning Systems Network
(FEWSNET) in April reveal
that a majority of households
in most parts of Malawi,
United Republic of Tanzania,
Zambia, and northern
Mozambique will be food secure
during this year. But data is still awaited from other
SADC countries.
In South Africa, the area
put under maize this season is
officially estimated at about
3.2 million hectares, a 9.7 percent
increase from last year.
South Africa's National Department
of Agriculture's Crop
Estimates Committee estimates
output to reach 10.765 million
tonnes, a 51.1 percent increase
over last year's harvest.
In Malawi, large input subsidy
schemes and favourable  rainfall for most parts of the
country has contributed to initial
preliminary production
estimates of maize, rice, and
cassava that are higher than
the previous five-year average.
Maize production is estimated
to reach 3.283 million
tonnes, which represents a 50
percent increase against the
average, but a five percent
decrease from last season.
In Namibia, preliminary
forecasts suggest that overall area planted has decreased
by 14 percent compared to
the 6-year average, mainly
because of the delayed onset
of rains and localized flooding.
Despite this reduction in
area planted, the cereal production
forecast stands at
125,000 tonnes, about 5 percent
above the 6-year average
and 10 percent above last year
when production was affected
by drought and an erratic
rainfall pattern.


title:
Dar es Salaam Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security

Abstract:
THE DAR es Salaam Declaration
of May 2004 identified a
number of priority areas on
which SADC Member States
agreed to focus in the short
term (2004-2006) and medium-
to-long term (2004-2010)
so as to achieve food security
for the region.

body:
THE DAR es Salaam Declaration
of May 2004 identified a
number of priority areas on
which SADC Member States
agreed to focus in the short
term (2004-2006) and medium-
to-long term (2004-2010)
so as to achieve food security
for the region.
The short-term measures
included the need for Member States to ensure availability
and access of key agricultural
inputs for farmers.
The summit also underscored
the need to provide targeted
support to vulnerable
farmers with key inputs such
as improved seed varieties,
fertilizers, agrochemicals,
tillage services and farm implements.
Progress on implementation of the Dar es Salaam Declaration
Commitment Implementing status
Allocation of 10 percent of
national budgets to agriculture
and rural development Although most countries have significantly increased their budget allocations
to the agricultural sector, the amounts have not risen to the
agreed 10 percent, with a few exceptions of Zimbabwe and Malawi.

Development of a regional
food reserve facility Research was carried out in 2006 on the modalities and strategies for the
development of a regional food reserve facility, but little has happened
since then to make this project a reality.
Improvement of market
access With the volatility in the prices of agricultural commodities on the world
market, there has not been much change in accessing those market. Locally,
access to markets is hampered by poor feeder roads in some Member
States hence the need to accelerate infrastructure development.

Water management and
irrigation Irrigation projects are being implemented in the SADC Member States,
although the potential has not been fully tapped with projects moving
at a snail pace.

Provision of agricultural
inputs Initiatives at national level are taking place to ensure viability of seed and
fertilizer. Cooperation has also been taking place between Member States
to ensure that access is widened in those countries facing shortages.

Source FEWSNET, SADC Today



title:
Development starts in the countryside -- Guebuza

Abstract:
THE STARTING point for development
in Mozambique must be
the rural areas, President Armando
Guebuza said in his opening
address to the annual meeting of
the African Development Bank
held in Maputo in May.

body:
THE STARTING point for development
in Mozambique must be
the rural areas, President Armando
Guebuza said in his opening
address to the annual meeting of
the African Development Bank
held in Maputo in May.
“We shall overcome the challenges
of economic emancipation
by making the rural areas the nuclei
of planning and development,”
Guebuza said, adding
that transport and communications
infrastructure is needed to
bring regions together and “to
link centres of production with
centres of consumption.”
He warned that
the problems of
rural poverty cannot
be solved “by the
simple liberalization
of prices.
“On the contrary,
reality shows us that
measures to liberalise
and make flexible the economy
can in the countryside generate
the opposite effects, in the
absence of structural measures
that seek to deal with the causes
of the isolation of rural areas
from the rest of the national
economy.”
But the free functioning
of markets
“presupposes the existence
of infrastructures
that facilitate
these linkages.”
He said development
must have
strong participation
by beneficiaries, including the
private sector. Turning to the
sharp rises in oil and grain
prices, Guebuza warned that
these “have an impact on the
productive sector, on the balance
of payments and on the
state budget.
“This is not just a problem of
food security. We are facing a
large-scale social and economic
problem.
“We must act more speedily
than the speed at which oil
prices are rising,” he said.
The Minister of Planning and
Development, Aiuba Cuereneia,
who is the current chairperson
of the AfDB Board of Governors,
noted that the price of a tonne of
rice has risen from 373 US dollars
at the start of the year to 760
dollars now.
Wheat has reached the price
of 412 dollars a tonne, and even
maize, the staple food for much
of Africa, has risen by 29 per
cent, from 171 to 220 dollars a
tonne. (AIM Telinforma)


title:
"The time has come for agriculture in Africa to
become a viable business"

Abstract:
THE PRESIDENT of the African
Development Bank (AfDB), Donald
Kaberuka echoed Guebuza's
approach, saying that the state
must play a key role if a green
revolution in Africa is to succeed,
and private investment is not sufficient
by itself.

body:
THE PRESIDENT of the African
Development Bank (AfDB), Donald
Kaberuka echoed Guebuza's
approach, saying that the state
must play a key role if a green
revolution in Africa is to succeed,
and private investment is not sufficient
by itself.
AfDB finances “very
strong”, Kaberuka
DESPITE INTERNATIONAL
financial crises, the finances of
the African Development Bank
“remain very strong, and our
risk bearing capacity remains
robust,” Kaberuka said,
adding that the AfDB would
soon open offices in Angola
and Algeria, bringing the full
complement of 25 in a complex
process of decentralisation.

There must be both “crowding
in of more private investment
and a greater role for the state.”
“Private investors can probably
do their own irrigation,” he
said, “but they need infrastructure,
input and product markets
that function, research institutions
that deliver and policies
that are stable. Only the state is
well equipped to provide the
latter.
“In the years of structural adjustment,
it seems a lot of capacity
in this sector (agriculture)
was cut to the minimum”.
Kaberuka said that although
the food predicament is an additional
hurdle that will put
Africa's ability to manage risks
and overcome new threats to
great test, it should be seen just as
a challenge that can be overcome.
“Perhaps, for our rural farmers,
if given quality support, this
can turn out to be an opportunity
which they
have been waiting for,
where farming, large
and small, finally, becomes viable businesses rather
than a source of scrapping a meagre
livelihood.
"The time has come for agriculture
in Africa to become a viable
business."
Kaberuka said that short,
medium and long term responses
to food security involve a global
coordination amongst the
bank's agencies in concert with
governments to:
 ensure that markets function
effectively;
 give more capacity to agriculture
ministers;
 put in place policies that are
pro-women;
 establish the African seed
mechanism for which funding
has been secured, as well as some
degree of fertiliser subsidy; and
 build infrastructure such as
roads and irrigation schemes.


title:
Japan to double aid to Africa over next five years, with focus on infrastructure

Abstract:
JAPAN HAS promised to double
official assistance to Africa over
the next five years to about
US$1.9 billion per year by 2012,
Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda
told the Fourth Tokyo International
Conference on African Development
(TICAD) in May.

body:
JAPAN HAS promised to double
official assistance to Africa over
the next five years to about
US$1.9 billion per year by 2012,
Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda
told the Fourth Tokyo International
Conference on African Development
(TICAD) in May.
Fukuda said Japan will also
provide up to US$4 billion of soft
loans to Africa over the next five
years in a “proactive and flexible”
manner.
He laid great importance on
the development of infrastructure,
saying the experience of
Japan and other Asian countries
shows that improvements in
transportation infrastructure
play a critical role in attracting
private investment.
“Japan wishes to engage in
efforts to diligently join the unconnected
road networks, and
wishes to combine these efforts
with improvements to ports in
order to form a network, a network
that will enable Africa as a
whole to move forward with
greater dynamism,” he said.
This should be “the people's
infrastructure” bringing prosperity
to communities and the people
living there, Fukuda said,
adding that Japanese companies
will have greater interest in
Africa when the infrastructure is
improved and this will in turn facilitate
the transfer of technologies
and managerial experiences.
At the TICAD summit, the
African Union (AU) chairperson, President Jakaya Kikwete of the
United Republic of Tanzania,
highlighted the imperative to encourage
major companies in the
rich countries such as Japan to accelerate
development in Africa
through investment.
Kikwete cited statistics showing
that Japanese companies are
not yet significant investors in
Africa; he said that of the
US$108.5 billion invested across
the world between 2002 and 2006,
only 0.4 per cent went to Africa.
Of the total Japanese investment
in Africa, 85 per cent went
to two countries (South Africa
and Egypt) and the remaining
15 per cent was distributed
among the other 52 African
countries.


Abstract:
ENERGY TRADING allows countries
to buy and sell surplus electricity
through an ever-widening
network of electrical lines and relay
substations, thus strengthening access
to power supply for business
and residential purposes through
cross-border trade.

body:
ENERGY TRADING allows countries
to buy and sell surplus electricity
through an ever-widening
network of electrical lines and relay
substations, thus strengthening access
to power supply for business
and residential purposes through
cross-border trade.
Trade has been brisk among
most of the mainland SADC Member
States and energy trading was
up by 20 percent in March, according
to the Southern African Power
Pool (SAPP).
The increase in trading was facilitated
by the coming online of key regional
interconnectors that went
down the previous month, in a situation
that left the SAPP network operating
as three separate islands.
Projects such as the recently concluded
five-year agreement between
Eskom of South Africa and the
Mozambican government to supply
an additional 250MW of power from
Cahora Bassa hydroelectric power
station has further increased energy
trading between those two countries.
The agreement was signed in
Mozambique at the beginning of
April, allowing Cahora Bassa to
avail 250MW to Eskom from its
fifth generator, bringing the total
amount Eskom can import from
Cahora Bassa to 1500MW.
The power will be supplied over
a network extending through Zimbabwe
and Botswana to the South
African grid via the High Voltage
Direct Current line.
EDM, the Mozambican electricity
utility, will also receive 50MW additional
capacity from the fifth generator
at Cahora Bassa.
This year will also see the completion
of two interconnector projects
between Zambia and Tanzania, and
another one between Zambia and
the DRC, a situation that will make it
possible for an additional 660MW in
the region.
Combined with this have been
improvements in regional cooperation
through inter-government
agreements such as the ZESANamPower
accord to revamp
Hwange power station last year.
There is no doubt that these
projects have reduced inadvertent
power flows and power oscillations
that had affected the region from
the start of this year.
With most SADC Member States
except the island states of Mauritius
and Madagascar involved in the regional
power pool, financing for capital-
intensive energy producing projects
will need to be facilitated as
agreed at the meeting of the SADC
Ministerial Task Force on Implementation
of Power Sector Projects held
in Botswana in February.
Energy-producing facilities, be
they hydroelectric, coal, solar or nuclear,
are tremendously expensive
undertakings. Member states have
found there is power of another
kind in numbers, and they have
combined to pool resources.
South Africa, Mozambique and
Swaziland, for example, have become
the tri-nation members of the
Lubombo Spatial Development Initiative
(LSDI), named after the
Lubombo mountain range shared
by those countries.
The three nations have benefited
from the energy needs of the new
Mozal Aluminium Smelter, located
on the outskirts of Maputo, the capital
of Mozambique.
The three nations' utility companies
formed a new company MOTRACO
to build and run the power
line, giving permanent employment
to 800 people and creating 9,000 jobs
during the construction phase.
Petroleum is a second key energy
source that is being processed
and used to meet southern Africa's
needs, and to fuel expanding industries.
Mozambique's state-owned fuel
retailing company, Petromoc, undertook
a successful joint venture deal with the South African energy
firm Sasol in 2002, thus increasing
energy trade between the countries.
“From Mozambique's point of
view, joint ventures offer the capital
we need to exploit our growing
market of private and industrial
petrol consumers. The partners
gain ground-level access to this
burgeoning market,” said the
Mozambican Minister of Energy,
Salvador Namburete recently.
Coal is the third leg of the region's
energy infrastructure. Swaziland's
once-thriving mining sector
has been reduced to a single coal
mine. However, production is still
reasonably good due to increased
trade with South Africa.
The region's energy sectors face
the same challenge as other segments
of different nations'
economies: how to empower a
greater number of previously disenfranchised
business people so
they might reap the benefits of this
lucrative field.
However, if energy trading is
going to continue benefiting the region,
there is need for a follow-up
on international pledges made to finance
regional infrastructure projects
including under the New Partnership
for Africa's Development
(NEPAD)


Abstract:
Four countries in the
SADC region are to embark
on a project to construct
a 330KV inter-linked
power transmission line that is
aimed at improving distribution
of electricity among the
power utilities.

body:
Four countries in the
SADC region are to embark
on a project to construct
a 330KV inter-linked
power transmission line that is
aimed at improving distribution
of electricity among the
power utilities.

The Zimbabwe Electricity
Supply Authority (ZESA) of
Zimbabwe, Botswana Power
Corporation (BCP), NamPower
of Namibia and Zambia
Electricity Supply Limited
(ZESL) are to sign a memorandum of understanding for the
project.
This will involve the construction
of a high voltage alternating
current power line
from Hwange through Victoria
Falls to the Zambezi substation
in Namibia.
The project is aimed at interconnecting
the electricity networks
of Namibia, Zambia,
Zimbabwe, the DRC, Mozambique
and South Africa to create
an alternative route for
power imports and exports.


title:
SADC ministers deliberate on
regional energy shortfalls

Abstract:
REGIONAL ENERGY ministers have
agreed to revive the regional energy
planning network to compliment
the energy recovery roadmap
established a few weeks ago to address
the power shortages facing the
region.

body:
REGIONAL ENERGY ministers have
agreed to revive the regional energy
planning network to compliment
the energy recovery roadmap
established a few weeks ago to address
the power shortages facing the
region.
The plan will contain prioritised
programmes and activities' covering
the entire energy sector and is to
be reviewed every five years.
It seeks to integrate energy conservation,
regional energy linkages,
Biomass Energy Conservation and
Power Surplus Capacity utilisation
among others as measures to mitigate
energy shortages.
The SADC ministers responsible
for energy, who met in Kinshasa,
DRC at the end of April, also noted
the importance of reviving the Energy
Planning and Environmental
Management Training Programme,
which ended in February 2008.
The meeting was chaired by
Zambia's Minister of Energy and
Water Development, Kenneth
Konga and was preceded by a
preparatory meeting of regional Senior
Energy Officials on 28 and 29
April.
The energy ministers took note
of the difficulties that the region is
experiencing towards the fulfilment of its mandate of providing reliable
and affordable energy to its people
which was particularly fuelled by
the diminished installed capacity in
the power sector.
In light of these problems, the
ministers reviewed the SADC Regional
Energy Programme, particularly
taking into cognisance the
forthcoming energy consultative
meeting later in the year, which is
meant to update the SADC Energy
Activity Plan that will be implemented
by December 2008.
“The plan would contain prioritised
programmes and activities
covering the entire energy sector
that includes conservation and increasing
capacity and would be reviewed
every five years,” a press
statement by the Ministers after the
meeting noted.
Furthermore, the ministers deliberated
on the energy activities
geared towards the revival of the
Regional Energy Planning Network,
where the Southern African Power
Pool (SAPP) and individual national
utilities will develop a plan on energy
usage and conservation.
However, in view of the significance
of alternative sources of energy
such as biomass in the energy
supply mix, the ministers directed the SADC Secretariat to work towards
consolidating efforts to identify
funding for the proposed Phase
IV, which is meant to ensure energy
service delivery and environmental
management at the rural level.
In noting the rising petroleum
prices, the SADC Energy Ministers
directed that an elaborate regional
bio-fuels programme be instituted
immediately.
Of concern to the Ministers was
also the report of the Ministerial
Taskforce, which met in Botswana
in February and after having deliberated
on the status of the Power
Surplus Capacity in the Region they
noted the following:
Available capacity in April 2008
was 47,067 MW vis a vis available
capacity of 43,518 in December
2007;
 The difference between installed
and available capacity is currently
about 8,000 MW;
 A total of about 1,700MW was
commissioned in 2007 in Angola,
South Africa and Swaziland
against a target of 1,925MW;
In 2008, SAPP has planned to
commission 1,757MW against a
planned target of 2,014MW;
 Long-term projects shall be implemented
between 2008 and 2025 and shall provide additional
power amounting to 44,000
MW.


The Ministers considered and
approved the structures proposed
to accelerate implementation of
power projects, which include project
teams, comprising of utilities
and independent players in the
power supply industry.
They also noted the need to
strengthen existing structures such
as the Energy Ministerial Task
Force, the SADC Secretariat, and
subsidiary institutions of SADC
such as SAPP and RERA.
The next meeting of the Ministerial
Task Force on Energy will be
held in South Africa in December
2008.


title:
Cahora Bassa refurbishment means more power  to the region

Abstract:
Mozambique's Hidroeléctrica
de Cahora Bassa (HCB), the
company running the Cahora Bassa
dam, is currently refurbishing the
power station, which will enable it
to increase the electricity output it
sells to the regional countries.

body:
Mozambique's Hidroeléctrica
de Cahora Bassa (HCB), the
company running the Cahora Bassa
dam, is currently refurbishing the
power station, which will enable it
to increase the electricity output it
sells to the regional countries.
Much of Cahora Bassa's power
generating capacity of 2,075
megawatts is sold to South Africa.
The refurbishment will cost
HCB US$60 million, and under a
new five-year agreement Cahora
Bassa will export a further 250 MW to South Africa, bringing the total
amount to 1,500 MW.
HCB will also supply an additional
50 MW to Electricidade de
Moçambique (EDM) from the fifth
giant turbine at the dam. EDM receives
400 MW from HCB.
There are five giant turbines at
Cahora Bassa each capable of generating
415 MW.
Like other countries in the region,
South Africa has been grappling
with power shortages, which
caused severe blackouts in January,
forcing mines to suspend operations
for various days over safety
concerns.
The move is likely to ease South
Africa's power shortages and enable
it to free more power to its
neighbours that had been cut earlier
on in the year.
HCB power is supplied to the
region over a network extending
through Zimbabwe and Botswana
to the South African power grid.
Cahora Bassa's power is also
sold to Botswana (40 MW), Zimbabwe
(200 MW), which leaves 80 MW
for other customers such as Malawi
and Zambia. Tanzania, which is
currently importing electricity from
Zambia, has also expressed an interest
in buying power from Cahora
Bassa.
The South African utility company,
Eskom, is also negotiating
with the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply
Authority (ZESA) for the refurbishment
of three power stations
with a combined generation capacity
of 500 MW.
Mozambique is also currently
seeking funding for the building of
a new dam on the Zambezi River 60
km downstream from Cahora
Bassa, which Eskom has agreed to
fund.


title:
Renewable sources -
Where the wind blows, energy will follow

Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA'S first
wind farm has begun generating
power at the village
of Darling, near Cape
Town.

body:
SOUTH AFRICA'S first
wind farm has begun generating
power at the village
of Darling, near Cape
Town.
The wind farm was officially
opened by the Minister
of Minerals and Energy,
Buyelwa Sonjica, who
pressed a symbolic switch
to start the four turbines
spinning.
She acknowledged that
there have been many barriers
“but we need to
make sure the project is
not delayed any more. It has been a long road to
reach this milestone.”
The minister said the
wind farm has shown that
renewable energy projects
are “do-able”, adding that
the launch is timely
“when we are experiencing
challenges to our supply.”
She said that wind
power could meet nine
percent of the country's energy
needs and considerably
more in the coastal
provinces. The South
African government has allocated R1 billion for renewable
energy projects.
Electricity generated by
the farm will be sold to
Cape Town at a premium
price as part of a longterm
deal for energy provision.
The chief executive of
Darling Wind Power is an
Austrian engineer, Hermann
Oeisner, who has
lived in South Africa for
more than 20 years and
whose determination finally
saw the establishment of
the wind farm.
Wind power currently
accounts for almost one
percent of electricity generation
worldwide. Denmark
leads the way with
wind providing 27 percent
of its energy needs, followed
by Spain and Portugal
at nine percent.


title:
Slow progress on phasing out leaded petrol in SADC

Abstract:
A MAJORITY of southern
African countries
are still using leaded
petrol after expiry of
the agreed deadline to
use more environmentally
friendly fuels by
the beginning of 2006.

body:
A MAJORITY of southern
African countries
are still using leaded
petrol after expiry of
the agreed deadline to
use more environmentally
friendly fuels by
the beginning of 2006.
Botswana, Mauritius,
Namibia, South
Africa and Zambia
have stopped using
leaded fuel in line with
a commitment made by
African countries in
2002 to use only unleaded
petrol, which is
less harmful to the environment
and human
health.
Mauritius was the first
SADC Member State to
phase out leaded fuel in August
2002.
In line with the commitment
made in 2002, the
Zambian government recently
advised all stakeholders
in the petroleum
sector that from April 2008
they planned to provide a
complete range of lead-free
fuels to suit all motor vehicles.
Two types of lead-free
petrol will be available on the
Zambian market and these
are unleaded petrol and lead
replacement petrol (LRP).
With this new development,
only Unleaded 91 and
LRP 91 petrol will be sold in
Zambia.
Both fuels are rated at 91
in the fuel octane rating.
The move to remove lead
from petrol in SADC gained
momentum after the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable
Development
(WSSD) in South
Africa, which resulted
in the launch of a Partnership
for Clean Fuels
and Vehicles.
The partnership
seeks to improve air
quality across the developing
world by encouraging
the deployment
of cleaner fuels,
such as unleaded and
low sulphur petrol and
diesel, and improved
technologies such as
catalytic converters
that can significantly
cut exhaust fumes.
Progress towards a
complete phase-out of leaded
fuel in the SADC region
has however been slow, with
most countries saying they
are not ready for the switch
to the so-called “cleaner”
fuels.
For example, Mozambique
and Zimbabwe say
they will phase out leaded
petrol only after they first
deal with logistical problems.


title:
Bio-fuels to boost
the Mozambican
economy

Abstract:
THE MOZAMBICAN government
has set aside unused
agricultural land for
the cultivation of jatropha –
a plant used for the production
of bio-diesel.

body:
THE MOZAMBICAN government
has set aside unused
agricultural land for
the cultivation of jatropha –
a plant used for the production
of bio-diesel.
Jatropha has the added
advantage of being droughtresistant,
it needs very little
water to flourish and thus
can be grown on previously
unused land.
The plant has been thriving
in Mozambique, with
current investors harvesting
just seven months after
planting. Convinced of the
success of the investment,
2500 ha have been planted.
In addition to direct economic
benefits, the projects
have created hundreds of
new jobs.
Although the levels of
production are still small,
most investors are hoping to
get into the export business
soon, and be players on the
world market for bioethanol
and bio-diesel.


Abstract:
THE LAUNCH of a SADC
Free Trade Area in August this
year will usher in a new era of
economic integration with an
enlarged market of more than
200 million people.

body:
THE LAUNCH of a SADC
Free Trade Area in August this
year will usher in a new era of
economic integration with an
enlarged market of more than
200 million people.
The Free Trade Area will be
officially launched in August
during the SADC Summit to
be hosted by South Africa,
which takes over the rotating
SADC chair.
When SADC leaders
signed the Trade Protocol in
1996, they signalled their intention
to bring down tariff
and non-tariff barriers to trade
in the region. That process
would begin in September
2000 when two-thirds of
Member States had ratified
the protocol.
Thus over the last eight
years, Member States have
been implementing the Trade
Protocol with a 2008 target to
ensure 85 percent of all product
lines are trading at zero
tariffs. The process involved,
among other issues, agreeing
on rules of origin and removal
of tariff and non-tariff barriers.
The rules of origin are now
in place and the SADC Certificate
of Origin is now increasingly
getting recognition in
Member States.
At the start of 2008, some
Member States were reportedly
lagging behind with regard
to removal of tariffs and nontariff
barriers to trade although
the SADC Secretariat
remains confident that come
August, all parties to the
Trade Protocol would have
complied.
However, not all of the 14
SADC Member States are parties
to the Free Trade Area as
Angola and the Democratic
Republic of Congo are currently
not applying the Trade
Protocol, and have asked for
more time.
For SADC Member States,
the Free Trade Area brings
both opportunities and challenges.
Many SADC economies
are too small to support a
large range of viable productive
investments and as such,
the Free Trade Area will provide the opportunity for an
enlarged domestic market
that can foster economic
growth through the
economies of scale and improved
efficiency.
At 25 percent, intra-SADC
trade is still low and is largely
concentrated in the Southern
African Customs Union
(SACU) countries - Botswana,
Lesotho, Namibia, South
Africa and Swaziland.
Official statistics further
show that SADC countries are
attracting only 1 percent of
global foreign direct investment,
a performance that is
greater than most sub-regions
in Africa, but still low.
Against this background,
SADC's move towards a Free
Trade Area becomes an attractive
option insofar as it will increase
the region's competitive
advantage and trade performance
as well as enhance
chances to attract foreign direct
investment.
The opportunities are not
limited to the Free Trade Area.
SADC's strategic plan envisages deeper economic integration
and cooperation through
the creation of a Customs
Union in 2010, a Common
Market by 2015, a Monetary
Union by 2016 and a Single
Currency by 2018.
However, progress towards
deeper economic integration
is hampered by lingering
fears among many
countries. These include the
need to protect infant industries
and fears that goods
from large exporting countries
such as South Africa
may swamp markets of
smaller economies leading to
collapse of their industries.
Beyond these fears, some
Member States are facing constraints
and challenges in their
quest to liberalise trade especially
in circumstances where
they relied heavily on customs
revenue. In such cases, a direct
compensation mechanism
may be necessary to cushion
national budgets and prevent
Member States from plunging
into a debt trap.
Other constraints hindering
intra-regional trade include
high transaction costs
owing, for instance, to inadequate
transport, information,
communications and energy
infrastructure as well as restrictive
customs and immigration
procedures.
It therefore comes as no
surprise that SADC has accorded
high priority to the
implementation of infrastructure
projects to support deeper
economic integration as
was the case at the 2007
SADC Summit in Lusaka
where leaders discussed such
issues.
Once fully functional, there
is no doubt that the Free
Trade Area will lead to continual
innovation, better products,
increased savings and investment,
better paying jobs
as well as enable more goods
to reach SADC consumers at
lower prices.


title:
US$20 billion needed for transport infrastructure

Abstract:
SADC IS seeking US$20 billion
for surface transport systems
and ports development
projects as it lays the road map
for accelerated intra-regional
trade and a customs union by
2010.

body:
SADC IS seeking US$20 billion
for surface transport systems
and ports development
projects as it lays the road map
for accelerated intra-regional
trade and a customs union by
2010.
The regional bloc has come
up with priority investment
areas in designated trade corridors
and is drafting the way
forward with the assistance of
international co-operating
partners on the SADC corridor
development programme.
At a high level ministerial
SADC corridors review meeting
recently held in Namibia, delegates explored institutional
structures required to effectively
implement infrastructure
development of corridors
at national, trans-boundary
and regional levels.
SADC's acting chief director
Remmy Makumbe said
that road, rail and ports development
and expansions will
require US$20 billion, funding
of which is expected to come
from Member States and cooperating
partners.
Makumbe said that intra-
SADC trade will necessitate a
vibrant transport infrastructure,
adding that countries along the shorelines and the
six landlocked SADC Member
States should be able to join
forces and create a seamless
transport infrastructure between
ports and the SADC
hinterland.
“We are also looking at the
status of implementation of
the corridors we have in
SADC and to what extent
have programmes to develop
these corridors been implemented,”
Makumbe said,
adding that in the medium
term, the region has targeted
to spend US$20 billion for surface
transport alone.


title:
China to construct railway across southern Africa

Abstract:
PLANS ARE underway by the
Chinese government to construct
a railway line across
southern Africa from Angola
on the western seaboard to the
United Republic of Tanzania
on the eastern coast of the sub
region.

body:
PLANS ARE underway by the
Chinese government to construct
a railway line across
southern Africa from Angola
on the western seaboard to the
United Republic of Tanzania
on the eastern coast of the sub
region.
The railway line, which will
run from Luanda to Dar es
Salaam, will reduce the dependence
on Durban and
Mombasa as key landing ports
for traders from the east.
In 2001, China pledged to
finance the rehabilitation of
the 1,860-kilometre-long Tanzania-
Zambia Railway
(Tazara) built by the Chinese
government in an aid grant in
the 1970s.
The railway links the Indian
Ocean port city of Dar es
Salaam in Tanzania and its
terminal of Kapiri Mposhi in
Zambia, which will then be
extended, passing through
the southern part of the Democratic
Republic of Congo
and ending up in Angola.
Zambia, is bound to benefit
immensely from the railway
line as its main export product,
copper, is currently being
transported from the Copperbelt
to Dar es Salaam and to
Durban in South Africa.
With plans underway to
rehabilitate the port of Dar
es Salaam, the railway line
will also help to place the
Tanzanian port city as the
main hub on the East
African seaboard.
The railway line is expected
to reduce cargo transportation time from Angola
and the Great Lakes region to
world markets.
Currently, cargo from Angola
has to go round the Cape
before heading out to markets
in the east.
The China International
Fund Ltd is undertaking a
US$300 million rehabilitation
of the Benguela railway line
in Angola, which was destroyed
during the civil war, a
development that is set to increase
trade between Member
States in the region.


title:
Surging oil prices
set to affect
business in the
region

Abstract:
BUSINESSES IN the
SADC region are bracing
for a difficulty second half
of the year as rapidly rising
oil prices look likely to
dent prospects for higher
economic growth.

body:
BUSINESSES IN the
SADC region are bracing
for a difficulty second half
of the year as rapidly rising
oil prices look likely to
dent prospects for higher
economic growth.
Economists have urged
businesses to be more innovative
and adopt more
energy efficient production
methods in the wake of rising
global oil prices that
peaked at US$139 a barrel
early June.
The problems facing the
oil markets are creating a
high level of uncertainty
and pushing up prices
around the world.
Southern African
economies are already feeling
the inflationary pinch,
in part because of increasing
transport and other operational
costs.
Consequently, rising oil
prices may slow the regional
economy this year,
which the African Development
Bank forecast
in May would
expand at the pace
of 6.5 percent per
annum.


title:
COSAFA secures 16 million rands sponsorship

Abstract:
THE COUNCIL of Southern
Africa Football Association
(COSAFA) has secured 16
million rands to stage this
year's COSAFA championship.
COSAFA President, Seketu
Patel, confirmed the development
from Seychelles,
adding that logistics were in
place to successfully stage
the prestigious regional
championship.

body:
THE COUNCIL of Southern
Africa Football Association
(COSAFA) has secured 16
million rands to stage this
year's COSAFA championship.
COSAFA President, Seketu
Patel, confirmed the development
from Seychelles,
adding that logistics were in
place to successfully stage
the prestigious regional
championship.
He said a consortium of regional
companies had put
their resources together to ensure
that the championship
was held this year.
“I am happy to announce
that the COSAFA championship
will finally take
place. I know there has been
a lot of doubt among our
member associations and
countries whether the championship
will take place or
not.”
The COSAFA president
said that it had been difficult
to raise the funds considering
that the regional
football governing body
had other commitments to
stage the men's under-17,
under-20 and women's
championships.
“We just need to secure a
long-term sponsorship by
finding one major sponsor
rather than relying on support
from different companies,”
Patel said.
South Africa is the reigning
champion after they defeated
Zambia 4-3 on penalties
in 2006.
Angola, Zimbabwe and
Zambia have each won the
championship three times
while South Africa has won it
once.
The COSAFA tournament
is very important as the region
prepares for the 2010
World Cup Soccer Showcase.


title:
Namibia launches 5-year
development programme

Abstract:
NAMIBIA HAS launched a
five-year country strategy
Paper and National Indicative
Programme which aims
at human development and
poverty alleviation.

body:
NAMIBIA HAS launched a
five-year country strategy
Paper and National Indicative
Programme which aims
at human development and
poverty alleviation.
The National Planning
Commission (NPC) of
Namibia and the Delegation
of the European Commission
(EC) to Namibia formally
launched the programme,
which will run between 2008
and 2013.
The EC will provide external
assistance of 104.9 million
Euros in that period. A substantial
part of the funds will
be allocated to rural development
and human resources
development.
In rural development, support
will be extended to rural
economic activities with a
view to benefit from improved
market access and poverty alleviation.
In human resources development,
support will increase
the supply of skilled labour to
meet labour market demands
and support national development
goals.
Despite positive Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) growth
rates in Namibia, the country
still requires external resources
to address poverty reduction,
human resources development,
HIV and AIDS
pandemic and other pressing
development challenges.


title:
SADC deploys 400+ observers for Zimbabwe
presidential run-off

Abstract:
SADC HAS doubled its election
observer mission for the
Zimbabwe presidential runoff
election on 27 June.

body:
SADC HAS doubled its election
observer mission for the
Zimbabwe presidential runoff
election on 27 June.
The run-off became necessary
after the 29 March election
did not produce an outright
winner. This is in line
with the country's electoral
law which requires the winning
candidate to have a fiftyplus-
one majority of valid
votes cast.
Having sent the largest
mission numbering 163 members
to observe the 29 March
harmonized elections, SADC
sent an even bigger team to
cover the run-off election.
“We had targeted 300 observers
but we will have more
than 400 on the polling day,”
said Rtd Lt-Col Thanki Mothae,
the director of the Organ
on Politics, Defence and Security
Cooperation directorate at
the SADC Secretariat.
Mothae was speaking as
the advance team of the SADC
Electoral Observer Mission
(SEOM) arrived in the country
in early June. He urged the observers
to be objective and observe
the laws of Zimbabwe
when they are carrying out
their duties.
“The main purpose of the
SADC mission is to help the
people of Zimbabwe through
this electoral process so that it
runs peacefully and smoothly.
“We are not here to take
sides. We are not here to create
confusion but to help the people
of Zimbabwe, therefore
the observers should observe
the laws of Zimbabwe when
discharging their duties and
avoid making individual
statements,” he said.
Mothae also highlighted
that as the SEOM they will be
working under the auspices of
SADC, in line with the SADC Principles and Guidelines
Governing Democratic Elections.
Angola leads this election
observer mission, as the current
head of the Troika for the
SADC Organ on Politics, Defence
and Security Cooperation.
An Election Observer Advance
Team consisting of technical
staff from SADC Member
States was deployed in the
country at the beginning of
June to prepare the ground for
the SEOM.
The advance team was led
by Natangwe Elia Angula
who is SADC Senior Strategic
Analyst for the Directorate of
Politics, Defence and Security
Cooperation.
The technical team studied
the logistical aspects that are
necessary in the election such
as the number of polling stations,
communication and
transport.
“It was after that preliminary
assessment that we were
able to determine the number
of observers needed and informed
the member countries
to nominate their observers,”
Mothae said.
In early May a SADC Ministerial
Committee of the
Organ on Politics, Defence
and Security Cooperation was
also in Zimbabwe to access the
political situation and the
preparations for the presidential
election run-off.
The committee, which was
accompanied by SADC Executive
Secretary Tomaz Salomão,
urged the parties contesting
the run-off to participate
in the election in full observation
of the country's
laws and the SADC Principles
and Guidelines governing
the conduct of democratic
elections.
The presidential run-off is
between the incumbent President
Robert Mugabe of the
ruling Zimbabwe African National
Union Patriotic Front
(Zanu PF) and Morgan Tsvangirai,
leader of the main faction
of the opposition Movement
for Democratic Change
(MDC-T).
A preliminary statement issued
by SEOM before the announcement
of results of the
first round of elections concluded
that Zimbabwe's harmonised
polls on 29 March
were “a peaceful and credible
expression of the will of the
people of Zimbabwe”.
These elections comprised
four ballot papers for presidential,
local council and two
houses of parliament (National
Assembly and Senate).
A SADC summit held in
Zambia on 13 April commended the people of Zimbabwe
for the “peaceful and
orderly manner in which they
conducted themselves before,
during and after the elections.”
The summit also commended
the government of
Zimbabwe for ensuring that
elections were conducted in a
peaceful environment and
urged ZEC to verify and release
results expeditiously in
“accordance with the due
process of law”.
The presidential election
results were announced by
ZEC on 2 May following what
the commission said was a
necessary meticulous verification
process.
The ZEC has announced
new regulations for the presidential
run-off, which are intended
to speed up the release
of the results.


Abstract:
ANGOLAN PRESIDENT
José Eduardo dos Santos has
confirmed that parliamentary
elections will be held on
5 September 2008 “across all
national territory”.

body:
ANGOLAN PRESIDENT
José Eduardo dos Santos has
confirmed that parliamentary
elections will be held on
5 September 2008 “across all
national territory”.
The announcement in
June followed a meeting of
the Council of the Republic,
a cross-party body chaired
by the president, which gave
final approval for the elections
after being briefed on
arrangements and preparations.
The elections will be the
first since the formal end of
the 27-year civil war in 2002,
and have been delayed for
more than a year to allow for
completion of voter registration,
a difficult logistical exercise
in a country still undertaking
post-war reconstruction.
Dos Santos, 65, is leader
of the Popular Movement for
the Liberation of Angola
(MPLA) and became president
of the country in 1979,
after the death of the founding
father of Angola, Dr
Agostinho Neto.
The last national elections
took place during a ceasefire
process in 1992 when the late
Jonas Savimbi of the National
Union for the Total Independence
of Angola (Unita)
stood against dos Santos and
lost the first round before refusing
to contest a run-off.
The next presidential election
in expected in 2009.


title:
SADC ministers accelerate progress towards
gender equality

Abstract:
SADC MINISTERS responsible
for Gender and Women's
Affairs met recently in the
Namibian capital, Windhoek,
to discuss the draft Protocol
on Gender and Development.

body:
SADC MINISTERS responsible
for Gender and Women's
Affairs met recently in the
Namibian capital, Windhoek,
to discuss the draft Protocol
on Gender and Development.
The objective of the meeting
was to prepare for presentation
of the protocol to the
Summit of Heads of State and
Government of the 14 Member
States in August.
The agenda, with the theme
"SADC Accelerating Progress
in Achieving Gender Equality",
allowed the gender ministers to
reflect on the results of the regional
meeting of SADC senior
officials held in Livingstone,
Zambia, in December 2007
with the objective of fine tuning
the contents of the protocol.
Namibian President Hifikepunye
Pohamba said in
his opening address that
progress has been made in
sensitising citizens on gender
issues, but there is still need
for a legally binding instrument
to accelerate the process.
Pohamba's statement was
presented by the former gender
minister, Netumbo Nandi-
Ndaitwah, who is now the
Minister of Environment and
Tourism.
The gender ministers' discussion
resulted from the decision
of SADC leaders at their
Summit last year in Zambia to
defer signing the draft protocol
until wider consultations
could be held, especially on
implementation of targets.
The draft was referred back
to SADC ministers responsible
for gender for further national
consultations.
Underscoring the importance
of reviewing the
draft so as to reach a
consensus before the
protocol is resubmitted
to Summit in
2008, the SADC Gender
Unit prepared a roadmap
towards approval of the protocol,
with time-bound actions
to be undertaken before resubmission.
The meeting of SADC ministers
in Windhoek was the
third step in the agreed
process.
The first step was the meeting
of senior officials in December
2007, while the second
consisted of national consultations
with all stakeholders
from January to March 2008.
Before the document can be
presented at the Summit,
however, it must be discussed at a meeting of justice ministers,
which is the fourth step
in the roadmap.
A protocol is the most binding
of SADC legal instruments
and shows the full commitment
of SADC governments
to address challenges faced by
women in the region.


title:
Namibia reaches target of 30 percent women in National Assembly

Abstract:
NAMIBIA HAS become the
fourth country in the region to
achieve 30 percent female representation
in parliament.
Three more women were
appointed to parliament in
Namibia in May, bringing to
24 the number of women out
of a total 78 members in the
National Assembly.

body:
NAMIBIA HAS become the
fourth country in the region to
achieve 30 percent female representation
in parliament.
Three more women were
appointed to parliament in
Namibia in May, bringing to
24 the number of women out
of a total 78 members in the
National Assembly.
This gives women 31 percent
of the seats, up from the
previous 27 percent.
The women were appointed
on party lines to replace
three members of parliament
who had died or resigned, two
from the ruling SWAPO party
and one from the opposition.
Under Namibia's electoral
system of Proportional Representation
(PR), the electorate
votes for party lists containing
candidates presented by each
party. If a candidate cannot
take up their seat then the next
person on the list is normally
appointed.
Some political parties in
countries using the PR system
select women candidates for
every second or third place on
their list to ensure equitable
representation.
Namibia has shown a consistent
commitment to ensuring
women's equal participation
in politics and decisionmaking
as evidenced by the
upward trend in the number
of women in parliament.
At the last general election
in 2004, the number of women
in Parliament increased from
20 percent to 27 percent. At the
same time Namibia appointed
a woman, Libertina Amathila
as Deputy Prime Minister.
Women were also appointed
to the positions of Deputy
Speaker of the National Assembly,
Minister of Justice and
Attorney General, as well as
Minster of Finance.
With the latest appointments,
Namibia becomes the
fourth SADC country to attain
the target set out in the SADC
Declaration on Gender and
Development in 1997, joining
Mozambique, South Africa
and the United Republic of Tanzania in fulfilling this
quota.
The voluntary party quota,
and the PR system, is also
used in South Africa and
Mozambique, and thus it is no
coincidence that these two
have the highest representation
of women in parliament
in the region.
Tanzania has a constituency
system of First Past The
Post (FPTP) contested by
both men and women, but
the constitution guarantees
that one-third additional
seats are reserved for women,
appointed under a PR system
based on the number of seats
each party wins in the election.
Women Representation in SADC Member States in the
Last Two Election

Country
Election Year Women MPs % Election Year Women MPs % Electoral system



Angola - - 1992 9.5 PR

Botswana 1999 18.2 2004 11.1 FPTP

Congo DRC - - 2006 12 FPTP

Lesotho 2002 12 2007 23 FPTP

Madagascar 2002 - 2007 7.9 FPTP

Malawi 1999 8.3 2004 17 FPTP

Mauritius 2000 5.7 2005 17 FPTP

Mozambique 1999 28.6 2004 33.3 PR

Namibia 1999 19.2 2004 24.4 PR

South Africa 1999 30 2004 37.8 PR

Swaziland 1998 7.3 2003 19 FPTP


Tanzania 2000 16.3 2005 30.3 FPTP; PR*

Zambia 2001 12.7 2006 14.7 FPTP

Zimbabwe 2005 15.8 2008 13 FPTP
Compiled by SARDC WIDSAA 2008
	
*Constitution of United Republic of Tanzania guarantees at least one-third seats for women under
	additional PR system
	Key: PR - Proportional Representation
	
FPTP - First Past The Post


title:
Africa Day: Marking the
progress of the continent

Abstract:
AFRICAN LEADERS and political activists gathered in Ghana on 15 April 1958,
for the first conference of independent African states, hosted by Kwame Nkrumah,
just one year after leading Ghana to independence on 6 March 1957.

body:
AFRICAN LEADERS and political activists gathered in Ghana on 15 April 1958,
for the first conference of independent African states, hosted by Kwame Nkrumah,
just one year after leading Ghana to independence on 6 March 1957.
This conference was significant in that it represented the first Pan-African conference
held on African soil, representing the collective expression of African resistance
to colonialism, and was hosted by the first sub-Saharan African country
to gain independence from a colonial power.
African Unity
“To many people, the unity of African states which we regard as
the primary basis of our African policy appears visionary and
unattainable. We do not hold this view. The unity of African
states can be a reality and it will be achieved earlier than many
of us suppose.” Nkrumah
The previous conference, in 1945, was held in London where Nkrumah helped
George Padmore to organize the fifth Pan-African Congress, where he drafted the
“Declaration of the Colonial Peoples of the World”.
Nkrumah returned home in 1947 to engage in active politics and formed the
Convention People's Party in 1949, saying: “In all political struggles there come
rare moments, hard to distinguish but fatal to let slip, when all must be set upon
a hazard, and out of the simple man is ordained strength.”
Just a year after Independence, he hosted the First Conference of Independent
African States. There were eight, including Ghana, Egypt, Ethiopia, Liberia, Libya,
Morocco, Sudan and Tunisia. These were the total representation for Africa at the
United Nations.
Representatives of the National Liberation Front of Algeria and the Union of
Cameroonian Peoples also attended.
The conference called for the founding of African Freedom Day, a day to “mark
each year the onward progress of the liberation movement, and to symbolise the
determination of the people of Africa to free themselves from foreign domination
and exploitation.”
Five years later another historic meeting took place in Ethiopia, after many
more countries had gained political independence.
On 25 May 1963, leaders of 32 independent African states met in Addis Ababa to
form the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which is now the African Union
(AU).
By then, more than two-thirds of the continent had achieved independence.
At this historic meeting, the date of Africa Freedom Day was changed from 15
April to 25 May and Africa Freedom Day was declared African Liberation Day, now
celebrated across the continent as Africa Day.
The commemoration provides a platform for remembering African history,
from the rich pre-colonial development period through the dark days of slavery
and colonialism right up to the liberation of southern Africa and the end of the
apartheid system in South Africa in May 1994, more than 30 years after the formation
of the OAU and its Liberation Committee.
Nkrumah hoped the OAU would become the foundation for an African Union
government, and it did, 40 years after he led the people of the former Gold Coast
to independence as Ghana.
The African Union is now established with a permanent Commission to run its
operations, a development arm called the New Partnership for Africa's Development
(NEPAD), and a Pan-African Parliament.


Abstract:
AT THE  end of 1958, Kwame Nkrumah hosted another
conference, the All-African People's Conference, in Accra,
attended by men who were to become notable political
leaders, including Patrice Lumumba, Julius Nyerere and
others. They returned home determined to end colonial
rule and to make their territories base areas for the liberation
movements.

body:
AT THE  end of 1958, Kwame Nkrumah hosted another
conference, the All-African People's Conference, in Accra,
attended by men who were to become notable political
leaders, including Patrice Lumumba, Julius Nyerere and
others. They returned home determined to end colonial
rule and to make their territories base areas for the liberation
movements.
</table
Nkrumah addressed many of Africa's contemporary
challenges in his books, written in the 1960s, including I
Speak of Freedom, The Struggle Continues, and Africa Must
Unite. He could see many of the challenges ahead when he
wrote that “Ghana's independence is meaningless unless it
is linked with the total liberation of Africa… and with the
projection of the African personality in the international
community.“

In the latter he wrote of the dangers of balkanisation, including
potential division and conflict, the vital need for
political unification, and All-African economic planning.

In Challenge of the Congo, Nkrumah showed “how
meaningless political independence could be without
economic freedom and how necessary it was for African
solutions to be found for African problems.”


body:
Public holidays in SADC
June - August 2008
1 June International Children's Day Angola
14 June Freedom Day Malawi
16 June Youth Day South Africa
24 June Fisherman's Day DRC
25 June Independence Day Mozambique
26 June Independence Day Madagascar
30 June Independence Day DRC
1 July Sir Seretse Khama Day Botswana
3 July Public Holiday Botswana
6 July Independence Day Malawi
7 July Heroes Day Zambia
7 July International Trade Fair Tanzania
8 July Unity Day Zambia
17 July King's Birthday Lesotho
19 July President's Day Botswana
20 July Public Holiday Botswana
22 July Public Holiday Swaziland
1 August Parents' Day DRC
4 August Farmers' Day Zambia
8 August Farmer's Day Tanzania
9 August National Women's Day South Africa
11 August Heroes' Day Zimbabwe
12 August Defence Forces Day Zimbabwe
15 August Assumption Day Madagascar, Mauritius
26 August Heroes' Day Namibia


body:
EVENTS DIARY 2008
June 2008


2-4, Zambia
14th Meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee of Experts (ICE)

 On this occasion, the ICE membership will be expanded to
co-opt other relevant ministries including those with specific
responsibilities towards the Free Trade Area.



4-6, South Africa
World Economic Forum on Africa

The 18th World Economic Forum on Africa will discuss the
impacts of global businesses on the continent. Discussions will
review the latest initiatives to tackle the business climate,
physical and social infrastructure as well as insights into
emerging priorities of new business leaders.


7-12, South Africa
12th Session of the African Ministerial Conference on
Environment

The conference is the highest organ of the African Ministerial
Conference on the Environment (AMCEN), whose members
are African ministers responsible for the environment. AMCEN
has led the process for the development of the action plan for
the Environment Initiative for the New Partnership for Africa's
Development (NEPAD) and meets to discuss and agree on
programmes and initiatives to facilitate the effective
implementation of its mandate towards environmental
protection in Africa.




17-20, Swaziland
SADC Integrated Committee of Ministers (ICM)

The ICM is comprised of least two ministers from each SADC
Member State. Its role is to ensure proper policy guidance and
coordination of cross-sectoral activities of SADC. The meeting
will review the activities of SADC directorates to ensure the
rapid implementation of programmes that would otherwise
wait for the Council of Ministers.

30-1 July, Egypt
11th Africa Union Summit

The Assembly of Heads of State and Government from the
African Union's 53 member countries will meet in Sharm El
Scheikh, Egypt for its eleventh ordinary session. This year's
theme is, “Meeting the Millennium Development Goals on
Water and Sanitation”. The meeting will be preceded by the
Ordinary Session of the Permanent Representatives and the
Ordinary Session of the Council of Ministers.



July 2008


1-2, South Africa
International Conference on Knowledge and Information
Intermediaries

The conference is meant to put a spotlight on the role of
research brokers and intermediaries and the contribution they
can make in supporting and enabling evidence-based pro-poor
policy and practice. Under the theme, “Locating the power of
in-between”, the conference is organised by the Human
Sciences Research Council of South Africa and the Institute of
Development Studies, United Kingdom (UK).


2-4, France
10th Africa Energy Forum

Launched in 1999, the Africa Energy Forum is Africa's premier
annual power and gas investment and business forum, where
governments and power utility companies discuss the
international energy situation with focus on Africa's power and
gas sectors.



Abstract:
SADC LAUNCHES its free trade area this August,
signalling the creation of one of the largest
free trade zones on the African continent with
some 250 million people.

body:
SADC LAUNCHES its free trade area this August,
signalling the creation of one of the largest
free trade zones on the African continent with
some 250 million people.
The official launch is expected during the
28th SADC Summit in South Africa, a historic
event that will usher in a new era of economic
integration and rapid industrialisation of the
sub-region through expanded trading opportunities.
Premised on the gradual removal of barriers
to trade, the Free Trade Area (FTA) is a culmination
of an eight-year process that started
with the signing of the SADC Trade Protocol in
1996, which came into force in 2000.
In addition to the Trade Protocol, SADC
Member States have adopted the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development Plan (RISDP),
which outlines the roadmap for further regional
economic integration.
The RISDP outlines economic integration
targets that include the establishment of an
FTA in 2008, a Customs Union by 2010, Common 
Market by 2015 and creation of a Monetary
Union by 2016, while a regional central bank
and common currency are expected by 2018.
Thus the creation of an FTA this August signifies
the achievement of a major milestone towards
the quest for deeper economic integration
in SADC.
The FTA is rooted in the classical economics
principle of comparative advantage. The crude
argument is that Member States will produce
for export only those goods for which they have
a comparative advantage while importing from
regional neighbours goods that they cannot
produce more efficiently at home.
Industrialists will enjoy enhanced market access
as well as benefit from economies of scale
as they produce for a bigger regional, as opposed
to a national market.
On the other hand, consumers will have access
to a cheaper and wider product range on
supermarket shelves as goods would now
enter national boundaries free of customs duties.
An FTA provides an ideal
environment for rapid industrialization
and modernization
as firms up productivity
levels to maintain a competitive
edge over others.
These assumptions are of
course burdened by many
complexities in the everyday
conduct of international trade
and realities at the national
level.
For example, with few exceptions,
SADC Member State
exports are not only similar
but mostly primary and unfinished
goods while imports are
mainly capital and intermediate
goods.
Furthermore, the majority
of SADC economies are less
developed, supported by nascent
industries which still require
some nurturing before
they are exposed to the chill
winds of international trade.
The lingering fears that
goods from large economies
such as South Africa may
swamp weaker economies
leading to collapse of their industries
have tended to slow
progress towards set targets.
In an attempt to address
these fears, SADC has adopted
the principle of variable
geometry, which allows for
asymmetrical trade liberalization
based on the level of economic
development in each
country.
This approach has allowed
South Africa, which is the
most developed economy,
along with its fellow members
in the Southern African Customs
Union (SACU) -
Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia
and Swaziland - to liberalise
faster than the rest.
Since 2000, Member States
have been gradually removing
tariff and nontariff
barriers to trade
with the aim of
achieving an 85 percent
threshold of intra-regional trade at zero
tariffs by 2008.
The remaining 15 percent
constitutes mainly sensitive
products such as textiles,
clothing and motor vehicles,
which are to be liberalized by
2012. Few products such as
precious and strategic metals
(gold, silver and platinum)
and second hand goods have
been excluded from liberalization.
Principally, the FTA will
allow goods originating from
SADC Member States to enter
neighbouring country
economies free of customs duties.
To qualify for duty-free,
goods have to meet certain criteria
as spelt out in the agreed
rules of origin.
While growing, intra-
SADC trade is still low at
around 25 percent. Much of
that trade is concentrated in
the SACU region while most
international trade is still taking
place under bilateral
agreements among fellow
SADC Member States or with
former colonial powers with
limited utilization of the Trade
Protocol.
Intra-SADC trade is also
constrained by lack of infrastructure.
It therefore comes as
no surprise that SADC leaders
have placed high priority on
the development of regional
infrastructure.
In light of the FTA and the
Customs Union, the need for
more efficient and seamless
transport corridors that better
connect the region has become
more important than ever before.
New corridors are expected
to complement traditional
surface routes which were historically
designed to ferry
goods to and from the rest of
the world via the regional sea
ports. These are currently not
sufficient to facilitate interstate
movement of goods. 
Key Export and Import Commodities of
SADC Member States
Member State
Major Exports
Major Imports
Angola
Crude oil, diamonds, refined pe-
Machinery and electrical equip-
troleum products, gas, coffee,
ment, vehicles and spare parts;
sisal, fish and fish products, tim-
medicines, food, textiles, military
ber, cotton.
goods.
Botswana
Diamonds, copper, nickel, soda
Foodstuffs, machinery, electrical
ash, meat.
goods, transport equipment, tex-
tiles, fuel and petroleum prod-
ucts, wood and paper products,
metal and metal products.
DRC
Diamonds, copper, crude oil,
Foodstuffs, mining and other ma-
coffee, cobalt.
chinery, transport equipment,
fuels.
Lesotho
Manufactures 75% (clothing,
Food; building materials, vehicles,
footwear), wool and mohair, food
machinery, medicines, petroleum
and live animals
products.
Madagascar
Coffee, vanilla, cloves, shellfish,
Capital goods, petroleum, con-
sugar, cotton cloth, chromite, pe-
sumer goods, food.
troleum products.
Malawi
Tobacco 60%, tea, sugar, cotton,
Food, petroleum products, semi
coffee, peanuts, wood products,
manufactures, consumer goods,
apparel.
transportation equipment.
Mauritius
Clothing and textiles, sugar, cut
Manufactured goods, capital
flowers, molasses.
equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum
products, chemicals.
Mozambique
Aluminium, prawns, cashews,
Machinery and equipment, vehi-
cotton, sugar, citrus, timber, bulk
cles, fuel, chemicals, metal prod-
electricity.
ucts, foodstuffs, textiles.
Namibia
Diamonds, copper, gold, zinc,
Foodstuffs, petroleum products
lead, uranium; cattle, processed
and fuel, machinery and equip-
fish, karakul skins.
ment, chemicals.
South Africa
Gold, diamonds, platinum, other
Machinery and equipment,
metals and minerals, machinery
chemicals, petroleum products,
and equipment.
scientific instruments, foodstuffs.
Swaziland
Soft drink concentrates, sugar,
Motor vehicles, machinery, trans-
wood pulp, cotton yarn, refriger-
port equipment, foodstuffs, petro-
ators, citrus and canned fruit.
leum products, chemicals.
Tanzania
Gold, coffee, cashew nuts, manu-
Consumer goods, machinery and
factured cotton.
transportation equipment, indus-
trial raw materials, crude oil.
Zambia
Copper/cobalt 64%, electricity;
Machinery, transportation equip-
tobacco, flowers, cotton.
ment, petroleum products, electric-
ity, fertilizer; foodstuffs, clothing.
Zimbabwe
Cotton, tobacco, gold, ferroal-
Machinery and transport equip-
loys, textiles/clothing.
ment, other manufactures, chem-
icals, fuels.


title:
Implementation of SADC Trade Protocol
on track

Abstract:
THE IMPLEMENTATION of
the SADC Trade Protocol has
been a long and painstaking regional
process that will continue
beyond the formal launch of the
Free Trade Area expected in August.

body:
THE IMPLEMENTATION of
the SADC Trade Protocol has
been a long and painstaking regional
process that will continue
beyond the formal launch of the
Free Trade Area expected in August.
Since 1996 when the Trade
Protocol was signed, coming
into force in 2000 following a
ratification process, 12 SADC
Member States have signed up
to the protocol and are therefore
part of the Free Trade Area
(FTA), with the exception of Angola
and the Democratic Republic
of Congo who have asked for
more time before joining the
FTA.
The main instrument of trade
liberalization as provided for in
the protocol has been the elimination
of customs tariffs and
non-tariff barriers on the bulk of
intra-SADC trade.
Once the Trade Protocol
came into force in 2000, the first
major step was for Member
States to undertake negotiations
for tariff phase-down which entails
gradual removal of customs
duties.
The negotiating process was
conducted through the “request-
offer approach” under the
auspices of the Trade Negotiating
Forum, which met regularly
as provided for in the Trade Protocol.
Critical to the negotiating
process was the principle of
asymmetry, which was born out
of the realization that, among
other issues, SADC Member
States were at varying levels of
economic development. For
purposes of implementation of
the Trade Protocol, Member
States were put into the following
categories:
 Developed Countries (mainly
South Africa but de facto,
Southern African Customs
Union - SACU);
 Developing Countries (Mauritius
and Zimbabwe) and;
 Least Developed Countries --
LDCs (being the remainder i.e.
Angola, DRC, Madagascar,
Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania
and Zambia).


Based on these clusters,
SADC pursued a tariff phasedown
programme at variable
scales of speed in which the developed
countries cluster was
expected to generally front-load
their tariff reductions to achieve
the “substantially all trade”
threshold by about year-five of
implementation, that is by 2005.
The developing countries
cluster was expected to generally
mid-load their tariff reductions
to achieve the same threshold
by about year seven or eight
of implementation, that is by
2007-8 while the last category,
the LDCs, was expected to backload
their tariff reductions to beyond
the 8-year threshold but
not to exceed 12 years.
However, for category A and
B products (see box), tariffs were
to reach the zero percent level by
2008 in line with the World Trade
Organization requirement which
stipulates that substantially all
trade should be free in an FTA.
The “substantially all trade”
threshold for SADC is made up
of 85 percent of all products, constituting category A and B
products but excluding category
C products.

Product Categorization for SADC Tariff Phase-down

Product category Description

A Products whose tariffs would move to 0% (or
were already 0%) at start of the phase-down
process, i.e. in 2000
B Products subject to tariff phase-down to 0%
over an eight-year period to 2008
C Sensitive products, phase-down over 12-year
period to 2012
E Excluded from preferential trade

A Mid-Term Review commissioned
by SADC in 2004 revealed
that Member States were
implementing the Trade Protocol
but progress was generally
slow. One of the key recommendations
to ensure compliance
was that Member States were to
effect tariff phase-downs on the
1st of January every year.
An audit done by the Southern
African Trade Hub for the
SADC Secretariat indicated that
as of February 2008, Mauritius,
Mozambique, SACU countries,
United Republic of Tanzania,
Zambia and Zimbabwe had
gazetted their tariff offers or issued
notices effecting the 2008
tariff phase-down. Malawi
would consider further reductions
during the 2008/09 budget
while Madagascar only acceded
to the Protocol in 2006 and is allowed
more time to catch up.
In addition to removal of tariffs,
Member States have also
agreed to several other trade facilitation
measures such as the
elimination of non-tariff barriers
to trade. Removal of non-tariff
barriers involves harmonization
of customs rules and procedures,
the harmonization of sanitary
and phyto-sanitary measures as well as adoption and implementation
of common rules of origin.
Member States are currently
developing a model Customs Act
that will facilitate the harmonization
of customs regulations and
procedures. Work on the SADC
Customs Bond Guarantee
Scheme has been completed
while a decision is expected soon
on the Single Customs Document
and the Regional Goods Transit
System, both of which have already
been piloted.
Given that not all products
qualify for duty-free under an
FTA, a considerable amount of
time was spent on negotiating
the rules of origin, which were
eventually agreed as being
product specific. A SADC Certificate
of Origin, which authenticates
goods that originate from
the region, is already in use in
Member States.
The rules of origin are to ensure
that goods not originating
from the region do not enjoy tariff
preference. They are also to
ensure that the region is not
flooded with imports from third
countries.
While considerable work has
gone into negotiating and agreeing
regional instruments of the
FTA, the focus will now shift to
the national level where compliance
matters most.


title:
States face overlapping membership decision

Abstract:
WITH THE SADC region
moving closer towards a Customs
Union, the question of
overlapping membership is
becoming more pertinent.

body:
WITH THE SADC region
moving closer towards a Customs
Union, the question of
overlapping membership is
becoming more pertinent.
A Tripartite Task Force involving
SADC, the Common
Market for East and Southern
Africa (COMESA) and the
East African Community
(EAC) has been established to
find ways of harmonizing
trade regimes of the three
trading blocs.
The work of the task force
will feed into a Tripartite Summit
expected in October 2008.
Membership overlaps exist
in SADC, COMESA and EAC,
and challenges have been created
by the fact that all three
plan to create customs unions,
a situation that presents technical
challenges as a country
cannot belong to more than
one customs union.
With the SADC Free Trade
Area (FTA) taking effect this
year, momentum has now
gathered towards completion
of a Custom Union in 2010.


Comesa, which created its
own FTA in 2004 plans to
launch its Customs Union by
December 2008, while plans
for an EAC Customs Union
are also underway.
All members of the Southern
African Customs Union
(SACU) belong to SADC,
which means that with the
creation of a SADC Customs
Union, the SACU arrangement
automatically falls away.
Seven SADC countries –
Angola, DRC, Malawi, Mauritius,
Swaziland, Zambia and
Zimbabwe – are members of
both SADC and Comesa. The
United Republic of Tanzania is
a member of the EAC.
Overlapping membership
presents challenges,
particularly
when trading blocs
move towards deeper  levels of economic integration.
For example, Zambia belongs
to both SADC and
Comesa. Under the SADC
Protocol on Trade, Zambia is
to extend duty-free treatment
to South African products.
However, because of its
Comesa membership, Zambia
is to implement a common external tariff in line with the
Comesa Customs Union,
which excludes South Africa.
In essence, Zambia has agreed
to simultaneously promote
free trade with South Africa
and maintain Comesa tariffs
against that same country.
The multiple membership
conundrum has also fragmented SADC countries during
negotiations for Economic
Partnership Agreements
(EPAs) with the European
Union with some Member
States negotiating outside the
SADC umbrella.


title:
Zimbabwe, Zambia sign agreement
on border post

Abstract:
ZAMBIA AND Zimbabwe have
signed a bilateral agreement,
which will result in the transformation
of Chirundu into a onestop
border post.

body:
ZAMBIA AND Zimbabwe have
signed a bilateral agreement,
which will result in the transformation
of Chirundu into a onestop
border post.
The project is in line with plans
for regional economic integration
under SADC and Comesa.
Speaking at the signing of the
agreement in Harare, Zimbabwe's
Industry and International Trade
Minister, Obert Mpofu, said, “The
coming into fruition of the onestop
border concept is an important
milestone towards deepening
the level of economic integration.”
The agreement will see the
two countries increasing trade by
20 percent while at the same time
saving over US$450 million
through reduced transit times.
Speaking at the same occasion,
Zambian Minister for
Commerce, Trade and Industry,
Felix Mutati, said, “Whilst the
signing of the agreement will
ensure the consolidation and
deepening of economic integration
within the realm of the
Comesa/SADC 2008 and 2010
goals, it is critical that the underlining
challenges of multiple
agencies and clearing procedures
are addressed.”
Some of the envisaged benefits
would be the reduction of
time spent at the border posts,
reduced costs of doing business
while indirectly dealing with
the socio-economic issues that
were arising as a result of delays
at the border post.


title:
Trade pact boosts
SACU ties with South
America

Abstract:
THE SOUTHERN African Customs
Union (SACU) has finally
concluded a preferential trade
pact with the South American
trading bloc, Mercosur, after
nearly three years of negotiations.

body:
THE SOUTHERN African Customs
Union (SACU) has finally
concluded a preferential trade
pact with the South American
trading bloc, Mercosur, after
nearly three years of negotiations.
The deal is an extension of
the original trade arrangement
between SACU and Mercosur --
which comprises Argentina,
Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay -
- concluded in 2004 but was
deemed lacking in many areas.
SACU's chief trade negotiator,
Xavier Carim, recently said
all technical negotiations had
been concluded on the deal,
which includes 2000 product
lines.
The agreement would now
be submitted to the national
authorities to ensure compliance
with national laws, after
which a date would be set for
ministerial signature and ratification.
But a large portion of goods
manufactured in the two trade
regions will still face tariff barriers
upon entry, notably automotive
products, which remain
heavily protected in some regional
countries such as South
Africa and Namibia.
New-generation issues such
as services and investment were
also not included.
Carim said, however, that the
agreement included a provision
for the future broadening of the
deal, should the parties wish to
pursue that.
The deal is expected to be in
force before the end of the year.


Abstract:
AS SOUTHERN Africa takes
regional integration to unprecedented
levels with the
inauguration of the Free
Trade Area (FTA) in August
2008, the need for efficient,
seamless and cost-effective
infrastructure corridors has
become more urgent than
ever before.

body:
AS SOUTHERN Africa takes
regional integration to unprecedented
levels with the
inauguration of the Free
Trade Area (FTA) in August
2008, the need for efficient,
seamless and cost-effective
infrastructure corridors has
become more urgent than
ever before.
Trade in SADC is hampered
by the multiplicity of
borders and the delays at
many border posts while documents
and cargoes are
checked.
As noted by the Director of
Infrastructure and Services
Directorate at SADC Secretariat,
Remmy Makumbe, the
success of a free trade zone
hinges upon an effective plan
to implement infrastructure
development corridors at national
and regional levels.
Makumbe further underscored
the need to mobilise
resources in order to address
the issue of transport infrastructure,
especially roads,
rail and ports. This he said
will require US$20 billion
funding which is expected to
come from Member States
and co-operating partners.
The increase in intra-
SADC trade requires a vibrant
transport infrastructure
while seamless networks are
needed to interconnect landlocked
countries as well as
link them to the major ports.
Historically, the SADC region
has had several traditional
surface transport corridors
operating as natural routes to
and from the sea. These have
been used primarily for export
of raw materials from the region
to the rest of the world as
well as import of finished
products from the rest of the
world into the region.
However, the operations
of some of these corridors,
said Makumbe, have been hampered to varying degrees
by infrastructure bottlenecks
such as “poor roads, bridges,
curves, border infrastructure
layout and logistics, as well
as lengthy and unnecessarily
complicated and non-harmonised
customs border procedures
and documents.”
“The performance of these
corridors, when benchmarked
against transport corridors
around the world, has
revealed poor levels of efficiency,
poor turnaround and
hence high costs of transportation,
resulting in poor
competitiveness of exports
from the region in global
markets as well as high landing
costs of imported products
in the region,” said
Makumbe, who is also the
Acting Chief Director of
SADC.
Inevitably, these high costs
have been passed on to the
final consumer by the various
service providers. This situation
has given rise to a relatively
lower quality of life for
the majority of SADC citizens.
In response to a directive
by the 2007 SADC Summit,
the Secretariat is developing a
SADC Corridor Strategy in
consultation with the Member
States. Makumbe said
that SADC has launched a
study to put together the best
corridor practices of the region
as well as those from
elsewhere around the world as an integral part of the
wider corridor strategies to
develop and modernize all
the SADC Corridors.
The SADC Corridors that
are being developed in conjunction
with the Member
States include: the Dar es
Salaam Corridor, Mtwara Development
Corridor, Nacala
Development Corridor, Shire-
Zambezi Waterway, Beira
Corridor, Limpopo Corridor,
Maputo Corridor, Libombo
Development Corridor,
Lesotho Railway, Trans-Kalahari
Corridor, Walvis Bay
Corridor, Trans-Caprivi Corridor,
North-South Corridor,
Trans-Kunene Corridor, Lobito
Corridor, and the Malanje
Corridor.
The proposed Kazungula
Bridge, which is meant to link
Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe,
is one project that is
pivotal in stimulating trade
within the context of the
SADC Free Trade Area and
Customs Union in 2010.
“I am convinced that even
though the three countries
are implementing this project,
its impact will be felt in the
[SADC] region as a whole,”
said Makumbe.
Consultations are underway
on the implementation
of the Kazungula Bridge Project
and a contract is expected
to be signed once all outstanding
issues are agreed
upon by the parties involved.
The construction of the
Kazungula Bridge is meant to
replace the existing ferry,
which constitutes a major
bottleneck to free movement
of persons and goods between
the three countries.


Abstract:
SADC TRANSPORT Ministers
have raised concern over
the poor state of roads in the
region that is constraining the
flow of transport.

body:
SADC TRANSPORT Ministers
have raised concern over
the poor state of roads in the
region that is constraining the
flow of transport.
At a recent meeting in
Namibia convened to review
progress on corridor development,
the ministers said that
poor infrastructure in the region
is responsible for the
high cost of goods especially
in landlocked countries of the
region.
“Roads in the northern
and central corridors need to be fixed as they make it impossible
for the easy flow of
transport and movement of
goods and services,” the ministers
agreed.
The ministers also noted
that there must be a master
plan for the modernization of
the railways for the region,
adding that a modern highspeed
railway line for the region
will ease the burden
from the roads and increase
the speed of movement of
bulk cargo into and outside
the region.


title:
AU defers continental government to next year

Abstract:
AFRICAN LEADERS have deferred
their discussion of a
union government until January
next year after failing to reach a
consensus at their Summit in
Egypt in July.

body:
AFRICAN LEADERS have deferred
their discussion of a
union government until January
next year after failing to reach a
consensus at their Summit in
Egypt in July.
A high-level expert group of
12 heads of state was established
at the 10th African Union
(AU) Summit in Ghana early
this year, specifically to accelerate
the process of establishing a
union government but consensus
remains elusive.
Heads of State and Government
attending the 11th Session
of the AU Summit on 30 June
and 1 July in Egypt, decided to
defer the discussion to their next
summit in January 2009, to be
held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
In the discussions to date,
African leaders have retained different
perspectives on the timeframe
for implementation, with
Libya and some West African
states including Senegal pressing
for the immediate establishment
of a union government and appointment
of ministers.
Other countries, including
South Africa, Ethiopia and most
of eastern and southern Africa
have adopted a more cautious
approach to implementation,
wanting more consensus and
clarity on the operations and
mandate of such a government.
While the AU is agreed on
the movement towards a union
government, there are different
views on the timing and model
of governance.
East and southern Africa advocate
strengthening the Regional
Economic Communities
(RECs) as building blocks, taking
time to build regional economies.
Libya and Senegal are insisting
on immediate transformation
to a United States of Africa,
advocating a top-down approach
starting with the formation
of a union government and
election of its leader as a matter
of urgency, to replace the current
AU Commission.
“We are going to announce the
union government next January,”
Senegalese President Abdoulaye
Wade said after the Summit.
The areas of divergence recall
the original debates at the founding
Summit of the Organisation
of African Unity (OAU) in May
1963 when President Kwame
Nkrumah of Ghana wanted immediate
unification of the few
countries that were independent,
in a pan-African government.
President Julius Nyerere of
the United Republic of Tanzania
was equally eloquent in advocating
a “brick-by-brick” approach,
starting with the pursuance of
political independence for the remaining
countries under colonial
rule or apartheid, which then included
most of southern Africa.
The current debate was reignited
after the completion of political
independence marked by the end of apartheid rule in South Africa
in 1994, signalling the achievement
of political independence
and the subsequent transformation
of the OAU to the AU.
At the conclusion of the Summit,
African leaders expressed
their commitment to national
strategies and action plans for
achieving the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs) target
for water and sanitation over
the next seven years.
AU Summit Resolution On Zimbabwe

The African Union Assembly, meeting in its 11th Ordinary Session held on June 30 to July
1, 2008 in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt,

DEEPLY CONCERNED with the prevailing situation in Zimbabwe;

DEEPLY CONCERNED with the negative reports of SADC, the African Union and the
Pan-African Parliament observers on the Zimbabwean Presidential run-off election held
on June 27, 2008;

DEEPLY CONCERNED about the violence and the loss of life that has occurred in Zimbabwe.

CONSIDERING the urgent need to prevent further worsening of the situation and with a
view to avoid spread of conflict with the consequential negative impact on the country and
the sub-region;

FURTHER CONSIDERING the need to create an environment conducive for democracy,
as well as the development of the people of Zimbabwe;

EXPRESSING its appreciation to SADC, and its Organ on Politics, Defence and Security
Co-operation, as well as the Facilitator of the intra-Zimbabwe dialogue, His Excellency
Thabo Mbeki, President of the Republic of South Africa, and His Excellency Jean Ping,
Chairperson of the African Union Commission for the ongoing work aimed at reconciling
the political parties;

RECOGNISING the complexity of the situation in Zimbabwe;

NOTING the willingness of the political leaders of Zimbabwe to enter into negotiations to
establish a Government of National Unity;

NOTING FURTHER the preparatory discussions on this matter had already started, under
SADC facilitation;

Hereby decide:
 TO ENCOURAGE President Robert Mugabe and the leader of the MDC Party Mr Morgan
Tsvangirai to honour their commitment to initiate dialogue with a view to promoting peace,
stability, democracy and the reconciliation of the Zimbabwean people;
 TO SUPPORT the call, for the creation of a Government of National Unity;
 TO SUPPORT the SADC Facilitation, and to recommend that SADC mediation efforts
should be continued in order to resolve the problems they are facing. In this regard SADC
should establish a mechanism on the ground in order to seize the momentum for a negotiated
solution;
 TO APPEAL to states and all parties concerned to refrain from any action that may negatively
impact on the climate of dialogue;
 In the spirit of all SADC initiatives, the AU remains convinced that the people of Zimbabwe
will be able to resolve their differences and work together once again as one Nation,
provided they receive undivided support from SADC, the AU and the world at large.



title:
RECs urged to
promote African
integration

Abstract:
THE AFRICAN Union Summit
held in Egypt urged Regional
Economic Communities (RECs)
to move the integration agenda
forward in a bid to attain the
overall objectives of the continent.

body:
THE AFRICAN Union Summit
held in Egypt urged Regional
Economic Communities (RECs)
to move the integration agenda
forward in a bid to attain the
overall objectives of the continent.
The integration agenda includes
the movement of people
and goods throughout the continent,
which is home to about
900 million people.
As part of this integration
initiative, a meeting of the Coordination
Committee of the
African Union, African Development
Bank (AfDB) and the
RECs was held on the margins
of the 11th Session of the African
Union Summit.
Chairperson of the African
Union Commission, Jean Ping,
reaffirmed commitment towards
a stronger AU cooperation
with the RECs.
“We cannot afford to
fail. Failing would mean
failing our populations
and leading them deeper
into poverty,” Ping
said.


title:
ADB to spend $1.2
billion on water in
Africa

Abstract:
THE AFRICAN Development
Bank (AfDB) will invest $1.2 billion
on development of water
infrastructure in Africa over the
next three years.

body:
THE AFRICAN Development
Bank (AfDB) will invest $1.2 billion
on development of water
infrastructure in Africa over the
next three years.
This was confirmed by the
bank's president, Donald
Kaberuka, at the 11th Session of
the African Union Summit in
Egypt held under the theme,
“Meeting the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs) on
Water and Sanitation.”
“The implementation of this
water development [programme]
will be carried out both in the
urban and rural areas of African
countries with poor facilities of
access to water and sanitation,”
Kaberuka said.


title:
Oil price hikes put squeeze on regional economies

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA is grappling
with rising global fuel
prices caused by a number of
factors which have pushed the
price of a barrel of crude oil towards
the unprecedented
US$150 mark.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA is grappling
with rising global fuel
prices caused by a number of
factors which have pushed the
price of a barrel of crude oil towards
the unprecedented
US$150 mark.
Global crude oil prices rose
from less than US$100 a barrel
(bbl) at the beginning of 2008 to
a record high of US$146 in early
July, with economists warning
that the price will hit US$200 bbl
before year end.
The current rise in oil prices
represents a 25 percent increase
in the last four months and 400
percent since 2001.
In real terms, except for the
1979 oil shock, this is the highest
price of oil ever.
While some analysts blame
the increased demand from
East Asia, especially China,
others have put the fault on the
strong demand in developed
countries, and political disruptions
in oil-producing countries
such as Iraq, Iran and
Nigeria.
SADC consumers are feeling
the pinch of rising oil prices in
the form of increases in food
and transport costs, increased
interest rates, and a generally
high inflationary economic environment.
In the month of June, interest
rates went up in Botswana,
Namibia and South Africa by
more than five percent.
Fossil fuels account for 95
percent of the energy used in
transport, making the sector the
most prone to surges in oil
prices. Although people are likely
to continue with their daily
business, they will inevitably be
forced to cut down on other
basic requirements.
In the past two months alone,
the price of public transport has
increased by more than 60 percent
in some SADC countries.
For example in Namibia, the
price of fuel went up for the
sixth time this year in July, a situation
which was summarised
by the Minister of Mines and
Energy, Erkki Nghimtina, as “detrimental to the travelling
public”.
The cost of petroleum products
affects just about every economic
activity, directly or indirectly.
Since petroleum drives agriculture,
its increased cost will
also drive up the price of food,
making more and more people,
especially those in the rural
areas, vulnerable to poverty.
For net oil importing countries,
of which these are the majority
in the region, the rise in oil
prices tends to slow down economic
progress.
For example, countries such
as South Africa and Zambia,
which have enjoyed a healthy
growth rate of between 3 and 5
percent per year, have been
forced to revise their growth
prospects due to higher fuel
prices.
The African Development
Bank estimates that the current
high price of oil will translate -
as a first round effect - into a
higher average inflation of 1 to 3 percentage points for most
countries in SADC for 2008 and
2009 respectively.
Second, as the short-run demand
for oil is highly inelastic,
consumers are forced to reduce
their consumption of other
goods and services to meet
higher energy bills.
Third, net oil importing countries
face balance of payment
constraints, as they must secure
additional resources to pay for
the higher oil import bill.
Concomitantly, governments
face tighter budget constraints,
which can affect their capacity
to finance social programmes
while some may be forced to
borrow more from external
sources, threatening another
debt trap.
High fuel prices have
prompted countries to reconsider
their over-reliance on fossil
fuels and brought to prominence
the need to make greater
use of alternate clean energy resources
such as biofuels and geothermal
energy.


title:
SADC power supply-demand remains unstable, SAPP

Abstract:
THE ELECTRICITY supply-demand
situation in the region continues
to be unstable as evidenced
by the recurrence of
blackouts and load shedding in
virtually all SADC countries with
the exception of Mauritius.

body:
THE ELECTRICITY supply-demand
situation in the region continues
to be unstable as evidenced
by the recurrence of
blackouts and load shedding in
virtually all SADC countries with
the exception of Mauritius.
This is according to a midyear
status report by the Southern
African Power Pool (SAPP).
“This situation is undesirable
and has negative consequences
on trade, industry, social services
and the general economic development
in the affected countries
if not reversed,” says the report.
The report warns that this situation
is likely to impact on the
SADC regional integration
agenda, which depends on the
availability of energy and infrastructure
services.
In view of this, the SADC Secretariat
in conjunction with the
SAPP Coordinating Centre has been closely monitoring the situation
to ensure that short-term
rehabilitation and generation
projects are on track to complement
power supply in the region.
The report observes that the
region's installed capacity of
55,000MW is not enough to forestall
the inevitable energy shortage
that the region is experiencing.
“Indeed, had there been sufficient
investment in the energy
sector, the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC) would have
achieved a generation capacity
of more than 44,000MW at its
Inga Dam on the Congo River,”
notes the report.
To date, this facility is producing
less than 3,000MW.
The situation is the same at
hydropower generating plants
in Angola, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe
where lack of investment has restricted
power generation and
transmission capacity.
The shortfall is expected to
be reduced to zero through the
implementation of short-term
generation and rehabilitation projects that Member States are
involved in.
The current challenge for the
region is to be able to meet the
ever-increasing power demand,
noting that the installed capacity
and the available capacity are
not increasing at the same rate.


Installed versus Available Capacity

No. Country Utility Installed

Capacity
[MW]

Apr-08 Available

Capacity
[MW]

Dec-06 Available

Capacity
[MW]

Apr-08 %
Change

1 Angola ENE 1 128 590 943 60
2 Botswana BPC 132 120 90 -25
3 DRC SNEL 2 442 1 170 1 170 0
4 Lesotho LEC 72 70 70 0
5 Malawi ESCOM 302 241 246 2
6 Mozambique EDM 233 174 173.8 0
HCB 2 250 1 675 2 075 24
7 Namibia NamPower 393 360 360 0
8 South Africa Eskom 43 061 36 208 38 764 7
9 Swaziland SEB 51 50 70 40
10 Tanzania TANESCO 1 186 680 780 15
11 Zambia ZESCO 1 737 1 095 1 200 10
12 Zimbabwe ZESA 2 045 1 085 1 125 4
TOTAL SAPP 55 032 43 518 47 067 8
Total Interconnected SAPP 52 416 42 007 45 098 7
Source: SAPP


The installed capacity of the
SAPP as of April 2008 was
55,032MW while dependable
capacity was about 47,067MW
indicating a deficit of
about 8,000MW without
giving cognisance to the
requisite 10 percent reserve
margin.
A new generation plant was
commissioned in South Africa
(1,050MW) and another plant
that had been temporarily put out of operation was brought to
service (2 x 190MW) at Camden.
In Swaziland, 20MW of new
plant was commissioned in December
2007. In Angola
2x130MW units were commissioned
at Capanda in March
and July 2007, respectively.
Angola, Tanzania and
Malawi are still non-operating
members of SAPP meaning that
they are not yet connected to
the SAPP grid and thus do not
enjoy the benefits of energy
trading in the region.
Operating members are
Botswana, DRC, Lesotho,
Mozambique, Namibia, South
Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, and
Zimbabwe.
The situation is expected to
be reversed by 2011 in most
SADC countries when rehabilitation
of generating plants will
end and new hydropower stations
will come on stream.
Once SADC recaptures selfsufficiency
in electricity, it is expected
that planned inter-connectors
will then be built.
These include the Mozambique-
Malawi 220-kv interconnector,
the Zambia-Tanzania-
Kenya 330-kv interconnector,
DRC-Zambia 220-kv upgrade,
DRC-Zambia 330-kv second interconnector,
Zambia-Namibia 220-kv interconnector, the
Hwange-Livingstone 330-kv
interconnector and the Cambambe-
Luanda third 220-kv
line in Angola.
The difference between the
installed and available capacity
is mainly due to remedial
maintenance, power station
auxiliaries, fuel constraints and
ageing infrastructure.
SAPP has urged its members
that power utilities should
strive to commission generation
projects as planned. Any
delays will lead to more capacity
deficiency.
Member States should also
implement Demand Side Management
(DSM) measures
which have proved to relieve
pressure on the power system
in South Africa in order to
influence the time, pattern
and amount of electricity demand
as a short term alternative
measure to system expansion.
Demand and supply forecast 2007-2015
The following graph shows the
demand and supply situation
in the medium term. Adequate
generation capacity would be
attained by the year 2013. The
situation might improve sooner
if load management measures
are put into place.





Abstract:
THE SOUTHERN African
Power Pool (SAPP) grid is now
fully operational after having
operated as three separate “islands”
for the past five months
owing to technical faults on the
main interconnectors.

body:
THE SOUTHERN African
Power Pool (SAPP) grid is now
fully operational after having
operated as three separate “islands”
for the past five months
owing to technical faults on the
main interconnectors.
According to SAPP Coordination
Centre Manager,
Lawrence Musaba, the last interconnector
to be brought on
the grid was the Zambia-Zimbabwe
one that came online on
1 July.
The Zambia-Zimbabwe interconnector
went down in January
and since then Zambia has been
standing on its own unable to
trade with the other members on
the SAPP grid.
The disconnection also meant
that Zambia and the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC) were
unable to import or export
power in the southern region.
The other interconnectors
that were affected in February
are the Zimbabwe-Mozambique
(ZESA and EDM/HCB) and the
South Africa, Botswana, Mozambique,
Lesotho and Namibia
(Eskom, EDM, LEC and Nam-
Power).
Musaba confirmed that SAPP
is in the process of making sure
that the other members of SADC
who are not yet connected to the
SAPP grid are linked in the
immediate future.


title:
Africa's power providers to standardise electricity grids

Abstract:
AFRICA'S ELECTRICITY
providers meeting in Kenya recently
agreed to start a process
that will culminate in common
electricity standards across the
continent.

body:
AFRICA'S ELECTRICITY
providers meeting in Kenya recently
agreed to start a process
that will culminate in common
electricity standards across the
continent.
The move aims to speed up
the pace of interconnection across
national borders, which has been
blocked by the different standards
in different countries.
The power systems in most
African countries run on different
operating frequencies and voltage,
have different methods of
procurement and equipment
standards.
Power generation and distribution
standards are also
different. This is despite the
fact that nearly all of the continent's
regional trading blocs
have established frameworks
for sharing electricity through
power pools and have a longterm
aspiration to establish a
continental pool.
An Africa-wide pool is seen
as the best solution to ensuring
adequate and regular power
supply, especially for countries
facing shortages.
The pool is expected to facilitate
development of untapped potential of power generation in
countries such as the Democratic
Republic of Congo.
Data from the Southern
African Power Pool (SAPP)
shows that the DRC has a
44,000MW hydro resource potential
on the Congo River that
is yet to be harnessed. There
are plans to tap this potential
and export it to other countries
in the region.
Energy experts say regional
interconnection is important
because it protects countries
from emergency electricity
demand.

Demand and supply forecast 2007-2015

The following graph shows the
demand and supply situation
in the medium term. Adequate
generation capacity would be attained by the year 2013. The
situation might improve sooner
if load management measures
are put into place.
Source: SAPP


title:
Solar Power: Cheap energy source for the region

Abstract:
Due to shortfalls in
electricity production
and the high
oil prices on the global
market, countries in
southern Africa are seeking
alternatives to give
rural families efficient
means to cook food and
light their homes.

body:
Due to shortfalls in
electricity production
and the high
oil prices on the global
market, countries in
southern Africa are seeking
alternatives to give
rural families efficient
means to cook food and
light their homes.
Stand-alone sources of
energy, such as solar and
wind, can help fill the
gap.
Under the New Partnership
for Africa's Development
(NEPAD) it
has been agreed that to
achieve the desired social
and economic prosperity,
countries must boost access
to cheaper and reliable
energy, as just 20
percent of people in the
region have access to
electricity, mostly in
urban areas.
This figure falls to an
average of two percent in
rural areas where the
majority of the people
live - far from the 35 percent
consumption level
which African leaders
pledged to achieve at the 8th Session of the African
Union Summit in 2007.
To realise the NEPAD
vision, cheaper energy
sources must be found
while minimising environmental
hazards and
ensuring sustainability. In
this regard, solar power,
which is clean and renewable,
fits the bill.
The majority of people
in southern Africa still
rely on traditional energy
sources. Wood, or
other biomass such as
crop waste, is the dominant
fuel for cooking.
This comes at a huge cost
to the environment as
families continue to cut
down trees for muchneeded
fuel.
Perhaps the most ambitious
project for harnessing
solar energy
was a project in Zimbabwe
supported by
UNDP through the
Global Environment Facility
(GEF).
Under this initiative,
some 9,000 solar power systems were installed
throughout the country
in a bid to improve living
standards, but also to
curtail land degradation
and pollution.
With all their advantages,
solar systems are
not cheap to install; a
typical home system in
the region costs anywhere
between US$500
and US$1000, according
to the African Development
Bank.
The use of innovative
financing schemes,
such as fee-for-service
arrangements, is one
way to overcome these
high up-front costs. Installing
solar panels to
power multiple houses at
once can also cut down
on costs.
Regional cooperation
to facilitate energy trading
is another major goal.
A UNDP-GEF report
on solar financing and
delivery models notes
that private sales,
through dealers, initially
dominated the market in
South Africa, but that the
government later initiated
a massive off-grid effort
that is now fully active.
Botswana, Namibia,
Swaziland and Zambia
have developed solar
markets, in many cases
with special funds to support
consumer credit.
Apart from domestic
use, people are harnessing
solar power to run
small businesses.
No major marketing is
needed to convince regional
citizens to turn to
solar. The demand is
high. What is lacking is
affordability and availability
of solar units in
the rural areas where
they are needed most.


title:
Appetite for alternative energy sources grows

Abstract:
Southern African governments
have
strengthened efforts to
harness renewable energy
amid fears of a continuous
rise in the global
price of oil and shortages
of electricity in the region.

body:
Southern African governments
have
strengthened efforts to
harness renewable energy
amid fears of a continuous
rise in the global
price of oil and shortages
of electricity in the region.
The South African
government announced
that it was setting aside
about US$300 million
for alternative energy
over the next three
years.
The Namibian government
issued a directive the beginning of 2008
saying that all government
buildings must be
fitted with solar waterheating
panels as an energy-
saving measure.
The directive includes
all government parastatal
buildings and agencies.
In Zimbabwe, new
policy measures have reintroduced
biofuels to reduce
costs and counter
the escalating global oil
prices.
According to Energy
and Power Development Minister, Mike
Nyambuya, the policy
instructs all oil companies
to carry out their
business activities with
a target to use alternative
cleaner fuel in the
next five years.
One of the projects
under the bio-fuels programme
is the resuscitation
of petrol-ethanol
blending. A plant was
commissioned at Triangle
in southeastern Zimbabwe
and production of
fuel-grade ethanol has already
started.


title:
African environment ministers launch environment atlas

Abstract:
AFRICAN MINISTERS of
environment have launched
the Africa: Atlas of Our Changing
Environment, which shows
a rapidly changing landscape,
prominent of which is the disappearance
of glaciers on
Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania
and the Ruwenzori Mountains
in the Democratic Republic
of Congo.

body:
AFRICAN MINISTERS of
environment have launched
the Africa: Atlas of Our Changing
Environment, which shows
a rapidly changing landscape,
prominent of which is the disappearance
of glaciers on
Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania
and the Ruwenzori Mountains
in the Democratic Republic
of Congo. The atlas, launched at
African Ministerial Conference
on the Environment
(AMCEN) in June in South
Africa, brings to light stories
of environmental change
across every country in Africa.
Using current and historical
satellite images, the atlas
provides scientific evidence of
the impact that natural and
human activities have had on
Africa's environment over the
past decades.
“The intent of the book is to
bring compelling visual and
scientific evidence of environmental
change derived from
the Earth Observation Sciences
to a broader audience
and to build the awareness of
our rapidly changing environment,”
said executive director
of the United Nations Environment
Programme, Achim
Steiner at the launch.
The atlas also offers 36
years of environmental
change, including “the swell
of grey-coloured cities over a
once green countryside, protected
areas shrinking as
farms encroach upon their
boundaries, the tracks of road
networks through forests, pollutants
drifting over borders
of neighbouring countries, the
erosion of deltas, and shrinking
mountain glaciers.”
The Africa-wide atlas features
a number of changes in southern Africa. The changes
include the widening corridors
of deforestation in the
DRC following timber harvesting
and the opening of
new roads and the expansion
of old ones. The satellite
images also highlight positive
signs that natural resource
management is protecting
against, and even reversing,
environmental
degradation.
According to the atlas, deforestation
is a major concern
in 35 countries, including
DRC and Malawi.
Africa is losing four million
hectares of forests per year,
and this is twice the world's
average deforestation rate.
Biodiversity loss is rampant
in 34 countries, while
land degradation is a major
concern in 32 countries, including
Malawi, South Africa
and Zimbabwe.


title:
Carbon trading key to sustainable development

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICAN
countries are exploring new
ways of mitigating human-induced
climate change, which
threatens to derail developmental
progress.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICAN
countries are exploring new
ways of mitigating human-induced
climate change, which
threatens to derail developmental
progress.
A key challenge in the battle
against climate change in
the region is how to reduce
greenhouse-gas emissions
while, at the same time, advancing
development efforts.
The Kyoto Protocol -- the
current global framework for
reducing greenhouse gas
emissions by 2012 -- provides
three market-based mechanisms
through which emission
reductions can be
achieved cost-effectively
while promoting local sustainable
development.
The mechanisms -- Clean
Development Mechanisms,
Joint Implementation and
Emissions Trading -- together
make up the “carbon market”, a
global market in which carbon
emissions trading takes place.
The Clean Development
Mechanism (CDM) has
emerged as the most concrete
way in which countries in the
region can currently access the
growing carbon market, with
South Africa leading the race
to participate in carbon emissions
trading as other countries
continue to assess the
market.
The CDM allows a country
with an emission-reduction or
emission-limitation commitment
under the Kyoto Protocol
to implement emission-reduction
projects in developing
countries.
Such projects can earn
saleable certified emission reduction
(CER) credits, each
equivalent to one tonne of carbon
dioxide gas (CO2) – the
most common greenhouse gas.
Under the CDM, investors
in developed countries can buy
these certified carbon credits to
help meet their targets.
In 2007, the World Bank estimated
that the global CDM
market was worth over US$13
billion, with Africa accounting
for five percent of total sales.
In 2006, about 475 million
tonnes of CO2 were traded at
prices between US$6/tonne
and US$27/tonne.
Examples of CDM projects
include rural electrification
using solar panels, the installation
of more energy-efficient
boilers and renewable energy
generating projects.
One such project developed
by the City of Cape Town in
partnership with SouthSouth-North, implements energy efficiency
in building design, lighting
and solar water heating
into social housing in Kuyasa,
part of Khayelitsha township in
Cape Town.
The project will see 2,300
low-cost houses built in a way
that gives them hot water, reduced
energy bills and more
comfortable houses.
The houses will maintain a
temperature of 21 degrees Celsius
while energy bills will be
reduced by about US$100 for
each household a year.
The local benefits include
fuel savings for the 2,300
households while total emission
reduction for each household
has been calculated at
2.75 tonnes of carbon dioxide
avoided annually.
Greater energy efficiency
will ensure less burning of fuels
indoors thereby ensuring reduced
indoor air pollution and
improved health and safety.


Abstract:
THE EIGHT coastal countries
in SADC have agreed on
tough measures to curb illegal
fishing and the landing and
marketing of such catches at
their ports.

body:
THE EIGHT coastal countries
in SADC have agreed on
tough measures to curb illegal
fishing and the landing and
marketing of such catches at
their ports.
Overall, illegal fishing is estimated
to cause revenue losses
of US$1.1 billion a year in
the SADC region.
“We have signed a commitment
agreement that entails
the establishment of a regional
task force, a regional monitoring,
control and surveillance
centre, stiff penalties for vessels
caught with illegal catches
and to prohibit such vessels
to enter our ports,” Namibia's
fisheries and marine resources minister, Abraham Iyambo,
said.
“We will further implement
a ban on the trans-shipment of
catches from trawlers to other
and larger vessels at sea in
SADC waters.
“Any vessel transiting
through areas under our national
jurisdiction must notify its entry and exit from the exclusive
economic zones of any
SADC Member State,” Iyambo
added.
He was speaking at the
conclusion of a three-day technical
and ministerial conference
on illegal, unreported
and unregulated fishing,
which threatens fish stocks
and the livelihoods of local
communities.
All eight coastal countries
in SADC – Angola, the Democratic
Republic of Congo
(DRC), Madagascar, Mauritius,
Mozambique, Namibia,
South Africa and the United
Republic of Tanzania were
represented at the conference.
Illegal fishing deprives the
costal countries of taxes, port
fees and jobs that would otherwise
have been created in
fish processing.
The eight countries will
have to draw up their national
action plans to curb illegal
fishing, a task Namibia has already
completed.


Abstract:
ANGOLA AND China have
signed three complementary
financing accords under
the China-Exim Bank credit
line.

body:
ANGOLA AND China have
signed three complementary
financing accords under
the China-Exim Bank credit
line.
The first accord concerns
an agreement for the funding
of the electricity network rehabilitation
and expansion
project for the cities of Dundo
and Saurimo, estimated at
around US$50 million.
The second agreement is
estimated at US$28.79 million
with financing designed for
the rehabilitation of a residual
water treatment station in
Luanda and the construction
of a distribution centre in
Cacuaco district, as well as establishing new housing
projects.
The third will provide
funding for the improvement
of roads in the cities of Caxito,
Uíge and Negage, estimated at
US$56 million.
This funding will also allow
Angola to launch a project in
the Port of Luanda valued at
US$116 million to be implemented
over a five-year period.
The project will increase the
terminal's container storage
capacity and introduce an advanced
system to increase productivity
and use of the terminal,
thus reducing operating
costs. (Angola Economic Bulletin)


title:
Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique set
up regional company for food security

Abstract:
THREE SADC countries –
Madagascar, Mauritius and
Mozambique -- have set up a
regional food company as a
measure to increase food security
in the region.

body:
THREE SADC countries –
Madagascar, Mauritius and
Mozambique -- have set up a
regional food company as a
measure to increase food security
in the region.
The Mauritian minister of
Agro-Industry, Arvin
Boolell, confirmed the
development, saying
the Global Food Crisis
Response Facility
(GFCRF), instituted
by the World Bank with a fund of US$1.2 billion,
will be utilised for this project.
Apart from state organisations
of the three countries,
shares will also be sold to international
and local financial
institutions, individual investors,
and small and medium
farmers.
Boolell said the African Development
Bank has agreed to
help Mauritius in cross-border
initiatives with Mozambique
and Madagascar.


Abstract:
MOZAMBIQUE SAYS the
central port of Beira is now
handling goods destined for
the Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC).

body:
MOZAMBIQUE SAYS the
central port of Beira is now
handling goods destined for
the Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC).
The chairperson of Mozambique
Confederation of Business
Associations (CTA), Salimo
Abdula, said from the beginning
of July, the DRC has
been shipping petroleum
products, cement and other
commodities through Beira.
“Now that we are investing
in quality ports, the region
will rely on them for all their
shipping requirements. Only
in the past three months, the
DRC shipped 1.2 million litres
of petroleum products
through the Beira port, and we
hope Botswana will increase
its usage of the port as well,”
Abdula said.
Currently the port of Beira
serves landlocked Malawi,
Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Mozambique plans to invest
US$900 million to upgrade
its two main ports in the
northern and central regions
as part of its drive to become a
top service provider in SADC,
increasing investments on the
Nacala and Beira ports, including
the upgrading of
roads and railways linking
landlocked neighbouring
states.


title:
Anglo-American to
invest US$400m in
Zimbabwe platinum
mining

Abstract:
ANGLO-AMERICAN, the
London-based mining giant
says it will invest US$400 million
into the development of a
platinum mine in Zimbabwe.

body:
ANGLO-AMERICAN, the
London-based mining giant
says it will invest US$400 million
into the development of a
platinum mine in Zimbabwe.
“We are developing the
Unki platinum project because
we have a responsibility to
our employees, contractors
and the local community,”
said the spokesperson.
The company employs 188
people and a further 450 contractors
at Unki.
In February the global
giant reported a 2007 net profit
jump of 18 percent to US$7.3
billion.


title:
SADC gender protocol to be presented to Summit

Abstract:
JUSTICE MINISTERS from
southern Africa met recently
to consider the regional draft
Protocol on Gender and Development
in the last stage of
consultations before it is presented
to Heads of State and
Government during Summit
in August.

body:
JUSTICE MINISTERS from
southern Africa met recently
to consider the regional draft
Protocol on Gender and Development
in the last stage of
consultations before it is presented
to Heads of State and
Government during Summit
in August.
The draft Protocol will be
discussed by the Standing
Committee of Senior Officials
and the Council of Ministers of SADC who meet from 10-
12 August and 14-15 August
respectively before it is presented
to Heads of State and
Government when they meet
16-17 August in South Africa.
Although the draft was
discussed by Heads of State
and Government at the previous
Summit in Lusaka in
2007, they referred it back to
Member States for further
consultation at national level.
The consultation process
seeks to ensure that the draft
Protocol that is submitted to
Summit is solid and that
Member States reach a consensus
so that the document
can be adopted.
Consultation with a wide
range of officials in key ministries
such as gender and justice
will ensure practical
ownership of the document
on implementation.
SADC leaders made it
clear at their previous meeting
that they want a realistic
protocol that can be implemented
and monitored.
Once signed, the Gender
Protocol is expected to speed
up the process of achieving
gender equality and equity,
and improve the status of
women in the region.
The draft has specific timebound
goals and targets to
ensure accountability in addressing
inequalities in constitutional
and legal rights;
governance; education and
training among other issues.
In the region, women suffer
discrimination due to
non-uniform marriage and
divorce laws, the application
of customary property laws
and lack of equal access to education.
The draft proposes that
SADC Member States ensure
that women and men enjoy
equal rights and are regarded
as equals.
The draft also addresses
emerging issues of concern in
the region such as trafficking
of women and girls and proposes
legislation to prevent
trafficking in the region by
2015.
Among contentious issues
that needed to be ironed out,
as identified by gender ministers
when they met in April
ahead of the justice ministers'
meeting, were that the language
used in some of the articles
is too mandatory and
the financial obligations that
it places on state parties is
enormous.
A Protocol is the most
binding of SADC legal instruments
and if the Gender Protocol
is approved, it would
ensure attainment of gender
targets set within the timeframe
2010-2020.


title:
Making the SADC Free Trade Area gender inclusive

Abstract:
AS SADC launches its Free
Trade Area in August, many
are hoping that the new trade
regime takes into account special
needs of women involved
in cross-border trade if it is to
be gender inclusive.

body:
AS SADC launches its Free
Trade Area in August, many
are hoping that the new trade
regime takes into account special
needs of women involved
in cross-border trade if it is to
be gender inclusive.
According to a regional
study by the Southern African
Research and Documentation
Centre (SARDC), some 70 percent
of informal cross border
traders in SADC are women.
The study showed that although
the trade is informal, it
has a number of positive implications
on the regional national
economies.
Although the SADC Trade
Protocol has been criticised for
being gender blind, the need
to consider the gender dimensions
of trade is outlined in the
draft SADC Protocol on Gender
and Development, to be
presented at Summit in August
2008.
Article 17 of the draft Protocol
that focuses on economic
empowerment encourages
state parties to, by 2015, adopt
policies and enact laws which
ensure equal access, benefits
and opportunities for women
and men in business, taking
into account the contribution
of women in the formal and
informal sectors.
The establishment of the
FTA could potentially address
some of the challenges that informal
cross border traders
face such as excessive customs
charges; cumbersome registration
processes in obtaining
trader's licenses and numerous
checkpoints at border
posts that frustrate most
traders.
Interviews with cross border
traders in SADC revealed
that the majority of traders do
not know about the Trade Protocol
and do not understand
the implications it may have
on trading activities.
Even if informal traders
were armed with information
on the Trade Protocol, measures
set out to facilitate trade
are more likely to benefit established
companies than they would benefit the small
traders.
For example, the SADC
Certificate of Origin, which
validates whether or not
goods qualify for duty-free
entry into Member States has
little relevance to small traders
because the document specifically
requires that in cases
where the producer is not the
exporter, then the latter should
furnish the exporter with a
written declaration to the effect
that the goods qualify as
originating in the Member
States.
Small traders, the majority
of whom are women, often
deal in several product lines in
small quantities and therefore
it would not be feasible to get a
certificate of origin for each
product line.


title:
Deep Economy: The
wealth of communities
and the durable future

Abstract:
COMPELLINGLY ARGUED with statistics
and anecdotes from around the world, this
book says humanity must move towards an
updated version of community-based economics
that emphasizes buying and selling at
the local level first.

body:
COMPELLINGLY ARGUED with statistics
and anecdotes from around the world, this
book says humanity must move towards an
updated version of community-based economics
that emphasizes buying and selling at
the local level first.
Specifically, humanity should shift to eating
more locally grown food, to using more locally
produced energy, and, even, to new local
financial arrangements. ...
Such a shift would reduce carbon emissions
by reducing the energy used to transport
food while at the same time serving to de-couple
food and energy production from centralized,
oil-intensive sources.
This would in turn open the door to a rediscovery
of the joys of community life, which
lies at the foundation of human happiness, as
opposed to the endless consumerism and
“hyper-individualized” approach to life that
is currently marketed worldwide as the epitome
of civilization.
“Growth is bumping against physical limits
so profound - like climate change and peak
oil - that continuing to expand the economy
may be impossible; the very attempt may be
dangerous.
“But there's something else too, a wild card
we're just now beginning to understand: new
research from many quarters has started to
show that even when growth does make us
wealthier, the greater wealth no longer makes
us happier.”
Deep Economy, by Bill McKibben, is written
in a voice and style that encourages readability.
The book is a treasure chest of ideas
for how humanity might ameliorate the dark
side of consumption. It is, at least, a positive
prescription for how to live more
lightly on our small planet. (One Country,
Jan-March 2008)
Available from Times Books/
Henry Holt and Company, New
York, 2007


title:
UNEP Yearbook 2008
An Overview of Our Changing Environment
“Climate change is real”

Abstract:
CLIMATE CHANGE is happening
and with great impact as confirmed by
the Fourth Assessment Report of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change, and this is the focus of the
UNEP Yearbook 2008.

body:
CLIMATE CHANGE is happening
and with great impact as confirmed by
the Fourth Assessment Report of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change, and this is the focus of the
UNEP Yearbook 2008.
In three sections, the yearbook takes
the reader through the developments
and events on the environment front as
well as scientific findings, with a particular
focus on climate change.
Section one provides a calendar of
selected significant events, chief
among them is the December meeting
in Bali which resulted in the adoption
of the Bali Road Map.
The SADC region had its own impacts
with Mozambique having the
worst floods in six years and South
Africa its first significant snowfall
since 1981.
Under the Features Focus section,
emphasis is placed on the responses to
climate change, including private sector players. The role of government is emphasized,
to set standards, support research
and provide incentives for the
transition to an environmentally sound,
low-carbon economy.
The last section looks at emerging
challenges including the Arctic Climatic,
methane from thawing permafrost
and methane from hydrates.
The release of large amounts of
methane into the atmosphere could
lead to abrupt changes in the climate
that are likely to be irreversible.
Formerly titled the GEO Year
Book to accompany the Global Environment
Outlook (GEO) published
every four years, most recently in
2007, this is the 5th annual report
produced by the United Nations Environment
Programme and is available
from UNEP in Nairobi, Kenya
(2008).
Email: uneppub@unep.org
Website: www.unep.org


title:
Official SADC Trade, Industry and
Investment Review 2007/2008

Abstract:
Official SADC Trade, Industry and
Investment Review 2007/2008

body:
PUBLICATIONS

Official SADC Trade, Industry and
Investment Review 2007/2008
Gaborone, Botswana, Southern African
Marketing Co. (Pty) Ltd. and SADC, 2007
287pp.
This 12th edition of the annual publication focuses on
business opportunities in the SADC region, and presents
the SADC corporate profile. It includes Directorate
reports, SADC projects, country profiles, trade
and industry update, investment opportunities, business
contacts, and the trade exhibition calendar for the
SADC region, and covers the years 2007 and 2008.
Available from SADC Secretariat, Private Bag 0095,
Gaborone, Botswana; and Southern African Marketing
Company (Pty) Ltd, Box 201112,
Gaborone, Botswana
Website: www.sadcreview.com
Economic Report on Africa 2008
Africa: Progress Towards Attaining the
Millennium Development Goals 2007
Tunis, Tunisia, Economic and Social Statistics Division,
Statistics Department, African Development
Bank (AfDB), 2007
Country specific data is presented including charts
showing the progress of African countries in reaching
the targets for the Millennium Development Goals.
The goals are to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger,
attain universal primary education in all countries by
year 2015, promote gender equality and empower
women, improve maternal health, combat HIV and
AIDS, malaria and other diseases, ensure environmental
sustainability, and develop a global partnership for
development.
Available from AfDB Temporary Relocation Agency,
BP 323, 1002 Tunis Belvedere, Tunis, Tunisia
Email: statistics@afdb.org
Website: www.afdb.org
<hr color="brown"


Trade as an Instrument for Achieving the
Millennium Development Goals in
Southern Africa
Judith Kaulem and Donald P Chimanikire
Harare, Zimbabwe, Trade and Development Studies
Centre, 2007
22p.
This publication analyses some key trade areas as they
relate to the UN Millennium Goals in southern Africa,
focusing specifically on Goal 8. This views trade as an
instrument for meeting MDGs in southern Africa, the
challenges to trade as an instrument for achieving
MDGs and how trade could help to deliver on targets.
It concludes that trade must be fair and structured in
a way that permits fragile economies to participate.
Available from Trade and Development Studies Centre,
3 Downie Avenue, Belgravia, Harare, Zimbabwe
Email: tradesc@tradescentre.co.zw
Website:
www.tradescentre.org.mw
Biopiracy of Biodiversity: Global
Exchange as Enclosure
Andrew Mushita and Carol B. Thompson
Asmara, Eritrea, Africa World Press, 2007
330p.
This book provides a revealing analysis of the theft of biodiversity
from Africa and how Africans are working to
prevent this in the 21st century. The analysis lays out the
context of previous stripping of continental resources,
such as the theft of people during the slavery era and the
theft of minerals, even up to this day. The study refers to
the African continent in general and specifically southern
African from where it draws real life experiences.
Available from Africa World Press, Box 48, Asmara,
Eritrea; Box 1892, Trenton, NJ 08607, USA
Website: www.africaworldpressbooks.com
<hr color="brown"


Abstract:
CELEBRATED ANNUALLY on 26 August,
HEROES' DAY also known as Namibia Day
commemorates numerous events in Namibian
history. Officially, the day honours those
Namibians who died for independence during
the liberation struggle which began on 26
August 1966.

body:
CELEBRATED ANNUALLY on 26 August,
HEROES' DAY also known as Namibia Day
commemorates numerous events in Namibian
history. Officially, the day honours those
Namibians who died for independence during
the liberation struggle which began on 26
August 1966.
National celebrations take place annually in places such as
the town of Eenhana in the Ohangwena region on the Angolan
border, where people gather to watch leaders such as the current
President Hifikepunye Pohamba and the founding President
Sam Nujoma, officially commemorate the veterans of the
People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN), SWAPO's military
wing during the war.
The war of liberation brought to an end to apartheid South
Africa's illegal occupation of Namibia.
SWAPO under the leadership of Nujoma and the late PLAN
military commander Peter Nanyemba, waged a protracted war
for independence which ended with the ceasefire and democratic
elections in 1989, and independence on 21 March 1990.
Each year, thousands of Herero people also converge on
the town of Okahandja on 26 August to honour Herero chief
Samuel Maharero and his post-mortem return and reburial in
the town in 1923. They march in military formations and wear
traditional clothing at the event.
It is considered “a gesture of defiance and a symbol of regained
pride” for people of Herero origin after the Herero and
Namaqua genocide at the turn of the 20th century during the
German colonial period.
The essential contribution of the liberation heroes who paid
with their lives presented in the autobiography of Sam Nujoma,
Where Others Wavered, where he says that “the blood of all the
sons and daughters of Namibia watered the tree of our liberty
and will always be remembered by present and future generations
in the Republic of Namibia.”
The monument at Omugulu-gOmbashe dedicated to the
victims and survivors of the first battle of the war of liberation
is inscribed: “26 August 1966. The torch of the armed struggle
was lit and the path to freedom was illuminated. Independence
was their aim.”
SWAPO fought on several fronts, through mobilizing the
people inside the country as well as the international community
to support its cause of national independence, and
through military training of its cadres as well as educating
them to build the nation.
A key factor in the liberation struggle in Namibia, as elsewhere
in the region, was the support from neighbouring countries.
SWAPO had its headquarters and rear base first in Tanzania,
then Zambia, and Angola. The solidarity of other southern
African countries contributed significantly to the success
of the fight for independence in Namibia.


Abstract:
THE SECOND Congo War, also known as the Great War of Africa, began 10 years ago
in August 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

body:
THE SECOND Congo War, also known as the Great War of Africa, began 10 years ago
in August 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
The largest war in modern African history, it directly involved eight African countries,
as well as 25 armed groups.
The First Congo War (November 1996 to May 1997) ended when rebel forces backed
by Uganda and Rwanda overthrew President Mobutu Sese Seko in May 1997, in the
country he called Zaire. Insurgent leader
Laurent Kabila was sworn in as president.
The war set the foundation for, and was
quickly followed by, the Second Congo
War, which began on 2 August 1998.
Kabila had fallen out with his old allies
who accused him of not honouring his
agreement to guarantee peace and security
on their borders. A rebel group backed by
Rwanda and Uganda emerged and quickly
dominated the resource-rich eastern
provinces.
In less than two weeks, by 13 August, the
rebels had moved across the country and
held the Inga hydroelectric station that provides
power to Kinshasa and the SADC region,
as well as the port of Matadi through
which most of the Kinshasa's food passes.
The diamond centre of Kisangani fell
into rebel hands on 23 August and forces
advancing from the east begun to threaten Kinshasa by late August.
A besieged Kabila sought help from the neighbouring states. The rebel offensive
was abruptly reversed as Kabila's efforts at diplomacy bore fruit.
The first African countries to respond to Kabila's request for help were members of
the Southern African Development Community (SADC). The governments of Angola,
Namibia, and Zimbabwe sent troops to support the Kabila government after a meeting
in Zimbabwe on 19 August.
This intervention saved the government and pushed the rebel frontlines away from
the capital. Several more nations joined the conflict in support of Kabila, notably Chad,
Libya and Sudan. By September 1999 the rebels had agreed to a ceasefire deal and in
February 2000 the UN Security Council authorised a 5,500-member force to monitor
the ceasefire, but clashes persisted.


body:
HOLIDAYS
Public holidays in SADC for the period 
 August - October 2008

1 August Parents' Day DRC
4 August Farmers' Day Zambia
8 August Farmers' Day Tanzania
9 August National Women's Day South Africa
11 August Heroes' Day Zimbabwe
12 August Defence Forces Day Zimbabwe
15 August Assumption Day Madagascar, Mauritius
26 August Heroes' Day Namibia
1 September Umhlanga/Reed Dance Day Swaziland
4 September Ganesh Chathurti Mauritius
5 September Legislative Elections Angola
6 September Somhlolo Day (Independence Day) Swaziland
7 September Victory Day Mozambique
17 September Founder of Nation and National Heroes' Day Angola
24 September Heritage Day South Africa
25 September Armed Forces Day Mozambique
30 September Botswana Day Botswana
1 October Public Holiday Botswana
3 October Eid ul Fitr* Mauritius, Tanzania
4 October Independence Day Lesotho
4 October Reconciliation Day/Peace Day Mozambique
13 October Mothers' Day Malawi
14 October Mwalimu Nyerere Day and Climax of “Uhuru Torch Race” Tanzania
21 October Divali Mauritius
24 October Independence Day Zambia

* Depends on the sighting of the moon


body:
EVENTS EVENTS DIARY 2008
August 2008
31 July – 1 August
Namibia
SADC Technical Meeting on Environment

 Directors of environment in SADC countries meet to discuss
progress on the implementation of the Environment Programme
of Member States, the SADC Regional Environmental
Educational Programme, and the development of a regional
programme on Climate Change, as well as the imminent launch
of the Southern Africa Environment Outlook.


11- 12, Libya
Experts Conference on the African History Project

The aim of the conference will be to show the historical
relationships between the various parts of the continent, too
frequently subdivided in works published to date. Organised
by UNESCO and AU, the conference will review Africa's
historical connections with the other continents.


10-12, South Africa
Standing Committee of Senior Officials of SADC

The technical advisory committee to Council of Ministers
meets in advance of Council and is chaired by Zambia, as
current chair of SADC.

14-15, South Africa
SADC Council of Ministers

Council comprises ministers of foreign affairs, international
cooperation, economic development or planning and finance
from each Member State. Council precedes the Summit and
prepares policy recommendations for adoption by SADC leaders.


16-17, South Africa
SADC Summit

The Summit of Heads of State and Government is the ultimate
policy-making institution of the SADC. The Summit in Mid
Rand will witness the official handover of the rotating SADC
Chair from President Levy Mwanawasa of Zambia to President
Thabo Mbeki of South Africa.

18-21, Turkey
Africa-Turkey Summit

The summit gives participants from Africa and Turkey the
opportunity to exchange views and consider areas of
cooperation. Discussions will centre on the proposed Africa
–Turkey Cooperation Forum.


28-30, Ethiopia
6th Conference on African Traditional Medicine

The conference hopes to underscore the importance of
traditional medicine in Africa in the prevention, diagnosis and
treatment of social, mental and physical illnesses before the
advent of conventional medicine. The conference will be
jointly hosted by the African Union and UNESCO.

September
5, Angola

     Parliamentary elections

Legislative elections will be held for the first time since the
formal end of the 27-year civil war in 2002. The last elections
took place in 1992. The elections have been delayed for more
than a year to allow for the completion of voter registration.


11 - 12, South Africa

Conference on Transport Infrastructure

The conference plans to strengthen the understanding of the
effects of globalisation on transport infrastructure in Africa.
Hosted by the African Transport Federation, the conference
also hopes to recognise the need to build a strategic freight
network consisting of high volume routes and node

TBA

Parliamentary elections in Swaziland

Parliamentary elections will take place after the completion of
voter registration in July. Nationals in the Diaspora will be
able to vote for the first time through postal votes.


title:
SADC COMESA EAC
Joint summit to tackle overlapping membership

Abstract:
THE CHALLENGE of overlapping membership
among African regions comes under scrutiny in
October as leaders of three trade blocs meet to
find common ground on trade, customs and infrastructure
development.

body:
THE CHALLENGE of overlapping membership
among African regions comes under scrutiny in
October as leaders of three trade blocs meet to
find common ground on trade, customs and infrastructure
development.
Uganda hosts the joint summit of SADC, the
Common Market of East and Southern Africa
(COMESA) and the East African Community
(EAC) on 20 October.
Membership overlaps exist SADC, COMESA
and EAC, and all three organisations plan to create
customs unions, a situation that presents
technical challenges as a country cannot belong
to more than one customs union.
Eight SADC members -- the Democratic Republic
of Congo, Malawi, Mauritius, Madagascar,
Seychelles, Swaziland, Zambia and
Zimbabwe -- also belong to COMESA, while
Angola is a member of the Economic Community
of Central African States and the United Republic of Tanzania belongs to the East
African Community.
With Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South
Africa and Swaziland being members of the
Southern African Customs Union (SACU), only
one out of the 15 SADC Member States is a member
of a single Regional Economic Community –
and that is Mozambique.
Yet SADC, COMESAand EAC either plan to create
customs unions or have already declared one.
Since all SACU members belong to SADC, it
does not present much of a technical problem as
the SACU arrangement automatically falls away
with the creation of a SADC Customs Union.
However, real problems exist between SADC
countries' membership to either COMESA or the
EAC. The tripartite summit will address some of
these challenges and possibly recommend a
framework that would allow for the creation of a
bigger FTA and Customs Union.
SADC began this process
with the launch of a Free Trade
Area (FTA) at the 28th Summit
held in South Africa in August,
marking a major achievement
in its 28-year history.
Formed in 1980 and transformed
in 1992 to the present
Southern African Development
Community, SADC has embarked
on several ambitious regional
integration projects, in
areas such as trade, infrastructure,
food security, human and
social development, as well as
politics, defence and security,
all intended to bring about economic
prosperity, peace and security
to its 250 million citizens.
Trade has been singled out
as the intervention with the
greatest potential to address
southern Africa's biggest challenge
- poverty.
SADC plans include the
launch of the FTA as the initial
step in the trade integration trajectory,
moving incrementally
to establish a Customs Union in
2010, a Common Market by
2015 and a Monetary Union by
2016. A regional central bank
and a common currency are expected
in 2018.
Thus by launching the FTA
on SADC Day, 17 August,
southern African leaders
demonstrated their will to deliver
a better life to the millions
of citizens as acknowledged
by the host, South
African President Thabo
Mbeki who took over the rotating
SADC chair at the twoday
Summit in Johannesburg.
"The challenge facing our
region during this era is to do
extraordinary things so as to
build the Free Trade Area
and consolidate its gains
for the mutual benefit
of the region's
economies and development,"
Mbeki said.
A key challenge facing the
region is infrastructure development.
Better road and rail
networks are necessary to facilitate
the cross-border flow
of goods and services. Current
road and rail networks do not
adequately support effective
intra-regional trade.
An Infrastructure Master
Plan is being developed to address
this shortcoming.
While the FTA directly addresses
the question of tariffs
insofar as it allows for 85 percent
of traded goods to be
duty free, Member States still
need to tackle the challenge of
non-tariff barriers such as restrictive
entry border requirements
which are counter to
the spirit of free trade.
Other challenges are on the
supply side of trade where the
private sector would be called
upon to improve productivity
if they are to remain competitive
in the regional market.
Such competition, while it
may have negative implications
on employment in smaller
and weaker economies, is
likely to bring in cheaper alternatives,
from the consumer's
point of view.
The FTA was established
through the SADC Trade Protocol
whose implementation
began in the year 2000.
To date, 11 out of 15 SADC
Member States are applying
the protocol meaning that as
many as 170 million people in
those countries will immediately
benefit from the new
economic dispensation.
Malawi is expected to come
on board once current constitutional
challenges affecting the
budgeting process are over. Angola
and the DRC have asked
for more time before they join
the FTA, and Seychelles, which
rejoined SADC at the Summit,
will be expected to begin formalities
soon to become a
member of the FTA.
Member States are expected
to harmonise their national
trade policies with all the provisions
of the Trade Protocol if
the FTA is to be successfully
implemented.
The 19-member COMESA,
which launched its FTA in
2004, plans to declare a customs
union by December this
year. The EAC declared its
customs union in 2005.
In any case, regional economic
communities are building
blocks of the envisaged
African Economic Community
(AEC).
If the three sub-regions,
spanning from Cape to Cairo,
can find common ground regarding
trade arrangements,
that would constitute a major
breakthrough insofar as the
African Union is seeking a
smooth and faster route towards
the AEC.
Not only do Member States
face problems with multiple
memberships when it comes
to trade, but a plethora of
challenges in other areas.
In the case of SADC,
COMESA and the EAC, overlaps
exist in other areas such
as infrastructure as well as
challenges arising from time
and financial obligations as regards
membership contributions,
attendance at meetings
as well as implementation of
several other regional integration
programmes.
Thus the tripartite summit
will seek to find a joint approach
to implement regional
telecommunications networks
based on the COMESA
Comtel Project, the SADC Regional
Information Infrastructure
Project as well as a
harmonized approach to the
implementation of the
NEPAD Broadband East
African Submarine Cable
(EASSY) Project. The latter
will facilitate connectivity
with North Africa, the
Oceanic Islands and the rest
of the world.
The three sub-regions are
expected to discuss how best
to accelerate the implementation
of inter-connector projects
under the auspices of the
Southern African Power Pool
(SAPP) and the East African
Power Pool.
A Tripartite Task Force involving
the three trade blocs
has been holding meetings
for more than a year in
preparation for the joint summit.


