# tblSANF

title:
Zambia, Zimbabwe intensify preparations for international tourism summit

Abstract:
ZAMBIA AND Zimbabwe are preparing to co-host a major global tourism conference next year at Victoria Falls,
and have initiated various projects to ensure that the meeting is a major success. The United Nations World Tourism Organization
(UNWTO) General Assembly is to be held at Victoria Falls/Mosi oa Tunya in 2013, the second time for Africa to
host the assembly after Senegal in 2005.

body:
ZAMBIA AND Zimbabwe are preparing to co-host a major global tourism conference next year at Victoria Falls,
and have initiated various projects to ensure that the meeting is a major success. The United Nations World Tourism Organization
(UNWTO) General Assembly is to be held at Victoria Falls/Mosi oa Tunya in 2013, the second time for Africa to
host the assembly after Senegal in 2005.  

Zambia and Zimbabwe won the bid to co-host the 20th Session of the UNWTO General Assembly over other competitors
Russia, Turkey, Jordan and Qatar. Zimbabwe plans to build a new conference centre in the resort town of Victoria Falls
to accommodate delegates to the General Assembly. The conference centre is expected to have a seating capacity of 
to 5,000 delegates, with committee rooms, golf course, three-star and fivestar hotels.

  
Both countries are refurbish- ing local airports in anticipation of the influx of visitors. The UNWTO general assembly,
which meets every two years to discuss and give direction to global tourism, is expected to boost tourism in the
two countries as well as across the region.


title:
President Michel appointed global tourism ambassador

Abstract:
SEYCHELLOIS  PRESIDENT  James Michel has been appointed a global ambassador for tourism by the United Nations
World Tourism O r g a n I s a t I o n (UNWTO), becoming the first serving head of state to be accorded such an honour.
Michel received the “Global leaders for tourism campaign open letter” from UNWTO secretary general Taleb Rifai in March
during the official opening of the Carnaval International de Victoria in Seychelles. Rifai said it is the first time that
such a letter is presented to heads of state and government. He added that by accepting the letter, Michel
automatically becomes a world ambassador for tourism. Seychelles Nation

body:
SEYCHELLOIS  PRESIDENT  James Michel has been appointed a global ambassador for tourism by the United Nations
World Tourism O r g a n I s a t I o n (UNWTO), becoming the first serving head of state to be accorded such an honour.
Michel received the “Global leaders for tourism campaign open letter” from UNWTO secretary general Taleb Rifai in March
during the official opening of the Carnaval International de Victoria in Seychelles. Rifai said it is the first time that
such a letter is presented to heads of state and government. He added that by accepting the letter, Michel
automatically becomes a world ambassador for tourism. Seychelles Nation


title:
Lesotho general elections set for 26 May

Abstract:
THE KING  of Lesotho has set 26 May as the date for eagerly awaited general elections following a successful dialogue
that ended the deadlock among the main political players. Agreement was reached one year ago by political parties
in Lesotho after lengthy negotiations mediated by SADC aimed at finding a lasting solution to the political
challenges in the country. “King Letsie III, in accordance with section 37 (1) of the 2011 National Assembly Election
Act, and acting in accordance with the advice of the Council of State, proclaims that May 26 will be Election
Day,” said a statement released by Prime Minister Mosisili Pakalitha in March.

body:
THE KING  of Lesotho has set 26 May as the date for eagerly awaited general elections following a successful dialogue
that ended the deadlock among the main political players. Agreement was reached one year ago by political parties
in Lesotho after lengthy negotiations mediated by SADC aimed at finding a lasting solution to the political
challenges in the country. “King Letsie III, in accordance with section 37 (1) of the 2011 National Assembly Election
Act, and acting in accordance with the advice of the Council of State, proclaims that May 26 will be Election
Day,” said a statement released by Prime Minister Mosisili Pakalitha in March.
  
King Letsie III dissolved the Lesotho Parliament on 15 March to pave way for campaigning by the country’s 10
political parties. Post-electoral dissatisfaction emerged in Lesotho after the 2007 elections as the opposition
party refused to accept the results, plunging the country into a crisis. This resulted in a negotiating team comprising heads
 of churches in Lesotho and facilitators from the SADC Troika being put in place by southern African leaders to address the
situation.

  
Stakeholders to the meditation process included the Independent Electoral Commission of Lesotho, the former ruling
Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD), opposition parties and the government.The agreement led to the amendment of the Lesotho
Electoral Law and the constitution in preparation for the forthcoming elections. The ultimate result of this was
 the presentation of the National Assembly Electoral Bill 2011 and the 6th Amendment to the Constitution to the Parliament
in March last year. The run-up to the elections saw Mosisili’s defection from the LCD to form a new party
called Democratic Congress. In office since May 1998, Mosisili remained prime minister while the LCD became the
main opposition party.

  
 Mosisili's departure was said to be the result of a fallout with the LCD national executive committee, after prolongedfactional squabbles since
2008. The new party formed on 25 February gained a slim majority after garnering support from 45 Members of Parliament
from 80 constituencies in Lesotho’s 120-member parliament. It was the second time Mosisili has crossed the
floor, having defected from the Basutoland Congress Party under leader Ntsu Mokhehle in 1997 to form the
LCD.

  
The LCD won 62 seats or 52 percent of the 120-seat National Assembly in the last elections held in February 2007, followed by National Independent
Party with 21 seats and the All Basotho Convention with 17 seats. Under Lesotho law, the leader of the majority party in
the National Assembly becomes prime minister. Lesotho has a bicameral Parliament consisting of the Senate with 33 seats and the National
Assembly with 120 seats. The monarchy is hereditary and under traditional law only the college of chiefs has the power to depose and/or invest
a monarch. In the Senate, 22 members are hereditary while the remaining 11 members are nominated by the monarch. They
are both expected to serve five-year terms.

  
National Assembly members are elected by direct popular vote using the mixed member proportional system.Under this system, 80 parliamentarians
in single-member constituencies are chosen using the first-past-the-post system while the remaining 40 are elected from one national
constituency using party-list proportional representation. 

  
The latter is used to determine the number of seats each party would receive if the system as fully proportional. The total number of votes cast on the party ballot is divided
by the 120 seats at stake in the National Assembly to determine how many seats each party deserves to receive.
This number is then compared to the seats a party won in constituency list to determine how many seats it should
 be awarded in the party list. For example, if a party is determined to deserve 20 seats but has won only 10 in the constituency
elections, it will be given an additional 10 seats.


Abstract:
MALAWI  IS  expected to hold general elections by May 2014, allowing the country’s new President Joyce Banda to serve
the remainder of the current term following the sudden death of former President Bingu wa Mutharika in April.
Under the Malawi Constitution, the president is elected jointly with a first vice president but the president may
appoint a second vice president if he or she considers this desirable in the national interest. The second vice president
cannot be appointed from the party of the president.  

The 2014 elections are expected to be a five-way race between Banda’s People’s Party; the Democratic Progressive
Party of Mutharika; the Malawi Congress Party led by veteran politician John Tembo; the United Democratic
Front; and the Alliance for Democracy. There are more than 35 other smaller registered political parties.
The Malawian parliament is discussing a constitutional amendment that will harmonise local government, parliamentary
and presidential elections in 2014. The last House of Assembly and presidential elections in Malawi were held in May
2009.

body:
MALAWI IS   expected to hold general elections by May 2014, allowing the country’s new President Joyce Banda to serve
the remainder of the current term following the sudden death of former President Bingu wa Mutharika in April.
Under the Malawi Constitution, the president is elected jointly with a first vice president but the president may
appoint a second vice president if he or she considers this desirable in the national interest. The second vice president
cannot be appointed from the party of the president.  

The 2014 elections are expected to be a five-way race between Banda’s People’s Party; the Democratic Progressive
Party of Mutharika; the Malawi Congress Party led by veteran politician John Tembo; the United Democratic
Front; and the Alliance for Democracy. There are more than 35 other smaller registered political parties.
The Malawian parliament is discussing a constitutional amendment that will harmonise local government, parliamentary
and presidential elections in 2014. The last House of Assembly and presidential elections in Malawi were held in May
2009.


title:
Zambia wins AfcoN 2012, makes southern Africa proud

Abstract:
ZAMBIA HAS  etched its name in the history books after becoming only the third southern African country to
lift the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) trophy in the tournament’s 55-year history. The Chipolopolo, as the
Zambian national team is affectionately known by its fans, beat tournament favourites Ivory Coast 8-7 in a penalty
shootout to win the AFCON for the first time.

body:
ZAMBIA HAS  etched its name in the history books after becoming only the third southern African country to
lift the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) trophy in the tournament’s 55-year history. The Chipolopolo, as the
Zambian national team is affectionately known by its fans, beat tournament favourites Ivory Coast 8-7 in a penalty
shootout to win the AFCON for the first time.
  

Zambia became the third SADC country to win the biennial continental championship since the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1968
and 1974, and South Africa in 1996. Spurred on by a strong belief that destiny had brought them to Gabon, the Zambians
dedicated their victory to their heroes who perished in a plane crash in Gabon while on their way to play Senegal
in a World Cup qualifier in 1993. The victory came 19 years after 18 members of the Zambian team died in a plane
crash close to where the final was played in the Gabonese capital.

  
Zambia is one of the most successful football teams in SADC, participating in most AFCON finals. Zambia has
been to the finals for a record 15 times. Zambia’s previous best moments in the continental tournament came in 1974 and
 1994 when the country was losing finalist. Against all odds, the Zambian Football Association managed to assemble a strong
team for the 1994 finals following the loss of the entire team. Zambian Football Association chairperson Kalusha Bwalya captained the trailblazing
1994 team.

  
The first AFCON took place in Khartoum, Sudan in 1957 and the inaugural tournament was won by Egypt. Egypt has gone on to win
the trophy six times, leading North Africa to a record 10 wins West Africa is the most successful region having won the trophy seven times, with
Ghana being crowned champions four times since 1957. Following Zambia’s victory, southern Africa has now won
the tournament four times while Central Africa has also taken the trophy four times through Cameroon victories.
The only East African side to ever win the AFCON was Ethiopia in 1962.


Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA   will host the finals of the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, the second time the tournament is being
held in a southern African country since 2010. The last SADC Member State to host the AFCON finals was Angola
two years ago. South Africa had hosted the event in 1996. A total of 47 countries have entered the competition,
including South Africa, which automatically qualifies as hosts. The remaining 46 teams will compete in the qualifiers
over three rounds.

body:
SOUTH AFRICA   will host the finals of the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, the second time the tournament is being
held in a southern African country since 2010. The last SADC Member State to host the AFCON finals was Angola
two years ago. South Africa had hosted the event in 1996. A total of 47 countries have entered the competition,
including South Africa, which automatically qualifies as hosts. The remaining 46 teams will compete in the qualifiers
over three rounds.


Abstract:
SADC ISdefining a new development blueprint
that is expected to shape southern Africa’s
regional integration agenda until 2050.

The SADC Vision 2050 aims to provide a
framework for a long-term vision for SADC as
the region seeks to position itself in a context of
emerging global and continental issues such as
climate change, democratisation of the United
Nations and increasing financial instability.

body:
SADC ISdefining a new development blueprint
that is expected to shape southern Africa’s
regional integration agenda until 2050.

The SADC Vision 2050 aims to provide a
framework for a long-term vision for SADC as
the region seeks to position itself in a context of
emerging global and continental issues such as
climate change, democratisation of the United
Nations and increasing financial instability.

According to the SADC chairperson, Angolan
President Jose Eduardo dos Santos, the intention
is to set in motion a development agenda that
takes into account the dynamics of events and issues
affecting not only the southern African region,
but also the rest of the world.


"We propose that our organisation holds, at
the highest level, an extended reflection about
our vision and our strategic objectives in a longterm
horizon," he said.


Dos Santos stressed that this should mitigate
potential threats from emerging global issues,
and ensure that the strategic objectives of
SADC are not endangered.


The Angolan president warned that without
a common position on emerging global issues
“we run the risk of suffering from their undesirable
effects both in all our countries and in
the region as a whole.


”The direction of economic growth in several
SADC member states is influenced by trends in
global commodity prices due to relatively high
dependence on the export of commodities,
mainly minerals including crude oil, gold, diamonds
and platinum, as well as tobacco, sugar
and cotton.


For example, the global crisis of 2008/09 resulted
in a reduction in mineral value in nine
economies in southern Africa.


The most affected sectors in 2009 were oil
and mining, because of their sensitivity to
global GDP changes, thus Angola, Botswana,
DRC, Mozambique and Namibia were negatively
affected.


other countries such as Lesotho, Madagascar,
Mauritius and to a lesser extent Swaziland,
which are heavily dependent on the export of
income-sensitive products such as clothing and
textiles, were severely affected in terms of reduced
export returns and shrinking employment.


Dos Santos presented a concept paper on
the need to develop the SADC Vision 2050 to
other SADC Heads of State and Government
during an Extraordinary Summit held in Luanda
in June.


The concept was referred
to Member States for further
consultations and contributions.


“Inputs from this process
will be consolidated and submitted
to Council and Summit
at the next meeting in August
2012,” said a final communiqué
from the Extraordinary
Summit.


SADC is in the process of
engaging consultants to undertake
an independent midterm
review of the Regional
Indicative Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP), its 15-
year regional integration
plan."


The objective is to analyse
SADC’s performance and
identify the challenges encountered
and lessons learnt
during the implementation of
the RISDP from 2005 to 2010.


An initial desk assessment
of the RISDP carried out by
the SADC Secretariat at the beginning
of 2012 has revealed
that all sectors have been able
to fully or partially reach most
of the outputs and targets
within the stated timeframes.


SADC has developed,
adopted and approved critical
policies, protocols and frameworks,
established implementing
institutions and
increased its visibility since
implementation of the RISDP
started in 2005.


Issues identified by the
desk assessment as some of
the main challenges to be addressed
in the next 10 years
of implementing the RISDP
include the need to: facilitate
implementation at Member
State level; ensure effective
structures for Secretariat and
Member State cooperation;
deepen consultation at Member
State level; ensure realistic
targets; complete the
ongoing RISDP evaluation;
and, tackle human, financial and technical resources constraints
at the SADC Secretariat.


The desk review also identified
the need for: strengthening
monitoring and
evaluation; mainstreaming
RISDP crosscutting issues
such as gender and climate
change; improvement of the
think-tank capacity of the Secretariat;
maintaining SADC as
a platform for common pan-
African and global positions;
and ensuring more effective
and efficient stakeholder participation.


Human resources constraints
have been identified
as a major impediment to improving
the Secretariat’s performance.


The Extraordinary Summit
noted that the Regional Infrastructure
Development Master
Plan is being finalised. This
would form the basis for implementing
infrastructure networks
in the key sectors such
as energy and transport including
maritime corridors,
information communication
technologies, tourism and
water infrastructure, taking
into account the specificities of
the island member states.


Summit approved a proposal
to include specific programmes
to develop the
infrastructure connecting the
maritime island states of the
SADC region as part of the infrastructure
master plan.


“It is unfortunately a common
occurrence that African
continental organisations
sometimes neglect the infrastructure
needs of its maritime
space,” the Seychelles Foreign
Minister, Jean-Paul Adam, observed.


The long-awaited launch
of SADC’s infrastructure master
plan is expected to allow
the region to establish an efficient,
seamless and cost effective  transboundary infrastructure
network to support
socio-economic development
in Member States.


A vibrant transport network
can accelerate regional
integration as well as ensure
that the SADC Free Trade
Area (FTA) launched in 2008
and the impending SADC
Customs Union are successfully
implemented through
addressing delays at border
posts and promoting the free
movement of goods and services
across southern Africa.


Some of the programmes
that the plan would target include
the Kazungula Bridge
linking Botswana, Namibia,
Zambia and Zimbabwe; the
proposed Zimbabwe-Zambia-
Botswana-Namibia power
transmission line that links the
four respective countries,
dubbed ZiZaBoNa; and the
Benguela railway line through
Angola and Zambia.


The Luanda Extraordinary
Summit also directed the
Council of Ministers, and in
particular the SADC Ministers
responsible for Finance and
Investment, to expedite the
process for the establishment
of the SADC Development
Fund, which would, among
other things, ensure the availability
of adequate levels of resources
to fund regional
infrastructure programmes.


The march towards regional
integration in southern
Africa has been delayed by the
slow pace of implementation
of projects and programmes
due to lack of adequate funding.

This has been partly
blamed on the current funding
structure of SADC where
Member States contribute
about 40 percent of the annual
budget, with the remainder
coming from International Cooperating
Partners.


title:
SADC supports Dlamini-Zuma for
top Au post

Abstract:
SADC HAS reinforced its support
for South African Home
Affairs Minister, Nkosazana
Dlamini-Zuma for the top
African Union (AU) Commission
post.

body:
SADC HAS reinforced its support
for South African Home
Affairs Minister, Nkosazana
Dlamini-Zuma for the top
African Union (AU) Commission
post.


Elections to choose the new
AU Commission chairperson
will be held at the forthcoming
19th AU Summit set for
Ethiopia in mid-July.


Dlamini-Zuma is contesting
against the incumbent Jean
Ping of Gabon. The election to
choose the AU chairperson was
suspended at the previous AU
summit when no winner
emerged after several rounds of
voting.


<Ping’s failure to secure twothirds
of the vote, even as the
sole candidate in the last round,
was seen as a vote of no-confidence
as there was much disquiet
among many AU leaders
over his handling of recent conflicts
on the continent in Ivory
Coast and Libya.


SADC has said the time for
southern Africa to lead the AU
Commission is now, since all
other regions in Africa have
had the opportunity to occupy
the top AU post.


Nigeria, through Vice-President
Mohammed Namadi
Sambo, has already thrown its
support behind Dlamini-Zuma,
and SADC member states have
been lobbying other African
leaders for support for their
candidate.


Kenya has said publicly that
they want to retain the status
quo as they have their man,
Erastus Mwencha, as deputy
chairperson.


If elected, Dlamini-Zuma
would become the first woman
to lead the AU commission.


title:
SEAC
Advisory council to encourage adherence to sADc election
principles and guidelines

Abstract:
The SADC Electoral Advisory
Council (SEAC) has been
tasked with encouraging adherence
to principles and
guidelines governing the conduct
of elections.

body:
The SADC Electoral Advisory
Council (SEAC) has been
tasked with encouraging adherence
to principles and
guidelines governing the conduct
of elections.


The 15-member SEAC,
which was inaugurated in
April 2011, is mandated to advise
SADC on electoral matters
and issues pertaining to enhancement
of democracy and
governance.


Adopted in August 2004 at
the Summit of SADC Heads of
State and Government in Mauritius,
the principles and
guidelines contain procedures
to be followed by SADC observer
teams and minimum
standards that a Member State
should follow if its election is
to be declared free and fair.


The electoral guidelines
aim to enhance the transparency
and credibility of
elections and democratic governance
as well as ensuring the
acceptance of election results
by all contesting parties.


They are, however, not
legally binding and are subservient
to national law provisions.


It is not mandatory for a
Member State holding elections
to invite a SADC
Electoral observer Mission
(SEoM) to observe its elections.


Section 3.1 of the principles
and guidelines states that
a SEoM will have a role only
“in the event a Member State
deems it necessary to invite
SADC to observe its elections.”
In addition to ensuring
adherence to the SADC electoral
principles and guidelines,
the SEAC is expected to
encourage the development,
improvement and review of electoral laws and regulations
in SADC Member States, and
develop strategies on handling
electoral disputes in the
region.


First conceived in 2005, the
SEAC is a statutory body created
under the SADC Inter-
State Politics and Diplomacy
Committee (ISPDC) to advise
Member States on electoral
matters.


The ISPDC reports to the
Ministerial Committee of the
organ (Mco) on Politics, Defence
and Security Cooperation,
made up of the ministers
responsible for foreign affairs,
defence, public security and
state security from the SADC
Member States. The Mco reports
to the Summit of SADC
Heads of State and Government.


The SEAC is guided by
various SADC documents, including
the SADC Principles
and Guidelines Governing
Democratic Elections, and, as
an official SADC body, is able
to engage with countries at all
levels, both governmental and
non-governmental.


SEAC is composed of one
representative from each
Member State, selected and
appointed by the Mco from a
list nominated by governments.


To avoid conflict of interest,
SEAC members cannot be
serving Members of Parliament
or cabinet ministers; they
cannot be active in party politics
or sit on any election management
body.


They must be individuals
of the highest reputation with
experience in democracy and
governance issues and must be
over 40 years of age.


Retired Tanzanian judge
John Tendwa is the inaugural
chairperson of the SEAC. Hon.
Tendwa leads 14 other former
judges, ambassadors, professors
and civil society officials
from the SADC region appointed
to the SEAC.


other members are Angolan
diplomat Virgilio Marques
de Faria; Professor
Appollinaire Malumalu of
the Democratic Republic of
Congo; Abel Leshele
Thoahlane of Lesotho; Malawian
judge, Justice Maxon
Mbendera; orlanda Rafael of
Mozambique; Prof. Gerard
Totemeyer of Namibia; Seychelles
Supreme Court judge,
Justice Bernadin Renaud;
Zambian lawyer, Gertrude Imbwae; and Zimbabwean
ambassador, Prof. Hasu Patel.
Botswana government’s first
choice candidate, Gloria Somolekae
relinquished the post
after being appointed a Specially
Elected Member of Parliament
and Assistant Minister
of Finance and Development
Planning. Botswana is still to
submit a replacement.


The South African government
redeployed its first nomination,
Ambassador Ajay
Bramdeo and, is therefore, still
to submit the name of a replacement.


Mauritius and Swaziland
are still to submit their nominees
while Madagascar is
under suspension from active
participation.


title:
SADC Principles and Guidelines
governing Democratic Elections

Abstract:
The SADC Principles
and Guidelines Governing
Democratic Elections outline
the responsibilities and
code of conduct for election
observers as well as
expectations from countries
holding elections.

body:
tHe SADC Principles
and Guidelines Governing
Democratic Elections outline
the responsibilities and
code of conduct for election
observers as well as
expectations from countries
holding elections.

The charter sets out the
following basic principles for
the conduct of democratic
elections which SADC
Member States should follow,
although not mandatory:


 Full participation of the
citizens in the political
process;

 Freedom of expression;

 Political tolerance;

 Regular intervals for
elections as provided for
by the respective national
constitutions;Equal opportunity for all
political parties to access
the state media;

 Equal opportunity to
exercise the right to vote
and be voted for;

 Independence of the
judiciary and impartiality
o f t h e e l e c t o r a l
institutions;

 Voter education;

 Acceptance and respect
of the elections results
by political parties
proclaimed to have been
free and fair by the
competent national
electoral authorities in
accordance with the law
of the land; and

 Challenge of the election
results as provided for in
the law of the land.


title:
Africa-EU negotiations
first Economic Partnership Agreement operational as negotiations continue in sADc

Abstract:
Negotiations on an economic
agreement between
Eastern and Southern Africa
(ESA) and the European Union
(EU) advanced in May when
the two parties agreed to start
implementing an interim
agreement.

body:
Negotiations on an economic
agreement between
Eastern and Southern Africa
(ESA) and the European Union
(EU) advanced in May when
the two parties agreed to start
implementing an interim
agreement.

The interim Economic Partnership
Agreement (EPA) between
the EU and four Eastern
and Southern African states –
Mauritius, Madagascar, Seychelles
and Zimbabwe – came
into effect on 14 May following
several years of painful negotiations.


The agreement provides access
to the EU market free of
import duties and quotes for
exports from the four countries,
which will, in turn, be required
to gradually open their
markets to European exports
over a 15-year period, with exceptions
for certain products
the countries consider sensitive.


The agreement covers provisions
on rules of origin, development
cooperation,
fisheries, trade defence instruments
and dispute settlement.
The ESA group comprises Comoros,
Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea,
Madagascar, Malawi,
Mauritius, Seychelles, Sudan,
Zambia and Zimbabwe.


Comoros, Madagascar,
Mauritius, Seychelles, Zambia
and Zimbabwe concluded an
interim EPA with the EU at the
end of 2007, and the first four
countries signed in August
2009 in Mauritius.


The four countries have
now completed steps towards
ratification so the agreement
can be applied.


All the four countries that
have operationalized the
agreement are also SADC
Member States.


EPAs are trade and development
agreements that the EU is currently negotiating
with the six African,
Caribbean and Pacific (ACP)
regions. These regions are
SADC, ESA, the Economic
Community of Central African
States (CEMAC) and the Economic
Community of West
African States (ECoWAS), and
groups representing
Caribbean and Pacific nations.


They seek to replace the
trade chapters of the 2000
Cotonou Agreement between
the EU and the ACP countries.
In 2000, ACP countries and
the EU opted for a more ambitious
trade and development relationship covering not just
trade in goods, but also services,
trade-related rules, investment
and development
cooperation.


Negotiations for such comprehensive
trade and development
agreements started in
2002. However, it became clear
towards the end of 2007 that it
would not be possible for all
ACP regions to finalise negotiations
before the end of the
Cotonou trade regime on 31
December 2007.


A series of interim agreements
were concluded to minimise
trade disruption for ACP countries arising from
the expiry of the Cotonou
trade regime in 2008 while
maintaining progress towards
comprehensive regional EPAs.


The entry into force of the
interim EPA with the four ESA
countries is seen as a stepping
stone to a wider and more
comprehensive deal currently
under negotiation between the
EU and the whole ESA region.
However, membership of the
various negotiating groups
does not reflect the membership
of the Regional Economic
Communities (RECs). For example,
the ESA group is not
made up of all countries in
eastern and southern Africa.


Similarly, the SADC negotiating
group, consisting of Angola,
Botswana, Lesotho,
Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland
and the United Republic
of Tanzania, is also not made
up of all SADC Member States.


Speaking at a ceremony to
mark the start of the EPA implementation
process between
the EU and ESA, the EU Trade
Commissioner, Karel de Gucht
said the agreement with the
four countries was a result of
“hard work of negotiations”
from both sides.


“With this trade deal we
hope to accompany the development
of our partners in
Eastern and Southern Africa
and open up better and lasting
business opportunities,” he
said.


Abstract:
DISCUSSIONS Are still ongoing
between the European
Union and the SADC group to
produce a comprehensive Economic
Partnership Agreement
(EPA) between the two regions.

body:
DISCUSSIONS ARE still ongoing
between the European
Union and the SADC group to
produce a comprehensive Economic
Partnership Agreement
(EPA) between the two regions.

Various issues have stalled
negotiations, including how to
navigate the complex and numerous
trade arrangements in
southern Africa while maintaining
coherence within the
region.


other challenges are how
to deal with services, investment
and other trade-related
issues such as rules of origin,
as well as some textual provisions
of the interim EPA text
that seem to favour one party
over another.


The SADC negotiating
group comprises Angola,
Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique,
Namibia, Swaziland
and the United Republic of
Tanzania.


South Africa participates in
the SADC group but only as
an observer as the country already
has a trade agreement
with Europe.
 

The other SADC countries
– Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius,
Zambia and Zimbabwe –
negotiated under the Eastern
and Southern Africa group
(ESA), while the Democratic
Republic of Congo is in the
Economic Community of Central
African States (CEMAC).


This fragmented approach,
where SADC and other
African regions are negotiating
under different groups, is
seen as one of the major stumbling
bloc to the negotiation
process. Experts argue that a
comprehensive deal could
have long been reached if the
whole of Africa had negotiated
as a single group.


title:
Chirundu One Stop Border Post a huge success

Abstract:
THE CHIRUNDU One Stop
Border Post between Zambia
and Zimbabwe has more than
halved waiting times for transport
operators and improved
the general flow of persons and
goods in line with SADC’s regional
integration agenda.

body:
THE CHIRUNDU One Stop
Border Post between Zambia
and Zimbabwe has more than
halved waiting times for transport
operators and improved
the general flow of persons and
goods in line with SADC’s regional
integration agenda.

According to a progress report
on the implementation of
the North-South Corridor programme
by Tripartite Taskforce
for SADC, the Common Market
for Eastern and Southern Africa
(CoMESA), and the East
African Community (EAC), the
Chirundu one-stop border has,
since its inception in November
2009, addressed issues of delays
at the border and facilitated
trade among member states.


For example, waiting times
have been reduced by an average
50 percent for freight transport
and 83 percent for
passenger transport. It now
takes about a day for haulage
trucks to clear immigration and
customs formalities at the border
compared to three days previously.


It takes even less for passenger
vehicles – an average 30
minutes from more than three
hours previously.


The report noted that further
reductions in crossing times
was possible through additional
changes such as improved communications
between the Zambian
and Zimbabwean sides of
the border.


Under the one-stop border
post scheme, travellers are
cleared just once for passage
into another country in contrast
with the current situation where
travellers have to be passed on
both sides of the border.


CoMESA-SADC-EAC selected
Chirundu a few years
ago as one of the border posts
for the pilot phase of the onestop-
border initiative that aims
to facilitate trade and movement
of goods and services in
eastern and southern Africa,and Chirundu has become a
new benchmark for regional integration.


This development addresses
issues of delays as well as promoting
the smooth flow of
goods through the removal of
often perceived “restrictive” operational
procedures at borders.


<PIn the long run, the onestop
border post concept seeks
to harmonize customs and immigration
laws at border posts
within the eastern and southern
region.


other ports of entry identified
for implementation of this
concept include the Beitbridge border post linking South
Africa and Zimbabwe, and the
Kasumbalesa post between
Zambia and the Democratic
Republic of Congo.


Beitbridge and Chirundu
are considered to be among
sub-Saharan Africa’s busiest
border crossings with hundreds
of southward or northward
commercial trucks
passing through the two border
posts every day.


Under the North-South
Corridor initiative, CoMESA,
EAC and SADC have identified
border post refurbishment
as one of the initiatives to improve infrastructure and
increase intra-regional trade in
eastern and southern Africa.


More than US$1.2 billion
has been raised to implement
the North-South Corridor
project, which traverses eight
countries in eastern and
southern Africa.
Planned programmes include
the construction of more
than 8,000 kilometres of road,
rehabilitation of 600km of rail
track and upgrading of the
Dar es Salaam port in the
United Republic of Tanzania –
one of the biggest and busiest
ports in Africa.


title:
Shire-Zambezi waterways to boost trade in southern Africa

body:
THE ESTABLISHMENT of
the Shire-Zambezi waterways
involving three countries from
southern Africa is expected to
boost trade in SADC and
deepen integration among
member states.


Malawi, Mozambique and
Zambia – the countries developing
the Shire-Zambezi waterways
– in April received a
grant from the African Development
Bank (AfDB) through
the SADC Secretariat to conduct
a feasibility study on the
navigability of the waterways.


The waterway project entails
the construction of an inland
port to provide a direct
waterway transport system between
Nsanje in southern
Malawi and the port of Chinde
in Mozambique, which are
about 238 kilometres apart.


The project offers an alternative
route to the Indian
ocean for landlocked SADC
Member States through Zambia,
Malawi and Mozambique.


The proposed inland port
would have a lifespan of more than 50 yeastevers and be designed
to handle different
types of vessels, with a carrying
capacity of up to 48 containers.



on completion, the
port could be expected to
handle more than 10,000 containers
annually, thereby
reducing transport costs
for exporters and importers
from landlocked SADC
Member States that presently
use Durban port in
South Africa as the route to
the sea.


title:
2020
Towards biodiversity protection

Abstract:
AFRICA IS
 making steady
progress towards reducing the
direct pressures on biodiversity
and promoting sustainable use
of natural resources by safeguarding
different ecosystems.

body:
AFRICA IS
 making steady
progress towards reducing the
direct pressures on biodiversity
and promoting sustainable use
of natural resources by safeguarding
different ecosystems.

Executive Secretary of the
Convention on Biological Diversity
secretariat, Braulio de
Souza Dias, said this progress
should be maintained and improved
to ensure that by 2020
the ecosystems are resilient
and continue to provide essential
services, thereby securing
the planet's variety of life and
contributing to human wellbeing
and poverty eradication.


The 2020 goal is part of the
United Nations Strategic Plan
for Biodiversity and is also one
of the key targets of the Aichi
Biodiversity Targets adopted
in 2010 to address the underlying
causes of biodiversity loss
by mainstreaming biodiversity
across all sectors.


The Aichi Biodiversity Targets,
for example, identify five
strategic goals and 20 ambitious,
yet achievable targets.


Their purpose is to inspire
broad-based action in support
of biodiversity during the
decade from 2011 to 2020 by all
countries and stakeholders,
promoting the coherent and effective
implementation of the
three objectives of the Convention
on Biological Diversity –
conservation of biodiversity,
sustainable use of biodiversity,
and fair and equitable sharing
of the benefits arising from the
use of genetic resources.



Speaking at a recent regional
workshop for Africa on updating
national biodiversity strategies
and action plans held in
Ethiopia, de Souza Dias said despite
the challenges of reducing
the direct pressures on biodi-versity, Africa must continue
with broad-based action in support
of biodiversity.


“Some important advances
have been made in this region
to promote biodiversity and
sustainable use,” he said,
adding that a number of
countries in Africa have been
successful in integrating biodiversity
into poverty reduction
strategies and involving local
communities in protected
areas management.


“None of these are easy victories.
They require tradeoffs
among the interests of different
sectors of society. They can be
politically difficult to achieve
and we would therefore like to
salute these efforts.”


While remarkable progress
has been recorded in Africa,
there is need for intensified efforts
by all stakeholders to
scale up interventions and ensure
that Africa and the rest of
the world are able to meet the
desired targets by 2020.


For example, a number of
people around the world still
remain unconcerned about the
ongoing loss of life on earth.
This is largely because the majority
of people and policymakers
remain unaware of the
irreplaceable contributions
that biodiversity makes to
human wellbeing.


As a result, there is great
need to intensify efforts that
encourage the reduction of direct
pressures on biodiversity.
Countries must also step up
efforts to promote sustainable
use of the environment by safeguarding
different ecosystems.


Ecosystems are critical to
human life as they provide a
variety of goods and services
upon which people depend.


An ecosystem is a biological
system consisting of all the
living organisms in a particular
area and the non-living or
abiotic components with
which the organisms interact
such as air, soil, water, and
sunlight.


Key processes in ecosystems
include the capture of
light energy and carbon
through photosynthesis, the
transfer of carbon and energy
through food webs, and the release
of nutrients and carbon
through decomposition.


Abstract:
Aichi Biodiversity goals

 Goal A

 Address the underlying causes of biodiversity loss by mainstreaming
biodiversity across government and society

body:
Aichi Biodiversity goals

 Goal A

 Address the underlying causes of biodiversity loss by mainstreaming
biodiversity across government and society

 Goal B

 Reduce the direct pressures on biodiversity and promote
sustainable use

 Goal C

 Improve the status of biodiversity by safeguarding ecosystems,
species and genetic diversity

 Goal D

 Enhance the benefits to all from biodiversity and ecosystem
services

 Goal e

 Enhance implementation through participatory planning,
knowledge management and capacity building.


Abstract:
FOLLOWING THE 2010 International
year of Biodiversity,
the UN declared
2011-2020 as the Decade on
Biodiversity, intended to promote
and raise awareness
about the Strategic Plan for
Biodiversity and the Aichi
Biodiversity Targets.

body:
FOLLOWING THE 2010 International
year of Biodiversity,
the UN declared
2011-2020 as the Decade on
Biodiversity, intended to promote
and raise awareness
about the Strategic Plan for
Biodiversity and the Aichi
Biodiversity Targets.

The targets are specific
goals that are related to the
broad themes and goals of
the Strategic Plan.


The plan’s objective is to
ensure countries “take effective
and urgent action to
halt the loss of biodiversity
in order to ensure that by
2020 ecosystems are resilient
and continue to provide
essential services,
thereby securing the
planet's variety of life, and
contributing to human wellbeing
and poverty eradication.”


title:
SADC supports Namibia’s bid to host green climate fund

Abstract:
SADC LEADERS have endorsed
a bid by Namibia to
host the secretariat for the
Green Climate Fund to be established
by the United Nations
Framework Convention
on Climate Change (UNFCC).

body:
SADC LEADERS have endorsed
a bid by Namibia to
host the secretariat for the
Green Climate Fund to be established
by the United Nations
Framework Convention
on Climate Change (UNFCC).


The fund, announced in December
2011 at Durban, South
Africa during the 17th Conference
of the Parties (CoP17) to
UNFCC, seeks to support climate
change mitigation and
adaptation actions in developing
countries.


The fund is expected to raise
and disburse about US$100 billion
a year by 2020, starting
with US$30 billion from 2012 to
help the global community address
issues of climate change,
according to UNFCC.


Six countries in different
parts of the world have expressed
interest in hosting the
fund – Namibia, Mexico, Republic
of Korea, Germany,
Poland and Switzerland.


The decision on the host
country is expected to be made
later this year and presented
for endorsement at the climate
change conference set for
Doha, Qatar in December. The
provisional secretariat is in
Bonn, Germany.


At the SADC Extraordinary
Summit in June in Luanda,
chaired by Angola, southern African leaders endorsed the
candidature of Namibia to host
the Green Climate Fund, and
agreed to lobby the African
Union to support Namibia and
ensure that the African continent
has a sole candidate.


An endorsement by the AU,
which is widely expected,
would put more weight to
Namibia’s application as there
has been some unwritten consensus
among the global community
that such a fund be
situated in a developing country,
where the effects of climate
change are felt most acutely as
high levels of poverty reduce
the capacity to adapt 


The Seychelles Foreign Affairs
Minister, Jean-Paul
Adam, said that Namibia is an
ideal candidate to host the climate
fund as middle-income
small countries are often excluded
from climate change
funding due to their relatively
high per capita Gross Domestic
Product.


“Namibia’s bid represents
an important step in our quest
for fairness in terms of international
development mechanisms,”
he said, adding that
southern Africa and the entire
African continent “must be activists
in the fight against climate
change.


”This pro-active approach
may include intensifying efforts
to access the fund
through jointly identifying
projects that would be suitable
for financing.


Research has shown that
most financiers tend to favour
regional projects over individual
country projects as joint
projects have wider impact
and promote regional integration.


Examples of regional projects
that SADC could consider
for financing under the Green
Climate Fund include the Inga
hydropower station in the
Democratic Republic of
Congo, the Mphanda Nkuwa
hydropower project in
Mozambique, and the Kudu
gas project in Namibia.


Although there has been
some scepticism about the
magnitude of the figures and
the conditions to access the
funds, the establishment of the
fund represents another step
toward addressing climate
change in developing countries.


The Green Climate Fund is
expected to promote the paradigm
shift towards low-emission
and climate-resilient
development pathways by
providing support to developing
countries to limit or reduce
their greenhouse gas emissions
and to adapt to the impacts
of climate change.


The Board consists of 24
members, with equal representation
of developing and developed
countries, and will be
supported by an independent
secretariat to administer the
funds. The World Bank would
serve as interim trustee for the
first three years.



The establishment of the
Green Climate Fund was initiated
at the 2010 climate change
conference held in Cancun,
Mexico.
 sardc.net


Abstract:
RIO DE Janeiro, Brazil will
host the United Nations Conference
on Sustainable Development
to be held from 13 to
22 June.

body:
RIO DE Janeiro, Brazil will
host the United Nations Conference
on Sustainable Development
to be held from 13 to
22 June.

Dubbed Rio+20, the meeting
comes 20 years after the
1992 Earth Summit in Rio,
where United Nations members
adopted Agenda 21 – a
comprehensive blueprint of
action to be taken globally, nationally
and locally by UN organisations,
governments and
major groups in every area in
which humans directly affect
the environment.


It also comes a decade
after the 2002 World Summit
on Sustainable Development
held in Johannesburg, South
Africa.


In preparation for Rio+20,
southern Africa is guided by
the Africa position that was
adopted in october 2011 by
African ministers responsible
for the environment. The common
position calls for industrialized
countries to fulfil
previous commitments and
pledges to help Africa’s efforts
in achieving sustainable development.


title:
Africa and its Diaspora take steps to strengthen cooperation

Abstract:
THE AFRICAN Union (AU)
and representatives of the
African Diaspora have agreed
to set up multi-stakeholder
working groups to strengthen
cooperation in the fields of
economics and technology collaboration,
including measures
to promote widespread
use of renewable energy products
and technologies and research
in agriculture.

body:
THE AFRICAN  Union (AU)
and representatives of the
African Diaspora have agreed
to set up multi-stakeholder
working groups to strengthen
cooperation in the fields of
economics and technology collaboration,
including measures
to promote widespread
use of renewable energy products
and technologies and research
in agriculture.

This came out of the first
Global African Diaspora Summit
organised by the AU Commission
and held in South
Africa from 23-25 May.


It was agreed that working
groups, comprising experts
from the continent and its Diaspora,
be set up before the
next summit, focusing on
measures to strengthen economic
cooperation and science
and technology.


Some of the areas identified
requiring cooperation included
infrastructure development
in Africa, improvement
of transport links among
African countries as well as
measures to bolster trade and
investment into and among
member states.


Another working group
would also be formed to tackle
challenges faced by Africa in
the area of tourism promotion
against the backdrop of the
negative international publicity
about the continent.


In the area of science and
technology, the summit resolved
to set up a committee
to promote research into renewable
energy technologies,
infectious diseases and agricultural
production.


Africa’s regional integration
agenda is presently affected by
low-level connectivity of infrastructure
networks and poor
access to energy and information
services.


The uptake of renewable energy
products and technologies
has been slow in Africa despite
abundant resources to produce
such products. For instance, research
has shown that most
countries on continent receive
more than 2,500 hours of sunshine
per year since there is
sunshine all year round.


It has been noted that while
knowledge on solar energy
technology is widespread on
the continent, its use is still
limited due to prohibitive installation
costs.


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$1,000, according to the
African Development Bank.


Held under the theme “Towards
the Realisation of a
United and Prosperous Africa
and its Diaspora”, the summit
also came up with a programme
of action that will see
the direct involvement of the
African Diaspora in development
efforts on the continent
and its cooption as the continent’s
sixth region.


It was also resolved to explore
the possibility of creating
an African Investment
Fund to address development
challenges confronting Africa.
The continent’s total infrastructure
needs alone are estimated
at about $60 billion in
the next 10 years.


The summit agreed to encourage
AU member states to
establish more formal relations
with Caribbean and
Latin American nations,
which are home to millions of
people of African descend.


A proposed Diaspora Advisory
Board would address
overarching issues of concern
to Africa and its Diaspora such
as reparations and follow up
on commitments made by the
West at the 2001 World Conference
Against Racism, Racial
Discrimination, Xenophobia
and Related Intolerance
(WCAR).


The rich Western nations
and multilateral financial institutions
pledged, among other
issues, to promote investment
in their former African colonies
in order to eradicate poverty
among victims of racism, and
to develop capacity-building
programmes for Africans and
people of African descent in the
Americas and around the
world.


Speaking during the closing
session of the summit,
South African President, Jacob
Zuma said the outcome of the
meeting should serve to motivate
continent’s citizens that
the destiny of Africa lies in the
hands of Africans, whether at
home or abroad.


“The resolutions we have
taken in the summit demonstrate
that Africans are more
than capable of successfully
taking their destiny into their
own hands,” Zuma said.


The summit and the subsequent
programme of action
developed sought to build on
the resolutions of the 18th AU
Summit held in Ethiopia in
February where African leaders
agreed to speed up infrastructure
development, which
is regarded as one of the pillars
of the continent’s economic
integration agenda.


According to the Declaration
on the Programme for Infrastructure
Development in
Africa issued in February,
African leaders agreed to increase
public financing of infrastructure,
implement major
power projects such as hydroelectricity,
oil refinery and gas
pipelines, accelerate the construction
of missing links and
modernization of railways, and
increase the capacity of ports.


The declaration committed
African countries to developing
new and renewable energy
resources to provide
clean, reliable and affordable
energy as well as nuclear energy
for peaceful use.


The AU has also identified
increased intra-African trade
as another important pillar
of its regional integration
agenda, and targets the establishment
of a continental free
trade area by 2017.


title:
Member States develop national action
plans towards gender equality targets

Abstract:
SADC MEMBER States have
agreed on measures to accelerate
progress towards the target
of equal representation for
women and men in political
and other decision-making
structures by 2015, including
the development of national
action plans.

body:
SADC MEMBER States have
agreed on measures to accelerate
progress towards the target
of equal representation for
women and men in political
and other decision-making
structures by 2015, including
the development of national
action plans.

During a two-day workshop
organized by the SADC Gender
Unit in Johannesburg,
South Africa with the theme of
“Balancing the Scale towards
50:50 by 2015”, the delegates
deliberated on how SADC
Member States can better
address the issues of gender inequality
national decision-making.


The gender parity goal of
equal representation by 2015 is
provided for in the SADC Protocol
on Gender and Development
and, although the
protocol is yet to enter into
force, this is aligned with targets
set by the African Union
Summit of Heads of State and
Government in 2004 and the
SADC Summit of Heads of
State and Government in 2005.


The workshop aimed to facilitate
the sharing of experiences
by Member States on
measures that have been put in
place to accelerate the achievement
of gender parity by 2015,
while providing a platform for
the Member States to develop
their National Roadmaps with
concrete actions to be taken to
implement the 50:50 Framework
by 2015.


Delegates were drawn from
14 SADC Member States excluding
Madagascar which
is currently suspended. The
SADC Gender Unit’s development
partners were also represented.


The meeting resolved to
initiate consultations at Member
State level to galvanise national
efforts through domestication
of various regional
and international commitments
made by countries with
regard to gender equality and
the empowerment of women.


Member States also resolved
to finalise the process of developing
national roadmaps that
outline activities and programmes
they plan to embark
on as they move towards meeting
the 2015 deadline.


The process towards developing
the national roadmaps
commenced during the workshop
when the stakeholders
from Member States developed
drafts that were discussed there.


Member States agreed to
further develop the draft
roadmaps through a process
of national consultations to ensure
input is sought from all
stakeholders and key partners.


Most countries identified lobby
and advocacy as the main activity
they would embark on
during the next three years to
ensure there is national consensus
on the need for equal representation
and participation of
women and men in decisionmaking
structures.


They also agreed to
strengthen capacity-building
programmes for women and
gender training for key national
structures and institutions,
as well as engage all
political parties to adopt gender
parity strategies, actively
share best practices, and ensure
tracking of results.


The SADC Secretariat and
its cooperating partners such as
the Southern African Research
and Documentation Centre
(SARDC) and SADC Parliamentary
Forum were encouraged
to strengthen research to
address impediments to the full
and equal participation of
women in decision-making; ensure
systematic collection, collation,
analysis and presentation
of data on women in
political and decision-making
positions; intensify efforts to
share good practices and
experiences; and strengthen
advocacy and lobbying programmes
through parliaments
in the region.


Abstract:
MONIQUE OHSAN-
Bellepeau, GoSK, was
appointed acting President
of Mauritius on 31
March 2012 following
the resignation of former
Pres ident Anerood
Jugnauth, becoming
SADC’s first woman
Head of State.

body:
MONIQUE OHSAN-
Bellepeau, GoSK, was
appointed acting President
of Mauritius on 31
March 2012 following
the resignation of former
Pres ident Anerood
Jugnauth, becoming
SADC’s first woman
Head of State.

The second is H.E. Joyce
Banda, the new President of
Malawi, who was sworn into
office just one week later, on
7 April, and was profiled in a
previous edition of Southern
Africa Today.


Madame Bellepeau is a
former journalist, born in
Mauritius in 1942, and was
the first newsreader and reporter
of the national television,
from 1965-67, returning
to that post from 1987-93.


During a 30-year career in
the public and private sector,
she worked for various agencies
and organizations including
the Mauritius Chamber of
Commerce, and was a company
director until her appointment
as Vice President
on 13 November 2010.


She became the country’s
first woman vice-president
when she was elected unanimember mously by all members of the
National Assembly following
the death of Vice President
Angidi Chettiar.
She joined the Mauritian
Labour Party in 1990 and became
a member of the Central
Executive Committee.
She was a Member of Parliament
1995-2000, and Principal
Parliamentary Secretary
1997-2000. She was President
of the Labour party from
2007-2010.


Mrs Bellepeau was educated
in Quatres Bornes, Mauritius,
and is the daughter of
Bartholomée ohsan, who was
a founding member of the
party.


She was married to Mr.
Joseph yves Bellepeau and
has two sons.


In 1997, she was awarded
the insignia of Grand officer
of the order of the Star and
Key of the Indian ocean
(G.o.S.K.).


title:
SADC to review Windhoek Declaration on a
new SADc-ICP Partnership

Abstract:
SADC HAS revealed plans to
review its 2006 agreement with
International Cooperation
Partners (ICPs) as part of efforts
to strengthen SADC-ICP
cooperation and facilitate more
effective functioning of the
partnership structures.

body:
SADC HAS revealed plans to
review its 2006 agreement with
International Cooperation
Partners (ICPs) as part of efforts
to strengthen SADC-ICP
cooperation and facilitate more
effective functioning of the
partnership structures.

The review of the Windhoek
Declaration on a New SADCICP
Partnership, announced by
SADC Executive Secretary
Tomaz Augusto Salomão during
a midterm review workshop
of the SADC-European Development
Fund regional strategy
held in Botswana, aims to bring
non-state actors into the mainstream
of regional integration.


“We will accelerate efforts
towards a comprehensive review
of the Windhoek Declaration
with a view to
strengthening SADC-ICP cooperation
and to facilitating
the effective functioning of the
partnership structures. A
greater level of conversations
would be required to place the
Non State Actors into the
mainstream of regional integration,”
Salomão said.


He, however, did not disclose
when the planned review
would start and how long it is
expected to take.


The Windhoek Declaration
on a New SADC-ICP Partnership
was adopted at a SADC
Consultative Conference in
Namibia in 2006 and has
guided cooperation between
SADC and the ICPs by establishing
an institutional structure
for dialogue on political,
policy and technical issues,
thus improving coordination
between the parties to ensure
more effective development
cooperation.


This has also ensured alignment,
harmonisation and
streamlining of operational procedures,
rules and other prac-
tices in the delivery of development
assistance to SADC, as
well as synergies and complementarity
of support provided
at national and regional levels.


The partnership framework
was necessitated by a shift in
the European Union’s development
policy. The EU has since
2005 had a new development
policy, the European Consensus
on Development, that defines
the values, objectives,
principles and modalities of EU
development aid.


Under the new development
policy, EU member states
resolved to increase national
aid budgets to at least 0.7 percent
of Gross National Incomes
of the respective donor countries
by 2015, a target that was
not realized previously and
may now be out of reach due to
the financial crisis in Europe.


SADC and the ICPs have
made various commitments in
terms of implementation of
SADC’s Regional Indicative
Strategic Development Plan
(RISDP) and the Strategic Indicative
Plan for the organ on
Politics, Defence and Security
Cooperation (SIPo).


The RISDP and SIPo are
SADC’s 15-year development
blueprints outlining regional
priorities in the area of trade
and economic liberalisation;
infrastructure development;
food security; human and social
development; conflict prevention;
and stability, peace
and security.


Abstract:
SADC HAS signed a Memorandum
of Cooperation with
the Government of Japan that
provides a framework for
deeper ties and closer cooperation.

“The scope of cooperation
under this memorandum will
cover various areas that include
infrastructure, trade, investment,
tourism, energy,
information communication
technology, agriculture, environmental
issues and political
dialogue, among others,”
SADC said in a statement after
the agreement was signed in
Gaborone in April.

body:
SADC HAS signed a Memorandum
of Cooperation with
the Government of Japan that
provides a framework for
deeper ties and closer cooperation.

“The scope of cooperation
under this memorandum will
cover various areas that include
infrastructure, trade, investment,
tourism, energy,
information communication
technology, agriculture, environmental
issues and political
dialogue, among others,”
SADC said in a statement after
the agreement was signed in
Gaborone in April.


Japan is already actively involved
in SADC’s water and
sanitation programme as well
as in science and technology,
and infrastructure development.


The memorandum follows
the Japan-SADC Infrastructure
Investment Seminar held in
Tokyo in March during which
the two parties
agreed to set up a
project identification
and follow-up mechanism
as part of
measures to strengthen the implementation
of infrastructure
projects in southern Africa.


It was agreed, among other
issues, that the project identification
and follow-up mechanism
would consist of
representatives from the
Group of SADC Group of Ambassadors
based in Tokyo (assisted
by the SADC
Secretariat) and the Japanese
government (assisted by the
Japanese business community).


The follow-up mechanism
should be developed and incorporated
into the annual planning
cycle of the SADC
Secretariat in order to ensure
continuity of projects.


The Japanese government
reaffirmed its support for
SADC infrastructure
within the framework
of the Tokyo
International Conference
on African Development
(TICAD) IV and the
yokohama Declaration and Action
Plan of 2008.


The projects were to be presented
to the TICAD Ministerial
Follow-up Meeting held in
May in Senegal as well as to
the next SADC Council of
Ministers meeting scheduled
for Mozambique in August.


The long-awaited launch of
the SADC Regional Infrastructure
Master Plan later this year
is expected to guide development
of key infrastructure
such as road, rail and ports.


The master plan would
allow the region to develop an
efficient, seamless and cost effective
trans-boundary
infrastructure network that
promotes socio-economic
growth in Member States


title:
SADC making progress to liberalise air transport

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA  is making
significant progress towards
the full implementation
of the Yamaoussoukro Decision
(YD) on Air Transport Liberalisation,
according to SADC
tourism ministers meeting in
Grand Baie, Mauritius.
The ministers noted that
enactment of policies that endorse
the YD implementation
is necessary to boost tourism in
the region, as well as appropriate
legal and institutional reforms
that facilitate the
liberalisation of the skies.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA  is making
significant progress towards
the full implementation
of the Yamaoussoukro Decision
(YD) on Air Transport Liberalisation,
according to SADC
tourism ministers meeting in
Grand Baie, Mauritius.
The ministers noted that
enactment of policies that endorse
the YD implementation
is necessary to boost tourism in
the region, as well as appropriate
legal and institutional reforms
that facilitate the
liberalisation of the skies. 
“Member States have
made substantial progress
with reforms leading to the
enacting of policies that
endorse YD implementation,
appropriate legal and
institutional reforms to facilitate
the liberalisation
process, and that further
liberalisation of the skies
was necessary if efficient and
cost effective access to tourism
destinations is to be realised,”
the ministers said in a statement
after their meeting.
  
Adopted some few years
back, the YD encourages countries
to deregulate their air
services and promote regional
air markets open to transnational
competition.
However, there have been
some fears that this liberalisation
of the skies could expose
non-competitive national carriers
to operational standards
that they are unlikely to meet,
hence push them out of business.
In spite of this, SADC countries
have continued to implement
the YD to improve air
safety and promote economic
growth.
  
With regard to arrivals, the
YD has the capacity to boost
tourist arrivals as an openskies
policy would ensure that
visitors from other source
markets do not encounter any
travel challenges caused by
fewer airlines servicing a particular
route because a country
is not open to foreign
airlines.
  
The ministers urged
Member States to continue
implementing other infrastructure
development and
border facilitation projects
along SADC corridors to
boost tourism in the region.


title:
Opposition alliance forms new government after inconclusive Lesotho elections

Abstract:
THE DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS
(DC)  of former Prime
Minister Pakalitha Mosisili
swept to victory in national
elections held on 26 May in
Lesotho but failed to secure a
wide enough margin to form a
government. 
The DC won 41 of the 80
contested constituencies against
about 26 seats for the main opposition
All-Basotho Convention
(ABC) led by former
Foreign Minister Thomas Thabane,
according to final results
published by the Independent
Electoral Commission (IEC) of
Lesotho.

body:
THE DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS
(DC)  of former Prime
Minister Pakalitha Mosisili
swept to victory in national
elections held on 26 May in
Lesotho but failed to secure a
wide enough margin to form a
government. 
The DC won 41 of the 80
contested constituencies against
about 26 seats for the main opposition
All-Basotho Convention
(ABC) led by former
Foreign Minister Thomas Thabane,
according to final results
published by the Independent
Electoral Commission (IEC) of
Lesotho.
  
The former ruling party,
Lesotho Congress for Democracy
(LCD) could only manage
12 seats while the Popular
Front For Democracy (PFD) led
by Lekhetho Rakuoan got one
seat.
However, due to Lesotho’s
complicated electoral system,
the DC failed to win enough
votes to form a new government.
Lesotho has a "mixed member
proportional representation"
electoral system under which
most Members of Parliament
are chosen in constituencies, but
the remainder are allocated according
to party lists.
  
Under this system, 80 parliamentarians
in single-member
constituencies are chosen
using the first-past-the-post
system while the remaining 40
are elected from one national
constituency using party-list
proportional representation.
The latter is used to determine
the number of seats each
party would receive if the system
was fully proportional.
The total number of votes cast
on the party ballot is divided
by the 120 seats at stake in the
National Assembly to determine
how many seats each
party deserves to receive.
  
Using this system, the DC
got an additional seven seats to
bring its total to 48 or just 40
percent of the 120 parliamentary
seats. This fell short of the
61 needed to form a government.
Mosisili resigned after the
leaders of ABC, LCD and Basotho
National Party (BNP)
agreed to form an alliance that
gave them an absolute majority
in parliament and the right to
form a coalition government.
  
The agreement saw ABC
leader Thomas Thabane becoming
prime minister while
LCD president Mothetjoa
Metsing became deputy prime
minister. BNP leader Thesele
Maseribane, whose party got
five seats, was appointed Minister
of youth, Sports and
Recreation in a 19-member
cabinet announced on 15 June.
The 67-year-old Mosisili
has been the Prime Minister of
Lesotho since May 1998.
  
More than 900 candidates,
comprising of 942 who were
nominated by 18 parties and
21 independents, took part in
the elections.
The elections were described
as credible, free and
fair by the SADC Election observer
Mission (SEOM).
  
“It is SEoM’s overall
view that the elections were
conducted in an open and
transparent manner. SEoM
was impressed by the
patience of voters who were
able to express their franchise
peacefully, freely and unhindered
in all polling stations,”
the head of the
mission and South African
Deputy Minister of International
Relations and Cooperation,
Ebrahim Ismail
Ebrahim, said
Some of the concerns
raised by Lesotho stakeholders
on the electoral
process included allegations
of discrepancies regarding
party acronyms
and candidate names on
ballot papers, problems with
the voters’ roll, intimidation
during the electoral process
and media polarisation.
  
The SEOM was officially
launched on 12 May 2012, by
Ebrahim in the presence of
SADC Executive Secretary,
Tomaz Augusto Salomão and
other stakeholders in Lesotho.
More than 70 observers
from the SADC Secretariat, Angola,
Mozambique, Namibia,
South Africa, Tanzania and
Zimbabwe were deployed in
all the districts of Lesotho.
The SEoM launch was at
the invitation of the IEC and
was consistent with provisions
of the SADC Principles
and Guidelines Governing
Democratic Elections.


Abstract:
ANGOLAN PALIAMENTARY  
elections are set for 31
August, according to a decree
by President Eduardo dos
Santos.

body:
ANGOLAN PALIAMENTARY  
elections are set for 31
August, according to a decree
by President Eduardo dos
Santos. 
Dos Santos also announced
the appointment of Edeltrudes
Costa as interim president of
the National Electoral Commission
(CNE). The former
CNE president had to step
down after opposition parties
challenged her appointment
since she was not a judge. Angolan
law requires that a judge
leads the commission.
Nomination of candidates
was expected to run from 31
May to 19 June, according to
the country’s Constitutional
Court. 
 


Angola’s National Assembly
has 220 members, elected
for a four year term, 130 members
by proportional representation
and 90 members in
provincial districts.
A new Constitution
adopted in 2010 stipulates
that the president is no longer
elected directly, but by the
National Assembly, and that
he or she is always the president
of the party that obtained
the highest number of
votes in the parliamentary
elections.
 
The last parliamentary
elections held in September
2008 were won by dos Santos’
Popular Movement for the Liberation
of Angola (MPLA).


title:
Mozambique independence 50 years since formation of FRELIMO in 1962

Abstract:
THE FRONT  for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO) was
founded in Dar es Salaam in then Tanganyika in June 1962 when
three nationalist organisations merged into one broad-based
liberation movement under the leadership of Eduardo Chivambo
Mondlane.

body:
THE FRONT  for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO) was
founded in Dar es Salaam in then Tanganyika in June 1962 when
three nationalist organisations merged into one broad-based
liberation movement under the leadership of Eduardo Chivambo
Mondlane.
FRELIMO launched the armed struggle for independence from
Portugal two years later, on 25 September 1964, when cadres trained
in Algeria went into action for the first time in the northern province
of Cabo Delgado after infiltrating across the border from
Tanganyika (which had merged with Zanzibar a few months earlier
to form the United Republic of Tanzania).  

By 1965, the military action against the Portuguese colonial army
had been extended to neighbouring Niassa province, and FRELIMO
was able to open fronts in the Tete region two years later.
In response, Portugal committed more and more troops, military
supplies, and military aid funds to the territory.
Mondlane was assassinated on 3 February 1969 with a parcel
bomb sent to him in Dar es Salaam by the Portuguese security
police, the PIDE. Samora Machel became president of FRELIMO in
1970 and directed the liberation struggle to its completion,
negotiations, transition and independence on 25 June 1975,
becoming the first President of Mozambique. 

He affirmed Mozambique's support for the liberation
movements in Angola, South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe, and
his FRELIMO government provided a rear base and other facilities,
especially for neighbouring Zimbabwe and South Africa.
His unrelenting support for liberation of neighbouring countries
caused him to be a target of apartheid South Africa, and he was
killed when his plane crashed just across the South African border
on 19 October 1986, believed to have been drawn off course by a
false beacon. 

FRELIMO and the other liberation movements received support
from the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) Liberation
Committee based in Tanzania, which coordinated international
financial and material support.
A turning point in the struggle for Mozambique’s independence
was the coup d’etat in Portugal on 25 April 1974 when the
Portuguese Movement of the Armed Forces overthrew the military
regime in Lisbon. 

This was caused in part by the discontent of conscripts sent to
fight in Portugal’s “overseas territories” in Africa, particularly
because they were losing the war against FRELIMO in
Mozambique.
Negotiations between Portuguese and FRELIMO representatives
led to the conclusion of an independence agreement signed in
Zambia on 7 September 1974, now commemorated as Victory Day,
marking the start of a transition headed by Prime Minister Joaquim
Chissano, who was later President from 1986 to 2005.
H.E. Armando Emilio Guebuza, now President of
Mozambique, joined FRELIMO at age 20 and rose quickly to
become a member of the top leadership, the Politburo, and a top
commander in the war. Guebuza was elected President in 2004
and re-elected in 2009.


Abstract:
SIR SERETSE  Khama Day is a national holiday
to honour the founding President of Botswana,
Seretse Khama, who was born on 1 July 1921 at
Serowe, the son of Sekgoma Khama and grandson
of Kgosi (Chief) Khama III of the Bangwato people. He became the
Chief after their deaths, at the age of four, with his Uncle Tshekedi
Khama acting as regent.

body:
SIR SERETSE  Khama Day is a national holiday
to honour the founding President of Botswana,
Seretse Khama, who was born on 1 July 1921 at
Serowe, the son of Sekgoma Khama and grandson
of Kgosi (Chief) Khama III of the Bangwato people. He became the
Chief after their deaths, at the age of four, with his Uncle Tshekedi
Khama acting as regent.
He led his country to independence on 30 September 1966, ending
its status as a British “protectorate” and becoming Botswana’s first
President. He was active in the Frontline States grouping of southern
African leaders who opposed apartheid in neighbouring South Africa
and supported the liberation movements in the region. He was a leading
advocate of regional integration and the SADC headquarters is located
in Gaborone, Botswana.
 
Khama died on 13 July 1980, soon after participating in the formation
of SADC’s precursor, the Southern Africa Development Coordination
Conference (SADCC) on 1 April that year. He was survived by his
wife, Ruth, and four children, one of whom, his eldest son Chief Seretse
Khama Ian Khama, became President of Botswana in 2008.


title:
PUBLIC HOLIDAYS IN SADC June - August 2012

Abstract:
PUBLIC HOLIDAYS IN SADC June - August 2012

body:
5 June Liberation Day Seychelles 

16 June Youth Day South Africa

18 June National Day Seychelles

23 June Corpus Christi Seychelles

25 June Independence Day Mozambique

26 June Independence Day Madagascar 

29 June Independence Day Seychelles 

30 June Independence Day DRC

1 July Sir Seretse Khama Day Botswana

2 July Public Holiday Botswana

Heroes Day Zambia

3 July Unity Day Zambia

6 July Independence Day Malawi

7 July Saba Saba Industry Day Tanzania

16 July President’s Day Botswana

17 July Public Holiday Botswana

King’s Birthday Lesotho

22 July Birthday of late King Sobhuza Swaziland

6 August Farmers Day Zambia

8 August Nane Nane Peasant Day Tanzania

9 August National Women’s Day South Africa

13 August Heroes Day Zimbabwe

14 August Defence Forces Day Zimbabwe

15 August Assumption Day Madagascar, Mauritius,
Seychelles

17 August SADC Day* All 

19 August Eid-Ul-Fitr** Mauritius, Tanzania

26 August Heroes Day Namibia

27 August Public Holiday Namibia

* SADC Day is not a public holiday but a commemoration of signing the SADC 

Treaty on 17 August 1992 

**Exact date depends on sighting of the new moon


body:
June 7,

 Ethiopia Launch of 5th Global Environment Outlook (GEO 5)
GEO 5, published by the UN Environment Programme
(UNEP), provides an analysis of the state of and trends in
the global environment, and the world’s performance in
meeting key internationally agreed goals to promote the environment.
The analysis for the SADC region was produced
by Southern African Research and Documentation Centre
(SARDC), UNEP’s Collaborating Centre for Southern Africa.

 
June 13-22, 
 Brazil UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20)
The conference in Rio de Janeiro offers an opportunity for
the global community to renew its commitments to promoting
sustainable development and address new and emerging
challenges such as climate change. The conference will
review progress since the first Earth Summit held in Rio de
Janeiro in 1992 and the World Summit on Sustainable Development
in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 2002.
26-28, Germany Africa Energy Forum
Energy experts will explore ways that Africa, as one of the
fastest emerging markets in the world, can meet increased
demand for energy to ensure sustainable development.
 
July
2-5, 
 South Africa Bridges Africa
The conference will discuss the opportunities and challenges
in the development and maintenance of bridges
and road networks in Africa.
 
July 6-13, Seychelles 49th RETOSA Board Meeting
The Regional Tourism Organization of Southern Africa
(RETOSA) will meet to discuss strategy for promoting
tourism in southern Africa. Delegates from 14 RETOSA
member states will discuss issues relating to regional
tourism growth and strategy, including regional tourism
infrastructure and a tourism master plan for the region.
 
July 11,
 Namibia ZIZABONA conference
The conference seeks to attract investors to the ZIZABONA
project. The transmission lines link four SADC
countries – Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana and Namibia
– and seek to reduce congestion on the central corridor.
July 15-16, 
 Ethiopia 19th African Union Summit
African Heads of State and Government will meet for the
19th Ordinary Session of the African Union, preceded by
conferences on “Boosting Intra-African Trade” and “2012
Year of Shared Values”.
 
July 16-19,
 South Africa Mining Congress
Africa The congress will focus on mining projects and accessing
funding and finance in Africa and ensuring effective production
and implementing best practice in mining.
 
July 19-20,
 China 5th FOCAC Meeting
The 5th Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation
(FOCAC) is expected to adopt a series of new measures
and targets for China-Africa development
cooperation for the period 2013-2016 and a stronger
focus on regional development and youth development.
August
TBA, Mozambique SADC Summit
SADC leaders meet annually in August/September to discuss
issues aimed at promoting regional integration and
development. The Summit is preceded by meetings of senior
officials and Council of Ministers. 
 
July 27-30, 
 South Solar Africa
Africa Energy experts will converge and discuss on how to
increase the uptake of solar energy.


title:
Infrastructure Development
Regional Master Plan

Abstract:
INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT  has
been placed at the core of the region's community-
building agenda and concerted efforts are
being made to ensure the availability of an integrated,
efficient and cost-effective system to
sustain regional economic development and
trade.

body:
INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT  has
been placed at the core of the region's community-
building agenda and concerted efforts are
being made to ensure the availability of an integrated,
efficient and cost-effective system to
sustain regional economic development and
trade.  
The 32nd Summit of SADC Heads of State
and Government set for 17-18 August in
Mozambique is expected to speed up the provision
of regional infrastructure, seen as a critical
foundation for the realisation of regional
integration objectives. 
 
A number of key developments have taken
place since the last summit in Angola in 2011,
including finalisation of the regional infrastructure
development master plan.
 
Ministers responsible for infrastructure
agreed on the draft SADC Regional Infrastructure
Development Master Plan at a meeting in
Luanda, Angola in late June, paving the way for
the document’s final approval by the leaders
during the forthcoming Summit set for Maputo.
 
The SADC master plan will guide implementation
of coordinated, integrated, efficient, transboundary
infrastructure networks in the six
priority sectors of energy, transport, tourism, information
technology, meteorology and water.
 
Identified priority infrastructure projects will
be implemented in three phases over 15 years
stretching from 2012 to 2027 at a cost of about
US$500 billion, with transport, energy and
water taking up the major share of the funding
requirements.
 
The region is projected to commission
power generation projects that will supply
17,000 megawatts (MW) in the next three years
to 2015, while the region could attain self sufficiency
in power by 2014.
 
An investment conference is planned between
January and March 2013 to lure potential
investors for the identified regional infrastructure
projects while road shows are also planned
in Asia, Europe and the United States for the
same purpose.
 
The leaders are also expected to consider reports
from the Ministerial Task Force on Regional
Economic Integration, which was tasked
during the 2011 Summit held in Angola with
finding ways of consolidating the SADC Free
Trade Area (FTA); establishment of the SADC
Customs Union and the Tripartite FTA involving
SADC, the Common Market for Eastern
and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the East
African Community (EAC).
 

The task force adopted a
work programme for consolidation
of the SADC FTA in
August 2010, which included
measures to facilitate accession
of Member States that are
not yet participating in the
SADC FTA; full implementation
of the FTA; and trade
facilitation, including infrastructure
development.
 

The work programme also
includes measures to address
non-tariff barriers (NTBs),
simplify rules of origin as well
as harmonisation and effective
implementation of customs
documentation and procedures.
 

SADC Executive Secretary,
Tomaz Augusto Salomão has
during the past two years led
high level missions to Seychelles
and Angola, and is
consulting with the Democratic
Republic of Congo
(DRC) regarding accession to
the SADC Protocol on Trade
and participation in the FTA.
 

Seychelles has made a decision
to accede to the Protocol
and, in accordance with accession
procedures, submitted a
letter of intent and a market
access offer to the Secretariat.
The Secretariat is providing
the necessary support to Seychelles.
 

Following high level consultations
between Salomão
and the political leadership in
Angola in 2011, a technical
team from the Secretariat visited
Angola this year to assess
ongoing efforts by government
towards industrial rehabilitation
as well as economic
and infrastructure development.
 

The mission has also assisted
Angola in preparing a
roadmap towards accession.
The work programme on
consolidation of the FTA foresees
a further review of the
rules of origin to further simplify
them and to ensure that
they are supportive to intra-regional trade. Such a review
should include reforms on the
administrative aspects of the
rules such as e-certification.
 

An expert group on rules
of origin for textiles and clothing
has been established to
prepare specific recommendations
for the reform of the
rules for the sector which were
not addressed during the first
comprehensive review of rules
of origin.
 

The 2011 Summit urged
the Ministerial Task Force on
Regional Economic Integration
to expedite the necessary
work leading to agreement
and common understanding
on parameters of the proposed
SADC Customs Union as well
as benchmarks or milestones
required for the establishment
of the Customs Union.
 

The task force was also
mandated to develop a model
Customs Union, and the
modalities that should be followed
for implementation of
the union.
 

The Tripartite Trade Negotiation
Forum (TTNF) involving
COMESA-SADC-EAC has
agreed to the timetable and
format of negotiations to establish
an integrated market
covering 27 countries in east
and southern Africa.
 

This was adopted at the
first round of negotiations
held in December last year following
the historic launch of
negotiations by the leaders of
the three regional economic
communities in June the same
year.
 

The TTNF agreed to meet at
least four times per year during
the first phase of negotiations.
The first phase of negotiations
is set to complete within 36
months (until the end of 2014),
and will address issues such as
tariff liberalisation, rules of origin,
customs cooperation and
customs-related matters, nontariff
barriers, sanitary and
phytosanitary measures, technical
barriers to trade, trade
remedies and dispute settlement.
 

The second phase of negotiations
will focus on negotiating
trade in services and trade
related issues, including intellectual
property rights, competition
policy and trade
President Armando Guebuza
The TTNF agreed to meet at
least four times per year during
the first phase of negotiations.
The first phase of negotiations
is set to complete within 36
months (until the end of 2014),
and will address issues such as
tariff liberalisation, rules of origin,
customs cooperation and
customs-related matters, nontariff
barriers, sanitary and
phytosanitary measures, technical
barriers to trade, trade
remedies and dispute settlement.
 

The second phase of negotiations
will focus on negotiating
trade in services and trade
related issues, including intellectual
property rights, competition
policy and traderedevelopment
and competitiveness.
Facilitating movement of
business persons within the region
will be negotiated in parallel
with the first phase.
 

The SADC Protocol on
Gender and Development is
set to enter into force very
soon. Only one more deposit
of the instruments of ratification
is required.
 

As of the last Summit, 13
Member States had signed the
Protocol, with the exception of
Botswana and Mauritius, while
eight had ratified the instrument,
namely Angola, Lesotho,
Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles,
South Africa, United
Republic of Tanzania and Zimbabwe.
DRC, Madagascar,
Malawi, Swaziland, and Zambia
– had not yet ratified the
Protocol at the time of the 2011
Summit. Zambia reported that
it was at advanced stages of
getting the Protocol ratified by
its statutory bodies.


Abstract:
SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS 
has been made in terms of political
stability in the region
during the past year, including
political dialogues in Lesotho,
Madagascar and Zimbabwe.
Lesotho held long-awaited
general elections in May following
the two-year, SADC mediated
dialogue aimed at
finding a lasting solution to the
country’s political 

polarisation.

body:
SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS 
has been made in terms of political
stability in the region
during the past year, including
political dialogues in Lesotho,
Madagascar and Zimbabwe.
Lesotho held long-awaited
general elections in May following
the two-year, SADC mediated
dialogue aimed at
finding a lasting solution to the
country’s political 

polarisation.
Political parties in Madagascar
signed an agreement in September
2011 that allows the
return of exiled leader Marc
Ravalomanana and paves the
way for elections to be held
within one year to re-establish
democracy on the Indian
Ocean island.
 

Madagascar was suspended
from SADC and the African
Union following a 2009 coup
that replaced Ravalomanana
with the then mayor of Antananarivo,
Andre Rajoelina.
 
The SADC-mediated agreement
allows for the unconditional
return from exile of
Ravalomanana and for the 

establishment
of transitional institutions
ahead of elections.
 
However, Ravalomanana has
not yet been allowed to return.
SADC is also facilitating the
political dialogue in Zimbabwe
where President Jacob Zuma of
South Africa is working with
members of the inclusive government
to develop a roadmap
towards elections.


Abstract:
THE SADC  Secretariat has commissioned an audit on implementation of the SADC Protocol on Trade. 
Signed in 1996, and coming into force in 2000 following a ratification process, the SADC Protocol on Trade aims to boost trade among Member States through the elimination of customs tariffs and non-tar­iff barriers.

body:
THE SADC  Secretariat has commissioned an audit on implementation of the SADC Protocol on Trade. 
Signed in 1996, and coming into force in 2000 following a ratification process, the SADC Protocol on Trade aims to boost trade among Member States through the elimination of customs tariffs and non-tar­iff barriers. 
A total of 12 SADC Member States signed the Protocol and are thus part of the Free Trade Area (FTA), with the exception of Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo which have asked for more time before join­ing the FTA. Madagascar is sus­pended from SADC activities. 
 
Implementation of the trade protocol has been a protracted regional process that has continued even beyond the formal launch of the FTA in August 2008, and this year marks the final year of tariff phase-downs and final assessment. 
 
To review the implementation process, SADC has tasked the Southern Africa Trade Hub to conduct an audit of all signa­tories to the SADC Protocol on Trade. 
The audit – the sixth of its kind since the Protocol came into force will involve country visits to all SADC Member States that are signatories. 
 
The country visits are aimed at collecting information for the audit report and, in particular, to gather views from a wide range of stakeholders concern­ing their experiences of how the SADC Protocol on Trade has been implemented. 
 
So far, audit visits have been carried out in Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe. 
 
According to the Southern Africa Trade Hub, the outcome of the assessment will be an audit report which will be re­viewed by the SADC Trade Ne­gotiating Forum, senior officials and the Committee of Ministers of Trade in Gaborone, Botswana. 
 
The last audit done in 2011 showed that the general com­pliance of the 2011 tariff phase-downs was high. The table below provides a summary of the implementation status for individual Member States. 
 
While compliance is gener­ally good, discrepancies continue to arise for individual tariff lines. However, these tariff line discrepancies will become increasingly irrelevant as Mem­ber States complete the tariff phase-downs in 2012. 
The 2011 audit report also indicates that significant progress has been made in ad­dressing not only FTA issues but the SADC broader vision of regional integration as well. 
 

For example, intra-SADC trade has recovered signifi­cantly since the 2008 global economic crisis and shows substantial expansion during the period of implementation of the SADC FTA. 
Rules of Origin continue to be discussed in the SADC con­text, specifically in the Experts Working Group on Textiles and Clothing. 
 
There has been substantial progress in the development and implementation of the monitoring mechanism for Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) as well as on the strengthening of trade facilitation initiatives within SADC. 
 
Member States are also more aware of the impact of NTBs and are moving towards a more systematic approach to address these measures. While more needs to be done, the online NTB monitoring system has progressed significantly during the course of the past year, moving from almost no resolved complaints to nearly 70 percent resolved. 
 
On SADC broader integra­tion agenda, Member States are preparing to actively negotiate under the Tripartite FTA. The Tripartite FTA, commonly known as the “Grand” FTA in­volves two other regional eco­nomic communities: the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the East African Community (EAC). 
 
The COMESA-EAC­SADC aims to launch an enlarged Tripartite FTA covering 27 countries in east­ern and southern Africa, and when fully operational the free market is expected to increase trade and deepen integration among Member States.


title:
Zambia, Tanzania review Tazara operations

Abstract:
THE UNITED REPUBLIC  of
Tanzania and Zambia have
agreed to set up a committee
of experts to review the Tanzania-
Zambia Railway Act in a
move aimed at improving operations
of the jointly owned
railway line.

body:
THE UNITED REPUBLIC  of
Tanzania and Zambia have
agreed to set up a committee
of experts to review the Tanzania-
Zambia Railway Act in a
move aimed at improving operations
of the jointly owned
railway line.  
The Council of Ministers of
the two countries agreed during
a meeting in June that the
review should result in structural
changes in Tanzania-
Zambia Railway Authority
(Tazara) management.
 
Presently, the 1975 Tazara
Act, which was reviewed in
1995, states that the position of
managing director would be
occupied by somebody from
Zambia while that of deputy
managing director is reserved
for a Tanzanian.
 
Among other changes, the
review may lead to a situation
where the holders of the two
positions would be appointed
on merit as opposed to the
current system.
 
Zambian Transport Minister,
Yamfwa Mukanga said his
country was committed to injecting
US$10 million for recapitalisation
of the railway firm
but initially it would invest $5
million to increase the volume
of cargo and passengers.
 
“Among problems facing
Tazara is capitalisation. We
made a provision for the
funds during the current financial
year to enable the railway
to increase passengers
and cargo," said Mukanga,
who is chairperson of the
Tazara Council of Ministers.
 
Tazara is a key transporter
of cargo, mostly copper and
other minerals from the Zambia
mines to Dar es Salaam for
export to overseas markets. It
also transports passengers.
 
Tazara is the gateway to
eastern and southern African
business markets covering
both SADC and the Common
Market for Eastern and Southern
Africa (COMESA).
 
The 1,860-kilometre Tazara
railway line, stretching from
Dar es Salaam in Tanzania to
Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia, was
constructed between 1970 and
1973 when the Chinese government
extended a US$500
million loan for its construction
and supervised the work
that was completed ahead of
schedule.
 

According to Tazara Managing
Director Akashambatwa
Lewanika, the firm’s performance
has improved since
2008/09 when 383,055 metric
tonnes of cargo were transported,
to 533,964 metric
tonnes in the 2010/2011 financial
year.
 
The target is to increase
freight traffic to one million
metric tonnes a year over the
next few years.


title:
ACP calls for flexibility in EPA negotiations

Abstract:
THE AFRICAN, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of
States has called for flexibility
in negotiations with Europe
on the Economic Partnership
Agreements (EPAs).

body:
THE AFRICAN, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of
States has called for flexibility
in negotiations with Europe
on the Economic Partnership
Agreements (EPAs).
The ACP Council of Ministers,
which met in Port Vila,
Vanuatu, in June, adopted resolutions
on several matters including
measures to improve
trade in sugar, tobacco and
cotton with the EU.
 
The ACP ministers said
they are committed to concluding
negotiations with Europe
on the EPAs.
 
“Despite the challenges, we
remain committed to concluding
the negotiations, but we
cannot stress enough the
need to place development
firmly at
the heart of
our agenda,” said Alva Baptiste,
Foreign Minister of St
Lucia, the incoming chairperson
of the ACP Council of
Ministers.
 
He said that until the contentious
issues are addressed
“it is difficult for our regions
to sign EPAs and we continue
our call for flexibility on the
part of our European Union
partners in attaining mutually
agreed and mutually beneficial
agreements.
 
“We reiterate our appeal to
the EU Commission to withdraw
its proposal to amend
Market Access Regulation
1528, which imposes a unilateral
deadline by which to conclude
trade agreements,” he
said, noting that the measure
was “putting undue pressure
on our countries to sign EPAs
without properly addressing
areas that may threaten the
stability and growth of their
countries.”
 
He said the ACP believed
that through the
power of dialogue
and was confident
that “in the spirit of the partnership
enshrined in the Cotonou
Agreement, we can find a
way out of this impasse”.
 
The Cotonou Agreement
signed in 2000 put in place a
trade cooperation framework
aimed at liberalising trade between
the ACP and EU and
also specified that a new World
Trade Organization-compatible
regime or an EPA must be
agreed by the end of 2007.
 
ACP is also intensifying efforts
to lobby against new
guidelines that will further restrict
production and consumption
of tobacco under a
World Health Organisation
(WHO)-led global treaty.
 
The ministers resolved to
oppose approval of draft
guidelines to sections of the
WHO Framework Convention
on Tobacco Control (WHOFCTC)
that deal with measures
to control tobacco
demand such as taxes and regulation
of the contents and
emissions of tobacco products.
 
The WHO-FCTC is the
world’s first global public
health treaty, which entered
into force in February 2005. It
was signed by 168 of the 192
WHO member states and
more than 170 WHO member
states have become parties to
the convention.


title:
AU targets improved intra-regional trade

Abstract:
THE AFRICAN  Union has
agreed to strengthen intra-regional
trade by removing barriers
that presently hinder
commercial transactions
among member states.

body:
THE AFRICAN  Union has
agreed to strengthen intra-regional
trade by removing barriers
that presently hinder
commercial transactions
among member states. 
Outgoing chairperson of
the AU Commission, Jean
Ping, said intra-African trade
presently stands at about 10
percent of the continent’s total
transactions with the rest of
the world, a worrying situation.
The AU Heads of State and
Government exchanged views
on the development agenda
for the continent under the
theme “Boosting Intra-African
Trade”.
 
The recently elected Prime
Minister of Lesotho, Thomas
Thabane, expressed the urgent
need for Africa to address the issue of poverty and underdevelopment
on the continent
while promoting intra-African
trade as a consolidation factor
of peace.
 
“There is no doubt that
trade amongst our countries is
key to the attainment of sustainable
economic development,
creation of jobs,
particularly for the youth and
to the effective integration of
Africa into the global economy,”
Thabane said.
 
The highlight of the summit
for SADC was the election
of the SADC candidate,
Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma,
currently the South African
Minister of Home Affairs, as
the new Chairperson of the
AU Commission, and of Erastus
Mwencha from Kenya as
deputy chairperson.


Abstract:
THE SADC  -sponsored candidate, Nkosazana
Dlamini-Zuma of South Africa, has etched her
name in history books after becoming the first
southern African to head the African Union
Commission.

body:
THE SADC  -sponsored candidate, Nkosazana
Dlamini-Zuma of South Africa, has etched her
name in history books after becoming the first
southern African to head the African Union
Commission.
Dlamini-Zuma, 63, defeated the incumbent,
Jean Ping, in elections held at the AU Summit in
July to choose the chairperson of the AU Commission,
which is the secretariat of the 54-nation
African Union. 
 
Dlamini-Zuma’s victory followed intense lobbying
by SADC Member States, who argued that it was
time for Southern Africa to lead the AU Commission since
other regions in Africa have had the opportunity to occupy
the top post.
 
West and Central Africa have already had their candidates
occupying the top AU post, with Omar Alpha Konare of Mali
and Ping, from Gabon.
 
A skilled administrator and diplomat with a pan-African
vision, Dlamini-Zuma was quick to put aside partisan politics
as she called for African unity following her victory.
 
“I am not an Anglophone, I’m a Zulu,” she said in her first
few remarks after winning the election.
She made it clear that she would be “implementing programmes...
agreed upon by everybody” rather than “consulting
the Anglophone and the Francophone.”
Dlamini-Zuma has held key ministerial positions in every
South African government since Nelson Mandela became
president following the first democratic elections in 1994.
 
A medical doctor by training, Dlamini-Zuma was South
Africa’s first black Minister of Health between 1994 and1999
when she showed exemplary initiative in transforming the
country's health system by introducing legislation that provided
the poor with access to free basic healthcare.
She scored another first in 1999 when she was appointed
by then President Thabo Mbeki as the first woman foreign
minister in a democratic South Africa, and she served in this
post for 10 years.
 

She became Minister of Home Affairs on 10
May 2009, the third deployment in the Executive
by three successive presidents.
 
Her new responsibilities are a continuation
of decades of life of struggle and sacrifice that
started in the 1970s when she was an activist in
KwaZulu Natal, where she rose through the
ranks to become vice-president of the then
South African Students Organisation (SASO) led
by the late Steve Biko.
 
Her activism did not escape the attention of the
apartheid security apparatus, which, through a sustained
campaign of harassment, ultimately forced her into exile in the
1970s to join the African National Congress (ANC).
 
Armed with a Bachelor of Science degree majoring in Zoology
and Botany, she continued her studies at the University of
Bristol while simultaneously serving as the chairperson of the
ANC Youth League in Great Britain during 1977 and 1978.
 
Upon graduation in 1978, she worked at Frenchay Hospital
in Bristol for two years, followed by another two-year stint at
the Canadian Red Cross Memorial Hospital in Berkshire.
 
Between 1980 and 1985, Dlamini-Zuma was deployed by
the ANC to Mbabane Government Hospital in Swaziland
where she was responsible for the medical needs of ANC
cadres in that country.
 
She was deployed to the ANC’s health department in Zambia
during 1989 and 1990, where she played a leading role in
the healthcare of the community in exile and made a major contribution
to the drafting of a post-apartheid health policy.
 
When the ANC was unbanned in 1990, Dlamini-Zuma returned
with other ANC members from exile to help to reorganise
the ANC legally inside the country and to prepare for
negotiations between the ANC and the apartheid government.
 
Dlamini-Zuma brings this accumulation of experience
over the past 40 years to the management of the African
Union, and faces vast expectations from Africa, and particularly
southern Africa. She is the first woman to hold the
post of Commision chair.


title:
Upgrade of Zambian transmission
infrastructure to boost SADC energy security

Abstract:
REGIONAL POWER   trading
in southern Africa is set to improve
following plans by Zambia
to refurbish key
transmission infrastructure
that connects the country to
neighbouring Namibia and the
rest of the Southern African
Power Pool (SAPP).

body:
REGIONAL POWER   trading
in southern Africa is set to improve
following plans by Zambia
to refurbish key
transmission infrastructure
that connects the country to
neighbouring Namibia and the
rest of the Southern African
Power Pool (SAPP).
Zambia is set to upgrade
the 341km electricity transmission
line between Kafue, just
outside Lusaka, and Livingstone
in the southern part of
the country.
 
The upgrade is expected to
increase the capacity of the line
to 330kiloVolts (kV) from its
current 220kV capacity. This
will increase reliability and
quality of domestic power
transmission as well as facilitate
regional power trade with
countries in the 12-member
SAPP.
 
The project will improve regional
energy distribution and
treble electricity transmission
capacity between the Victoria
Falls hydropower station and
Lusaka and is a priority initiative
for the Zambia Electricity
Supply Corporation (ZESCO).
 
The upgrade is vital for enhanced
supply within Zambia
and to relieve congestion on the
SAPP grid to ensure that supply
of energy keeps pace with economic
growth in the region. It
will enhance the energy link between
Zambia and Namibia
and enable the possible trading
of electricity through the
Caprivi interconnector.
 
The project will include
construction of new substations
and replacement of the
50-year-old energy infrastructure.
Overall transmission capacity
will be increased from
120 MW to 360 MW.
 
Upgrade of the transmission
line will also increase the
region's access to hydropower
and reduce the
country's dependency on oil
and coal generated power
and will reduce the electric
blackouts.
 
“Upgrading of the Kafue -
Livingstone transmission line
project will provide extra
power to the southern and
western provinces of Zambia
and other countries in the
Southern Africa Power Pool,”
said ZESCO managing director,
Cyprian Chitundu.
 
The project is expected to
cost US$100 million, with the
European Investment Bank
(EIB) meeting about a third of
the cost. Zambia signed a
US$30 million agreement with
EIB in May to fund the upgrade
of the Kafue-Livingstone
transmission.
 
The funding agreement was
signed in Lusaka by Zambian
Minister of Finance, Alexander
Chikwanda and senior EIB officials.
The World Bank, EUAfrica
Infrastructure Trust
Fund and ZESCO will be co-financiers
for the project, which
is expected to be completed by
the end of 2014.
 
“Access to electricity is essential
to achieve the Millennium
Development Goals and
promote sustainable development.
The European Investment
Bank is committed to
supporting the Zambian energy
sector and contributing to
global goals highlighted by the
2012 International Year of Sustainable
Energy for All,” said
Plutarchos Sakellaris, European
Investment Bank Vice
President.
 
The original line was built
in the 1970s to allow easy and
cost-efficient upgrading when
necessary. The upgrading
scheme will use existing infrastructure
and proven technology,
resulting in low
environmental impact and reduced
investment costs.
 
The EU-Africa Infrastructure
Trust Fund has agreed to
provide a €5.55 million (about
US$7 million) grant, split in
two components.
 
The first is a €5.2 million
(US$6.9 million) interest rate
subsidy while €350,000 (about
US$439,000) will be a technical
assistance grant to support
procurement and monitoring.

 sardc.net


title:
SADC lures investors for ZiZaBoNa project

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA  has intensified efforts
to lure investors to develop an electricity
transmission interconnector linking Zimbabwe,
Zambia, Botswana and Namibia.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA  has intensified efforts
to lure investors to develop an electricity
transmission interconnector linking Zimbabwe,
Zambia, Botswana and Namibia. 
Commonly known as ZiZaBoNa, the transmission
interconnector project has the capacity
to increase power trading among the participating
utilities, as well as provide an alternative
power transmission route and help decongest
the existing central transmission corridor. 
  
The Southern African Power Pool (SAPP),
which coordinates the planning, generation,
transmission and marketing of electricity on behalf
of Member State utilities in SADC, said an
investor’s roundtable was held in July to lure
potential financiers for the project.
  
The roundtable held in Swakopmund,
Namibia, in July targeted funding amounting
to US$223 million for the project.
  
The four countries’ respective utility companies
– the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority
(ZESA), Zambia Electricity Supply
Company (ZESCO), Botswana Power Corporation
(BPC) and Namibia Power Company
(NamPower) – are expected to finance parts
of the project that fall within their national
boundaries.
  
The project is to be implemented in two
phases. The first phase will cover the construction
of a 120-kilometre 330 kiloVolt line
from Hwange Power Station to Victoria Falls
where a switching station will be built on the
Zimbabwe side. The line will extend to a substation
at Livingstone in Zambia.
  
The second phase, which will be financed
under a special company to be called ZiZaBoNa
Private Limited, will involve the construction
of a 300-km 330kV line from
Livingstone to Katima Mulilo in Namibia,
through Pandamatenga in Botswana.
  
The Zimbabwe-Zambia interconnector will
be built as a high voltage line with a transmission
capacity of 430kV. However, it will operate
as a 330kV line during the first phase.


title:
SADC infrastructure plan ready for approval

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA’S  longawaited
Regional Infrastructure
Development Master Plan
is now ready for approval by
the SADC Heads of State and
Government Summit set for
Maputo, Mozambique in August.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA’S  long awaited
Regional Infrastructure
Development Master Plan
is now ready for approval by
the SADC Heads of State and
Government Summit set for
Maputo, Mozambique in August.  
This follows the finalisation
of the master plan by ministers
responsible for infrastructure
in the Southern African Development
Community (SADC),
who met in Luanda, Angola in
late June.
 
If endorsed by the southern
African leaders, the master
plan would guide development
in key infrastructure
such as road, rail and ports,
and would also act as a framework
for planning and cooperation
with development
partners and the private sector.
 
Speaking at the meeting of
SADC ministers responsible
for infrastructure, the SADC
Deputy Executive Secretary responsible
for regional integration,
João Caholo said the
master plan is a product of
“deep” stakeholder consultation
and, therefore, its success
will also depend on collective
implementation by all member
states.
 
He said as soon as the plan
is approved, the SADC Secretariat
would “facilitate and coordinate
the convening of a
SADC Infrastructure Invest-
ment Conference between
January and
March 2013” to lure
potential investors.
 
Road shows are also
planned in Asia, Europe
and the United
States for the same
purpose.
 
The master plan
will be implemented
over three five-year
intervals – short
term (2012-2017),
medium term (2017-
2022) and long term (2022-
2027).
 
This is in line with the
SADC Vision 2027, a 15-year
implementation horizon for
forecasting infrastructure requirements
in the region.
 
It is also in line with the
African Union’s Programme
for Infrastructure Development
of Africa (PIDA) and will
constitute a key input into the
proposed tripartite Free Trade
Area made up of SADC, the
Common Market for Eastern
and Southern Africa
(COMESA) and the East
African Community (EAC)
The SADC master plan will
guide implementation of coordinated,
integrated, efficient,
trans-boundary infrastructure
networks in the six priority
sectors of energy, transport,
tourism, information technology,
meteorology and water.
 

In the energy sector, it is anticipated
that the plan will address
four key areas of energy
security, improving access to
modern energy services, tapping
the abundant energy resources
and increasing financial
investment whilst enhancing
environmental sustainability.
 
Regarding the sub-sectors
of road, rail, ports, inland waterways
and air transport networks,
the Transport Sector
Plan will address four key
areas, namely improving access
to the seamless transport
corridors value chain; reducing
the cost of transportation;
enhancing competitiveness
and providing safe and secure
transport services.
 
The Information Communication
Technology (ICT) Sector
Plan is designed to address four
key areas: ensuring accessibility,
including universal access to
broadband ICT technologies;
integration through
broadband interconnectivity
within and
among SADC member
states; reducing
the cost of doing business;
and improving
reliability and security
of ICT infrastructure.
 
The Water Sector
Plan prioritises five
goals, which include
increasing the overall
water storage in the region; irrigated
land for food security;
hydropower generation for energy
security; increasing access
to safe drinking water; and enhancing
sanitation services for
SADC citizens.
 
The Tourism Sector Plan is
geared towards achieving enhanced
socio-economic development;
facilitating joint
marketing of SADC as a single
destination; increasing tourism
arrivals and tourism receipts
from source markets; and developing
the tourism sector in
an environmentally sustainable
manner.
 
Emphasis for the Meteorology
Sector Plan is put on the
need to ensure the availability
of timely early warning information
relating to adverse
weather and climate variability
impacts. Another highlight
of the Meteorology Sector Plan
will be the development of a
framework for harmonized indicators
for the provision of
relevant climate forecasting information
to facilitate preparations
of mitigation measures
against droughts, floods and
cyclones.
 
The identified priority infrastructure
projects will be
implemented at a cost of about
US$500 billion, with transport,
energy and water taking up
the major share of the funding
requirements.  sardc.net


title:
World’s largest solar park planned for South Africa

Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA  is set to become
a leader in the green energy
revolution with a giant
solar park planned which will
be the largest in the world.

body:
SOUTH AFRICA  is set to become
a leader in the green energy
revolution with a giant
solar park planned which will
be the largest in the world.
The R150-billion rand park
– planned for the hot, dry
Northern Cape province – will
be built over thousands of
hectares and provide 5,000
megawatts of electricity,
which will be fed into the national
grid. 
 
The park will be built in
stages over nine years, but the
first sections will be operational
as early as this year.
A solar park is a concentrated
zone of solar plants that
are built in clusters, sharing
common transmission and
other infrastructure.
 
The project is a partnership
between the South
African government, state
power utility Eskom and the
Clinton Climate Change Initiative.
An investors conference, to
run from 28 to 29 October, is
expected to attract additional
stakeholders from the private
sector.  BuaNews


title:
Rio + 20 outcomes:
Half full or half empty glass?

Abstract:
THE QUESTION  of whether the Rio+20 Summit held in Brazil in
June succeeded in producing a satisfactory outcome can be a matter
of conjecture.
However, what is in no doubt is the fact that the conference produced
a 49-page outcome document, titled “The Future We Want”.

body:
THE QUESTION  of whether the Rio+20 Summit held in Brazil in
June succeeded in producing a satisfactory outcome can be a matter
of conjecture.
However, what is in no doubt is the fact that the conference produced
a 49-page outcome document, titled “The Future We Want”. 
  
The outcome document contains what critics have called weak, nonbinding
commitments, confirmed by what China and the G77 – including
most of Africa – saw as a constant watering down of the text.
 
Another major concern was that the declaration has no mechanism
for implementation, or the means of financing it. For example,
while acknowledging the need to mobilise resources, there were no
specific figures committed.
 
Others have hailed the conference for at least reaffirming past actionable
plans such as Agenda 21, a comprehensive blueprint of action
agreed at the 1992 Rio Summit, to be taken globally, nationally, and locally
by organizations of the UN, governments, and other stakeholders
in every area in which humans directly affect the environment.
 
Rio+20 has further been criticized, like so many past global negotiations
– the most recent being the 17th Conference of Parties
(COP 17) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change held in Durban, South Africa – for failing to reach international
agreement or failing to reach outcomes that are binding, with
clear action towards sustainable development.
 
But was the Rio declaration a glass half full or half empty?
Put simply, the task before world leaders, heads of international
organizations and civil society at Rio+20 was to make decisions, announce
commitments and galvanize action on how humanity can
reduce poverty and inequality and ensure environmental protection
on an ever more crowded planet.
Yet global consensus on the many challenges that face humanity
today has never been easy.
 
Moreso in a world where the UN member states have, willingly or
unwillingly, embraced globalization, but are now failing to govern it.
Global population has increased to seven billion – projected to hit
eight billion by 2030 – and so has the pressure on the earth’s natural
resources. And the gap between the rich and the poor has widened.
 
UN member states
cannot be unaware of the
common responsibility before
them, that is ridding the world of its current interrelated
crises of an environmental, economic and equality
nature.
 
And the previous UN conferences did well to put
sustainable development discourse on the global agenda, notably
from the 1972 Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment,
credited for giving global impetus to the debate on balancing economic
growth and development with ecology.
 
The 1972 Stockholm conference culminated in the Brundtland
Commission, appointed in 1983 by the UN Secretary General Javier
Perez de Cuellar and named after its chair, Gro Harlem Brundtland,
former prime minister of Norway.
 
The Brundtland Commission report crafted what has now become
widely accepted as the definition of “sustainable development”,
casting it as “development that meets the needs of the
present without compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their own needs”.
 
The ensuing debate on the correlation between environment and
development was taken up at a much higher level at the 1992 United
Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de
Janeiro, also known as the Earth Summit and hailed then as the
biggest-ever political gathering with 172 governments represented,
108 of them sending their heads of state or government.
 
The 1992 Earth Summit arguably ended what was increasingly
then seen as a false dichotomy between environment and development.
Among other achievements, Rio 1992 was credited for two
binding agreements, namely the Convention on Biological Biodiversity
and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC),
the latter of which in turn led to the Kyoto Protocol of 1997,
aimed at fighting global warming.
 
Ten years later came the World Summit on Sustainable Development
in 2002 in South Africa, which produced the Johannesburg
Declaration, building on earlier declarations made at Stockholm in
1972 and Rio in 1992.
 
Unlike Rio 1992, the Johannesburg summit was organized around
partnerships designed to give impetus to the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs), rather than producing new agreements.
 
Critics, however, have pointed out that many of the commitments
made at most of the UN conferences on sustainable development
preceding Rio+20 have not been realized, particularly regarding

such fundamental issues as poverty
reduction and cleaning up or protection
of the environment.
 
They cite the example of the
Kyoto Protocol, the only legally
binding treaty to combat climate change the world presently has,
yet some major polluters have either not acceded to, notably the
United States, or pulled out, in the case of Canada.
 
Poverty has either become more acute or has remained largely
unchanged.
From an African perspective, nowhere in the world is poverty more
serious than on the continent. Further, recent studies have shown that
Africa’s climate is warming faster than the global average.
 
And sustainable development issues and priorities vary from
continent to continent, and from nation to nation.
So 20 years on since the last Earth Summit in Rio, the expectations
for 2012 were as diverse as the stakeholders participating either as
governments, international organizations or various other groups
known in UN lingo as “major groups”.
 
There was no doubt how much of a herculean task was before the
negotiators going into the conference as they faced the difficult task
of balancing the enormously diverse views in more than 6,000 pages
of contributions from the governments, international organizations
and the major groups.
 
The negotiations could not have been made any easier with as
many as 50,000 participants at the official conference and an estimated
equal number at the parallel People’s Summit (for civil society
groups and business).
 
If the diversity of views – whether on basis of circumstances of
country development levels or group interests of stakeholders –
made the negotiations a charged affair, the location
of the official summit and the people’s
summit was always going to cause the final
outcome to be viewed with suspicion from a
civil society perspective, with the two events
pitched 40km apart.
 
For some, the text of the Rio declaration was
rejected well before the negotiators had even
landed in Rio de Janeiro – on the grounds of
what was deemed a flawed process, including
the selection of the conference themes.
 
The conference had two themes agreed upon by the UN member
states:
• Green economy within the context of sustainable development
and poverty eradication; and
• Institutional framework for sustainable development.
While Africa has grudgingly embraced the green economy concept,
concerns have been perceptible, particularly on the potential
abuse of it by rich nations to impose indirect trade barriers on the
pretext of compliance with new requirements during the global transition
to “green products”.
Debate on the green economy and climate change has pitted developing
countries against developed nations and has been more
manifest on the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities”.
 
The notion of “common but differentiated responsibilities”, arising
out of the 1992 UNFCCC, is a key principle of the Kyoto Protocol,
where parties recognize the direct responsibility of developed
countries in global climate change as well as the special needs and
circumstances of developing countries.
 
However, its interpretation has been a subject of immense debate
in global negotiations on sustainable development with developed
countries accused of using every trick in the book to renege on their
past promises.
 
Amidst recrimination and charges of strong arm tactics – that has
become the hallmark of global negotiations – a developing countries-
backed proposal for a US$30 billion global fund for sustainable
development was shot down by the EU before its merits could even
be discussed.
With no financial means for implementation, it left many participants,
particularly from Africa, wondering whether the lofty aspirations
expressed in the 49-page outcome
document will not remain a chimera.
However, Secretary-General of the Rio +
20 Summit, Sha Zukang, remained optimistic
of the outcome.
“We think the text contains a lot of action
… and if follow-up measures are
taken, it will indeed make a tremendous
difference in generating positive global
change,” he said in defense of the agreement.


title:
COMESA, EAC, SADC in joint climate change strategy

Abstract:
EASTERN AND  African countries have
established a joint climate
change programme to
harmonise response
programmes in the regions
represented by three regional
bodies.

body:
EASTERN AND  African countries have
established a joint climate
change programme to
harmonise response
programmes in the regions
represented by three regional
bodies.
The launch of the joint five-year
programme on Climate
Change Adaptation and Mitigation
by the Common Market
for Eastern and Southern
Africa (COMESA), East
African Community (EAC)
and SADC is expected to help
address the impacts of climate
change through common
adaptation and mitigation actions
that enhance socio-economic
resilience.
 
So far, a total of about US$90
million has been raised to fund
various climate change adaptation
and mitigation programmes
in the two regions.
Speaking soon after signing
the Tripartite Agreement for
the Implementation of the Programme
on Climate Change
Adaptation and Mitigation in
eastern and southern Africa,
SADC Executive Secretary,
Tomáz Augusto Salomão said
the joint plan has the capacity
to address climate change in
the region.
 
“The overall objective of
the programme is to address
the impacts of climate change
through successful adaptation
and mitigation actions aimed
at building socio-economic resilience
of communities
through Climate-Smart Agriculture
(CSA),” Salomão, who
is also the chairperson of the
COMESA-EAC-SADC tripartite,
said in a statement.
 
The scale and gravity of the
impacts of climate change at
the global level, particularly in
developing countries, is a serious
challenge to sustainable
development in the 21st century.
Therefore, the COMESA-EAC-
SADC region, which is
heavily dependent on rainfed
agriculture for food security,
has embarked to this
initiative to strengthen efforts
to address climate change
which is increasingly affecting
socio-economic development.
 
The joint climate change
programme is expected to increase
investments in climate-resilient
and carbon-efficient
agricultural practices and
strengthen linkages between
agriculture, forestry and other
land uses in eastern and
southern Africa.
 
The signing of the tripartite
agreement after the Rio+20
summit held under the auspices
of the United Nations
Conference on Sustainable Development
(UNCSD) in June
in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,
demonstrates the three regional
communities’ commit-ment to address climate
change in the region.
 
The Rio+20 summit acknowledged
climate change as
a cross-cutting and persistent
crisis while resolving to increase
agricultural production.
The signing of the agreement
also provides an opportunity
for the inclusion of climate
change as one of the areas of
cooperation under the
COMESA-EAC-SADC tripartite
framework.


Abstract:
DEVELOPMENT EXPERTS 
have said the Rio+20 summit
compromise deal presented as
“The Future We Want” falls
short of meeting expectations
of developing countries.

body:
DEVELOPMENT EXPERTS 
have said the Rio+20 summit
compromise deal presented as
“The Future We Want” falls
short of meeting expectations
of developing countries. 
Instead of reaching consensus
on how to rescue the
planet during the United Nations
Conference on Sustainable
Development held in Rio
de Janeiro, Brazil, in June,
deep divisions remained on
the way forward towards a
common goal.
 
The Africa Progress Panel
(APP) has expressed disappointment
at the failure of the
Rio +20 summit to deliver
meaningful and measurable
commitments to combat climate
change and its effects
across Africa and other developing
regions.
 
“The lack of commitment
to defined and measurable
sustainable development
goals at the Rio +20 Summit is
a profoundly disturbing outcome,”
said APP chairperson
and former UN Secretary-
General, Kofi Annan.
 
“We all have an obligation
to the world’s poorest and
most vulnerable people, who
bear the brunt of the global
ecological crisis – and to future
generations, to do better.”
 
Executive director of
Greenpeace, Kumi Naidoo
agreed, saying that Rio+20
had taken a step back instead
of moving the sustainable development
agenda forward.
 
“The future we want has
gotten a little further away
today. Rio+20 has turned into
an epic failure. It has failed on
equity, failed on ecology and
failed on economy,” he said.
 
“This is not a foundation
on which to grow economiesor pull people out of poverty,
it’s the last will and testament
of a destructive twentieth
century development
model.”
 
The Rio+20 summit was
held under two themes.
These were “Green Economy
in the Context of Sustainable
Development and Poverty
Eradication” and “Institutional
Framework for Sustainable
Development”.
 
A total of seven key areas
were identified for discussion
– energy, water, food security,
jobs, cities, oceans and disasters.
 
These areas considered
critical towards poverty reduction
and sustainable development.
“This is an outcome that
makes nobody happy,”
Rio+20 Secretary-General, Sha
Zukang, said at the conclusion
of the summit.


Abstract:
GLOBAL LEADERS  have acknowledged
the vital role
played by women in achieving
sustainable development and
resolved to prioritise measures
to promote gender equality and
women’s empowerment.

body:
GLOBAL LEADERS  have acknowledged
the vital role
played by women in achieving
sustainable development and
resolved to prioritise measures
to promote gender equality and
women’s empowerment. 
The United Nations Conference
on Sustainable Development
held in Rio de Janeiro,
Brazil, in June noted that, although
there has been some
progress on gender equality,
the potential of women to engage
in, contribute to and benefit
sustainable development as
leaders, participants and agents
of change has not been fully realised
due to persistent social
and economic inequalities.
 
The 193 leaders who attended
the conference resolved
to accelerate the
implementation of their respective
commitments contained
in the Convention on
the Elimination of all forms
of Discrimination against
Women, as well as Agenda 21,
the Beijing Declaration and
Platform for Action, and the
UN Millennium Declaration.
 
“We support prioritising
measures to promote gender
equality empowerment of
women in all spheres of our
societies, including the removal
of barriers to their full
and equal participation in decision-
making and management
at all levels,” the leaders
said in a communiqué at the
end of the conference.
 
They resolved to unlock the
potential of women as drivers
of sustainable development,
including through the repeal
of discriminatory laws, ensuring
equal access to justice and
legal support, reform of institutions
to ensure competence
and capacity for gender mainstreaming
as well as the development
and adoption of
innovative measures to address
informal, harmful practices
that act as barriers to gender
equality.
 
“In this regard, we commit
to creating an enabling environment
for improving the situation
of women and girls
everywhere, particularly in
rural areas and local communities
and among indigenous
peoples and ethnic minorities,”
the leaders said.
 
They undertook to institute
legislative and administrative
reforms to give women equal
rights with men with regard to
economic resources, including
access to ownership and control
over land and other forms
of property, credit, inheritance,
natural resources and appropriate
new technology.
 
Other measures include
promotion of equal access of
women and girls to education,
basic services, economic opportunities
and health-care
services, including addressing
women’s sexual and reproductive
health, and ensuring
universal access to safe, effective,
affordable and acceptable
modern methods of family
planning.
 
Southern Africa is one of
the regions that have recorded
progress in mainstreaming
gender in policies and developmental
processes.
 
There has been some
progress towards gender
mainstreaming in politics and
an increase in the number of
women in political decisionmaking
positions in most
SADC Member States since
the adoption of the SADC
Declaration on Gender and
Development by SADC leaders
in 1997 following the UN
Fourth World Women Conference
in Beijing, China in 1995.
 
The highest positions in
government reached by
women to date have been the
Presidency in Malawi and
Mauritius, Vice Presidency in
South Africa and Zimbabwe,
Prime Minister in Mozambique
and Deputy Prime Minister
in Namibia.
 
A Tanzanian woman has
been deputy secretary-general
of the United Nations for the
past five years, and a South
African woman has just been
elected to head the African
Union Commission.
 
There are five women
Speakers of Parliament or Senate
Presidents in the region, in
Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique,
Tanzania and Zimbabwe.
 
Southern Africa had by
2009 reached the third highest
percentage of women in politics
at the parliamentary level,
with 20 percent, a figure surpassed
only by the Nordic
countries with 40.8 percent
and the Americas at 21.4 percent.
 
The region’s average percentage
of women in Parliament
is higher than the world
average of 18.5 percent, the
Sub-Saharan average of 18.6
percent, Asia at 18.4 percent,
the Pacific at 15.2 percent, and
the Arab States (9.1 percent)
which is the lowest.
 
However, more vigorous
measures are needed if southern
Africa is to attain the 50-
percent target for
representation of women in
political and decision-making
positions at all levels by 2015
in line with regional and continental
targets.


title:
Migiro appointed Special Envoy for
HIV and AIDS in Africa

Abstract:
ASHA-ROSE MIGIRO   from
the United Republic of Tanzania
has been appointed as the
UN Secretary-General’s Special
Envoy for HIV and AIDS
in Africa.

body:
ASHA-ROSE MIGIRO   from
the United Republic of Tanzania
has been appointed as the
UN Secretary-General’s Special
Envoy for HIV and AIDS
in Africa.  
Secretary-General Ban Ki-
Moon said Migiro is uniquely
qualified for this job due to her
“experience in responding to
AIDS as UN Deputy Secretary-
General, combined with
her many years as an advocate
for health and social justice in
Africa.”  
 
Migiro served as the United
Nations Deputy Secretary-General from 2007 to 2012, and was
actively involved in promoting
the UN response to AIDS, with
special emphasis on reducing
the vulnerability of women and
girls and ensuring the rights of
people living with HIV.
 
“I am honoured to accept
this appointment at this crucial
moment in the African
AIDS response,” she said.
“Now is the time to take our
efforts to a new level.”
 
Migiro served as Tanzania’s
Minister of Foreign Affairs
and International Cooperation
from 2006 to 2007—the first
woman to hold that position
since independence in 1961.
 
She was previously the Minister
for Community Development,
Gender and Children
for five years. Prior to Government
service, she pursued a
career in academia, and
served as a member of the UN
Committee on the Elimination
of Discrimination against
Women in 2000.


title:
SADC establishes committee to drive higher education development

Abstract:
SADC HAS  established a
technical committee to spearhead
the revival of higher education
development and
training in southern Africa.

body:
SADC HAS  established a
technical committee to spearhead
the revival of higher education
development and
training in southern Africa.  
The committee, to be made
up of senior education officers
from across the region, was set
up by ministers responsible
for higher education in SADC
Member States who met in Johannesburg,
South Africa in
June. 
 
The ministerial meeting
tasked the SADC Technical
Committee on Higher Education
and Training and Research
and Development to develop a
regional strategic plan on
higher education and training,
research development.
 
The committee is expected
to, among other things, review
access to higher education and
participation rates in southern
Africa, as well as funding and
capacity-building of higher
education to guide proper investments
for the next 10-15
years. “This plan will outline
key priorities for both the
short and long term,” South
African Deputy Minister of
Higher Education and Training,
Hlengiwe Mkhize, said.
 
“If all the plans made by
the technical committee are effectively
and successfully implemented,
we would see a
positive impact on the higher
education and training sector
within the SADC region.”
 
The ministers noted that,
due to various factors such as
limited financial resources, the
region is experiencing very
low levels of enrolment and
participation in higher education
when compared to other
regions in Africa and globally.
 
The quality of the education is
also deteriorating while the
number of academic staff had
declined.
  

“The leadership and management
of higher education
institutions are in many cases
weak, while the quality of
teachers and the education that
is available does not always


Abstract:
SADC MEMBER  States agreed in September
2007 to cooperate in education and training
under this Protocol for purposes of achieving
the following objectives:

body:
B> SADC MEMBER  States agreed in September
2007 to cooperate in education and training
under this Protocol for purposes of achieving
the following objectives:  
• To develop and implement a common system 
of regular collection and reporting of
information by Member States about the
current status and future demand and supply,
and the priority areas for provision of
education and training in the region;
 
• To establish mechanisms and institutional
arrangements that enables Member States
to pool their resources to effectively and
efficiently produce the required professional,
technical, research and managerial
personnel to plan and manage the development
process in general and across all
sectors in the region;
 
• To promote and coordinate the formulation
and implementation of comparable
and appropriate policies, strategies and
systems of education and training in
Member States;
 
• To promote and coordinate
the formulation and implementation
of policies, strategies and
programmes for the promotion and application
of science and technology, including
modern information technology and
research and development in the region;
 
• To work towards the reduction and eventual
elimination of constraints to better
and freer access, by citizens of Member
States, to good quality education and
training opportunities within the region;
 
• To work towards the relaxation and eventual
elimination of immigration formalities
in order to facilitate freer movement
of students and staff within the region for
the specific purposes of study, teaching,
research and any other pursuits relating to
education and training; and
 
• To progressively achieve the equivalence,
harmonisation and standardisation of the
education and training systems in the region.


title:
China, Africa target “new strategic partnership”

Abstract:
CHINA AND  Africa have
agreed on a new plan of action
for the three years to 2015 as
the two sides strive to achieve
a “new type of strategic partnership”.

body:
CHINA AND  Africa have
agreed on a new plan of action
for the three years to 2015 as
the two sides strive to achieve
a “new type of strategic partnership”. 
Ministers in charge of foreign
affairs and economic cooperation
from China and 50
African countries resolved at
the 5th Ministerial Conference
of the Forum on China-Africa
Cooperation (FOCAC) held in
July in Beijing, China, to
deepen the strategic partnership
underpinned by the values of political equality, mutual
trust, economic win-win cooperation
and cultural exchanges. 
 
The Beijing Action Plan
(2013-2015), which was
adopted together with the Beijing
Declaration, will focus on
trade, investment, poverty reduction,
infrastructure, capacity-
building, food security,
and political cooperation,
among other sectors.
 
China pledged to implement
a “special plan on trade
with Africa,” under which it
will send investment and
trade promotion missions to
Africa, expand imports from
Africa and support the holding
of African products exhibitions
to help African countries
export their competitive goods
to China.
 
This will include technical
support for intensive processing
of African agro-produce
and industrial raw materials,
and increasing value addition
of Africa's primary products
through investment.
 
Chinese companies will be
encouraged to establish processing
and manufacturing
bases in Africa to help raise the
added value of African exports.
China pledged to further
open its market to African
products and phase in zerotariff
treatment to 97 percent
of the products from the least
developed African countries,
including the establishment of
“a consultation mechanism on
the place of origin for goods
enjoying zero-tariff treatment
and improving the cooperation
mechanism to implement
zero-tariff treatment,” the
ministers said.
 
The two sides announced
that they would “consider the
establishment of a China-
Africa energy forum under the
framework of FOCAC to promote
China-Africa energy exchanges
and cooperation”
while strengthening cooperation
in clean energy and renewable
resources projects.
 
“In view of the strong complementarity
and cooperation
potential between
China and Africa in energy
and resources, the
two sides will encourage
and support joint development
and proper use of
their energy and resources by
enterprises of the two sides,”
the ministers said.
 
In terms of cooperation in
international affairs, the two
sides agreed to uphold the
central role of the United Nations
in international affairs
and promote multilateralism
and democracy in international
relations.
 
They reaffirmed the need
for necessary reforms of the
UN, noting that priority
should be given to increasing
the representation of African
countries in the UN Security
Council and other institutions.
South Africa, which takes
over as co-chair of the FOCAC
for six years, said it would do
its utmost to carry out the objectives
of the Beijing Action
Plan (2013-2015), deepen
African countries' engagement
in the activities of the forum
and make the forum compatible
with the proposals of the
African Union. 
 
Chinese President Hu Jintao
proposed measures in five
priority areas, including financial
assistance to the AU’s
peacekeeping missions, to
boost China's relations with
the continent.
 
The new focus areas are the
expansion of investment and
financing to support sustainable
development in Africa,
increased assistance to Africa,
support for Africa’s integration
process and strengthening
of continental capacity in
executing overall development goals, enhancement of
people-to-people friendship,
and promotion of peace and
stability in Africa.
 
China will during the next
three years launch the “Initiative
on China-Africa Cooperative
Partnership for Peace and
Security” and deepen cooperation
with the AU and African
countries on peace and security,
Hu said.
 
China will provide financial
support for the AU peacekeeping
missions and the
development of the African
Standby Force, and train more
officials in peace and security
affairs and peacekeepers for
the AU.
China also said it will support
the African integration
process, and promote exchanges
between the people,
media and scholars of China
and Africa to “lay a solid foundation
of public support” to
the relations.
 
Beijing pledged to provide
a US$20 billion credit line to
African countries over the
next three years. The loans
will support infrastructure,
agriculture, manufacturing
and development of small and
medium-sized businesses.
 
FOCAC is a collective consultation
and dialogue mechanism
between China and
African countries launched in
2000. The 6th FOCAC ministerial
conference will be held in
Johannesburg, South Africa, in
2015.


Abstract:
THE PROPOSED BRICS  Development
Bank involving
five emerging economies –
Brazil, Russia, India, China
and South Africa – is expected
to be established next year in
South Africa.

body:
THE PROPOSED BRICS  Development
Bank involving
five emerging economies –
Brazil, Russia, India, China
and South Africa – is expected
to be established next year in
South Africa. 
The launch of the BRICS
Development Bank is expected
to provide developing
and emerging countries with
an alternative source of funding,
and considerable groundwork
for the bank launch was
covered during the 2012
BRICS Summit held in India
in April.
 
The proposed bank is expected
to finance infrastructure
and sustainable
development in developing
countries. This follows concerns
that existing multilateral
financial institutions are doing
little to promote development
in poorer countries.
 
Furthermore, existing international
financial institutions
are dominated by Western
powers and often impose stringent
conditions for accessing
loans or debt relief.


title:
Nine parties register for Angolan elections

Abstract:
NINE POLITICAL  parties
have been cleared to participate
in the Angolan parliamentary
elections scheduled
for 31 August while 18 others
were disqualified for failing to
comply with requirements of
the country’s Electoral Law. 
Constitutional Court chairperson,
Rui Ferreira said five
of the parties will stand separately
while the remainder are
coalitions made up of 20 small
parties that have expressed interest
to take part in the elections.
 
The five main parties include
the ruling Popular
Movement for the Liberation
of Angola (MPLA) and the
main opposition National
Union for the Total Independence
of Angola
(UNITA). Others are the National
Liberation Front of Angola
(FNLA), the Party for
Social Renovation (PRS) and
the Popular Party for Development
(PAPOD).
 
The coalitions include the
Convergence Angola Salvation
Wide-Electoral Coalition
(CASA-EC), which is an umbrella
for four small parties
and is the brainchild of former
senior UNITA official, Abel
Chivukuvuku.
 
Other coalitions are the Opposition
Political Consultative
Council (CPO), New Democracy
(ND) and United Front for
Change of Angola (FUMA).
The ND is a coalition of
seven parties while the CPO
and FUMA are umbrella
groups made up of four and
six small parties, respectively.
 
Ferreira said of the 27 applications
submitted to the
court, 18 were disqualified as
they did not meet the minimum
requirement of 14,000
signatures of supporters who
are registered as voters,
among other reasons.
 
Among those rejected are
the Democratic Block (BD), led
by former ruling party member
Justino Pinto de Andrade;
and Popular Party (PP), which
was formed by lawyer David
Mendes.
 
According to the National
Electoral Commission (CNE),
about nine million Angolans
are registered to vote in the
forthcoming elections.
CNE spokesperson Julia
Ferreira said more than 10,780
polling stations will be set up
around the country.
 
These will be the third elections
since Angola attained independence
from Portugal in
1975. The first post-independence
election was held in
1992, before the civil war was
re-ignited by UNITA led by
Jonas Savimbi, and the second
polls were held in 2008. The
conflict ended in 2002 with the
death of Savimbi.
 
The MPLA won by more
than 81 percent and has used
its commanding parliamentary
majority to pass a raft of
new laws including a new
constitution that has abolished
direct presidential elections
in favour of an electoral
college.
 
Under the new Electoral
Law, the President and Vice
President will be elected indirectly.
The head of state will
be chosen from the party
with the parliamentary majority.

body:
NINE POLITICAL  parties
have been cleared to participate
in the Angolan parliamentary
elections scheduled
for 31 August while 18 others
were disqualified for failing to
comply with requirements of
the country’s Electoral Law. 
Constitutional Court chairperson,
Rui Ferreira said five
of the parties will stand separately
while the remainder are
coalitions made up of 20 small
parties that have expressed interest
to take part in the elections.
 
The five main parties include
the ruling Popular
Movement for the Liberation
of Angola (MPLA) and the
main opposition National
Union for the Total Independence
of Angola
(UNITA). Others are the National
Liberation Front of Angola
(FNLA), the Party for
Social Renovation (PRS) and
the Popular Party for Development
(PAPOD).
 
The coalitions include the
Convergence Angola Salvation
Wide-Electoral Coalition
(CASA-EC), which is an umbrella
for four small parties
and is the brainchild of former
senior UNITA official, Abel
Chivukuvuku.
 
Other coalitions are the Opposition
Political Consultative
Council (CPO), New Democracy
(ND) and United Front for
Change of Angola (FUMA).
The ND is a coalition of
seven parties while the CPO
and FUMA are umbrella
groups made up of four and
six small parties, respectively.
 
Ferreira said of the 27 applications
submitted to the
court, 18 were disqualified as
they did not meet the minimum
requirement of 14,000
signatures of supporters who
are registered as voters,
among other reasons.
 
Among those rejected are
the Democratic Block (BD), led
by former ruling party member
Justino Pinto de Andrade;
and Popular Party (PP), which
was formed by lawyer David
Mendes.
 
According to the National
Electoral Commission (CNE),
about nine million Angolans
are registered to vote in the
forthcoming elections.
CNE spokesperson Julia
Ferreira said more than 10,780
polling stations will be set up
around the country.
 
These will be the third elections
since Angola attained independence
from Portugal in
1975. The first post-independence
election was held in
1992, before the civil war was
re-ignited by UNITA led by
Jonas Savimbi, and the second
polls were held in 2008. The
conflict ended in 2002 with the
death of Savimbi.
 
The MPLA won by more
than 81 percent and has used
its commanding parliamentary
majority to pass a raft of
new laws including a new
constitution that has abolished
direct presidential elections
in favour of an electoral
college.
 
Under the new Electoral
Law, the President and Vice
President will be elected indirectly.
The head of state will
be chosen from the party
with the parliamentary majority.


title:
SADC urges implementation of 

Madagascar roadmap

Abstract:
SADC HAS  mandated former
Mozambican President,
Joaquim Chissano, to facilitate
a meeting between Madagascar’s
interim leader Andry Rajoelina
and deposed president
Marc Ravalomanana with a
view to speeding up implementation
of a peace roadmap
that is key to the holding of
credible elections.

body:
SADC HAS  mandated former
Mozambican President,
Joaquim Chissano, to facilitate
a meeting between Madagascar’s
interim leader Andry Rajoelina
and deposed president
Marc Ravalomanana with a
view to speeding up implementation
of a peace roadmap
that is key to the holding of
credible elections.  
The Extraordinary Summit
of SADC Heads of State and
Government held in Luanda,
Angola in June resolved that
Chissano should urgently facilitate
dialogue and convene
a meeting between Rajoelina
and Ravalomanana to bring
back on track the implementation
of a roadmap signed by
Malagasy political parties in
September 2011.
 
Chissano is the SADC mediator
in the Madagascar political
conflict.

The peace road-map
seeks to return the
country to constitutional
normalcy
following a 2009
coup that saw Rajoelina
unconstitutionally
remove
R a v a l o m a n a n a
from power with the
support of the
army. Madagascar
is currently
suspended from SADC.
“Summit mandated the
SADC mediator and the
Troika of the Organ to facilitate
dialogue and convene a
meeting between H.E. Andry
Rajoelina, president of the
High Transition Authority
and H.E Marc Ravalomanana,
former President as a matter
of urgency in order to ensure
full implementation of the
roadmap and create an enabling 

environment for
holding credible, free
and fair elections,”
the SADC leaders
said in a communiqué.
The road-map
allows for the unconditional
return
from exile of Ravalomanana
and for
the establishment
of transitional institutions
ahead of elections.
The Extraordinary Summit
noted that a SADC Liaison
Office established in
November 2011 to support
the implementation process
was fully operational, with officers
from the Troika of the
Organ on Politics, Defence
and Security Cooperation and
representatives of the SADC
chair on the ground since January
2012.


title:
20 Years 

1992 - 2012


 
Roots of the Southern African
Development Community

Abstract:
THE TREATY  of the Southern
African Development Community
(SADC) was signed by
Heads of State and Government
in Windhoek, Namibia,
on 17 August 1992, soon after
Namibia’s independence, replacing
the Southern African
Development Coordination
Conference (SADCC) established
in April 1980 in Lusaka,
Zambia.

body:
THE TREATY  of the Southern
African Development Community
(SADC) was signed by
Heads of State and Government
in Windhoek, Namibia,
on 17 August 1992, soon after
Namibia’s independence, replacing
the Southern African
Development Coordination
Conference (SADCC) established
in April 1980 in Lusaka,
Zambia. 
This was based on the conclusion
by Heads of State and
Government that political independence
was almost complete
in the region, and their declaration,
“Southern Africa—Towards
Economic Liberation”. 
 
They pledged in the new
Treaty to “strengthen and consolidate
the longstanding historical,
social and cultural
affinities and links among the
people of the region.”
 
The Treaty states the SADC
principles as:  
• sovereign equality of all
Member States;
 
• solidarity, peace and security;
 
• human rights, democracy
and the rule of law;
 
• equity, balance and mutual
benefit; and,
 
• peaceful settlement of disputes.
SADC Common Agenda
 

The objectives of SADC are to
promote sustainable and equitable
economic growth and
socio-economic development,
enhance the standard and quality
of life of the people of
Southern Africa and support
the socially disadvantaged
through regional integration;
promote common political values,
systems and other shared
values through institutions that
are democratic, legitimate and
effective; and, consolidate, defend
and maintain democracy,
peace, security and stability.
 
Other objectives are to promote
self-sustaining development
on the basis of collective
self-reliance and the interdependence
of Member States;
align national and regional
strategies and programmes;
maximise productive employment;
achieve sustainable utilisation
of natural resources and
effective protection of the environment;
combat HIV and
AIDS and other communicable
diseases; address poverty eradication;
and mainstream gender
in the process of community
building.

The Treaty presents several
initiatives intended to achieve
these objectives, including harmonisation
of political and
socio-economic policies and
plans; and encouraging the
people of the region and their
institutions to take their own
initiatives to develop economic,
social and cultural ties across
the region, and to participate
fully in the implementation of
the programmes and projects of SADC


Abstract:
Five countries celebrate their heroes and
heritage in this period.

body:
Five countries celebrate their 

heroes and
heritage in this period.
 13-14 August.  Zimbabwe 

commemorates
National Heroes Day
and Armed Forces Day to honour those
who fought the war of national 

liberation, and
those killed by Rhodesian atrocities 

such as Freedom
Camp in Zambia and Nyadzonia in 

Mozambique where thousands
of unarmed civilians lost their 

lives.
 
 26 August. Namibia marks 

Heroes Day (Namibia Day)
when thousands of Namibians gather 

at different venues
each year to remember their heroes 

on the date of the official launch
of the long and bitter struggle for 

independence when the first bullet
was fired in 1966 at 

Omugulu-Gwombashe in the Omusati 

region.
 
Three days in Mozambique. 7 

September, 25 September,
 4 October. Mozambique 

commemorates three important
dates, starting 7 September, when 

the historic agreement was signed
with Portugal in 1974 in Lusaka, 

bringing a ceasefire and transition
to independence. Armed Forces Day on 

25 September marks the
start of the liberation war when the 

first shots were fired at in the
northern Cabo Delgado province in 

1964. Peace and Reconciliation
Day marks the peace agreement signed 

in Rome in 1992 following
16 years of conflict and two years 

of arduous negotiations led by
Armando Emilio Guebuza, now 

President of Mozambique and
forthcoming Chairperson of SADC.
 


 17 September.  Angola 

remembers Agostinho Neto, the
founding President and symbol of 

Angolan nationalism,
born on this date in 1922 and died 

in 1979 at the age of 56 after 

leading
the liberation war that brought 

independence from Portugal in
1975.
 
 24 September.  South Africa 

celebrates its cultural heritage
each year on this date to encourage 

all South Africans to
celebrate the diversity of their 

beliefs and traditions. The theme 

for
Heritage Month 2011 was “Celebrating 

the Heroes and Heroines of
the Liberation Struggle in South 

Africa”, to reconnect the nation
with its rich and diverse collective 

liberation heritage.


title:
PUBLIC HOLIDAYS IN SADC 

August - September 2012

body:
1 August Parents Day DRC 
 

6 August Farmers Day Zambia 
 

8 August Nane Nane Peasant Day Tanzania 
 

9 August National Women’s Day South Africa 
 

13 August Heroes Day Zimbabwe 
 

14 August Defence Forces Day Zimbabwe 
 

15 August Assumption Day Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles 
 

17 August SADC Day* All 
 
 
19 August Eid Ul Fitr** Malawi, Mauritius,
Tanzania 
 

20 August Public Holiday Malawi, Tanzania 
 

26 August Heroes Day Namibia 
 

27 August Public Holiday Namibia 
 
 
* SADC Day is not a public holiday but a commemoration of signing the
SADC Treaty on 17 August 1992

**Exact date depends on sighting of the new moon  
 

3 September Umhlanga Reed Dance Swaziland 
 

6 September Somhlolo Independence Day Swaziland 
 

7 September Lusaka Peace Agreement Day Mozambique 
 

17 September National Heroes Day Angola 
 

20 September Ganesh Chaturthi Mauritius 
 

24 September Heritage Day South Africa 
 

25 September Armed Forces Day Mozambique 
 

30 September Botswana Day Botswana


body:
August
1-3,  South Africa 
 Agrarian 

Transformation, Economic Development 

&
Land Reform Conference 
 
The event will bring together 

agricultural experts, researchers,
academics and parliamentarians from
African countries to discuss key 

issues on agriculture
and land reform, including access to 

improved seeds
and women’s land tenure rights.
 


 
August 12-18, Mozambique 
 SADC 

Summit of Heads of State and 

Government
 
 SADC leaders meet to discuss issues 

aimed at promoting
regional integration and 

development. The summit
is preceded by meetings of senior 

officials and Council
of Ministers.
 
 
August 13-24,Zimbabwe  
  

Southern African Region Climate 

Outlook Forum 
 
Scientists from the national 

meteorological services in
SADC member states meet to review 

the regional climate
outlook The SARCOF conference 13-21 

August
is followed by an annual forecasting 

process 22-14 August
when the experts use indicators of 

seasonal rainfall
to produce a regional forecast for 

the 2012-2013
rainfall season.
 
 
August 26-31, Sweden, 
  World 

Water Week 
 
World Water Week has been the annual 

focal point for
global water issues since 1991. 

Commemorated in
Stockholm, Sweden, each year World 

Water Week addresses
a particular theme to enable a 

deeper examination
of a specific water-related topic. 

This year’s
theme is “Water and Food Security”.

 
 
September 4-5,South Africa 
  

Solar Energy Africa
  
The conference will provide 

information on the financial
mechanisms necessary for solar 

energy to offer an
extensive solution to current energy 

shortages in Africa
and the infrastructure developments 

needed to support
an effective supply chain between 

independent
providers and the grid. It will also 

showcase the latest
solar energy technologies 

available.
 
 
September 10-14,Tanzania 
  

African Ministerial Conference on 

the Environment
14th Regular Session (AMCEN-14) will 

provide a platform
for environment ministers from 

African countries
to debate the key results of the UN 

Conference on Sustainable
Development (Rio+20), and address 

other
emerging issues related to 

sustainable development
and the environment in Africa.
 


 
September 12-14, South Africa  
  

Meeting of the Committee of Central 

Bank Officials
The Committee of Central Bank 

Officials and the Committee
of Central Bank Governors is a SADC 

regional
structure that deals with the 

development of financial
institutions and markets, 

co-operation regarding international
and regional financial relations, 

and monetary,
investment and foreign exchange 

policies.

  
October 8-12, Ethiopia 
  5th AU 

Ministerial Conference on Drug 

Control
 
 
The conference will review and 

strengthen mechanisms
for shared responsibility for 

illicit drugs in Africa
and discuss the proposed revised 

African Union Plan
of Action on Drug Control 

(2013-2018). The ministers
will also discuss an African Common 

Position on Controlled
Substances and Pain Management.


title:
SADC Development Fund 
  Infrastructure blueprint
 key to regional integration

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA  has taken a significant
step forward in its quest for deeper regional integration
following the approval of a longawaited
blueprint that outlines the region’s
vision for infrastructure development.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA  has taken a significant
step forward in its quest for deeper regional integration
following the approval of a longawaited
blueprint that outlines the region’s
vision for infrastructure development.
The Summit of SADC Heads of State and
Government held in Maputo, Mozambique, in
August endorsed a number of measures on the
way forward for the region with regard to economic
integration and political cooperation.
  
The highlight of the Summit was the adoption
of the Regional Infrastructure Development
Master Plan Vision 2027, a 15-year
blueprint that will guide the implementation of
cross-border infrastructure projects from 2013
to 2027.
 
“The plan will serve as a key strategic
framework to guide the implementation of efficient,
seamless and cost-effective trans-boundary
infrastructure networks in an integrated
and coordinated manner in all the six sectors,
namely Energy, Transport, Tourism, ICT and
Postal, Meteorology and Water,” SADC said in
a communiqué issued after the Summit.
 
The master plan will be implemented in
three five-year phases – short term (2012-2017),
medium term (2017-2022) and long term (2022-
2027).
 
In the energy sector, for example, the plan addresses
four key areas of energy security, improving
access to modern energy services,
tapping the abundant energy resources and upscaling
financial investment whilst enhancing
environmental sustainability.
 
Regarding the sub-sectors of road, rail,
ports, inland waterways and air transport networks,
the Transport Sector Plan also addresses
four critical areas, namely improving access to
the seamless transport corridors value chain; reducing
the cost of transportation; enhancing
competitiveness and providing safe and secure
transport services.
 
Other key areas to be targeted include the
water, tourism, meteorology and information
communication technology sectors to ensure
socio-economic development in the region.
 
The master plan is in line with the African
Union’s Programme for Infrastructure Development
of Africa (PIDA) and will constitute a
key input to the proposed Infrastructure Master
Plan for the Tripartite grouping covering half of
the AU member states, encompassing the Common
Market for Eastern and Southern Africa
(COMESA), East African Community (EAC)
and SADC.
 
Summit noted progress
towards the operationalization
of the SADC Regional
Development Fund, a financial
mechanism for mobilising
resources from Member
States, the private sector and
development partners.
 
The Fund, which was approved
by the Council of Ministers
that preceded Summit,
will be used to finance SADC
programmes and projects.
 
Agreement was reached
by the ministers on various
aspects of the Fund, including
windows for financing
the priority areas of infrastructure
and industrial development.
 
The Fund will have a subscribed
capital of US$1.2 billion
to be raised as seed
capital.
 
Summit directed ministers
responsible for finance and investment
in the region to urgently
address modalities for
operationalizing the Fund.
These include the size of the
Fund as well as voting rights
and management structure.
 
Identified priority infrastructure
projects will require
about US$500 billion to be
implemented, with transport,
energy and water taking up
the major share of the funding
requirements.
 
An investment conference
is scheduled for between
January and March
2013 to lure potential investors
for the identified regional
infrastructure projects
while road shows are also
planned in Asia, Europe and
the United States for the
same purpose.
 
Summit also received a
report by the Ministerial Task
Force on Regional Economic
Integration on the framework
for the proposed SADC
Customs Union, whose
launch was proposed in
2010. The report outlined
a roadmap for the
Customs Union, including
parameters, benchmarks
and a draft model
Customs Union for the region.
 
The Task Force was mandated
to work closely with
the SADC Secretariat to ensure
preparatory work for
the Customs Union begins.
On the SADC Free Trade
Area (FTA), the leaders noted
that this was work in
progress but acknowledged
that one of the emerging issues
was the need to prioritise
industrialisation to
address the problem of unequal
levels of development
among member states.
 
Different levels of development
have been cited as an
area of major concern among
smaller member states who
feel that larger economies
stand to benefit more from
the FTA.
 
The SADC Summit endorsed
a series of recommendations
on the way forward
for Madagascar, following
the submission of the report
of the Troika on Politics,
Peace, and Security.
 
“Since the two Malagasy
leaders themselves have not
come to an agreement, it has
been up to the SADC Summit
to map out the way forward,
particularly taking into account
the risk of the security
situation in the country,” said
Seychelles President James
Michel.
 
Seychelles played a key
supporting role in the preparation
of the recommendations
by hosting the two
meetings held between former
President Marc Ravalo-
manana and President of the
Transition Authority Andry
Rajoelina, and also through
its participation in the SADC
consultation mission to
Madagascar in August.
 
Following the meetings in
Seychelles, where no agreement
was reached between
the leaders, Summit mapped
out the steps to be taken to
ensure that the preparation
of elections goes smoothly.
 
The key recommendations
of Summit were the full
endorsement of the elections
calendar proposed by the
United Nations and the
Commission Electoral National
Independente de la
Transition (CENIT). Presidential
elections will thus
take place on 8 May 2013.
 
While Summit could not
pronounce itself on whether
Rajoelina and Ravalomanana
could present themselves for
the forthcoming elections or
not, it took note of the report
of the consultation mission
that the proposal for both
leaders not to stand would
offer the best route towards
ensuring peaceful elections.
 
Summit also recognized
the risk of violence and instability
in relation to the eventual
return of former
President Ravalomanana,
and asked the SADC Secretariat
to dispatch a team of
security experts to Madagas
car to assess the security
environment with a
view to making recommendations
on the return
of the former president.
 
“We are pleased that the
recommendations have stipulated
that great care is taken
with regards to the modalities
for the return of the former
president to safeguard a
secure environment to prepare
elections,” said Michel.
 
The return of the former
President will be done in
consultation with the Transition
Government security
forces to ensure that the stability
of the country is maintained.
 
“We also take note that
the proposal for both leaders
not to stand in the election offers
perhaps the simplest solution.
We urge both leaders
to continue discussions with
a view to finding a solution
that prioritizes the Malagasy
people.”
 
The Summit also called
for full implementation of the
amnesty in favour of Ravalomanana.
 
On the suspended SADC
Tribunal, Summit resolved
that a new Protocol on the
Tribunal should be negotiated
and that the court’s
mandate be confined to the
interpretation of the SADC
Treaty and Protocols relating
to disputes between member
states.
 
Summit approved and
signed the Draft Agreement
on Assistance in Tax Matters;
Draft Protocol on Trade in
Services; and a Draft Declaration
on Tuberculosis in the
Mining Sector.  sardc.net


Abstract:
MEMBER STATES have been
urged to adopt measures to accelerate
progress towards the
target of equal representation
for women and men in political
and other decision-making
structures.

body:
MEMBER STATES have been
urged to adopt measures to accelerate
progress towards the
target of equal representation
for women and men in political
and other decision-making
structures. 
SADC Heads of State and
Government have committed
themselves to achieving gender
parity and reaching 50 percent
representation of women in political
decision-making structures
by 2015. 
  
SADC recognizes that the
equal and meaningful political
participation of women, who
constitute more than half of the
populations of Member States,
is an important democratic advancement
for the region. 
  
This was reflected in the
SADC Protocol on Gender and
Development signed by SADC
Heads of State and Government
on the 17 August 2008 in Johannesburg,
South Africa where
commitment was made on 28
clauses regarding gender equality,
among others, to reach at
least 50 percent of women representation
and participation in
decision-making positions by
2015. 
  
The final communiqué from
the 32nd SADC Summit in Maputo
in August 2012 “urged
Member States to consider
adoption of appropriate measures,
including legislation, policy
and reform of the electoral
systems, to facilitate the
achievement of (the) gender
parity goal.” 
  
Some positive trends have
been noted in the SADC region
in terms of the movement towards
gender parity, but some
advances have not been sustained.
 
  
SADC Member States
worked together to support the
first women candidate to take
the top job at the African Union
Commission, and the region has
had two women presidents in
current President Joyce Banda
of Malawi and the former Acting
President of Mauritius,
Monique Ohsan-Bellepeau. 
  
Seven countries –
Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique,
South Africa, Swaziland,
Tanzania and Zimbabwe – have
had woman Speakers or presiding
officers of parliament since
1994. 
  
With three years left before
the 2015 deadline for attaining
gender parity, most Member
States have already instituted
measures to accelerate the
agreed measures, although
two SADC Member States
(Botswana and Mauritius) have
not yet signed the Protocol. 
  
These include the development
of national roadmaps
with concrete actions to be
taken to implement the 50:50
Framework by 2015. 
  
They have also initiated
consultations at Member State
level to galvanise national efforts
through domestication of
various regional and international
commitments made by
countries with regard to gender
equality and the empowerment
of women. 
  
There are plans to
strengthen capacity-building
programmes for women and
gender training for key national
structures and institutions, as
well as engage all political parties
to adopt gender parity
strategies.


Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICAN leaders
have directed that a Protocol
on the SADC Tribunal and
Rules of Procedure Thereof be
negotiated and the jurisdiction
of the new Tribunal be confined
only to an advisory role
and interpretation of the SADC
Treaty and any protocols that
may be negotiated among
Member States.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICAN leaders
have directed that a Protocol
on the SADC Tribunal and
Rules of Procedure Thereof be
negotiated and the jurisdiction
of the new Tribunal be confined
only to an advisory role
and interpretation of the SADC
Treaty and any protocols that
may be negotiated among
Member States. 
According to a final communiqué
issued at the end of
the 32nd Summit of SADC
Heads of State and Government,
SADC leaders “resolved
that a new Protocol on the Tribunal
should be negotiated
and its mandate should be confined
to interpretation of the
SADC Treaty and Protocols relating
to disputes between
Member States.”
  
The Tribunal was established
through an amendment
to the SADC Treaty and was
constituted to ensure adherence
to and the proper interpretation
of the provisions of
the Treaty and subsidiary instruments
and to adjudicate
upon disputes that may be referred
to it by governments or
individuals.
  
Summit suspended the
work of the Tribunal in 2010
and ordered a review of the
role and jurisdiction of the re-
gional court, after some countries
objected to its constitution
through an amendment rather
than a separate protocol requiring
ratification by due process
in all member states.
  
In 2011, the Summit extended
the suspension of the
Tribunal, mandating “the Ministers
of Justice/Attorneys
General to initiate the process
aimed at amending the relevant
SADC legal instruments
and submit a progress report at
the Summit in August 2011 and
the final report to Summit in
August 2012.”
  
The Committee of Ministers
of Justice/Attorney-Generals
had during the past two
years tried to develop a revised
Protocol but have failed to
agree on some issues.
One of the sticking issues
was the introduction of a new
Article 55 on Transitional Provisions.
Among other issues,
the Article suggested that a reconstituted
Tribunal under a
Revised Protocol could take
over existing cases of the old
Tribunal.
  
Some Member States opposed
introduction of the Article,
arguing that once the
Revised Protocol entered into
force, the old Protocol would
no longer have effect and any
actions or cases heard previously
would cease to have effect.


title:
Call for increased action against HIV and AIDS

Abstract:
SUMMIT URGED Member
States to support the implementation
of regional programmes
to combat the
spread of HIV and AIDS.

body:
SUMMIT URGED Member
States to support the implementation
of regional programmes
to combat the
spread of HIV and AIDS.
Noting progress in the
implementation of the
Maseru Declaration of 2003
on combating HIV and
AIDS, SADC heads of state
and government called for
the scaling up of efforts to reduce
new infections and encourage
positive behavioural
change among the youth.
  
Ongoing regional programmes
include the SADC
HIV and AIDS cross-border
initiative for providing preventive,
care and treatment
services at border points.
  
The increased flow of
commercial traffic has resulted
in a high prevalence of
HIV and AIDS among highrisk
and undocumented migrant
populations in border
towns.


title:
Leaders approve Draft Protocol on Trade in Services

Abstract:
SADC HAS approved the
long-awaited Draft Protocol
on Trade in Services which
aims to provide a framework
for progressive liberalization
of trade in six priority services
sectors among Member States.

body:
SADC HAS approved the
long-awaited Draft Protocol
on Trade in Services which
aims to provide a framework
for progressive liberalization
of trade in six priority services
sectors among Member States.

The idea of a regional
agreement on trade in services
in SADC was first formalized
in 2002 when trade ministers
agreed during a meeting in
Botswana to include an Annex
on Trade in Services to the
SADC Protocol on Trade.
   
Concern was then raised on
whether an Annex to the
Trade Protocol was the adequate
legal form of responding
to the needs of trade in
services, necessitating the
commencement of discussions
on the Draft Protocol on Trade
in Services.
   
The ministers agreed that
negotiations would initially
target services provided by
the communications, construction,
energy, finance,
tourism and transport sectors.
   
The Draft Protocol on Trade
in Services was adopted by
ministers responsible for trade
in July 2009 but was presented
for signature by Heads of State
and Government at their 32nd
Summit in August in Mozambique
following clearance by
the Committee of Ministers of
Justice/Attorneys General.
   
The draft protocol contains
general obligations on Member
States such as on transparency,
granting of most
favourite nation status, and
domestic regulation.
   
It provides a framework for
progressive removal of barriers
to trade in services, initially
in the six priority sectors.
   
At their meeting in November
2011, the Ministers responsible
for trade in the SADC
region approved the commencement
of negotiations on
the liberalization commit-
ments in the six priority sectors.
   
The first negotiating meeting
was scheduled for April
2012 at which Member States
were expected to develop a
roadmap for the negotiations
and agree on the organization
of the negotiations.
   
Developments during the
past few decades have necessitated
the need for a regional
agreement on trade in services.
Trade in services is growing
at a very fast pace partly due
to developments in information
and communication technology.
   
In southern Africa, the
service sector accounts for an
increasing share of Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) and employment.
   
Services play a key role in
regional integration, including
infrastructure building, competitiveness
and trade facilitation.
   
Transport, logistics and distribution
services are crucial
for moving goods and services
from one country to another
while telecommunication and
financial services reduce transaction
costs and support trade.
   
Increased trade in services
can also contribute to achieving
the Millennium Development
Goals set by Member States by
contributing to social development
and poverty reduction.
   
There is, however, some
overlap between the six priority
areas identified for liberalization
in the Draft Protocol
on Trade in Services and existing
agreements for harmonization
within SADC.
   
SADC has already concluded
specific protocols on
tourism; energy; transport,
communications and meteorology;
and finance and investment.
   
One of the challenges in developing
the draft services protocol
has been to ensure that it
is not in conflict with any of the
provisions contained in the existing
protocols.


Abstract:
WINNERS OF the 2012 SADC Media
Awards were presented with prizes during
the opening ceremony of the 32nd Summit
of SADC Heads of State and Government in
Maputo, Mozambique.

body:
WINNERS OF the 2012 SADC Media
Awards were presented with prizes during
the opening ceremony of the 32nd Summit
of SADC Heads of State and Government in
Maputo, Mozambique. 
Incoming SADC chairperson, President
Armando Guebuza of Mozambique presented
the awards to the winners.
  
Three of the Awards were for excellence
in reporting on water resources management
in southern Africa while the other three were
for excellence in promoting regional integration.
  
Factmore Dzobo from Zimbabwe received
the award for the best print journalist
for his article on the importance of involving
women in the management of water.
  
The award in the radio water category
went to Belmiro Mangaze of Mozambique
for his report on the importance of water in
regional and national development.
  
Lesotho Times photo journalist,
Ramajake Monamane received the Photo
Water Award for his photos depicting the
plight of people in a village in Lesotho in
need of clean, safe and potable drinking
water.
  
Awards for excellence in coverage of
water resources management were introduced
in 2007 by the SADC Water Sector
programme to strengthen awareness on
water issues within the region, as well as to
encourage journalists to write about Integrated
Water Resources Management
(IWRM).
  
The awards for excellence in promoting
regional integration in SADC went to Yobe
Shonga from Botswana who scooped the
prize for the photo category while Patson
Phiri of Zambia and Jugdish Jatoo from
Mauritius received the awards for the print
and television categories.


title:
Summit discusses framework for SADC Customs Union

Abstract:
SADC HAS reviewed progress
in the implementation of the regional
economic integration
agenda and resolved to continue
with preparations for the
launch of the proposed Customs
Union.

body:
SADC HAS reviewed progress
in the implementation of the regional
economic integration
agenda and resolved to continue
with preparations for the
launch of the proposed Customs
Union.
Summit received the report
of the Ministerial Task Force on
Regional Economic Integration
on the framework for the
SADC Customs Union.
  
The report outlined the key
elements of the proposed Cus-
toms Union such as the parameters,
benchmarks, a model
customs union for the region
and the timing of activities
leading to the launch of the
union.
  
The overall goal of SADC’s
regional economic integration
is to facilitate trade and financial
liberalization, competitive
and diversified industrial development
and increased investment
through the
establishment of a SADC Common
Market.
  
The SADC Regional Indicative
Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP), which is currently
under review, outlined
the indicative timelines to establish
the SADC Free Trade Area
by 2008, the SADC Customs
Union by 2010, the SADC Common
Market by 2015 and SADC
Monetary Union by 2016.
  
The SADC FTA came into
force on 1 January 2008 following
implementation of agreed
tariff phase-down commitments
between 2000 and 2007.
Two countries, Angola and
the Democratic Republic of
Congo, have said they will
join the FTA later.
  
The SADC Customs Union
was not realised in 2010 as
planned, with the main challenge
being the overlapping
memberships. Almost all
SADC Member States, with the
exception of Angola and
Mozambique, belong to existing
Customs Unions.
  
Technically, a Member State
cannot belong to more than one
Customs Union because of the
Common External Tariff. Member
States, therefore, have to
choose which Customs Union
they want to belong to and
their decisions may have overall
implications for SADC.
  
In view of these challenges,
the SADC Summit in Windhoek
in August 2010 reaffirmed
its commitment to establish a
SADC Customs Union and
recognised the need to establish
synergies between the
processes to consolidate the
SADC FTA, the Customs
Union and the proposed Tripartite
FTA involving the Common
Market for Eastern and
Southern Africa, East African
Community and SADC.
  
The 2010 Summit endorsed
the decision of the Ministerial
Task Force on Regional Economic
Integration to appoint a
High Level Expert Group
(HLEG) on the SADC Customs
Union whose mandate was to
consolidate and refine previous
technical work undertaken in
order to reach agreement and
common understanding on key
elements such as the parame-
ters, benchmarks and timelines
of a model Customs
Union and its implementation
modalities.
  
The HLEG submitted it report
on the SADC Customs
Union framework to the ministerial
task force in November
2011.
  
South African International
Relations and Cooperation
Minister, Maite Nkoana-
Mashabane said the immediate
priority for SADC was to consolidate
the FTA in terms of a
15-point action plan matrix
agreed by the Member States.
The action plan focuses on
the review of rules of origin,
completion of tariff phase
downs and removal of non tariff
barriers.
  
“It is important to ensure
full implementation by Member
States of the FTA while, on
the other hand, resolve the
issue of overlapping membership
before progressing towards
a SADC Customs
Union,” she said.
  
The SADC Secretariat, in
partnership with Member
States, is currently engaged in a
review of the RISDP towards reconfiguring
the SADC roadmap
to guide the regional integration
process aligned to realistic,
measureable and deliverable
milestones and timelines.


Abstract:
SUMMIT MANDATED incoming
SADC chairperson,
President Armando Emilio
Guebuza of Mozambique to
engage Rwandan President
Paul Kagame to seek his commitment
to stop military support
to rebels in eastern
Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC).

body:
SUMMIT MANDATED incoming
SADC chairperson,
President Armando Emilio
Guebuza of Mozambique to
engage Rwandan President
Paul Kagame to seek his commitment
to stop military support
to rebels in eastern
Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC).
The communiqué from the
Summit called on Rwanda “to
cease immediately its interference
that constitutes a threat to
peace and stability, not only of
the DRC, but also of the SADC
region”, and mandated Guebuza
to visit Rwanda in order
“to engage the government of
Rwanda with the aim of urging
it to stop military support to
armed rebels in the DRC”.
  
The summit accused
Rwanda of interfering in the
DRC, by supporting the rebels
of the M23 movement.


title:
Mozambican President Guebuza new SADC chair

Abstract:
MOZAMBICAN PRESIDENT
Armando Emilio Guebuza
is the new SADC
chairperson, while his Malawian
counterpart Joyce Banda
has been elected deputy.

body:
MOZAMBICAN PRESIDENT
Armando Emilio Guebuza
is the new SADC
chairperson, while his Malawian
counterpart Joyce Banda
has been elected deputy.
Guebuza assumed the rotating
chair from President
Jose Eduardo dos Santos of
Angola, who hosted the
SADC Summit in 2011.
  
Therefore, Mozambique,
Malawi and Angola as the
current, next and immediate
past chairpersons, make up
the SADC Troika. The next
summit is scheduled for
Malawi in August/September
2013.
  
The SADC Organ on Politics,
Defence and Security
Cooperation is now chaired
by President Jakaya Kikwete
of the United Republic of
Tanzania, with Namibian
President Hifikepunye Pohamba
as deputy. South
Africa, as the immediate past
chair is also on the Organ
Troika.
  
In his acceptance speech,
Guebuza said he will use his
tenure as SADC chair to further
strengthen infrastructure
development in the region.
  
“We recognise that infrastructure
plays a vital role in
regional integration. It is in
this regard that the SADC
Infrastructure Development
Master Plan should be looked
at,” Guebuza said.


title:
SADC creates fund to accelerate infrastructure development

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA is taking
steps to accelerate investment
in infrastructure,
considered one of the key facilitators
of regional integration.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA is taking
steps to accelerate investment
in infrastructure,
considered one of the key facilitators
of regional integration.
The SADC Council of Ministers
has approved the setting
up of a long-awaited Regional
Development Fund, one of
whose main priorities will be
the financing of infrastructure
in the region.
  
According to SADC Deputy
Executive Secretary responsible
for regional integration,
João Caholo, the proposed
fund will have a subscribed
capital of US$1.2 billion. 
  
“We have been mandated by
Council to look into issues to do
with the development fund
such as the voting and management
structure,” Caholo said at
the close of the two-day Council
of Ministers held ahead of the
32nd Summit of SADC Heads
of State and Government in
Maputo, Mozambique.
  
He said the SADC Secretariat
was also mandated by
Council to ascertain how much
the fund’s issued capital will.
“We are looking at something
between US$10 and
US$250 million,” he said. 
  
Funding for the proposed
facility is expected to come
from member states, but “we
will not shun away from the
private sector”.
  
“We want to bring them on
board so that they show their
willingness to develop the region.
We also hope to bring on
board our development partners,”
Caholo said.
  
The proposed fund will be
used for regional integration.
The first priority will be infrastructure
development and the
second priority will be linking
infrastructure to overall development.
  
Although the focus for regional
cooperation has
shifted to investment promotion
and production over the
past 32 years, infrastructure
development remains a key
driver of regional integration
in the SADC region and was
prioritised in the Regional
Indicative Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP) in 2003
as a facilitator of intra-regional
trade and economic
growth.
  
The RISDP is SADC’s 15-
year development blueprint.
The main sectors of focus
for the SADC infrastructure
programme are Energy, Transport,
Telecommunications,
Water and Tourism.
  
The major development
strategy followed by SADC is
the corridor development concept,
otherwise known as the
Spatial Development Initiative
(SDI), a strategy that recognizes
the interdependence of
various sectors.
  
For example, the SDI concept
recognizes that sectors
such as tourism, agriculture,
mining or commerce cannot
reach their full development
potential without being supported
by a vibrant and adequate
energy, water, transport
and communications infrastructure.
  
The main attraction is
that the strategy basically
takes advantage of the existence
of proven, inherent,
underutilized economic development
potential within
the SDIs.
  
The concept of SDIs was
popularized in SADC with the
advent of the generally successful
Maputo Development
Corridor in 1995.
  
Hailed as a successful model
that attracted private sector investment
in support of the public
sectors of Mozambique and
South Africa, the Maputo Corridor
was the first of its kind at
a regional level that brought
about integrated development
tracing what is both a transport
and trade route.
  
Despite its limitations, for
example failing to divert traffic
from the North-South Corridor
(from Durban port through Johannesburg
in South Africa to
Zimbabwe and further north),
the project was a huge success
in terms of job creation, especially
on the Mozambican side
where as many as 15,000 jobs
were created at the aluminium
smelting plant Mozal and other
projects.
  
The development strategy
has been used to inform regional
development predominantly
along transport or trade
routes, energy transmission
grids, tourism conservation
areas, river basins, and regional
and international
telecommunication backbones.
However, most SDIs are
still at planning stage waiting
to be fully funded and, therefore,
taken to the implementation
level.
  
Southern Africa’s longawaited
regional infrastructure
development master plan
was approved by the SADC
Heads of State and Government
Summit held in Maputo
in August.
  
This follows the finalisation
of the master plan by ministers
responsible for infrastructure
who met in Luanda, Angola in
late June.
  
The master plan will guide
development in key infrastructure
such as road, rail and
ports, and would also act as a
framework for planning and
cooperation with development
partners and the private sector.
sardc.net


title:
Companies bid for Shire-Zambezi waterway feasibility study

Abstract:
SIX COMPANIES have submitted
bids to conduct a feasibility
study for Shire-Zambezi
Waterway Project to review the
possibility of opening the two
rivers to international navigation.

body:
SIX COMPANIES have submitted
bids to conduct a feasibility
study for Shire-Zambezi
Waterway Project to review the
possibility of opening the two
rivers to international navigation.
According to Malawian
Transport Minister Sidik Mia,
the purpose of the study is to
assess the environmental impact
of navigation along the
rivers from the Mozambican
district of Chinde, at the mouth
of the Zambezi, to the Malawian
river port of Nsanje, on the
Shire.
    
The bids are now under consideration
by the Malawian
government, the SADC Secretariat
and the African Development
Bank.  AIM


title:
Normal to above-normal rainfall forecast for southern Africa

Abstract:
WEATHER EXPERTS in southern
Africa have forecast normal
to above-normal rainfall in
most parts of the region for the
2012/13 agricultural season.

body:
WEATHER EXPERTS in southern
Africa have forecast normal
to above-normal rainfall in
most parts of the region for the
2012/13 agricultural season.
According to the 16th
Southern Africa Regional Climate
Outlook Forum (SARCOF
16) that met in Zimbabwe
in August, the coming rainfall
forecast has been divided into
two parts as usual, October-
December 2012 and January-
March 2013.
  
The Forum has forecast normal
to above-normal rainfall in
most parts of southern Africa
during the first half of the season
(October-December).
  
These areas include northern
and central Mozambique,
southern Tanzania, Malawi,
northern-most Zambia, bulk of
Angola, the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC),
Namibia and Zambia, eastern
half of Madagascar, northern
half of Zimbabwe, western
half of Botswana, central and
western parts of South Africa
and western Lesotho.
  
Increased chances of abovenormal
to normal rainfall are
expected in northern Tanzania,
eastern Madagascar and Mauritius.
  
However, northern DRC,
south-western Angola, southwestern
Zambia and coastal
areas of Namibia, southern
and western parts of Zimbabwe,
southern Mozambique,
western coastal areas
and north-eastern parts of
South Africa, western Madagascar
and the whole of Swaziland
have an increased chance
of receiving normal to belownormal
rainfall.
  
In the second half of the rainfall
season, the bulk of SADC is
expected to receive normal to
above-normal rainfall.
  
This covers Malawi, Zambia,
northern Mozambique,
bulk of Angola, Madagascar,
Namibia and Tanzania, southeastern
DRC, western half of
Botswana, most of central and
western parts of South Africa,
western parts of Lesotho and
northern half of Zimbabwe.
  
Above-normal to normal
rainfall is expected in the
northernmost Tanzania and
Mauritius.
  
However other parts of the
region are likely to receive normal
to below normal during
the same period.
  
These include the southern
half of Zimbabwe, eastern half
of Botswana, central South
Africa, eastern Lesotho, Swazi
land and southern Mozambique,
south-western Angola,
the western fringes of Namibia
and South Africa and southern-
most Madagascar.
  
The bulk of DRC and northernmost
Angola is expected to
have below-normal to normal
conditions in this period.
  
The rainfall outlook for
southern Africa was prepared
by climate scientists from national
meteorological and hydrological
services within the
SADC region, as well as the
SADC Drought Monitoring
Centre, and the International
Research Institute for Climate
and Society.
  
In developing this outlook,
climate scientists used statistical
and other climate prediction
schemes to determine
likelihoods of above-normal,
normal and below-normal
rainfall for each area.
  
Above-normal rainfall is defined
as lying within the
wettest third of rainfall
amounts recorded during the
30 years from 1971 and 2000
while below-normal is defined
as within the driest third of
rainfall amounts and normal is
the middle third.
  
The scientists also took into
account that El Niño–Southern
Oscillation (ENSO) is going to
be in a weak, warm phase projected
to persist into early 2013.
  
El Nino is a weather condition
which begins with the
warming of the waters in the
Western Pacific Ocean and eventually
affects the global climate.
  
The natural warming events
alter weather patterns worldwide,
probably causing
droughts in southern Africa or
contributing to their severity.
  
The La Nina is an opposite
of El Nino where the Pacific
Ocean begins with cooler waters
than the Indian Ocean and
wind moves from the Pacific
towards the latter. The occurrence
of La Nina results in unusually
heavy rains and
flooding in southern Africa.
  
The rainfall outlook was
prepared by climate scientists
from NMHSs, the SADC Climate
Services Centre and Intergovernmental
Authority on
Development Climate Prediction
and Applications Centre.
  
SARCOF 16 was hosted by
the Meteorological Services
Department of Zimbabwe.
  
The seasonal forecasts generated
through this SARCOF
process have become an important
planning tool for many
communities in southern
Africa.


title:
Interconnectors - conduits for SADC energy integration

Abstract:
THE SOUTHERN African Power Pool (SAPP) has identified six priority
transboundary transmission projects that are expected to improve
connectivity and electricity trading in the region by 2017.
The priority projects, estimated to cost US$5.6 billion, are part of
a portfolio of short to medium-tem projects being pursued by SAPP
with the aim of increasing the availability of electricity in the region
and connecting non-participating SADC Member States to the regional
power grid.

body:
THE SOUTHERN African Power Pool (SAPP) has identified six priority
transboundary transmission projects that are expected to improve
connectivity and electricity trading in the region by 2017.
The priority projects, estimated to cost US$5.6 billion, are part of
a portfolio of short to medium-tem projects being pursued by SAPP
with the aim of increasing the availability of electricity in the region
and connecting non-participating SADC Member States to the regional
power grid.
The priority transmission projects are the Mozambique-Malawi
interconnector; the Zimbabwe-Zambia-Botswana-Namibia (ZiZaBoNa)
interconnector; South Africa energy strengthening project;
Zambia-Tanzania-Kenya interconnector; interconnection of Angola;
and the Mozambique energy backbone projects.
   
There are three categories of priority transmission projects. The
first category is made up of transmission projects that aim to alleviate
congestion. The ZiZaBoNa project falls in this group.
The second group are those projects to interconnect non-operating
members. This mainly concerns evacuating power to the United
Republic of Tanzania from Zambia and Mozambique, as well as connecting
Angola to the regional grid.
  
The last category involves transmission projects related to new
generation projects such as Mozambique backbone project.
The interconnection of Angola, Malawi and the United Republic
of Tanzania to the regional grid has been one of SAPP’s priorities
for several years. All three Member States are presently not interconnected
to the SAPP grid.
  
Mozambique-Malawi Interconnector

The Mozambique-Malawi Transmission Interconnection Project is
expected to be completed by 2015 and will connect Malawi to the
SAPP, allowing two-way energy trade between the two countries.
This will ensure much-needed diversification in Malawi’s electricity
supply and allow the export of any off-peak power surpluses.
It will also provide Mozambique’s energy sector with a new revenue
source.
  
Under the project, Mozambique will build about 135 kilometres
of 220 kiloVolt (kV) transmission line and extend the existing
Matambo substation while on the Malawi side, approximately 75
km of 220 kV transmission line will be constructed and a new 220
kV substation installed.
  
The interconnection will allow Malawi to have access to the SAPP
market through Mozambique interconnected grid with Zimbabwe
and South Africa.
  
Malawian President Joyce Banda signed the agreement with her
Mozambican counterpart, Armando Guebuza, during a
state visit to Mozambique in May.
  
ZiZaBoNa 

The transmission interconnector project has the
capacity to increase power trading among participating
utilities, as well as provide an alternative
power transmission route and help
decongest the existing central transmission
corridor that currently passes through Zimbabwe.
  
The ZiZaBoNa project will help to provide another
wheeling path and, therefore, increase trade
between the northern and southern parts of SADC.
The initial capacity of the transmission interconnector
will be 300 megawatts (MW), which will later be increased
to 600MW.
  
The project is to be implemented in two phases.
The first phase will cover the construction of a 120-
kilometre 330 kilovolt line from Hwange Power
Station to Victoria Falls where a switching station
will be built on the Zimbabwe side. The line will
extend to a substation at Livingstone in Zambia.
The second phase will involve the construction
of a 300-km 330kV line from Livingstone to Katima
Mulilo in Namibia, through Pandamatenga in
Botswana.
  
The Zimbabwe-Zambia interconnector will be built as
a high voltage line with a transmission capacity of 430kV.
However, it will operate as a 330kV line during the first phase.
The ZiZaBoNa project will be organised as a Special Purpose Vehicle,
to be incorporated as a company in Namibia. The four utilities
will take 20 percent each of the equity.

According to SAPP, the project should be ready for implementation
by 2016.
  
South Africa strengthening transmission

South Africa has embarked on a 10-year programme to extend or reinforce
its transmission system and build new power stations as part
of measures to improve the reliability of supply.
  
Additional power stations and major power lines are being built
on a massive scale to meet rising electricity demand in South Africa.
According to Eskom's Transmission Development Plan (2011 to
2020), the utility requires investment of around R166 billion
up to 2020 to strengthen its capacity. This is expected to
grow to more than a trillion rand by 2026. Ultimately
Eskom plans to double its capacity to 80,000MW by
2026.
  
The project will result in several new transmission
lines being added to the system, with over 6,000 km
of 765kV and over 8,000 km of 400kV lines either
approved or proposed over the 10-year horizon.
Major network reinforcements are proposed to increase
supply to the Cape (South and West) and Kwa
Zulu Natal (East) grids.
  
There will also be integration of new power stations
in Limpopo province into the Eskom and SAPP grid.
This will require significant investment in transmission infrastructure
as the power stations are far from the main
load centres.
  
New high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) lines
are also planned to enable export of excess power
from Waterberg directly to load centres in Gauteng
and Kwa Zulu Natal requiring 1,700km of
800kV constructed HVDC lines.
  
These new transmission lines form part of the
long-term strategy to develop a main transmission
backbone from which regional power corridors can
be supported. The backbone and regional power corridor
network structure will allow for greater security
of supply as power from new power stations is integrated
more efficiently into the transmission network, enabling regional
trade through the SAPP grid.
  
Zambia-Tanzania-Kenya Interconnector

To integrate its power market, the COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite
– comprising the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa,
East African Community and SADC – needs infrastructure to support
additional energy generation as well as regional transmission.
Existing power interconnectors in the Tripartite region are inadequate
for long distance transmission and unsuited for regional systems
integration.
  
The Tripartite, in collaboration with SAPP and the East African
Power Pool (EAPP), has prioritised the development of critical interconnectors,
including the Zambia-Tanzania-Kenya (ZTK) interconnector
to improve regional integration and energy trade within
and between the SAPP and EAPP.
  
Covering a distance of 1,600 km, the interconnector will have a
capacity of 400MW, and will be constructed as a double circuit 400
kV line in sections from Pensulo in Zambia to Isinya in Kenya
  
DRC-Angola Interconnector

This is one of several projects aimed at connecting non-operating
members of SAPP to the regional grid.

It will involve the construction of a 400kV transmission line
from the DRC to Angola, enabling trade between the two countries.
  
The DRC has vast electricity generation capacity that could be
useful to the fast-expanding Angolan economy, which is buoyed by
massive investments in mining and construction sectors.
  
Mozambique backbone project

This involves construction of a new electricity transmission line from
Tete, in the Zambezi Valley, to Maputo.

This line, known officially as the "Centre-South (CESUL) Project"
and unofficially as "the backbone" of the Mozambican electricity
grid, is crucial for carrying power southwards from
planned new power stations in Tete. These include the planned
dam at Mpanda Nkua, 60km downstream from the existing dam
at Cahora Bassa, a second power station at Cahora Bassa, and
coal-fired power stations built by the mining companies Vale and
Rio Tinto.
  
Without a new power line, the electricity generated at these new
power stations cannot reach the Maputo area or be exported to
South Africa.
  
CESUL will involve the construction of 1,340 km of 400 KV alternating
current transmission line and 1,250 km of 500 KV line, with
the capacity to carry 3,100 MW of power. Eight new sub-stations will
be built, and two existing ones will be expanded.

The African Development Bank has agreed to help finance the
construction the transmission line, estimated to cost US$1.8 billion.
The bank has pledged to provide up to US$ 400 million for the project.


title:
Botswana, Mozambique to build deepwater port

Abstract:
BOTSWANA AND Mozambique
have agreed to build a
deepwater port at Techobanine
in Maputo province that
will serve as an alternative exit
and entry point for landlocked
SADC Member States.

body:
BOTSWANA AND Mozambique
have agreed to build a
deepwater port at Techobanine
in Maputo province that
will serve as an alternative exit
and entry point for landlocked
SADC Member States.
The port is part of a project,
estimated to cost about US$7
billion, that also includes the
construction of a 1,100 km railway
line and an oil pipeline
linking the two countries.
  
Besides serving Botswana,
which is looking for a faster
outlet for its mineral resources,
the port would also
serve other countries such as
Swaziland and Zimbabwe.
The project will be undertaken
on a concession basis for
the various components.
  
The port is expected to occupy
an area of 30,000
hectares, including 11,000
hectares for industrial development,
and will be able to
process 200 million tonnes of
cargo per year.
  
About US$3 billion of the
financing will be invested in
Techobanine for the port, residential
houses, schools and a
hospital. The first construction
phase should begin in 2012
and last until 2015.
  
Techobanine is located 70
km south of the port of Ma-
puto and 20 km from Ponta do
Ouro on the South African
border.
  
The planned railway line
will link southern Mozambique
to Botswana, passing
through Zimbabwe.  AIM


title:
Seychelles, Mauritius set up commission to manage coastal zone

Abstract:
SEYCHELLES AND Mauritius
have established a commission
to manage the world's largest
offshore joint management
zone measuring 400,000 square
kilometres of continental shelf.

body:
SEYCHELLES AND Mauritius
have established a commission
to manage the world's largest
offshore joint management
zone measuring 400,000 square
kilometres of continental shelf. 
This will enable both countries
to jointly regulate seabed
activities, including the exploration
of petroleum and minerals,
as well as the conservation
and management of the living
resources of the seabed.
  
Officials from both countries
met in Seychelles in August
to launch the commission
and discuss the management
and regulation of activities in
the joint zone.
  
Seychelles Minister for
Land Use and Habitat, Christian
Lionnet said the new commission
"has the great
advantage of enabling the two
countries to immediately benefit
from the exploration, exploitation
and conservation of
the natural resources of the
area". Mauritius Secretary to
the Cabinet and Head of the
Civil Service, Suresh Seebal-
luck noted that “a new era of
cooperation, trust and mutual
understanding between the
two countries has emerged.”


title:
AfDB to co-finance Mozambique electricity "backbone"

Abstract:
THE AFRICAN Development
Bank (AfDB) says it will finance
construction of a new
electricity transmission line
from Tete to Maputo in
Mozambique.

body:
THE AFRICAN Development
Bank (AfDB) says it will finance
construction of a new
electricity transmission line
from Tete to Maputo in
Mozambique.
The line, known officially as
the “Centre-South (CESUL)
Project” and unofficially as “the
backbone” of the Mozambican
electricity grid, is crucial for carrying
power from the planned
new power stations in Tete.
   
These include the planned
Mpanda Nkua, 60 kilometres
downstream from the existing
dam at Cahora Bassa; a second
power station at Cahora Bassa;
and coal-fired power stations
built by the mining companies
Vale and Rio Tinto.
   
Without a new power line,
the electricity generated at
these new power stations cannot
reach the Maputo area or
be exported to South Africa.
The total cost of CESUL is
estimated at US$1.8 billion.
   
AfDB resident representative,
Joseph Ribeiro said the bank
could provide up to US$400
million.
   
CESUL requires the construction
of 1,340 kilometres of
400 kilovolt (KV) alternating
current transmission line and a
1,250 km of 500 KV line with
capacity to carry 3,100
megawatts of power.
   
Eight new sub-stations will
be built, and two existing ones
will be expanded.  AIM


Abstract:
MAURITIUS’ TRADE deficit
rose by about 20 percent in the
year to June, rising from
US$170 million in 2011 to
US$203.3 million.

body:
MAURITIUS’ TRADE deficit
rose by about 20 percent in the
year to June, rising from
US$170 million in 2011 to
US$203.3 million.
According to figures from
Statistics Mauritius, imports
rose to US$426.67 million in
June compared to US$366.7
million in the corresponding
month in 2011.
   
The rising deficit was attributed
to the increased importation
of foodstuffs and
petroleum products.
   
At the same time, the Indian
Ocean island country's
exports grew from US$196.7
million in June 2011 to US$220
million this year.
   
In terms of the export markets,
Britain was the main destination
for Mauritian
products, with purchases
worth US$36.7 million.
   
The French market was
the second largest destination,
with US$26.5 million
worth of Mauritian imports,
ahead of the United States
with US$21.6 million and
South Africa with US$17.8
million.
   
With regard to the country's
main source markets,
India accounted for US$93.3
million worth of imports
while China was second, with
US$70 million.
   
According to Statistics
Mauritius, the trade deficit
could rise to 2.83 billion dollars
by end of 2012.  Xinhua


Abstract:
THE CURRENT SADC chairperson,
President Armando
Guebuza of Mozambique, has
been re-elected to a second
term as president of the ruling
party.

body:
THE CURRENT SADC chairperson,
President Armando
Guebuza of Mozambique, has
been re-elected to a second
term as president of the ruling
party. 
Guebuza was elected unopposed
by more than 1,800 delegates
who attended the 10th
Frelimo Congress held in September
in Pemba, capital of the
northern province of Cabo Delgado.
   
The Mozambique Liberation
Front (Frelimo) was established
in 1962 to liberate the country
from colonial rule (achieved
1975), and celebrated its 50th
anniversary this year.
   
Guebuza’s re-election
means that Frelimo will choose
a different presidential candidate
to contest general elections
set for 2014, not the party
leader.
   
He will continue to lead the
party, and another colleague
will head the country if Frelimo
wins the next election.
   
Traditionally Frelimo's
leader becomes its automatic
presidential candidate, but
Guebuza is already serving his
second five-year term as the
country's president, the limit
set by the constitution.
   
This is not the first time Frelimo
has elected a president
who will not be its presidential
candidate in national elections.
This happened previously
during the party’s 8th Congress
in 2002 when Joaquim
Chissano was re-elected party
president even though he was
not running for another term of
office as Head of State.
   
After the 2004 elections,
when Guebuza was elected
president of the country,
Chissano remained leader of
Frelimo for a few more months
before resigning to allow Frelimo
to combine the posts of
party leader and president of
the republic in the hands of the
same person.
   
Guebuza was sworn in as
President of Mozambique in
early 2005 and was elected to
lead Frelimo in 2006. He will
stand down as Head of State in
2015.
   
He is the SADC chairperson
for the coming year, following
the Summit held in Maputo in
August.


Abstract:
NAMIBIA’S RULING party
will hold its 5th elective congress
in November to elect a
new leadership and formulate
policies for the next five years.

body:
NAMIBIA’S RULING party
will hold its 5th elective congress
in November to elect a
new leadership and formulate
policies for the next five years.
President Hifikepunye Pohamba
is expected to seek a
second term as SWAPO leader
during the congress set for 29
November to 2 December. He
has led the party since 2007
when he succeeded SWAPO
founding president Sam Nujoma
during the 4th congress.
  
The South West Africa People’s
Organisation (SWAPO)
was formed in 1966 to liberate
the country from colonial rule,
achieved in 1990.
  
All eyes will be fixed on the
position of party vice-president
whose winner, according to a
succession policy adopted by
the SWAPO Central Committee,
would automatically be the
party candidate in the 2014
presidential elections.
  
According to the SWAPO
constitution, Pohamba can remain
party leader after completing
his two constitutional
terms as state President in
2014. He has been President of
Namibia since March 2005,
and will stand down in March
2015. He served as SADC
chairperson for one year during
his first term.
  
Members of the party are
expected to elect office bearers
for two other top positions –
the secretary-general and
deputy secretary-general.
  
The party constitution stipulates
that all positions will
become vacant prior to the
congress.
  
The Politburo will then
identify a maximum of three
candidates for each position,
who will be subject to scrutiny
and approval by the Central
Committee.
  
In the event that there are
more than three candidates for
any particular post, the Central
Committee will trim the
number down to three
through a secret vote.
  
A 35-member Congress
Preparatory Committee was
set up in April to oversee
preparations for the congress.
The committee is chaired by
Pohamba and includes other
senior officials such as party
vice-president Hage Geingob
and secretary-general Pendukeni
Iivula-Ithana.
  
Launching the Congress
Preparatory Committee at
SWAPO headquarters in
Windhoek, Pohamba urged
party leaders to recommit to
the principles of unity.
  
“We must use the important
platform of the upcoming
congress to critically review
our policy positions on issues
that are vital to the achievement
of our national development
agenda,” he said.
  
The party held a National
Policy Conference in September
during which 13 policy papers
were discussed on
matters relating to unemployment
and poverty, economic
growth, land and income distribution,
delivery of quality
healthcare and education,
youth development, and generational
transition.


Abstract:
PRESIDENT JACOB Zuma
will seek a second and final
term as leader of the African
National Congress of South
Africa when the party meets for
its 53rd national conference in
Mangaung in December.

body:
PRESIDENT JACOB Zuma
will seek a second and final
term as leader of the African
National Congress of South
Africa when the party meets for
its 53rd national conference in
Mangaung in December. 
The ANC national conference
is convened every five
years to elect a new leadership
and chart the course for the
party, which was formed 100
years ago in 1912 to oppose
colonial rule and later the
apartheid system when it was
introduced in 1948. Majority
rule was achieved in 1994.
   
The ANC’s nine provinces
are expected to field candidates
for the party’s top six positions
of president, deputy president,
national chairperson, secretarygeneral,
deputy secretary-general
and treasurer-general.
   
Nominations for these positions
open formally in October.
Zuma was elected leader of
Africa’s oldest political party
during the last ANC national
conference held in Polokwane
in December 2007.
   
The Mangaung conference
comes in the wake of the
ANC’s 4th National Policy
Conference held in August
where the party resolved to
open up discussion on current
challenges facing South Africa,
in particular unemployment,
poverty and inequality.
   
The policy conference
agreed to pursue the second
phase of the transition from
apartheid to a national democratic
society.


title:
Art as a Vector for regional integration

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA should
intensify efforts to promote its
cultural industry as the sector
has the potential to alleviate
poverty, create employment
and contribute to the socio-economic
development of the region.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA should
intensify efforts to promote its
cultural industry as the sector
has the potential to alleviate
poverty, create employment
and contribute to the socio-economic
development of the region.
Renowned arts and culture
expert, Stephen Chifunyise said
this at a SADC Day Celebrations
Symposium held in
Harare, Zimbabwe.
   
He said a vibrant arts and
culture industry was critical in
enabling the region to tell its
own story as well as project its
own unique cultural identities
to the world.
   
“SADC can effectively
capitalize on its rich cultural
diversity by developing collaborative
programmes of marketing
products of its cultural
diversity,” Chifunyise, who is
the chairperson of the Children’s
Performing Arts Workshop
(Chipawo), a leading
Zimbabwean arts and culture
group, said.
   
He said the forthcoming
United Nations World Tourism
Organization (UNWTO) summit
set for Zambia and Zimbabwe
in 2013 provides a
perfect opportunity for SADC
to deepen cooperation and intensify
efforts to promote the
cultural industry.
   
To achieve this, he said there
is need to identify key stake-
holders in the creative and cultural
industries who will produce
unique cultural products
and market “our rich regional
cultural diversity to the many
tourism delegates that are expected
to attend the global
event.”
   
Such a coordinated approach
would ensure that the
region fully benefits from the
UNWTO summit, which is
being held in Africa only for the
third time after Egypt in 1995
and Senegal in 2005.
   
Chifunyise also noted that
countries in SADC have “many
arts and cultural festivals,
which, when put together, will
appropriately become the
SADC tourism route” encompassing
cultural sites such as
galleries, theme parks, and museums,
recreational and entertainment
parks.
   
“The production and presentation
of a SADC Tourism
Route to the forthcoming
UNWTO summit would be a
viable strategy in the promotion
of sustainable tourism in
SADC,” he said.
   
“The production of such a
tourism marketing tool calls for
collaboration between stakeholders
in the tourism sector
and stakeholders in the arts
and culture including ministries,
private and public institutions
responsible for the arts
and culture.”
   
On the establishment of the
Southern African Cultural In
formation System (SACIS), he
said “it is now possible to resuscitate”
the idea in view of
the rapid internet penetration
in the region. SACIS was set up
a few years ago, but due to various
challenges, the project
failed to sustain itself.
   
“There is no doubt that the
collapse of the SACIS project
was mainly due to the fact that
Member States of SADC were
at that time not ready to accommodate
the use of information
and communication technologies
in building and exchanging
data on the cultural sector,”
he said.
   
He said a SADC Cultural Information
System would be a
vital tool for providing data on
the performance of the creative
economy in the region to the
World Creative Economy Report
that is produced every two
years by the United Nations
Conference for Trade and
Development and the United
Nations Development Programme.
   
The SADC Day Celebrations
Symposium was organized by
SADC ambassadors accredited
to Zimbabwe in collaboration
with the Government of Zimbabwe,
the Southern African
Research and Documentation
Centre (SARDC), National Arts
Council of Zimbabwe, Arts Association
of Zimbabwe, National
Gallery of Zimbabwe
and Chipawo.
   
The event, chaired by the
Angolan ambassador to Zimbabwe,
HE Henrique Vaal
Neto, was aimed at celebrating
the formation of SADC – formerly
the Southern African
Development Coordination
Conference (SADCC), an organization
with the objective of
closer regional cohesion.
   
The theme for the celebrations
was “Art as a Vector for
Regional Integration in the
Southern African Development
Community”.


body:
The SADC Protocol on Culture, Information and
Sports calls for, among other things:


Cooperation in the formulation and harmonization
of cultural policies of Member States;

Promotion of an attitude that takes culture into
account in regional development programmes;

Development and promotion of institutions of
cultural heritage such as libraries, museums
and archives in support of the broad and specific
objectives of the Protocol;
  
Establishment of policy guidelines for the preservation
and promotion of the region’s cultural
heritage in all its various facets formulated in
close collaboration with relevant stakeholders;

Member States to make cultural industries a
major cornerstone of their national economies;

Member States to take measures necessary to
nurture, protect and promote their infant cultural
industries;
 
 
Member States to adopt measures designed
to promote eco-tourism as a means to support
the development of cultural industries;

Member States to organize arts and cultural
festivals to pursue the ideals of regional integration;
and


Member States to organize joint staging
during international


Abstract:
THE 2013 international
tourism summit set for Zambia
and Zimbabwe provides
yet another golden opportunity
for southern Africa to
showcase its numerous tourist
attractions as well as deepen
regional integration.

body:
THE 2013 international
tourism summit set for Zambia
and Zimbabwe provides
yet another golden opportunity
for southern Africa to
showcase its numerous tourist
attractions as well as deepen
regional integration.
However, there is need for
more coordination among
SADC Member States to ensure
that they fully benefit
from the opportunities presented
by the global event,
which is being held in Africa
for only the third time.
   
Joint preparation by Member
States is important, considering
that some countries
failed to adequately take advantage
of a similar global
event – the 2010 World Cup
tournament held in South
Africa two years ago.
  
Despite their proximity to
South Africa, a number of
SADC Member States could
not lure many of the thousands
of tourists that descended
on South Africa for
the month-long tournament.
  
In light of this, there is need
for the region to adequately
prepare for the forthcoming
United Nations World
Tourism Organization
(UNWTO) summit to be
jointly hosted by Zambia and
Zimbabwe in August 2013 so
that southern Africa benefits
from the opportunities presented
by this global event.
  
Zimbabwean Tourism Minister,
Walter Mzembi told a recent
SADC Day Celebrations
Symposium held in Harare that
as host countries, Zambia and
Zimbabwe had made significant
strides in making sure that
the event is a huge success.
  
He said latest inspections by
the UNWTO had indicated that
the two countries are ready to
host the event in 2013.
  
He called on all SADC
member states to “protect this
event,” saying that, similar to
the 2010 World Cup, the
tourism summit had the potential
boost tourist arrivals
and trigger massive socio-economic
gains for the region.
  
“SADC should take up the
challenge,” he said, adding that
Zambia, Zimbabwe and the
rest of the region have a choice
to either make this tourism
summit “just another ordinary
workshop or an international
tourism conference”.
  
“The choice is ours,” he
said, adding that SADC and
the rest of Africa would probably
not get another opportunity
to host such a huge event
in decades.
  
The region should, therefore,
take maximum advantage
of the upcoming
UNWTO summit to boost arrivals
and deepen integration.
More than 2,000 delegates
are expected to attend the 2013
UNWTO summit. These include
key decision-makers in
the travel industry as the summit
is expected to discuss and
give direction to global
tourism.
  
Tourists from across the
world are also expected to
visit the two countries to sample
the various attractions.
  
Speaking at the same seminar,
distinguished Zimbabwean
arts expert, Stephen
Chifunyise said SADC should
use its rich arts and culture as
well as its attractions to market
the UNWTO summit.
  
He said countries must develop
a viable platform where
“the many arts and culture
events in the region can become
the backbone of the
SADC tourism route.”
  
“The production and presentation
of a SADC Tourism
Route to the forthcoming
UNWTO summit would be a
viable strategy in the promotion
of tourism in the region,”
he said.
  
Chifunyise also called for
deeper cooperation between
the arts and culture industry
and the tourism sector.
  
Other participants said
Zambia, Zimbabwe and
SADC have the capacity to
host a successful tourism summit
as conditions for holding
such an event already exist.
The region boasts of a vibrant
infrastructure base that includes
hotels and roads, as
well as numerous attractions.
However, Mzembi said
there is need to improve on air
connectivity in the region.
  
“Our connectivity is so poor.
We need to improve this, first
as individual countries and
then as a region,” he said.


title:
"... a viable platform for marketing to the world..."

Abstract:
“IN 2010, the Soccer World
Cup finals hosted by South
Africa offered SADC an opportunity
to collectively market its
rich diversity. In August 2013,
Zambia and Zimbabwe will
host the United Nations World
Tourism Organization Summit.

body:
“IN 2010, the Soccer World
Cup finals hosted by South
Africa offered SADC an opportunity
to collectively market its
rich diversity. In August 2013,
Zambia and Zimbabwe will
host the United Nations World
Tourism Organization Summit.
“This will present another
great opportunity for SADC to
effectively capitalize on its rich
and huge creative and cultural
diversity by developing collectively
a viable platform for
marketing to the world
through this gathering of eminent
tourism professionals and
tourists a well selected and
properly packaged rich variety
of cultural goods illustrating
the rich diversity of cultural expressions
of the people of the
SADC,” said Stephen Chifunyise,
a prominent regional arts
expert.


title:
Angolan polls boost SADC profile as stable economy

Abstract:
THE RECENT Angolan elections
are expected to boost
economic prospects in southern
Africa and strengthen the
region’s profile as a stable investment
destination.

body:
THE RECENT Angolan elections
are expected to boost
economic prospects in southern
Africa and strengthen the
region’s profile as a stable investment
destination.
Angolans gave the Popular
Movement for the Liberation
of Angola (MPLA) another
mandate to continue with economic
and political reforms
that have so far ensured a
smooth transition from war to
stability in Africa’s second
largest oil producer.
  
Angola is the immediate
past chair of the Southern
African Development Community
(SADC) and has contributed
significantly to the
regional economy during the
past decade.
  
The country is one of the
largest economies in SADC
and has outperformed other
member states during the past
decade, registering doubledigit
growth since 2004.
  
Large investments in infrastructure
and the natural resources
sector such as oil and
diamonds have contributed to
the country’s impressive performance
in which the economy
has experienced
double-digit growth for the
past decade. Improved
terms of trade due to in-
creasing oil prices also contributed
to the positive performance.
  
Thanks to the good performance
by Angola – which
at one point grew as fast as 25
percent per annum – the regional
economy has averaged
five percent growth for most
of the past decade.
  
According to final results
released by the National Electoral
Commission (CNE), the
MPLA led by President José
Eduardo dos Santos, got 71.82
percent of the more than 5.6
million ballots cast in the 31
August parliamentary elections.
  
This was down from the 81
percent the governing party
got during the previous general
elections held in 2008.
  
The main opposition party,
the National Union for the
Total Independence of Angola
(UNITA), nearly doubled its
tally from 2008, coming second
with 18.7 percent of the
valid votes cast, up from 10
percent four years ago.
  
The Convergence Angola
Salvation Wide-Electoral
Coalition (CASA-EC), a coalition
of four small parties,
could only manage six percent
of the votes. CASA-EC was
one of four coalitions that contested
the elections.
  
Of the 220 total seats in the
National Assembly, 130 were
contested from closed lists by
proportional representation,
and the remaining 90 elected
in 18 constituencies that have
five seats each.
  
Voter turnout was about 60
percent, according to the national
electoral commission.
The MPLA victory assured
President dos Santos of another
term in office. The new
Angolan Constitution in 2010
abolished direct
election of the head
of state, with the
majority party in the
assembly gaining
the right to name the
president, who will
then select a vice-president.
  
These were the third elections
since Angola gained independence
from Portugal in
1975. The first post-independence
election was held in
1992, although it was never
completed because the civil
war re-ignited, while the second
polls were held in 2008,
six years after the end of the
conflict.
  
The Constitution limits the
presidential term in office to
two five-year terms although
this does not include the years
already served by dos Santos;
and abolishes the post of Prime
Minister, with the role assumed
by the vice-president.
  
The polls were described as
peaceful and orderly by observers
from SADC, the African
Union, Economic Community
of Central African States, International
Conference on the
Great Lakes Region, Electoral
Commissions Forum of SADC
and Community of Portuguese
Speaking Countries.
  
In a joint statement, heads
of the six observer missions
said the general elections were
conducted in accordance with
international and regional
principles and guidelines governing
democratic elections.
  
They congratulated the Angolan
people and politicians
for their maturity in allowing
the peaceful conduct of the
polls but called on the political
parties and candidates to
work together in order to consolidate
peace and democracy
in the country.
  
“The observer missions do
hereby congratulate the people
of Angola for exercising
their civic responsibility in a
peaceful and orderly manner,
and determination to hold the
general elections on the 31st of
August 2012 in ways that consolidate
peace, security and
stability, enhance reconciliation,
boost the democratic
process and strengthen the
foundation for further social
and economic development,”
the joint declaration read.
  
They, however, called for
timely accreditation of observers
and political party
agents in future polls as well
as facilitation of voting by Angolans
living in the diaspora.
 sardc.net


body:
October
1-5, South Africa 

24th African Hydro Symposium

The African Hydro Symposium is a forum where hydro
operating personnel representing electrical utilities and
independent power producers from Africa meet to
share ideas and deliberate on hydropower plant operation,
maintenance and management.

12-13, Ethiopia

 Second China-Africa Think Tanks Forum

The forum serves as a high-level platform for China-
Africa academic exchanges and civil dialogue. It promotes
a frank and unfettered dialogue on China-Africa
relations to boost mutual understanding between
China and Africa.
  
18, Zimbabwe

 33rd SAPP Executive Committee Meeting

The 33rd Southern African Power Pool executive meeting
will be attended by the 12 chief executive officers
and managing directors of SAPP member utilities. It
will chart the way forward towards the attainment of
the goal of integrating the regional power generation
and distribution networks.
  
November
30 October –2 November, South Africa

 13th WaterNet/WARFSA/GWP-SA Symposium

The symposium is a platform for water professionals to
 share advances in research and education related to
Integrated Water Resources Management. They will
discuss new opportunities and developments towards
the integrated management of the scarce fresh water
resources.
  
5-7, South Africa 

International Conference on Fresh Water Governance
for Sustainable Development

The conference will bring together policy makers,
water managers, scientists and civil society in a forum
where new ideas can be shared, nurtured and developed
from the water sector and beyond. It is hosted by
a number of local, regional and international partners.

  
5-9, Namibia 

10th RERA Anniversary Celebrations

The Anniversary to be held under the theme “Fostering
electricity regulation in Southern Africa”, will seek to
review RERA’s performance; Re-launch the Association
into the next decade; Foster closer relations among
members and key stakeholders; Improve the corporate
image and visibility; and Recognise organisations and
individuals who have made outstanding contributions
to RERA. Professional interactions will involve highlevel
discussions and presentations from experts and
stakeholders.
  
13-15, Mozambique

 Rural Electrification Forum 2012

 The Rural Electrification Forum 2012 will look at motivations
for rural electrification programmes, exchange
and analyze best practices, feasibility,
affordability and regulatory issues and discuss new approaches
and permanent solutions for sustainability in
developing countries.
  
26 November – 7December, Qatar 

COP 18 Summit on Climate Change

The 18th Conference of the Parties (COP 18) to the UN
Framework Convention on Climate Change will be
held concurrently with the Eighth Meeting of the Parties
to the Kyoto Protocol (COP/MOP 8). COP 18 will
assess progress in dealing with climate change issues.


Abstract:
OCTOBER MARKS the 20th anniversary
of the historic signing of
the Mozambican peace accord that
ended the country’s 15-year civil
war and ushered in a new era of
economic and social development.

body:
OCTOBER MARKS the 20th anniversary
of the historic signing of
the Mozambican peace accord that
ended the country’s 15-year civil
war and ushered in a new era of
economic and social development.
The General Peace Agreement
(GPA) between the Mozambican
government and rebels from the
Mozambican National Resistance
Movement (Renamo) was signed
on 4 October 1992 in Rome, Italy,
by former President Joachim
Chissano and Renamo leader
Afonso Dhlakama during a ceremony
also attended by the leaders
of Botswana and Zimbabwe.
  
Negotiations, which began in
July 1990, were brokered by a team
of mediators from the Catholic
Church and the Italian government.
  
The Mozambican government
delegation was led by Armando
Emilio Guebuza (now President of
Mozambique) while the Renamo
negotiators were headed by Raul
Domingos.
  
The Mozambican civil war had
its roots in the geopolitical situation
that existed in southern Africa
at the time.
  
The independence of Mozambique
and Angola in 1975 challenged
white minority rule in the
region. First, the independence
wars in Angola and Mozambique
demonstrated that even through
the use of great military resources
it was virtually impossible for a
small white minority to guarantee
the safety of its members, let alone
to exert control over the majority
black populations in these countries.
  
The downfall of Portuguese
rule in Angola and Mozambique,
therefore, gave hope to black resistance
in South Africa and the
then Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe).
  
Second, in both countries revolutionary
socialistic movements
gained power. The Mozambique
Liberation Front (FRELIMO) and
the Popular Movement for the Liberation
of Angola (MPLA) had
been collaborating with the liberation
movements in South Africa
and Rhodesia, and now openly
supported them, as well as offering
a safe haven from where they
could coordinate operations and
train new forces.
  
This was especially devastating
for Rhodesia whose armed forces
lacked the personnel to effectively
protect its 1,287-km border with
Mozambique against liberation
fighters.
  
At the same time, the apartheid
government and the Smith regime
lost Portugal as an ally and, with
it, the thousands of soldiers that
had been deployed in the Portuguese
colonial wars.
  
The white minority position in
South Africa and Rhodesia had
been severely weakened by the
events of 1974/75 that led to the
overthrow of the Caetano regime
in Portugal.
  
As a result, undermining the capacity
of the newly independent
countries to support Zimbabwean
and South African liberation fighters
became the main strategy of
South Africa and Rhodesia to
counter this new threat. This led to
the Rhodesian-driven formation of
Renamo in 1976.


Abstract:
MWALIMU JULIUS Nyerere lit the flame that ignited the
liberation of southern Africa from colonial rule.

body:
MWALIMU JULIUS Nyerere lit the flame that ignited the
liberation of southern Africa from colonial rule.
"We, the people of Tanganyika, would like to light a
candle and put it on the top of Mount Kilimanjaro which
would shine beyond our borders giving hope where there
was despair, love where there was hate, and dignity where
there was before only humiliation."
  
In a famous speech that became known as “A Candle
on Kilimanjaro”, the United Republic of Tanzania’s founding
president made this commitment, even before Independence,
to ensure that Africa, most of which was still
under colonial rule, was liberated.
  
He died 40 years later on 14 October 1999. That day is
commemorated in Tanzania as Mwalimu Nyerere Day to
celebrate his life and achievements as father of the nation
(Baba wa Taifa). The day marks the climax of the Uhuru
Torch Race, after the freedom torch is carried around the
country by teams of runners


title:
PUBLIC HOLIDAYS IN SADC
October-December 2012

body:
4 October Peace and National Mozambique
Reconciliation Day

4 October Independence Day Lesotho

14 October Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Day Tanzania

15 October Mother’s Day Malawi

24 October Independence Day Zambia

1 November All Saints Day Seychelles,

Madagascar,

Mauritius

2 November Remembrance Day Angola

11 November National Independence Day Angola

12 November Public Holiday Angola

8 December Immaculate Conception Seychelles

9 December Independence Day Tanzania

10 December International Human Namibia
Rights Day

16 December Day of Reconciliation South Africa

17 December Public Holiday South Africa

22 December National Unity Day Zimbabwe

25 December Christmas All SADC

26 December Day of Goodwill South Africa

Family Day Namibia

Boxing Day Botswana,

Lesotho,

Swaziland,

Tanzania,

Zimbabwe


title:
Energy Sector Plan targets surplus, sets priorities

Abstract:
THE SADC region has suffered a shortage of
electricity since 2007 as demand exceeds supply,
and the expectation is that this energy gap
will be addressed by 2014. However, the implementation
of projects can lag behind their
planned dates due to a lack of funding and
other constraints.

body:
THE SADC region has suffered a shortage of
electricity since 2007 as demand exceeds supply,
and the expectation is that this energy gap
will be addressed by 2014. However, the implementation
of projects can lag behind their
planned dates due to a lack of funding and
other constraints.
SADC is now taking longer term measures
to address the energy deficit and ensure selfsufficiency
in energy generation and an end to
electricity shortages, through an ambitious Energy
Sector Plan that calls for the region to increase
power generation by more than 70
percent and invest at least US$170 billion over
the next 15 years.
 
The Energy Sector Plan is part of the SADC
Regional Infrastructure Development Master
Plan approved by the 32nd Summit of SADC
Heads of State and Government in Mozambique
in August.
 
The Energy Sector Plan addresses four key
strategic objectives:

ensuring energy security;

improving access to modern energy services;

tapping the abundant energy resources;
and,

achieving financial investment and environmental
sustainability.


 
The Plan identifies “hard” infrastructure
projects that include the planned increase in
electricity generation and transmission; refineries,
storage facilities and pipelines for petroleum
and gas; and transport facilities for coal
distribution and exports.
 
The plan for the energy sector has identified
73 power generation projects to increase generation
from the current 56,000 megawatts
(MW) and ensure that the projected demand of
96,000 MW is surpassed by 2027.
 
Prioritisation of the various projects was determined
using a formula under which projects
were rated according to their ability to impact
on the regional energy deficit.
 
Seven generation projects that scored above
50 percent and with capacity greater than
1,000MW each were ranked as top priority.
The seven projects alone are expected to
add about 26,000MW to the grid managed by
the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) – 65
percent of new generation capacity planned between
2013 and 2027 (see Table).
 
Highest priority is accorded to the
Hidroeléctrica de Cahora Bassa (HCB) North
Bank hydropower project in Mozambique. The
project is expected to add 1,245MW to the regional
power grid when completed in 2015.
 
The other projects include
Mphanda Nkuwa in Mozambique,
the Batoka Hydro Power
Station jointly developed by
Zimbabwe and Zambia, and the
Inga 3 dam in the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC).
 
The Batoka project involves
the construction of a dam and a
hydropower plant on the Zambezi
River with a potential capacity
of between 1,600 and
2,000MW of electricity to be
shared equally between Zambia
and Zimbabwe.
 
The seven projects are expected
to cost a minimum of
US$65 billion and a maximum
of US$104 billion.
 
The next priority will be 18
other projects that scored above
50 percent according to the Master
Plan formula but have capacity
of less than 1,000MW.
 
These include the extension
of the Kariba South Power Station
in Zimbabwe that should
add 300MW of new power by
2016, the 800MW Kudu Gas
Power Station in Namibia to be
completed by 2016, and the
800MW Rumakali Hydro
Power Station in the United Republic
of Tanzania, due for completion
in 2018.
 
The 18 projects are expected
to increase southern Africa’s
power supply by 6,481MW by
the end of 2019 at a cost of between
US$7 billion and US$18
billion.
 
Three major interconnecting
projects would facilitate the connection
of Angola, Malawi and
Tanzania to the SAPP grid.
The three are the only SAPP
members yet to be linked to the
regional power grid. Other
SAPP member states are
Botswana, DRC, Lesotho,
Mozambique, Namibia, South
Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and
Zimbabwe.
 
The island states of Madagascar,
Mauritius and Seychelles
are not members of
SAPP.
 
The SADC Executive
Secretary, Tomaz
Augusto Salomão,
says in a message accompanying
the Regional
Infrastructure
Master Plan that any
meaningful implementation
of the plan
should accord priority to addressing
power shortfalls in the
region through the development
and commissioning of
power generation and transmission
infrastructure.
 
“The interconnection of Angola,
Malawi and the United
Republic of Tanzania is necessary
to enable the migration of
these Member States to Operating
Members of the Southern
African Power Pool.”
 
The grand total of all these
projects to be implemented
from 2015 to 2027 is estimated
to cost in the region between
US$93 billion and US$212 billion.
 
In addition to the “hard” infrastructure
projects, the master
plan has also identified 16
“soft” infrastructure issues that
need to be addressed before the
region can achieve self-sufficiency
in the electricity sub-sec-
tor. These include harmonised
policies and increased cooperation
in energy development
and trading. Lack of alignment
in regulatory policy
frameworks and tariff structures
can hamper investment
and financing, and poor project
preparation can cause delays.
 
The master plan notes that
apart from the existence of energy
policies and, to some limited
extent, renewable energy
policy in all SADC Member
States, comprehensive renewable
energy strategies and action
plans exist only in
Mauritius and South Africa.
 
Botswana, Mauritius and
South Africa have put renewable
energy electrification targets
into their energy systems,
while only Namibia and South
Africa have renewable energy
regulatory frameworks.
 
Five countries have integrated
the deployment of renewable
energy in their rural
energy/electrification agencies.
These are Botswana,
Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia
and Zimbabwe.
 
A key challenge to regional
planning is to harmonise the
fragmented policies and targets
set by the Member States.


Abstract:
A PLAN of Action has been developed to guide the region towards
implementation of priority infrastructure projects as presented in
the Infrastructure Master Plan. Key elements include the following:

body:
A PLAN of Action has been developed to guide the region towards
implementation of priority infrastructure projects as presented in
the Infrastructure Master Plan. Key elements include the following:


Proposed funding mechanisms


The Plan of Action outlines some key modalities for financing infrastructure,
which include public financing through fiscal mechanisms
and sovereign loans, grants from development partners,
private sector funding and private-public partnership arrangements.

Institutional structures/monitoring and evaluation mechanisms


The following structures will continue to set the approval process
of the SADC infrastructure programme as per SADC protocols:


Sectoral project committees

Sub-sectoral committees

Committees of senior officials

Sectoral ministerial committees

Infrastructure ministers committee

Council of Ministers

Summit.


Abstract:
THE ISLAND states of Mauritius
and Seychelles are not
affected by improvements to
the SAPP regional grid as they
are not connected to it.

body:
THE ISLAND states of Mauritius
and Seychelles are not
affected by improvements to
the SAPP regional grid as they
are not connected to it.
They are already 100 percent
or almost 100 percent
connected to electricity and
have access to modern energy
sources such as liquefied petroleum
gas for cooking.
 
However, they can benefit
from harmonised policies and
regulatory frameworks to enable
trade of energy equipment
between the mainland
and the island states. Coordinated
financial resource mobilisation
would also be
beneficial.
 
They can participate in the
exchange of experiences for
renewable energy research
and development, the manufacturing
and trading of renewable
energy technologies,
clean coal technologies and
coal export arrangements.
They can also benefit from
harmonised tariffs and standardised
power purchase
agreements.


title:
"SAPP should have more authority to promote energy development"

Abstract:
THE SADC Secretariat has
called for Member States to review
the role and function of
the Southern African Power
Pool (SAPP) to ensure that the
regional body becomes more
effective in its efforts to promote
development in the energy
sector.

body:
THE SADC Secretariat has
called for Member States to review
the role and function of
the Southern African Power
Pool (SAPP) to ensure that the
regional body becomes more
effective in its efforts to promote
development in the energy
sector.
SAPP is a regional body
that coordinates the planning,
generation, transmission and
marketing of electricity on behalf
of member state utilities
in SADC.
 
The power utilities in
mainland SADC, with the exception
of Angola, Malawi
and the United Republic of
Tanzania, are interconnected
through SAPP, allowing them
to trade in electricity through
a competitive market.
 
Established in 1995
through an Intergovernmental
Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU), SAPP has, among
other things, managed to create
a market for electricity in
the region, allowing customers
to benefit from the advantages
associated with
energy cooperation.
 
The regional power pool
has also coordinated efforts to
exploit the numerous energy
resources that are in abundance
in the region.
 
For example, SAPP has
identified a number of priority
energy projects for commissioning
over the next few
years to address energy shortages
in the region.
 
Most of these projects target
renewable energy sources
such as solar, hydro and
wind – which are less polluting
to the environment than
other forms such as coal thermal.
 
Addressing the recent 33rd
SAPP executive committee
meeting held in Harare, Zimbabwe,
the SADC Senior Programme
Officer for Energy,
Freddie Motlhatlhedi said for
SAPP to fully carry out its duties,
member states need to review
the role and functions of
the regional power pool.
 
Presently, SAPP has limited
power to implement energy
projects, and
Motlhatlhedi says there is
need for the power pool to
have more authority in spearheading
efforts to ensure that
the region recovers from crippling
power shortages that became
more widespread in
2006/07.
 
“It is time we revise the Intergovernmental
Memorandum
of Understanding
(IGMOU) and other agreements
that created SAPP so
that the organization is empowered
and given more
powers to enforce decisions
made by member states,”
Motlhatlhedi said.
 
The IGMOU of 1995 was
last reviewed in 2006 by the
SADC Energy Ministers when
they signed the Revised Inter-
Governmental Memorandum
of Understanding.
 
The IGMOU is one of four
agreements that govern SAPP
operations. Others are the
Inter-Utility Memorandum of
Understanding that established
SAPP’s basic management
and operating
principles; the Agreement between
Operating Members
which established the specific
rules of operation and pricing;
and the Operating Guidelines,
which provide standards and
operating guidelines.
 
In this regard, SAPP operations
are mainly based on a
set of agreements among the
member utilities as opposed
to formal laws, which would
allow the regional body to
have greater authority over
energy issues in the region.
 
Motlhatlhedi said consultations
on the review of the
IGMOU should commence
ahead of the SADC Energy
Ministers meeting scheduled
for April 2013 in Lesotho.
 
He urged member states
to set up a committee that
will look at how best to restructure
and review SAPP so
that the recommendations
could be approved by the
SADC Energy Ministers next
year.
 
Addressing the same
meeting, Zimbabwe Energy
and Power Development Minister,
Elton Mangoma, urged
SAPP to ensure that all member
states are interconnected
on the regional grid.
 
“SAPP needs to connect its
three non-connected members,”
he said. “The continued
lack of interconnection of
these member states is depriving
the region and the citizens
in these countries the benefits
of interconnection that the rest
of the members currently
enjoy.”
 
P O L I C Y
More transmission lines
through the SAPP would also
enable member states to benefit
from new generation capacity
installed in other countries.
 
With Angola, Malawi and
Tanzania not interconnected
through SAPP, it means that
any new generation capacity
installed in any of the three
countries is not realized in the
nine other SAPP members.
 
The 33rd SAPP executive
committee was held on 18 October
and included the inauguration
of the new SAPP
Coordination Centre offices in
Mt Pleasant, Harare.
 
The centre acts as a focal
point for SAPP activities, particularly
through the technical
oversight of pool operations
and facilitating electricity
trading. sardc.net


Abstract:
SAPP WAS created with the
primary aim to provide reliable
and economical electricity
to consumers of each of
its member utilities, consistent
with reasonable utilization
of natural resources and
the effect on the environment.

body:
SAPP WAS created with the
primary aim to provide reliable
and economical electricity
to consumers of each of
its member utilities, consistent
with reasonable utilization
of natural resources and
the effect on the environment.
Co-operation in the electricity
sector is not a new
phenomenon in the region --
it has taken place at policy,
planning and operational
levels and involved governments,
power utilities and financial
agencies over a
period of several decades.
 
To formalize this interaction,
utilities in the region
came together under the auspices
of SADC to form the
Southern African Power Pool
in 1995.


Abstract:
SADC MEMBER States expect
to commission new energy
projects to add about
1,060 megawatts (MW) of electricity
to the regional grid in
2013.

body:
SADC MEMBER States expect
to commission new energy
projects to add about
1,060 megawatts (MW) of electricity
to the regional grid in
2013.
This figure is slightly below
the 1,770MW that was planned
for commissioning in 2012, although
the actual installed
electricity for this year is yet to
be made public.
 
New electricity generation
in 2013 is expected to come
from Lesotho, Malawi,
Namibia, South Africa and
Zambia.
 
South Africa plans to commission
projects that will add
a total of 720MW, while Zambia
will add 180MW.
 
Namibia and Malawi
will contribute 65MW
and 60MW respectively, while
Lesotho will add about 25MW.
These new electricity projects
will help the region to meet demand.
 
Southern Africa has been
facing power shortages as long
back as 2007, hence the Southern
African Power Pool (SAPP)
has identified a number of
projects for commissioning so
as to sustain the region’s
power supply.
 
Between 2012 and 2016,
southern Africa expects to
commission new
power projects
that will add a
total of about
14,300MW to the
regional grid.
Most of the
new power is set
to come from
South Africa,
which plans
to commission
8,382MW of
electricity projects
(see Table).


Abstract:
ZAMBIA AND Zimbabwe
have stepped up efforts to
construct the long-awaited Batoka
Gorge hydropower station.

body:
ZAMBIA AND Zimbabwe
have stepped up efforts to
construct the long-awaited Batoka
Gorge hydropower station.
Batoka Gorge is located
on the Zambezi River
about 50km downstream of
Victoria Falls and bordering
both countries. When operational,
the US$2.4 billion
plant will have the capacity
to produce up to 1,600
Megawatts (MW) of electricity.
 
According to the agreement,
Zambia and Zimbabwe
will share the power equally,
but since the two countries are
members of the Southern
African Power Pool (SAPP)
much of the electricity will be
fed into the regional power
grid.
 
All mainland SADC Member
States with the exception
of Angola, Malawi and Tanzania,
are interconnected
through SAPP.
 
The Zambezi River Authority,
a joint authority of
Zambia and Zimbabwe
which manages developments
the Zambezi River for
the two countries, approved
the project a few years ago.
 
Spokesperson Elizabeth
Karonga said the World Bank
has expressed interest in
funding the project and an
Environmental Impact Assessment
will soon be implemented
in advance of the
construction.
 
The Batoka hydro-station
is identified as one of the
most attractive projects in the
region, with great capacity to
help southern Africa to exploit
the huge hydro potential
of the Zambezi River.


title:
"Unity is key to continental development"

Abstract:
THE NEW Chairperson of the
African Union Commission, Dr
Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has
said that Africa has the capacity
to achieve socio-economic
growth if member states work
together to address the challenges
affecting the continent.

body:
THE NEW Chairperson of the
African Union Commission, Dr
Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has
said that Africa has the capacity
to achieve socio-economic
growth if member states work
together to address the challenges
affecting the continent.
Speaking at her inauguration
ceremony at African
Union (AU) headquarters in
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 15
October, Dlamini-Zuma said,
“the only way to ensure success
in our continent’s endeavours
is to move together as one
united continent and people.”
“We should look at ourselves
as a continent, not only as individual
countries. …
 
“We are a formidable force
as a continent if we are united,
but if we are divided we are
weak. Nobody can ignore us
united. Nobody can fail to see
the continent as a force for
global change, if we look at
ourselves as a continent.”
 
She pledged to advance the
vision of the African Union of
“An integrated, prosperous
and peaceful Africa, driven by
its own citizens and representing
a dynamic force in the
global arena.”
 
Dlamini-Zuma, who is the
first southern African to head
the AU Commission, said that
Africa’s vast natural resources,
if fully exploited, could propel
the continent to development.
 
Africa accounts for more
than one quarter of the world’s
arable land, and is well endowed
with natural resources,
including about 30 percent of
the world’s known mineral reserves.
 
“If we invest in increasing
the productivity of our land
we can have food security, export
and generate revenue,
and also save the resources we
use to import food,” she said.
 
Dlamini-Zuma, who is also
the first woman to hold the
post of chairperson of the AU
Commission, said women empowerment
is critical to the
progress of the continent.
 
In this regard, she said
African countries must channel
more resources towards improving
access to health, sanitation
and water, and make
child-bearing safer for women.
 
Member states must also
implement regional and continental
agreements that ensure
more women are elevated into
decision-making positions, she
said.
 
The Commission she leads
contains 50-50 representation
of men and women by decision
of the AU Summit of
African Heads of State and
Government.
 
Dlamini-Zuma, who has
been a cabinet minister in
South Africa since 1994, noted
that this is the first time a
woman has been elected to the
top African position in 49
years since the formation of
the continental body, adding
that, “This election poses a
greater responsibility on
women in general.”
 
In her inaugural address,
she traced the rich history of
Africa in which women
played an important role in
economic and governance
structures, and more recently
in the struggle for liberation
from colonial rule and
apartheid.
 
With regard to youth empowerment,
Dlamini-Zuma
said there is need to harness
the energy, resourcefulness
and enthusiasm of the young
people so that they can contribute
positively to societies,
nations and the continent.
 
On peace and security, the
former South African Home
Affairs Minister said that,
while Africa has witnessed significant
progress in its political
landscape, there are some
countries that are still experiencing
instability for various
reasons.
 
She said peace and stability
are a prerequisite for socio-economic
development, hence the
need to redouble efforts to address
the conflicts.
 
“In spite of this laudable
progress, we must also acknowledge
that there have
been some difficulties and set-
backs, with pockets of instability
and conflict. …It is therefore
our responsibility as
governments, as citizens, as regional
bodies to ensure that
the democratic process is irrevocable
and to pledge ourselves
to work for its success.”
 
She said the AU Commission
will continue to work
with various stakeholders and
regional organizations to promote
and consolidate peace in
the continent, and that the
principle of finding African solutions
to African problems
will always be maintained.
 
Dlamini-Zuma said Regional
Economic Communities
(RECs) must continue to lead
the integration process as the
main agents for implementation.
 
Three RECs are at an advanced
stage of forming an integrated
market covering 27
countries in eastern and southern
Africa. These are the Common
Market for Eastern and
Southern Africa (COMESA),
East African Community
(EAC), and SADC.
 
This Tripartite Free Trade
Area is expected to increase
intra-regional trade and
deepen integration through
improved investment flows
and enhanced competition.
 
Dlamini-Zuma takes over
the AU Commission chair from
Gabon’s Jean Ping. Her ascendency
followed intense lobbying
by SADC Member States,
who argued that it was time for
southern Africa to lead the AU
Commission as other regions
have had the opportunity to occupy
the top post.
 
A skilled administrator and
diplomat with a pan-African
vision, Dlamini-Zuma was
widely respected in southern
Africa and in Africa during the
decade she served as South
Africa’s Minister of Foreign
Affairs. sardc.net


body:
Infrastructure
Development
Master Plan
will guide the
implementation
in six priority sectors

energy

transport

tourism

information
technology

meteorology

water.


SADC Regional
Development Fund.
 
New strategic plan
for regional peace
and security
covering five sectors
– political, defence,
state security, public
security, and police.
 
First Southern
African, first woman
to head African
Union Commission
 
First woman
President in SADC
Kavango Zambezi
Trans Frontier
Conservation Area
established, the
world’s largest


Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA continued to record advances
towards regional integration and stability,
and gender equality, with the key indicators for
2012 being the launch of the long-awaited regional
infrastructure master plan and the strategic plan
on peace and security, among others.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA continued to record advances
towards regional integration and stability,
and gender equality, with the key indicators for
2012 being the launch of the long-awaited regional
infrastructure master plan and the strategic plan
on peace and security, among others.
SADC took a major step forward in deepening
integration when Heads of State and Government
approved the SADC Regional Infrastructure Development
Master Plan at their Summit in Mozambique
in August. The Plan contains the vision for
infrastructure development in SADC between
2012 and 2027.
 
The Master Plan guides development in key infrastructure
such as road, rail and ports, and provides
a framework for coordination and
cooperation with development partners and private
sector. It will be implemented over three fiveyear
intervals – short term (2012-2017), medium
term (2017-2022) and long term (2022-2027).
 
This is in line with the SADC Vision 2027, a 15-
year implementation horizon for forecasting infrastructure
requirements in the region that is aligned
with the African Union’s Programme for Infrastructure
Development of Africa. The Plan constitutes
a key input to the proposed tripartite Free
Trade Area made up of SADC, the Common Market
for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA),
and the East African Community (EAC).
 
Another significant milestone for 2012 was the
approval to establish a Regional Development
Fund, a financial mechanism for mobilising resources
from Member States, the private sector and
development partners, for financing of SADC programmes
and projects.
 
The strategic plan for sustainable peace and security
in the region, the Strategic Indicative Plan
for the Organ (SIPO) on Politics, Defence and Security
Cooperation launched in November, covers
five sectors and provides the conditions for economic
and social development (see facing page).
 
On tourism development, the world’s largest
Trans Frontier Conservation Area (TFCA) became
a reality in March when the Kavango-Zambezi
(KAZA) TFCA was launched by five SADC member
states – Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia
and Zimbabwe.
 
Situated in the Okavango and Zambezi river
basins where the borders of the five countries converge,
the KAZA TFCA covers an area of some
444,000 square kilometres consisting of 36 national
parks, game reserves, community conservancies and
game management areas, and boasts numerous
other tourist attractions such as the Victoria Falls, as
well as the absorbing wildlife population in an area
now open to traditional migration routes.
 
Elections held in Angola and Lesotho further
strengthened southern Africa’s profile as a stable
investment destination and boosted economic
prospects.
 
In Lesotho, there was a transfer of power from
the former Prime Minister, Pakalitha Mosisili, who
despite winning the 26 May national poll by a
slight margin, got only 48 seats in the 120-seat National
Assembly, which was not enough to secure
an outright majority.
 
He resigned to allow the opposition to form a
coalition government led by the All-Basotho Convention
(ABC) of Thomas Thabane. Under
Lesotho law, the leader of the majority party in the
National Assembly automatically becomes prime
minister.
 
In parliamentary elections held in Angola in
August, the Popular Movement for the Liberation
of Angola (MPLA) led by President José Eduardo
dos Santos won another mandate for the next five
years. The leader of the party with a parliamentary
majority automatically becomes president.
 
Lesotho maintained its representation by
women in the lower house at 31, about 25 percent
of the total, and Angola with 76 women members
of parliament slipped slightly to 34.5 percent.
The regional target is gender parity – 50:50 by
2015.
 
SADC women have been taking their place in
leadership positions at home, on the continent and
worldwide in 2012.
 
The first woman President in the SADC region
is Her Excellency, Mrs. Joyce Banda, President of
Malawi, the former Vice President, who was
sworn into office in April 2012 following the death
of her predecessor.
 
The Vice President of Mauritius, Hon.
Monique Ohsan Bellepeau was acting President
from 31 March – 21 July 2012, following resignation
of the President, until a successor was chosen.
 
The new Chairperson of the African Union
Commission is the SADC candidate, Dr.
Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, the former Minister of
Home Affairs of South Africa, who was sworn into
office on 15 October (see page 5). The Commission
she heads has 50-50 representation of men
and women by decision of the AU Summit of
African Heads of State and Government.
 
Asha Rose Migiro was released by the Tanzanian
government to serve as Deputy Secretary-General
of the United Nations 2007-2012. She stepped
down this year but not off the world stage, as she is
now the Special Envoy for HIV and AIDS in Africa.
 
A main challenge to regional development in
2012, in addition to the uncertain global financial
environment, was the conflict in eastern Democratic
Republic of Congo. Initiated by anti-government
rebels, the conflict generated a massive
humanitarian crisis, with serious implications for
regional integration and socio-economic development.
This was addressed by the SADC Summit
in August, and a Troika Summit in September, including
a mission to Rwanda by the SADC Chairperson
(see page 13).


title:
SADC launches new plan for regional peace and security

Abstract:
SADC HAS a new strategic plan for regional
peace and security covering five sectors – political,
defence, state security, public security and
police.

body:
SADC HAS a new strategic plan for regional
peace and security covering five sectors – political,
defence, state security, public security and
police.
The plan was launched on 20 November in
Arusha by the Tanzanian President, Jakaya Kikwete,
the current Chairperson of the SADC
Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation.
 
He urged Member States to make resources
available for implementation of the Revised
Strategic Indicative Plan of the Organ (SIPO).
 
“Peace is an important aspect in regional
prosperity, hence there is a need for member
countries to chip in with enough resources to
make the bloc calm and stable,” Kikwete said.
“Efforts towards making our region calm are in
our hands. …
 
“It is time for member countries to start allocating
enough resources to address the
emerging challenges… We shouldn’t wait for
other people to act on our behalf.”
 
Kikwete also stressed that political will is
needed to move forward.
 
Speaking at the same occasion, the SADC
Executive Secretary, Dr Tomáz Augusto Salomão,
emphasised the need to preserve
“peace, security, stability and democracy, as a
prerequisite for regional integration and sustainable
development”, in order to address the
challenges posed by the new political, economic
and social context in the region.
 
Salomão traced the history of the Organ on
Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation established
by SADC Heads of State and Government
in 1996, and its achievements and
challenges, saying that it constitutes a “solid
platform for deepening the political cooperation
and cohesion in the region”.
 
The legal instruments already adopted for
implementation include various SADC protocols,
notably that on politics, defence and security
cooperation signed in 2001.
 
Other protocols are against corruption; for
combating illicit drugs; the control of firearms
and ammunition; facilitation of the movement
of persons; extradition; legal affairs, mutual assistance
in criminal matters; and a mutual defence
pact.
 
The first Strategic Indicative Plan for the
Organ (SIPO) identifying strategies and activities
was adopted in 2003 for implementation
over five years. Discussions on revision of the
plan began in 2007.
 
The Executive Secretary identified the key
achievements as the integration of the regional
police chiefs organization into the Inter-State
Defence and Security Committee; establishment
of the Regional Early Warning Centre for
conflict prevention and management; and the
SADC Standby Force.
 
Salomão also cited establishment of civilian
structures such as the SADC Electoral Advisory
Council, and the SADC Mediation, Conflict
Prevention and Preventive Diplomacy structures.
 
However, he added that, in addition to
these achievements, there are challenges resulting
from geopolitics and global dynamics, but
also from inadequate coordination mechanisms
and a shortage of human and financial resources
for appropriate implementation.
 
The SIPO is to be reviewed at five-year intervals
to ensure adequate response to the
changing geopolitical environment, and relevance
of objectives, strategies and activities in
various sectors, as well as to strengthen monitoring
mechanisms, human resources and
structures.
 
A main goal of the programme, Salomão
said, is to publicise and disseminate the revised
SIPO to all stakeholders, to facilitate development
of a comprehensive work plan to enable
“relevant stakeholders to be true partners in the
implementation”.
 
In launching the new policy document, the
Tanzanian President said it is intended to address
some of the new challenges facing the region,
Africa and the world, noting that SADC
plays a “leading role in the unity and cohesion
of the region and the continent, while significantly
contributing to peace, security, humanitarian
assistance and development activities at
regional and continental levels.”
 
Among the new challenges he cited are
piracy, climate change, human trafficking, illegal
immigration and economic recession.
 
Specific challenges, in addition to poverty,
are the deteriorating situation in the Great
Lakes Region, notably the worsening conflict in
eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
He appealed again to the parties for a ceasefire,
“taking into account that innocent civilians are
the ones who are most highly affected.”
 
The launch was witnessed by senior defence,
police and correctional services officers from Tanzania,
and senior government officials and diplomats
from SADC member states, as well as
research and academic institutions attending a
symposium on the new strategic plan.
 
SADC has 15 member states including DRC,
but Madagascar is currently suspended following
a non-constitutional change of government
in 2009. sardc.net


title:
Towards renewable energy Challenges and opportunities for using new technologies

Abstract:
RENEWABLE ENERGY technologies are expected to ease southern
Africa’s power shortages as the region seeks solutions to a decadelong
problem that threatens to derail efforts to attain energy self-sufficiency
and regional development.

body:
RENEWABLE ENERGY technologies are expected to ease southern
Africa’s power shortages as the region seeks solutions to a decadelong
problem that threatens to derail efforts to attain energy self-sufficiency
and regional development.
Renewable energy is any energy that is naturally replenished, and
includes energy from natural resources such as hydro, methane, sunlight,
wind and geothermal heat. Energy produced from the refining
of biomass is also classified as renewable.
 
Coal, oil and natural gas are fossil fuels and are classified as nonrenewable
energy.
 
Unlike fossil fuels, the renewable energy sources are generally
less polluting to the environment, hence the need for southern Africa
to increase the uptake of this type of energy.
 
The most common renewable energy in SADC is hydropower,
which accounts for about 20 percent of SADC’s total energy generation,
while other renewables do not make any significant contribution
to the national or regional grids.
 
Non-renewable thermal power accounts for the largest proportion
of the SADC energy mix, with about 74 percent of all power
produced.
 
This is despite the fact that southern Africa is hugely endowed
with renewable energy resources.
 
In this regard, a rigorous programme to promote the widespread
use of renewable energy products and technologies could help the
SADC region reduce the burden of power shortages as well as the
overreliance on non-renewable fossil fuels.
 
Renewable products and technologies

The use of renewable energy products and technologies is gradually
increasing in southern Africa. The most common renewable energy
products in SADC use hydropower.
 
However, the full potential of hydro
as a source of renewable energy is yet to
be exploited, and a number of dams are
lying idle instead of producing electricity
for small towns or remote areas.
 
The Zambezi River, for example,
drains water from eight SADC Member
States and has an estimated hydropower
generation capacity of about
20,000 megawatts (MW), which is almost
enough to meet the region’s energy
needs if potential sites are
exploited.
 
Only 23 percent of this potential is
being harnessed, largely from two
main sites at the Kariba Dam between
Zambia and Zimbabwe, and the Cahora
Bassa Dam in Mozambique.
 
Hydropower is also in abundance
with the Inga project on the Congo
River in the Democratic Republic of
Congo having the potential to produce
about 40,000 MW of electricity.
 
Outside the national and regional
grid, solar technology is commonly
used, providing electricity to families
and communities. Solar technologies use panels that attract energy
from the sun to generate electricity through the photovoltaic process.
 
Other products include solar lamps, solar water heaters, solar
streetlights, solar phone chargers, solar radios, and solar torches that
have many practical uses in both rural and urban areas as they are
rechargeable.
 
There are also solar-powered generators that provide hours of
solar energy to keep households powered during electricity outages.
However, with the exception of hydropower, there are no sustainable
incentives or subsidy schemes to encourage largescale, gridconnected
electricity based on renewable energy systems.
 
According to the African Development Bank
(AfDB), Africa could become a “goldmine” for renewable
energy due to the abundant hydro, solar and wind
resources that are now hugely sought after by international
investors in their quest for a new clean-energy
frontier.
 
Most African countries receive more than 2,500
hours of sunshine per year, and most of the continent
has sunshine all year round.
 
An assessment by the United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP) and the Global Environment Facility
also reveals that there is 4,000 MW of geothermal
electricity ready for harvesting along the Rift Valley.
 
Challenges

With all their advantages, most renewable products
and technologies are not cheap to install. For example,
a typical home solar system in the region costs anywhere
between US$500 and US$1,000, according to the
AfDB.
 
A micro hydro system that converts the flow of
water into electrical energy, or a wind turbine, is also
expensive to install and maintain. As a result, most
countries in SADC tend to focus more on fossil fuels
because thermal stations are easier and cheaper to construct
compared to hydro and wind plants.
 
There are other significant barriers
that limit the development of renewable
energy unless special policy
measures are enacted to encourage
development.
 
These hurdles can be
grouped into several categories
– commercialization
barriers, price distortions, and
market barriers such as inadequate
information, lack of access
to finance, and high
transaction costs for making
small purchases.
 
In order to compete against
fossil fuel and nuclear technologies,
renewable energy solutions must
overcome two major barriers to commercialization
– undeveloped infrastructure and
lack of economies of scale.
 
Developing new renewable resources will require large initial investments
to build infrastructure. These investments increase the
cost of providing electricity, especially during early years.
 
In some cases developers must find publicly acceptable sites
with good resources and with access to transmission lines. Potential
wind sites can require several years of monitoring to determine
whether they are suitable.
 
There are also costs related to marketing activities that should accompany
promotion of renewable energy products. Start-up companies
must communicate the benefits of renewables to customers
in order to persuade them to switch from traditional sources.
 
Public education will be a critical part of a fully functioning market
if renewables are to succeed.
 
Opportunities

SADC Member States are slowly turning to renewable energy to
boost production and meet the ever-growing demand for electricity
in the region, and knowledge about renewable energy products and
technology is extensive throughout the SADC region, although its
use is still limited.
 
The countries that are leading efforts to harness renewable energy
include Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and the
United Republic of Tanzania. These countries have stepped up efforts
to harness the huge renewable potential that lies untapped in
the region.
 
For example, Mozambique is aiming to boost production at the
Mphanda Nkuwa hydropower plant. The Mphanda Nkuwa power
plant has the capacity to add about 1500 MW of new electricity on
the regional power grid.
 
The DRC has also stepped up efforts to exploit the Inga Dam potential
to generate income and facilitate energy efficiency.
With regard to solar energy, Botswana plans to build a 200 MW
solar plant that has capacity to provide a significant portion of the
country’s energy needs as its national power consumption is about
450 MW.
 
South Africa has approved largescale wind power projects, with
total capacity to generate 562 MW as part of its Renewable Energy
Independent Power Producers Programme.
 
South Africa also plans to commission at least 400
MW of wind power by independent producers within
the next few years. Most of the plants will be located
along the West Coast that has the potential to generate
about 10,000 MW of electricity.
 
With respect to geothermal energy, Tanzania
plans to use smallscale geothermal plants for rural
electricity mini-grid systems. In Mozambique, at
least 38 thermal springs have been identified,
mostly within the Rift Valley just north of Metangula.
 
In Malawi, 21 major hot springs are reported in
the Chitipa-Karonga area down to Chipudze in the
southern region.
 
Conclusion

Development of the renewable energy industry has been
made difficult by the lack of financial resources and poor infrastructure
to tap the resource.
 
Madagascar provides a practical example of how southern
African countries can benefit from the utilization of the abundant
renewable energy resources.
 
To address some of these pertinent challenges, southern Africa
can do it the Madagascan way so people can benefit from solar
and wind resources. The island nation, which is the fourth largest
island in the world, embarked some years ago on a smallscale exercise
to harness its solar potential and provide power to the rural
population, who are not connected to the national electricity grid.
 
Rural clinics and hospitals were equipped with solar technologies
such as small solar panels to produce their own electricity
and in the process enabling them to cool vital vaccines and other
medicines.
 
Given the cost involved, experts are urging Africa to start with
smaller solar projects that are cheaper to ensure that power is
available to the majority of its people while bigger projects can be
done in partnership with willing investors.


title:
Africa adopts Arusha Declaration on sustainable development

Abstract:
ENVIRONMENT MINISTERS
from more than 40
African countries have adopted
a blueprint that outlines the
continent’s agenda following
the United Nations Conference
on Sustainable Development
held in Brazil in June.

body:
ENVIRONMENT MINISTERS
from more than 40
African countries have adopted
a blueprint that outlines the
continent’s agenda following
the United Nations Conference
on Sustainable Development
held in Brazil in June.
The Arusha Declaration on
Africa’s Post Rio+20 Strategy
for Sustainable Development
was adopted at the end of the
14th session of the African
Ministerial Conference on the
Environment (AMCEN).
 
The declaration outlines a
number of commitments, actions
and programmes to be
undertaken to tackle environmental
challenges facing
Africa such as land degradation,
climate change, deforestation,
low agriculture
productivity and poverty.
 
Flagship programmes to be
initiated under the Arusha
Declaration include introduction
of the:


Ecosystem-Based Adaptation
Programme for Africa;

African Programme on
Sustainable Energy Development;

Integrated Waste Management
Programme for
Africa;

Africa Integrated Environmental
Assessment for Sustainable
Development
Planning;

African Programme on
Biodiversity and Ecosystems;

African Partnership for Capacity
Building, Technology
Transfer and Skills
Development; and,

A sustainable land management
and desertification
programme in Africa.


Decisions made include endorsing
the African common
position for the upcoming
18th session of the Conference
of Parties (COP 18) to the UN
Framework Convention on
Climate Change (UNFCCC)
set for December in Doha,
Qatar.
 
Africa is expected to spearhead
the adaptation agenda at
this conference.
 
The plan to initiate an
African green economy partnership
was another outcome
of the AMCEN meeting. This
would facilitate coordinated
support for member states to
implement the global partnership
for action on green economy
as a vehicle for poverty
eradication, job creation and
sustainable development.
 
Vice President of the
United Republic of Tanzania,
Mohamed Gharib Bilal, called
for renewed commitment to
tackling challenges which
threaten the future of African
people and urged the ministers
to build a green economy
that aims at reducing poverty.
 
The ministers agreed to review
the African 10-Year
Framework on Sustainable
Consumption and Production
which was approved in 2005.
The framework supports regional
and national initiatives,
contributing to resource effi-
ciency while creating new job
opportunities and contributing
to poverty eradication.
 
It covers consumer information
aimed at promoting
environmental management
tools such as life cycle assessments,
eco-labelling, and environmental
audits.
 
Another outcome was the
need to use the UNEP Africa
Environment Outlook to review
the state of African environment
for decision-making at
national and regional levels.
 
This promotes the production
of regional state of the environment
reports such as the
Southern Africa Environment
Outlook launched in 2009.
 
In view of strengthening
and upgrading UNEP, which
was one of the key outcomes
of Rio+20, the ministers urged
the General Assembly to progressively
consolidate UNEP
headquarters functions in
Nairobi, as well as to
strengthen its regional presence,
in order to assist countries,
upon request, in the
implementation of their national
environmental policies.
 
The delegates also requested
upgrading of UNEP
regional offices, including establishment
of five sub-regional
offices in Africa to be
able to respond more effectively
to environmental priorities
at national and
sub-national levels and to assist
in building capacities to
address emerging issues and
new development challenges.
 
AMCEN’s 14th ordinary
session was held in Arusha,
Tanzania, in September 2012
and was the first major conference
to discuss key issues on
the environment and sustainable
development after the
UN Conference on Sustainable
Development, known as
Rio+20, held in Rio de Janeiro,
Brazil in June.


title:
Highlights of Africa's Post Rio Strategy

body:
An agreement to strengthen
and consolidate commitment
to the promotion
of sustainable development
and effectively integrate the
economic, environmental
and social dimensions in
local, national and regional
development policies and
strategies.


A reaffirmation of the need
to speak for the continent
in one voice and ensure the
adequate representation of
Africa in all committees established
for the follow-up
of the outcomes of the
Rio+20 conference.


The initiation of an African
green economy partnership
that facilitates coordi-
nated support to member
states and serves to implement
the global partnership
for action on green
economy as a vehicle for
poverty eradication, decent
jobs creation and sustainable
development.


A request to Member States
to use the African Environment
Outlook as a tool for reviewing
the state of the
African environment to
support decision-making at
national and regional levels;


A review of the African 10-
Year Framework Programme
on Sustainable
Consumption and Production
to hasten the implementation
of programmes;


Strengthening and upgrading
of the United Nations
Environment Programme
(UNEP) to ensure secure,
stable, adequate and increased
financial resources
from the regular UN budget
(to a level of two percent of
the overall budget), to be
supplemented by voluntary
contributions; and,


Upgrading of the UNEP regional
office and establishment
of five sub-regional
offices in Africa, as well as
creation of a universal membership
body known as the
Environment Assembly,
with a ministerial segment
called the Ministerial Conference
on Environment.


title:
SADC embraces Africa's common position for COP18

body:
SADC ENVIRONMENT
ministers have agreed to support
Africa’s common position
for the 2012 climate change negotiations.
The ministers, who met
during the Africa Ministerial
Conference on Environment
(AMCEN) in September in the
United Republic of Tanzania,
noted that the African position
for the 18th session of Conference
of Parties (COP18) to the
United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate
Change (UNFCCC) is in line
with the SADC position.
 
The position includes the
need for COP18 to come up
with an agreement for a second
commitment period of the
Kyoto Protocol.
 
The ministers expressed
concern that there was no clarity
after COP17 held in Durban,
South Africa as to whether the
extension period of the Protocol
would be five or eight years.
 
SADC as well as the rest of
Africa prefers a commitment
period that avoids a gap in the
legally binding emissions reduction
provided for under
the Protocol.
 
Africa’s position is to urge
developed countries to commit
themselves to far more extensive
emission reductions
than in the first Kyoto period
ending this year. This would
ensure global warming stays
below 1.5°C.
 
Africa also wants an outcome
that commits developed
countries to honour their
pledges under the Green Climate
Fund.
 
This would ensure the provision
of adequate and predictable
funding for adaptation
and nationally appropriate mitigation
actions in developing
countries.
 
SADC and the rest of Africa
expects COP18 to come up
with a mechanism to ensure
fair, transparent and unbiased
criteria for access to resources
relating to the Green Climate
Fund, the Climate Technology
Centre and capacity-building
efforts.
 
Concerns have been raised
over the slow disbursement of
financial resources pledged by
the high-polluting industrialized
countries as start-up financing
for the period 2010 -
2012.
 
Africa is also concerned
that there is no agreed level of
financing for the period 2013 -
2020.
 
The environment ministers
noted the need to ensure a fair
and equitable representation
of the region in all the institutions
created under the UNFCCC
such as the Climate
Technology Centre, the Green
Climate Fund board, and the
Adaptation Committee, as
agreed during COP16 held in
Cancun, Mexico in 2010.
 
One SADC Member State,
Namibia, put in a strong bid to
host the secretariat of the
Green Climate Fund but lost
to South Korea.
 
Africa will emphasise the
need for urgency in action on
agreed outcomes since the
window of opportunity to
avoid dangerous climate
change impacts is closing.
 
Scientists are forecasting
that a maximum of five years
is remaining to avoid irreversible
climate change.
 
Africa, therefore, notes the
growing risk of catastrophic
impacts, particularly to the
continent.
 
SADC and the rest of the
continent call upon developed
countries to urgently increase
support for the implementation
of adaptation measures
and plans, and to support and
expedite work to understand,
reduce and compensate for
losses and damage associated
with adverse effects of climate
change, including impacts on
agriculture.
 
They urged parties to the
UNFCCC to rapidly increase
technology development
transfer to Africa in support of
adaptation in all relevant sectors,
including agriculture,
water, health, forestry, energy,
transport, industry and waste
management sectors.
 
The SADC meeting in
Arusha was in response to the
decision of the SADC Council
of Ministers held in August,
which requested the region to
develop a common position
ahead of COP18.
 
COP18 takes place from 26
November to 7 December 2012
in Doha, Qatar.


Abstract:
A ZIMBABWEAN official,
Margaret Mukahanana-Sangarwe,
has been elected as the
first chair of the newly formed
Adaptation Committee of the
United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate
Change (UNFCCC).

body:
A ZIMBABWEAN official,
Margaret Mukahanana-Sangarwe,
has been elected as the
first chair of the newly formed
Adaptation Committee of the
United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate
Change (UNFCCC).
As part of the Cancun
Adaptation Framework,
adopted during the 16th Conference
of the Parties (COP16)
held in Mexico in 2010, parties
to the UNFCCC established an
Adaptation Committee to promote
the implementation of action
on adaptation in a coherent
manner under the convention.
 
The committee’s functions
include provision of technical
support and guidance to
UNFCCC parties; sharing of
information, knowledge, experiences
and good practices;
and promoting synergies and
strengthening engagement
with national, regional and international
organizations, centres
and networks.
 
The committee also aims to
provide information and recommendations
for consideration
by the COP when providing
guidance on incentives for
the implementation of adaptation
actions, including finance,
technology and capacity building.
 
The first Adaptation Committee
meeting was held in
Bangkok in September, where
Mukahanana-Sangarwe was
elected.
 
The new committee will set
out the guidelines for countries
to develop and implement
their National
Adaptation Plans (NAPs).
 
In addition, it will also promote
technical and financial
assistance for countries in implementing
NAPs, although
how much funding will be
available to assist developing
countries is still not clear.


title:
Natural resources can propel southern Africa's growth

Abstract:
SADC's VAST and largely untapped
hydrocarbon resources
are attracting a more prominent
profile among the world’s
biggest oil producers.

body:
SADC's VAST and largely untapped
hydrocarbon resources
are attracting a more prominent
profile among the world’s
biggest oil producers.
Namibia is regarded as the
next big player in Africa’s oil
industry, expected to join continental
petroleum powerhouses
Angola and Nigeria. Angola is
the second largest oil producer
in Africa and the eighth largest
in the world.
 
With an estimated 11 billion
barrels of oil reserves, Namibia
has marginally less than its
northern neighbour Angola.
Mines and Energy Minister
Isak Katali says Namibia could
become a consequential oil producer
by as early as 2015.
 
Recent discoveries by oil and
gas firms from Italy and the
United States have also sparked
tremendous interest from international
gas and oil companies
to start exploring offshore
Mozambique.
 
SADC and other regions of
Africa have vast natural resources
that include timber,
fishery, land, water and minerals
such as diamonds, gold
and platinum, lithium, titanium
and chrome, among
many others.
 
Despite all the abundance
of natural resources on the
continent, some parts of Africa
continue to be among the
poorest in the world.
 
Thus, there is need for the
continent to develop viable
strategies to ensure that the extraction
of resources is beneficial
to Africa, with significant
value-addition on the continent
and increase local shareholding
and ownership of
mining companies.
 
“When we extract the minerals,
we are extracting our capital.
Therefore, we need to use
them wisely,” Claude Kabemba,
Director of the Southern
Africa Resources Watch
(SARW), told SADC journalists
in Windhoek, Namibia.
 
He said natural resources
are a valuable asset for sustain-
ing growth, reducing poverty
and achieving the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs),
hence the continent must properly
manage its resources and
seek value-addition.
 
“Africa needs to invest heavily
in data collection and knowledge
management about its
natural resources,” Kabemba
said, adding that most of the
available data is from investors.
He urged African governments
to consider re-negotiating
some of the mineral extraction
deals signed many decades ago
as most of them do not benefit
the continent.
 
Kabemba acknowledged that
this poses its own technical and
legal challenges, but concluded
that it remains an important intervention
if Africa is to take
full advantage of its resources.
 
For example, the DRC has
renegotiated some of its mining
deals in recent years, and has
published natural resource contracts
in a move meant to improve
transparency.
 
To fully benefit from its natural
resources, Africa should
also review its minerals laws
and royalty regime systems,
Kabemba said. “It’s important
that Africa sets good tax clauses
in the contracts.”


title:
South Africa establishes mining research institute

Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA has established
the country's first institute
dedicated exclusively to the
mining industry in a move
aimed at halting the decline in
human capital within its mining
sector and to deepen mining research.

body:
SOUTH AFRICA has established
the country's first institute
dedicated exclusively to the
mining industry in a move
aimed at halting the decline in
human capital within its mining
sector and to deepen mining research.
The Wits Mining Research
Institute (WMRI), launched in
September at the University of
Witwatersrand in Johannesburg,
will seek to advance min
ing research as an important
component of economic
growth.
 
The institute also hopes to
increase the number of students
choosing to study mining, by
organising high-level skills
training in key areas, including
the investigation of new methods
for mining and exploration;
mining policy; health and
safety; environmental impacts;
and community issues.
 
WMRI acting director, Nielen
van der Merwe, said the
South African mining sector
was being affected by lack of
human capacity and research,
coupled with inadequate training
for the next generation of
researchers.
 
“The institute will stimulate
collaboration between disciplines,
from law and management
to migration, economics
and healthcare,” he said.


title:
EU to support regional integration and development

Abstract:
SADC AND the European Union have signed agreements
worth 36 million Euros to support regional integration and development.
The agreement covers the strengthening of institutional capacity
for the SADC Secretariat and Member States, including
civil society.

body:
SADC AND the European Union have signed agreements
worth 36 million Euros to support regional integration and development.
The agreement covers the strengthening of institutional capacity
for the SADC Secretariat and Member States, including
civil society.
The component in support of regional political cooperation
amounts to 18 million Euros to strengthen the capacity of
SADC to perform its mandate in the area of politics, governance,
peace and security.
 
The programme for institutional capacity development provides
12 million Euros to strengthen capacity of the SADC Secretariat
to promote equitable economic growth and sustainable
socio-economic development in SADC’s 15 Member States.
 
The third component is a technical cooperation facility of
six million Euros to contribute to improving the coordination,
harmonisation and development of national-
regional linkages.
 
The agreements signed by the SADC Executive
Secretary, Dr Tomáz Augusto Salomão, and Ambassador
Gerard McGovern, the Head of the European Union
Delegation to Botswana and SADC, mark an important milestone
in the bilateral relations between SADC and the EU.
 
Noting that “one of the three agreements is the first contribution
agreement between SADC and the EU,” Salomão said the
move “towards the contribution agreement modality shows a
deeper commitment of the European Union to reinforce SADC’s
ownership, systems capacity development and aid effectiveness.”
 
“The EU has learned many lessons in its integration experience,”
Ambassador McGovern said, “and is happy to share
these experiences with countries on the African continent and
beyond.” sadc.int.


title:
Conflict in eastern DRC a setback to regional integration, development

Abstract:
THE CONFLICT in eastern
Democratic Republic of Congo
is a setback to regional integration
and socio-economic development,
and SADC strongly
condemned the deteriorating
security situation, including the
invasion and capture of Goma
on 20 November by anti-government
rebels.

body:
THE CONFLICT in eastern
Democratic Republic of Congo
is a setback to regional integration
and socio-economic development,
and SADC strongly
condemned the deteriorating
security situation, including the
invasion and capture of Goma
on 20 November by anti-government
rebels.
SADC demanded the immediate
withdrawal of the
rebels from Goma and the cessation
of hostilities, and called
for peaceful and durable resolution
of the conflict, saying it
can be resolved through collective
dialogue.
 
“SADC in collaboration
with the International Conference
for the Great Lakes Region
will continue to make all efforts
to find the way forward in urgently
addressing this matter.”
 
The SADC Organ Troika
met in September in Dar es
Salaam, following the visit to
Rwanda by the SADC Chairperson,
President Armando
Guebuza of Mozambique, who
had been mandated by the
SADC Summit in August to engage
the government of
Rwanda, and did so immediately.
 
The Troika welcomed his
swift action and his report,
and endorsed his recommendations.
 
The Organ Troika Summit
was attended by the Presidents
of Tanzania, Mozambique
and Namibia, as well as
DRC, the defence minister of
South Africa, and SADC Executive
Secretary.
 
They reaffirmed commitment
to the decisions of the full
SADC Summit in August, and
requested the Executive Secretary
to work with his counterpart
at the International
Conference for the Great Lakes
Region (ICGLR).
 
At their Summit in Maputo
in August, SADC leaders noted
with “great concern” the deterioration
in the security situation
in the eastern DRC during
the previous three months,
causing displacement of people
and loss of lives and property.
 
Summit noted that “this is
being perpetrated by rebel
groups with assistance of
Rwanda” and urged Rwanda
to cease immediately its interference
“that constitutes a
threat to peace and stability, not
only of the DRC, but also of the
SADC region.”
 
They agreed that this situation
called for renewed and urgent
attention by Summit
which had fielded an assessment
mission to DRC, a member
state, and they mandated
the SADC Chairperson to engage
the Government of
Rwanda with the aim of urging
Rwanda to stop military support
to the armed rebels in the
DRC.
 
Summit urged member
states and the international
community to provide humanitarian
relief to the displaced
people in the eastern DRC, and
directed the SADC Secretariat
to collaborate with the ICGLR
Secretariat in pursuit of peace
and security.
 
Leaders in the Great Lakes
Region also directed the rebels
to withdraw from Goma and
stop all war activities, and resolved
that a composite force
comprising one neutral force,
DRC military and national police
should be deployed to
Goma.
 
Among those present at the
ICGLR summit was President
Jakaya Kikwete of the United
Republic of Tanzania, who current
chairs the SADC Troika on
Politics, Defence and Security
Cooperation.
 
SADC member states who
are part of the ICGLR are Angola,
DRC, Malawi, Tanzania
and Zambia. Other members
are Burundi, Republic of
Congo, Central African Republic,
Kenya, Sudan and
Uganda.
 
The summit expressed
gratitude to South Africa
which offered to provide logistical
support to the Neutral
International Force that would
help to keep peace in eastern
DRC, and Tanzania which offered
to provide a Force Commander
for the Neutral
International Force. Other
contributors to the force were
not announced at that time.
 
The rebels launched a rebellion
against DRC President
Joseph Kabila’s government in
April 2012, and recently
threatened to march on Kinshasa,
the faraway capital of
the vast, mineral-rich country.
 
They call themselves the
March 23 (M23) movement as
that is the date on which they
had agreed to lay down arms
and be integrated into the national
army, before deserting
and claiming their conditions
had not been met.
 
President Paul Kagame
has denied accusations by the
DRC, SADC and other
African leaders, and a UN
panel of experts, that
Rwanda is providing military
support to the rebels. Uganda
has also denied supporting
the rebels.
 
The UN Security Council
demanded the withdrawal of
M23 rebels from Goma, and
condemned their human
rights abuses, including summary
executions, genderbased
violence, and largescale
recruitment of child soldiers.
UN Resolution 2076 imposed
targeted sanctions on mem-
bers of the leadership, but no
arms embargo.
 
In one of the strongest signals
to Rwanda, however,
their major donor, the United
Kingdom, announced it was
withholding almost US$34
million in aid, following a
confusion in which aid was
suspended in July and reinstated
in September.
 
The international development
secretary said the government
had “already set out
its concerns over credible and
compelling reports of Rwandan
involvement with M23 in
DRC.”
 
Kabila has dismissed negotiations
with M23, saying the
DRC would only talk to
Rwanda.
 
Kabila and his Rwandan
and Ugandan counterparts,
Presidents Kagame and Museveni,
met in Uganda for
talks the day after the capture
of Goma, the provincial capital
of North Kivu province
close to the Rwandan border.
 
Their joint statement on 21
November said that, “in solidarity
with the Congolese
people and their counterpart”,
Museveni and Kagame had
condemned both the expansion
of the war and “the idea
of overthrowing the legitimate
government of DRC or undermining
its authority.”
 
They said they would communicate
with the rebels to
stop their offensive and pull
out of Goma. Kabila made a
commitment that DRC would
look into “the causes of discontent
and address them as
best it can.”
 
The three leaders agreed
that “a comprehensive and
operational plan geared towards
lasting peace and stability
will be drawn up as a
matter of urgency.”


Abstract:
FOUR SOUTHERN African
countries will raise the regional
profile at the 2013
Africa Cup of Nations
(AFCON) finals to be hosted
by South Africa.

body:
FOUR SOUTHERN African
countries will raise the regional
profile at the 2013
Africa Cup of Nations
(AFCON) finals to be hosted
by South Africa.
This is the first AFCON to
be held on an odd year. Africa
made this change to ensure
that the tournament does not
clash with the world cup.
 
The world cup is held after
every four years, and on occasions
that the global soccer
event was hosted in the same
year as the AFCON, most
African teams did not perform
at their best, with many attributing
this to fatigue.
 
The world cup is usually
held in June-July while the
AFCON is held in January-February.
 
Angola, the Democratic Republic
of Congo, South Africa
and defending champions
Zambia are the four SADC
representations.
 
Angola, DRC and Zambia
booked their places at next
year’s finals as winners of
two-legged clashes against
Zimbabwe, Equatorial Guinea
and Uganda respectively.
South Africa is participating as
the host nation.
 
With the defending champions
Zambia and the host
South Africa from this region,
expectations are high that one
of the SADC representatives
might win the trophy or at
least reach the finals.
 
Zambia has been placed in
the same group as Burkina
Faso, Ethiopia and Nigeria.
South Africa is in a group
with Angola, Cape Verde
and Morocco, while DRC
is grouped with Ghana,
Niger and Mali.
 
Speaking soon after the
group draw was made in Durban,
South Africa in October,
southern African representatives
expressed satisfaction
with the draw and pledged to
do their best to win the tournament.
 
“All the draws were tough
and I think this is a fairly good
draw for us,” South African
coach Gordon Igesund said,
adding that the hosts, Bafana
Bafana, are determined to go
all the way to the finals.
 
His Zambian counterpart,
Herve Renard, whose team
lifted the 2012 AFCON trophy
against all odds, said
Chipolopolo, as the Zambian
team is affectionately known,
“will prove their mettle once
again”.
 
“We are confident. We are
here to make history. We did it
in 2012. No one was able to
say Zambia will win in 2012.
We stayed a small team but we
managed to go very far,” he
said.
 
DR Congo coach Claude Le
Roy said he will use his vast
experience in participating at
the AFCON to steer DRC to
victory. Le Roy is making his
seventh appearance, with different
African teams.
 
“It is my seventh Africa
Cup of Nations so I know I
have the experience, but I
must admit that it will be difficult,”
the 1988 Nations Cup
winner said.
 
The Angolan coach Gustavo
Ferrin said hosting the 2010
AFCON in Luanda had
helped the country improve
its preparation for such tournaments.
He said the Sable
Antelopes would “try to qualify
for the finals”.
 
The AFCON finals will be
held from 19 January to 10
February 2013. SADC is hosting
the event for only the third
time. South Africa hosted the
finals in 1994, the first to be
held in southern Africa. Angola
was the second SADC
country to host the finals in
2010.


body:
December
26 November –7 December, Qatar
 COP 18 on Climate Change

 The 18th Conference of the Parties (COP 18) to the UN
 Framework Convention on Climate Change will be
held concurrently with the Eighth Meeting of the Parties
to the Kyoto Protocol (COP/MOP 8). COP 18 will
assess progress in dealing with climate change issues
and deadlines.
1, Global
 World Aids Day

On 1 December each year SADC joins the rest of the
world in commemorating World Aids Day. The theme
for the event until 2015 is “Getting to Zero”, signifying
commitment to reduce the prevalence of HIV and
AIDS to zero.
 
16-20,South Africa
 ANC 53rd National Conference

The African National Congress of South Africa holds
an elective conference every five years to elect the
party leadership and review progress. The ANC’s nine
provinces support candidates for the party’s top six positions.
The 2012 conference in Mangaung follows a
policy review conference in August.
 
January
15-17, United Arab Emirates
 6th World Future Energy Summit

The summit will concentrate on energy innovation in
policy implementation, technology development, finance
and investment approaches, and existing and
upcoming projects.
 
19 Jan-10 Feb,South Africa
 African Cup of Nations

A total of 16 countries from Africa will compete in the
bi-annual soccer tournament. Four teams from SADC
– Angola, DRC, South Africa and Zambia – will raise
the regional profile at the finals.
 
28-29, Ethiopia 
20th Ordinary Session of the African Union

Heads of State and Government will gather for the
20th Ordinary Session of the African Union, preceded
by the usual technical meetings and the Council of
Ministers. The theme of the summit is “Pan-Africanism
and African Renaissance”.
 
February
18-22, Kenya
 27th Session of the Governing Council of the Global
Ministerial Environment Forum

The council convenes annually to review important
and emerging policy issues in the field of environment.
It aims to promote international cooperation as well as
provide general policy guidance for the direction and
coordination of environmental programmes globally.
 
19-21,South Africa
 Africa Energy Indaba

The annual conference aims to explore ways in which
Africa can harness its huge energy resources to achieve
energy self-sufficiency. It is a forum for professionals
from across the globe to debate and define solutions
to Africa's energy challenges.
 
TBA, Mozambique
 SADC Council of Ministers

Ministers from each Member State sit in Council, usually
from the ministries of foreign affairs, economic development,
planning or finance. 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.
 
TBA,South Africa
 SADC Infrastructure Investment Conference

The conference will seek to lure potential investors for
the SADC regional infrastructure development programme.
It will be followed by road shows in Asia, Europe
and the United States for the same purpose.


title:
Zimbabwe Unity Accord 22 December 1987

Abstract:
ZIMBABWE COMMEMORATES
the 25th anniversary of the Unity
Agreement in 2012.

body:
ZIMBABWE COMMEMORATES
the 25th anniversary of the Unity
Agreement in 2012.
On 22 December 1987, the two
liberation parties in Zimbabwe –
the Zimbabwe African National
Union Patriotic Front (ZANU PF)
and the Patriotic Front Zimbabwe
African People’s Union (PF ZAPU)
– signed the historic Unity Agreement
to facilitate socio-economic
development and political stability.
 
The then Prime Minister and
First Secretary of ZANU, Robert
Mugabe, and the President of
ZAPU, Joshua Nkomo, signed the
agreement that resulted in the
merger of the two parties to form a
united ZANU PF, effectively stopping
the political dissatisfaction
and instability that had erupted in
the south-west of the country in the
early 1980s, and closing ranks
against apartheid South Africa’s
manipulation of the situation.
 
Mugabe was elected First Secretary
and President of the unified
ZANU PF and it was agreed that
the party would have two second
secretaries and vice presidents to be
appointed by the first secretary and
president of the party.
 
Joshua Nkomo and Simon
Muzenda were the two Vice Presidents
appointed, and both played a
significant role in implementation
of the agreement.
 
The Unity Agreement was significant
in that it showed that the
leaders of the main political parties
had the capacity to resolve their differences
for the nation and the region
in general.
 
"Today is a great day. It is great
because we have seen the coming
together in body, mind and spirit of
our two parties,” Mugabe said after
the signing ceremony.
 
"What we are witnessing is a
tremendous blow to the forces of
negation, the forces of division, the
forces of destruction...let them be
laid to rest for eternity."
 
Nkomo added that the accord
was "the beginning of unity, for
unity is not just the signing of documents,
unity is what follows."
 
The two parties’ historical links
date back to the Patriotic Front alliance
which was the effective instrument
for prosecuting the
struggle against white minority
rule and winning democracy and
national independence for Zimbabwe.
 
The first united front was
achieved in 1896, during the First
Chimurenga War against the white
miners and settlers when the Shona
and Ndebele leaders collaborated
to resist colonial domination.
 
They also worked together during
the Second Chimurenga War
when they formed the Patriotic
Front in 1976 to provide a joint
front at the Geneva talks to discuss
Zimbabwe’s the modalities for independence.
 
This followed the coming together
of the parties under the banner
of the African National Council
to give a resounding "No" to the
Pearce Commission on constitutional
change in 1971.
 
The signing of the Unity Agreement
is commemorated each year
on 22 December, a public holiday
called National Unity Day.
 
Among the celebrations to mark
National Unity Day are a number
of sporting events, including an international
soccer match in which
the winning team receives the
Unity Cup, and a massive all-night
musical gala in one of the
provinces.


Abstract:
THE CHINESE New Year or Spring Festival is the
most important festival for Mauritians of Chinese
origin.The festival is celebrated every year in January
or February as the lunar new year, and in 2013
the festival will be held on 10 February.

body:
THE CHINESE New Year or Spring Festival is the
most important festival for Mauritians of Chinese
origin.The festival is celebrated every year in January
or February as the lunar new year, and in 2013
the festival will be held on 10 February.
It is preceded by a thorough cleaning of the home
and is characterised by the traditional sharing of
wax cakes among relatives and friends. The dominant
colour during the festival is red, which is the
symbol of happiness.
 
Special celebrations are held in Port Louis every
year with Chinese dragon and lion dances. No
knives or scissors are used on this day and food offerings
are made so that the following year will be
one of plenty.


title:
PUBLIC HOLIDAYS IN SADC
December 2012-February 2013

body:
8 December Immaculate Conception Seychelles

9 December Independence Day Tanzania

10 December International Human
Rights Day Namibia

16 December Day of Reconciliation South Africa

17 December Public Holiday South Africa

22 December National Unity Day Zimbabwe

25 December Christmas SADC
Family day Angola, Mozambique

26 December Day of Goodwill South Africa
Family Day Namibia

Boxing Day Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland,
Tanzania, Zimbabwe

31 December Incwala Day
(date to be confirmed) Swaziland
1 January New Year’s Day SADC

2 January Public Holiday Botswana, Mauritius

4 January Martyrs Day DRC

12 January Zanzibar Revolution Day Tanzania

15 January John Chilembwe Day Malawi

16 January Heroes Day (Laurent Kabila) DRC

17 January Heroes Day (Patrice Lumumba) DRC

24 January Maulid Day Tanzania

27 January Thaipoosam Cavadee Mauritius
 
1 February Abolition of Slavery Day Mauritius

3 February Heroes Day Mozambique

4 February Public Holiday Mozambique

4 February National Liberation Day Angola

10 February Chinese Spring Festival Mauritius

12 February Carnival Angola


Abstract:
THE YEAR 2013 holds the key to several important
regional milestones, including the implementation
of an ambitious programme to
develop cross-border infrastructure and the
conclusion of electoral processes leading to
polls in two SADC Member States, as well as
entering into force of the SADC Protocol on
Gender and Development.

body:
THE YEAR 2013 holds the key to several important
regional milestones, including the implementation
of an ambitious programme to
develop cross-border infrastructure and the
conclusion of electoral processes leading to
polls in two SADC Member States, as well as
entering into force of the SADC Protocol on
Gender and Development.
The ongoing effort by SADC to address the
deteriorating security situation in the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC) is also likely to
dominate the regional agenda this year.
The Regional Infrastructure Development
Master Plan will lead future cooperation and
planning, which is essential for attracting investment
into the SADC region and promoting
intra-and inter-regional trade as well as foreign
direct investment.
 
Estimated to cost US$500 billion, the master
plan will guide SADC’s implementation of
trans-boundary infrastructure networks that
are coordinated and integrated in the six priority
sectors of energy, transport, tourism, information
technology, meteorology and water.
 
An infrastructure investment conference in
April or May this year is expected to attract potential
investors, with road shows in Asia, Europe
and the United States.
 
A significant challenge for 2013 is that it is the
final year before the 2014 target set by regional
power utilities for balancing electricity supply
and demand.
 
The region has been experiencing a power
deficit in recent years due to growing demand
against limited expansion in generation capacity.
 
Almost all SADC member states have embarked
on projects to boost their electricity generation
capacity, in initiatives ranging from
conventional infrastructure projects to innovations,
and short term to long term plans.
 
According to the Southern African Power
Pool, which groups power utilities from 12
SADC member states, the electricity deficit will
be erased by 2014, provided that planned generation
projects are implemented on time.
 
In this regard, the year 2013 provides
SADC member states with an opportunity to
intensify their implementation ahead of the
2014 target.
 
A main challenge to regional development
in 2013, in addition to the uncertain global financial
environment, is the conflict in eastern
DRC where anti-government rebels have
threatened to march on Kinshasa, the capital of
the vast, mineral-rich country.
 
The conflict in eastern DRC
has generated a massive humanitarian
crisis, with serious
implications for regional integration
and socio-economic development.
 
SADC leaders held an extraordinary
summit in Maputo
in February to discuss the security
situation in eastern DRC following
a Troika summit in Dar
es Salaam in January when the
SADC Chairperson, President
Armando Guebuza of Mozambique,
met with the three leaders
who form the Troika of the
SADC Organ on Politics, Defence
and Security Cooperation.
 
Nine SADC Member States
have pledged to contribute
troops to a Neutral International
Force (NIF) to be deployed in
the DRC – Angola, Lesotho,
Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia,
South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia
and Zimbabwe.
 
SADC leaders have urged
the African Union Commission,
SADC and the International
Conference on the Great Lakes
Region to urgently engage the
United Nations on the deployment
of the NIF in eastern DRC.
(see page 7)
 
2013 is also the year when
the SADC Protocol on Gender
and Development entered into
force following ratification by
two-thirds of the Member
States.
 
Ten SADC member states
ratified this agreement and
there is quantifiable progress at
various levels in all member
states toward the equality and
empowerment of women
alongside men in southern
Africa. The regional target is
gender parity – 50:50 by 2015.
 
With regard to political situation
in the region, longawaited
elections in
Madagascar are scheduled for
this year and are expected to
end a protracted political dispute
in the Indian Ocean Island.
 
The first round of Madagascar’s
presidential elections is
scheduled for 8 May, with a second
round set for 3 July. The
Malagasy president is elected by
majority vote through a tworound
system to serve a fiveyear
term.
 
The Independent National
Election Commission of the
Transition has said that parliamentary
elections will be held
concurrently with the second
round of the presidential vote
on 3 July, with municipal elections
tentatively set for 23 October.
 
Madagascar’s political parties
signed a roadmap in 2011 in
an agreement brokered by
SADC mediators, which allowed
for the unconditional return
from exile of former
president Marc Ravalomanana,
who was deposed in 2009 in a
coup led by opposition leader
Andry Rajoelina.
 
Ravalomanana, who is exiled
in South Africa, announced
in December 2012 that he will
not stand for election and urged
his rival to follow suit. SADC
leaders announced in January
that Rajoelina has also agreed
not to stand in the elections.
 
Another important milestone
is the anticipated end of
the process to develop a new
constitution in Zimbabwe and
the holding of general elections
this year.
 
SADC, represented by
South African President Jacob
Zuma, is facilitating the process
of implementation of the Global
Political Agreement (GPA) in
Zimbabwe, but the closure has
been delayed by the lengthy
process of drafting a new Constitution
to replace the one inherited
at Independence in 1980,
following the Lancaster House
agreement.
 
The parties to the GPA and
parliament have approved the
draft Constitution, and this
2013
Year of regional development
will be put to a referendum on
16 March. The referendum, regardless
of its outcome, will be
followed later by general elections.
 
In addition to the polls in
Madagascar and Zimbabwe,
local government and parliamentary
elections are expected
in Mozambique and Swaziland,
respectively.
 
This year is also expected
to mark the conclusion of the
first phase of negotiations on
the establishment of the Tripartite
Free Trade Area (TFTA) involving
the Common Market
for Eastern and Southern
Africa (COMESA), East
African Community (EAC)
and SADC.
 
The Tripartite Trade Negotiation
Forum involving the
three regional economic communities
completed the
preparatory phase of negotiations
in 2012 and has proceeded
to the next phase.
 
Negotiations for the TFTA
will be conducted in three
phases – preparatory phase,
phase one and phase two. The
preparatory phase mainly involved
the exchange of relevant
information, including
tariffs applicable in each country
as well as trade data and
measures.
 
Phase one negotiations will
cover core FTA issues of tariff
liberalization, rules of origin,
customs procedures and simplification
of customs documentation.
Facilitating movement of
business persons within the region
will be negotiated in parallel
with phase one.
 
According to the roadmap
adopted at the second joint
COMESA-EAC-SADC Summit
in June 2011, all negotiations
for the so-called Grand FTA
should be completed within 36
months. COMESA, EAC and
SADC are expected to launch
the single FTA by 2016.


title:
Council of Ministers to discuss 2013 work programme

Abstract:
THE SADC Council of Ministers
is expected to meet in
Mozambique in March to discuss
the policy programme
for 2013.

body:
THE SADC Council of Ministers
is expected to meet in
Mozambique in March to discuss
the policy programme
for 2013.
The Council is responsible
for supervising and monitoring
the functions and development
of SADC and
ensuring that policies are
properly implemented.

It meets twice a year to deliberate
on institutional matters,
including approving
yearly budgets and strategic
plans for implementation by
the SADC Secretariat based
on Botswana.

The ministers, usually responsible
for foreign affairs,
international cooperation,
economic development, planning
or finance, meet again on
the eve of Summit in August/
September to prepare policy
recommendations for SADC
Heads of State and Government.

In Mozambique, Council
will assess progress on a number
of decisions taken so far
such as the mid-term review
of the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development Plan
(RISDP), the region’s 15-year
development blueprint.

The review, which started
in 2012 and is expected to be
completed this year, is expected
to result in the development
of a focussed work
programme that would enhance
regional integration.

Council is also expected to
discuss an improved draft
SADC Communications
Strategy that will incorporate
a clear implementation business
plan and set timeframes.


Abstract:
AN INDEPENDENT review
of the SADC Regional Indicative
Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP) is expected to be
completed this year, paving the
way for the region to deepen
integration and tackle other
emerging issues such as climate
change and global development.

body:
AN INDEPENDENT review
of the SADC Regional Indicative
Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP) is expected to be
completed this year, paving the
way for the region to deepen
integration and tackle other
emerging issues such as climate
change and global development.
The RISDP is a 15-year
strategic roadmap set by Member
States as a blueprint for regional
development and
integration. It was approved by
the SADC Heads of State and
Government Summit in 2003,
and its effective implementation
began in 2005 and will run
until 2020.
 
The plan, being implemented
in five-year phases,
provides Member States with a
consistent and comprehensive
programme of long-term economic
and social policies.
 
The review follows a desk
assessment of the RISDP by the
SADC Secretariat in 2011.
 
The Zimbabwe-based
Trade and Development Studies
Centre (TRADES Centre) is
conducting the independent review
which began in 2012.
 
The review should enable
Member States and external
stakeholders from civil society,
private sectors and others to reflect
on the key issues that
should become priorities in the
next phase of implementation.
In this regard, the review
provides SADC with an opportunity
to boldly tackle
some fundamental issues,
keeping in mind that the
RISDP is a strategic plan, and
not a legally binding instrument.
 
It also provides the SADC
Secretariat and its subsidiary
institutions with insight into
SADC-approved economic and
social policies and priorities.
The RISDP sets out the SADC
priorities as follows:

Sustainable peace and security
in the region;

Trade liberalization and economic
development;

Infrastructure development
to support regional integration;

Sustainable food security;

HIV and AIDS; and,

Crosscutting issues of skills
development, gender equality,
science and technology,
private sector development,
environment and sustainable
development.


 
The independent review is
also expected to tackle other
emerging issues such as climate
change, poverty and global development.
 
“We welcome the review,
taking into account changing
regional and global developments,”
Trudi Hartzenberg, executive
director of Trade and
Law Centre, said at a regional
development workshop held in
Harare, Zimbabwe.
 
“The review provides an
opportunity to consider the
RISDP review to be finalised in 2013
commitment of Member States
to fundamental rules-based
governance; focusing on how
to deal with the challenges of
non-compliance and ensuring a
dispute resolution regime
which is essential in rulesbased
governance,” she said.
 
A robust review of the
RISDP would also allow SADC
to develop an agenda that is appropriate
for the 21st century,
providing a policy, legal and institutional
framework for decisions
by economic actors that
enhance their competitiveness
and contribute to addressing
fundamental development
challenges such as unemployment
and poverty.
 
Some of the SADC milestones
set out in the RISDP include
the attainment of the
SADC Free Trade Area (FTA) by
2008, the Common Market by
2015, Monetary Union by 2016,
and Single Currency by 2018.
 
SADC successfully
launched its FTA in 2008 and
this milestone has contributed
to improving intra-regional
trade. Preparations are underway
to facilitate the establishment
of other milestones.
 
The RISDP also re-affirms
the commitment of SADC
Member States to good, political,
economic and corporate
governance entrenched in a
culture of democracy, participation
by civil society, transparency
and respect for the rule
of law.
 
The ultimate objective of
the plan is to deepen the integration
agenda of SADC with a
view to accelerating poverty
eradication and the attainment
of other economic and non-economic
development goals.
 
The desk assessment conducted
by the SADC Secretariat
based on the RISDP Implementation
Framework 2005-2010
found out that there was “satisfactory
levels of RISDP implementation”
over the past five
years.
 
The assessments noted that
all sectors were able to either
fully or partially reach most of
the different outputs and targets
within the stated timeframe.
 
The review indicated some
significant progress on Infrastructure
and Services, with
about 60 percent of all outputs
having been fully achieved, and
40 percent partially achieved.
 
With regard to Food, Agriculture
and Natural Resources
(FANR), about 64 percent of the
output targets had been fully
achieved, 28 percent partially
achieved and eight percent had
not been achieved.
 
While the desk assessment
has provided an
overview of the implementation
status of the different sectors
outlined in the RISDP, a
broader assessment that involves
all key stakeholders in
the Member States is expected
to provide a more
comprehensive analysis.


body:
KEY FINDINGS of the RISDP desk assessment by the SADC Secretariat
include the following:
Fostering implementation by Member States – Increased advocacy
and technical assistance are needed to facilitate domestication
and implementation of these frameworks in order to achieve
the impact of regional integration.

Effective structures for cooperation by the Secretariat and Member
State – Suitable tools and procedures are needed to ensure
that Member States are able to provide feedback of regional interests.

Realistic targets and ongoing RISDP evaluation – Targets must
be realistic in the formulation of policies, strategies and implementation
frameworks.

Lack of human, financial and technical resources at SADC Secretariat
– Member States are encouraged to adequately fund all interventions,
including research and extension, as these are currently
over-dependent on International Cooperating Partners.

Fostering monitoring and evaluation – Baselines are needed in diverse
areas of cooperation to measure impact of regional programmes.

Mainstreaming crosscutting issues – Effective structures are
needed to take responsibility for mainstreaming the crosscutting issues
into all programmes.

Improve think-tank capacity of Secretariat – The Secretariat should
be enabled to provide more strategic and long-term advice to Member
States.

SADC as platform for common Pan-African and global positions –
Greater collaboration is needed among regional institutions to facilitate
effective and efficient implementation of joint positions and activities.


title:
BRICS and Africa – Partnerships for Integration and Industrialization

Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA will host the
5th BRICS Summit in March
under the theme “BRICS and
Africa – partnerships for integration
and industrialization.”

body:
SOUTH AFRICA will host the
5th BRICS Summit in March
under the theme “BRICS and
Africa – partnerships for integration
and industrialization.”
The BRICS group of emerging
economies, comprising
Brazil, Russia, India, China
and South Africa, is regarded
as having the fastest emerging
markets in the world.
 
Studies show that by the
year 2050 the combined
economies of BRICS could
eclipse the combined
economies of the current richest
countries of the world.
 
The summit set for 26-27
March is expected to delib-
erate on a number of issues to
promote partnership between
BRICS countries and Africa.
 
Key focus areas for the
summit are:
Promotion of African infrastructure
development;

Establishment of a BRICSled
development bank;

Establishment of a BRICS
think tank; and,

Creation of a BRICS business
council.


 
South Africa’s deputy minister
for International Relations
and Cooperation,
Ebrahim Ebrahim, said preparations
are progressing
well to ensure South
Africa hosts a successful
summit.
 
He said for
the first time, the
summit will include
a dialogue
between BRICS
leaders and African Heads of
State and Government from
the eight Regional Economic
Communities (RECs) on the
continent.
 
Economic analysts have
pointed out that South Africa
has more to benefit from
BRICS if the country represents
the interests of Africa.
South Africa has an economy
of about US$290 billion –
the smallest of the BRICS nations
and less than a quarter of
that of Russia.
 
Its population is estimated
at about 49 million compared
to China’s 1.3 billion, India’s
1.2 billion, Brazil’s 191 million,
and Russia’s 142 million.
 
Regardless of the size,
South Africa is in a unique position
to influence African economic
growth and investment.
Africa’s combined Gross Domestic
Product is similar to
that of Brazil and Russia, and
slightly above that of India.
 
Being the only country on
the continent in this grouping
of emerging markets, South
Africa can thus act as a gateway
to southern Africa and the
entire African continent.
 
BRICS countries are individually
making inroads into
Africa and have already seen
increased trade and investment,
particularly Brazil,
China and India.
 
The BRICS summit is held
each year and hosting rotates
among member states. The last
summit was held in India in
2012.
 
The BRICS mechanism aims
to achieve peace, security, development
and cooperation. It
also seeks to contribute significantly
to the development of
humanity and establish a more
equitable and fair world.


Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA is
making efforts to launch its
long-awaited SADC Customs
Union in 2013 in a bid to
deepen regional integration
and consolidate socio-economic
development.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA is
making efforts to launch its
long-awaited SADC Customs
Union in 2013 in a bid to
deepen regional integration
and consolidate socio-economic
development.
The target for the establishment
of a Customs Union was
originally set for 2010. However,
due to unforeseen challenges,
the date was shelved to
allow Member States more time
to consolidate the implementation
and gains of the Free Trade
Area (FTA) launched in 2008.
 
“Due to capacity constraints
within the SADC Secretariat,
the implementation
of the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development Plan
started late, meaning this
milestone [SADC Customs
Union] has not yet been attained,”
SADC says on its
website.
 
“However, it is anticipated
that that the establishment of
the SADC Customs Union will
be reached by 2013.”
 
A Customs Union is an advanced
stage of integration
when compared to a FTA as it
does not require tariffs or quotas
on goods originating from
within the region.
 
The delays in the implementation
of the SADC Customs
Union mean that some
of the programmes planned
by SADC to deepen economic
integration may be affected.
 
The milestones include
launch of the SADC Common
Market, which was set for 2015
and the Monetary Union set for
2018.


Abstract:
FIVE SADC countries are
planning to coordinate their
rail services to increase trade
through the port of Durban,
South Africa.

body:
FIVE SADC countries are
planning to coordinate their
rail services to increase trade
through the port of Durban,
South Africa.
Railway companies
from Botswana, Democratic
Republic of Congo,
South Africa, Zambia, and
Zimbabwe will use their
existing rail infrastructure
to facilitate transport to the
Indian Ocean port.
 
The head of international
business at Transnet
Freight Rail, Nyameka
Madikizela, said the main
objective is to “align the
five railway lines towards a
unified railway system on
the North-South Corridor
by establishing a Joint Operating
Centre in Bulawayo,
Zimbabwe.”


title:
Above-normal rainfall forecast for southern Africa

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICAN climate
experts have forecast normal
to above-normal rainfall in
most parts of the region during
the period January to May 2013.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICAN climate
experts have forecast normal
to above-normal rainfall in
most parts of the region during
the period January to May 2013.
The rainfall outlook was
prepared by climate scientists
from national meteorological
and hydrological services
within the SADC region as
well as the SADC Drought
Monitoring Centre and the International
Research Institute
for Climate and Society.
 
The 16th Southern Africa Regional
Climate Outlook Forum
for Mid-Season Update, which
met in Zambia recently, divided
the period into three monthly
outlooks, namely January to
March, February to April, and
March to May.
 
Most of the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC), northernmost
Angola and
southernmost Madagascar are
expected to receive normal to
below-normal total rainfall in
the January to March period.
 
During February to April,
only north-eastern Tanzania is
forecast to experience normal
to below-normal rainfall while
the rest of the region is expected
to receive normal to
above-normal rainfall.
 
A similar pattern is forecast
for March to May, with most
parts of the region expected to
receive normal to above-normal
rainfall, except for the extreme
north-western parts of the DRC
where normal to below-normal
rainfall is expected.
 
Above-normal rainfall is defined
as lying within the wettest
third of average recorded rainfall
amounts during the 30-year
period between 1971 and 2000,
while below-normal is within
the driest third of rainfall
amounts, and normal rainfall is
the middle third.
 
The scientists also considered
that El Nino-Southern Oscillation
(ENSO) is going to be
in a neutral phase which is projected
to persist into early 2013.
 
El Nino is a weather condition
that begins with the warming
of the waters in the Western
Pacific Ocean and eventually affects
the global climate.
 
The natural warming
events alter weather patterns
worldwide, usually causing
droughts in southern Africa or
contributing to their severity.
 
The regional outlook provides
a first case scenario of
the seasonal outlook process
which then requires a localized
review by national meteorological
departments before it
can be finalised.
 
Users are therefore strongly
advised to contact the National
Meteorological and Hydrological
Services for interpretation of
what normal to above-normal
would mean in terms of rainfall
amount, when to plant, updates
and other additional guidance.
 
It is also relevant only to seasonal
timescales and relatively
large areas, and may not fully
account for all factors that influence
regional and national climate
variability, such as local
and month-to-month variations.


Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICAN
countries have been urged to
oppose the World Health Organisation
(WHO) Framework
Convention on Tobacco Control.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICAN
countries have been urged to
oppose the World Health Organisation
(WHO) Framework
Convention on Tobacco Control.
The Association of SADC
Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (ASCCI) says the
WHO-FCTC has not fully considered
the wellbeing of farming
communities in
tobacco-producing countries. 
 
WHO-FCTC Article 17 and
18, which deal with tobacco
farming, seek to force farmers
to phase out tobacco growing
to alternative crops such as
food crops, whether or not demand
for tobacco continues.
 
Other measures proposed
by the WHO-FCTC include the
reduction of the area allocated
to tobacco farming, a ban on financial
and technical support
for tobacco farmers, and the
dismantling of all bodies connecting
tobacco growers with
governments.
 
ASCCI President Oswell
Binha said southern Africa
could not understate the importance
of the tobacco crop in
the region.
 
“Millions of people in the
SADC region are reliant on the
tobacco crop for their livelihoods...
any guidelines to transition
farmers out of tobacco
must be underpinned by
proven scientific evidence as
well as direct consultation
with farmers who will be most
affected.
 
“Furthermore, we believe
that attempts to impose uniform
measures or set values on
taxes for all countries undermine
the sovereign right of
countries to establish and collect
taxes in accordance with
their national needs and interests,”
said Binha.
 
According to a recent study
by the Tobacco Institute of
Southern Africa, tobacco is an
important contributor to most
economies in the region, with
about 1.1 million acres under
tobacco production. The sector
employs close to four million
people in the region.
 
All SADC Member States are
parties to the WHO-FCTC, except
Malawi and Zimbabwe.


Abstract:
THE TWO main political rivals in
Madagascar have resolved not to stand
in presidential elections set for May
amid regional and international pressure
to give the island nation a fresh
start after four years of constitutional
crisis.

body:
THE TWO main political rivals in
Madagascar have resolved not to stand
in presidential elections set for May
amid regional and international pressure
to give the island nation a fresh
start after four years of constitutional
crisis.
Andry Rajoelina, President of the
Transition in Madagascar, and former
president Marc Ravalomanana have
both said they will not stand in the
forthcoming presidential elections.
 
This follows pressure from SADC
and the African Union for the two rivals
to stand aside to prevent any repeat of
the turmoil that arose from
a 2009 coup that brought
Rajoelina to power.
 
“I will not stand in the
presidential elections. I prefer
to sacrifice myself rather than
sacrifice 22 million Malagasy
people. We
want peace,”
Rajoelina said in
a speech in January.
 
Ravalomanana had announced in
December 2012 that he will not stand
again, saying he wants the country to
rebuild itself.
 
The Troika of the SADC Organ on
Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation,
meeting at an extraordinary summit
in the United Republic of Tanzania
in December 2012, welcomed the decision
by Rajoelina and Ravalomanana
not to contest in the presidential elections
“as a way forward towards resolving
this crisis.”
 
The Troika also proposed that the
Rajoelina administration should pass an
amnesty law to allow Ravalomanana to
return to the country before the elections.
 
The former president was sentenced
to life imprisonment with
hard labour in 2010 for his part in the
deaths of about 30 protesters during the
riots leading up to his unconstitutional
removal.
 
Madagascar slid into political turmoil
in March 2009 when the then opposition
leader Rajoelina seized power
from Ravalomanana in a public demonstration
backed by the military.
 
The coup was similar to the method
used by Ravalomanana when he seized
power a few years earlier from his predecessor,
Didier Ratsiraka.
 
SADC-led mediation efforts have
seen both leaders, together with two
other former Malagasy presidents including
Ratsiraka, agreeing to set up a
transitional government to govern the
country until fresh elections are held.


title:
SADC Organ Troika - Declaration on Madagascar

Abstract:
RECALLING ALL the decisions taken by the SADC Summits
of Heads of State and Government on the political situation
in Madagascar;

Recognizing the need of preserving the interests of the
Malagasy people;

body:
RECALLING ALL the decisions taken by the SADC Summits
of Heads of State and Government on the political situation
in Madagascar;

Recognizing the need of preserving the interests of the
Malagasy people;

Reaffirming:

that the Roadmap remains the only viable mechanism
for ending the crisis in Madagascar;

Further our commitment to help the Malagasy people
put an end to the political crisis in Madagascar and return
the country to constitutional normalcy;

the need of respecting the electoral calendar as
adopted by the National Independent Electoral Commission
of the Transition (CENIT) and the United Nations (UN).

We, Presidents Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete (of the United
Republic of Tanzania), Hifikepunye Pohamba (of
the Republic of Namibia), and Jacob Gedleyihlekisa
Zuma (of the Republic of South Africa)
of the SADC Organ Troika and President Armando
Emilio Guebuza, (of the Republic of
Mozambique), Chairperson of SADC, hereby
decide as follows:
 

Welcome and commend the undertaking made by H.E.
Andry Rajoelina, President of Transition in Madagascar
and H.E. Marc Ravalomanana, former President of Madagascar
to the effect that they will not stand for the forthcoming
Presidential and Parliamentary elections;

Urge the Malagasy people to promote the spirit of reconciliation,
peace and stability and to refrain from all acts
of destabilization in the country;

Also urge the Malagasy political stakeholders
to assume their responsibility of peacefully delivering
Madagascar out of the crisis;

Reiterate that Government Members should resign
from office sixty (60) days before the election date, should they
decide to run for the legislative and/or presidential elections as
provided for in Article 14 of the Roadmap;

Also reiterate that “the President, the Government, the Heads
of Institutions and the entire administrative machinery of the
Transition shall remain neutral during the transition period,
particularly in the electoral process” (Article 15 of the
Roadmap);

Further reiterate the SADC endorsement of the electoral calendar
of the Presidential and Parliamentary Elections scheduled for
May and July 2013;

Call upon the Malagasy Parliament of Transition to enact legislation
to grant comprehensive amnesty to H.E. Andry Rajoelina,
President of the Transition in Madagascar and H.E. Marc Ravalomanana,
former President of Madagascar. This amnesty should
also be extended to the Malagasy security forces;

Urge the Malagasy Parliament of Transition to enact legislation
on status of former Malagasy Presidents. This legislation should
include relevant privileges and immunities;

SADC leadership and the SADC Mediator on Madagascar will
continue to be seized with the matter.
Done in Dar es Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania, 10 January
2013

 

Done in Dar es Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania, 10 January
2013


Abstract:
SADC HEADS of State and
Government have called for a
peaceful and durable resolution
of the conflict in eastern
Democratic Republic of Congo
and have pledged to contribute
troops to be deployed
for this purpose.

body:
SADC HEADS of State and
Government have called for a
peaceful and durable resolution
of the conflict in eastern
Democratic Republic of Congo
and have pledged to contribute
troops to be deployed
for this purpose.
The conflict in eastern
DRC is a major setback to regional
integration and development
that impacts on all
countries in southern Africa,
hence SADC leaders have decided
that collective efforts are
needed to address the situation.
 
Nine SADC Member
States have agreed to contribute
troops to the Neutral
International Force (NIF) - Angola,
Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius,
Namibia, South Africa,
United Republic of Tanzania,
Zambia and Zimbabwe.
 
South Africa has offered to
provide logistical support to
the NIF, while Tanzania has
offered to provide a Force
Commander for the NIF.
 
Other contributions by
Member States or the international
community to the NIF
are yet to be announced, and
once all the logistics are clear,
SADC is expected to deploy
its force in eastern DRC.
 
The SADC Extraordinary
Summit of the Heads of State
and Government, meeting in
Maputo, Mozambique in early
February, said deployment of
troops in eastern DRC would
be done in close collaboration
with the International Conference
on the Great Lakes Region
(ICGLR).
 
Five SADC Member States
are also members of the
ICGLR, including DRC, as
well as Angola, Malawi, Tanzania
and Zambia.
 
The SADC Extraordinary
Summit urged the African
Union and SADC/ICGLR “to
urgently engage the United
Nations on the deployment of
NIF in eastern DRC,” and
commended the UN Secretary
General for the proposed
Peace, Security and Cooperation
Framework for the eastern
part DRC and the Region.
 
The NIF is expected to
maintain and preserve peace,
and ensure the destabilization
does not spread to other parts
of the country and the region.
 
According to the Tanzanian
President, Jakaya Kikwete,
who chairs the Troika of the
SADC Organ on Politics, Defence
and Security Cooperation,
the actual size of the
contribution from each country
that has pledged is yet to
be determined “as there are
matters which are being
worked upon especially on
who will be doing what in
DRC. These include matters
such as logistics.”
 
The Organ Troika Summit
held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania,
in January, and attended
also by the SADC Chairperson,
welcomed “UN support
for the deployment of the NIF
through the proposed UN
Framework Concept for
an Intervention Brigade
in the eastern DRC and
expressed its readiness
to work with UN.”
 
The Troika Summit
reiterated its call for “urgent
attention to the
grave humanitarian situation
in the Eastern DRC.”
South African President
Jacob Zuma, who is a member
of the SADC Organ Troika,
said
 
“Part of the reason why we
should have the Neutral International
Force is to prevent
those outside forces that enter
into the DRC and cause the
trouble there.”
 
Last year, SADC leaders
formally accused Rwanda of
supporting the rebels and the
SADC Chairperson, President
Armando Guebuza of
Mozambique, visited Rwanda
for discussions with President
Paul Kagame.
 
The DRC slid into political
turmoil early last year and escalated
in November when
anti-government rebels calling
themselves the March 23
movement invaded and captured
the city of Goma, causing
displacement of people
and loss of lives and property.
 
The rebels have since
threatened to march on Kinshasa,
the capital of the vast,
mineral-rich country.
 
SADC has demanded the
cessation of hostilities, and
called for peaceful and
durable resolution of the conflict,
saying it can be resolved
through collective dialogue.
 
SADC leaders meeting at
Summit last year in August
2012 noted that the disturbance
in DRC is being perpetrated by
rebel groups with assistance of
Rwanda and urged that country
to cease immediately its interference
“that constitutes a
threat to peace and stability, not
only of the DRC, but also of the
SADC region.”


Abstract:
THE UNITED Nations is considering
support for the deployment
of a peacekeeping
force to the Democratic Republic
of Congo.

body:
THE UNITED Nations is considering
support for the deployment
of a peacekeeping
force to the Democratic Republic
of Congo.
UN peacekeeping chief
Herve Ladsous said an agreement
to deploy an intervention
brigade would be signed
soon, adding the force would
be sent to the eastern DRC to
“neutralize” armed militias.
 
He said helicopters and
“drones” would be used to
maintain peace and stability in
the country, although neighbouring
countries including
Rwanda have rejected the use
of the electronic surveillance
aircraft known as drones.
 
The UN wants to use the
drones, developed and manufactured
in the United States
for use in surveillance in various
parts of the world, to
monitor the mineral-rich border
area of eastern DRC,
where Rwanda has been accused
of helping rebels fighting
the government.
 
The UN peacekeeping
brigade would operate under
the mandate of the
MONUSCO mission deployed
elsewhere in the DRC.
 
DRC is already the UN’s
biggest peacekeeping mission,
with more than 17,000 troops.
But the forces are spread thin
in the huge country and the
UN is under orders to cut
costs.


title:
2014-2024 Decade for Sustainable Energy for All

Abstract:
Energy Policy Brief No.11, February 2013

THE UNITED Nations has declared 2014-2024 as the Decade
for Sustainable Energy for all to underscore the importance
of energy issues in the post-2015 development agenda.

body:
Energy Policy Brief No.11, February 2013

THE UNITED Nations has declared 2014-2024 as the Decade
for Sustainable Energy for all to underscore the importance
of energy issues in the post-2015 development agenda.
In a resolution made on 21 December 2012, the UN General
Assembly called upon member states to galvanize efforts to
make universal access to sustainable modern energy services
a priority, noting that about 1.3 billion people worldwide are
without electricity and another 2.6 billion people in developing
countries rely on traditional biomass for cooking and heating.
 
It expressed concern that even when energy services are
available, millions of people are unable to pay for them.
 
The resolution stressed the need to improve access to reliable,
affordable, economically viable, socially acceptable and
environmentally sound energy services and resources for
sustainable development.
 
To that end, the General Assembly also emphasized the
importance of improving energy efficiency, increasing the
share of renewable energy and cleaner technologies.
 
In its resolution, the General Assembly called upon governments
as well as relevant international and regional organizations
and other relevant stakeholders to combine, as
appropriate, the increased use of new and renewable energy
resources, more efficient use of energy, greater reliance on
advanced energy technologies, including cleaner fossil fuel
technologies, and the sustainable use of traditional energy
resources, to meet the increasing need for energy services.
 
The declaration of the decade builds on the growing interest
by Member States in energy issues. General Assembly Resolution
65/151 had declared 2012 the “International Year of Sustainable
Energy for All” and called on the Secretary-General to
organize and coordinate activities during the year to increase
awareness of the importance of addressing energy issues.
 
In response, UN Secretary-General, Ban ki-Moon has
launched the Sustainable Energy for All Initiative, which
brings together stakeholders in government, the private sector
and civil society.
 
The initiative is led by Kandeh Yumkella of Sierra Leone,
who is also the Director-General of the United Nations Industrial
Development Organisation (UNIDO) and chair of
UN Energy.
 
The purpose of the initiative is to mobilize action towards
providing universal energy access; doubling the rate of
global energy efficiency improvement; and doubling the
share of renewable energy in the global energy mix.
 
According to Yumkella, sustainable energy for all is essential
for achieving the Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs) and for opening up new opportunities for growth
and prosperity in all countries.
 
“It is also central to discussions on the post-2015 development
agenda and proposed new sustainable development
goals,” he said.
 
As part of the initiative, the UN has launched the Global
Consultation on Energy that aims to explore why energy
matters in the post-2015 development agenda and identify
the key priority issues.
 
Its purpose is to invite an extensive range of stakeholders
to build a shared vision of the world’s future energy challenges
and the need to integrate energy into the post-2015
development agenda.
 
The effort is a part of a larger global conversation comprising
over 50 national consultations and 11 thematic consultations,
one of which is on energy.
 
The consultation is taking place both on a web-based platform
and at various face-to-face events worldwide.
 
The findings will be shared and fed into post-2015 framework
development and other related processes towards 2015
when the present agenda guided by the MDGs is expected
to come to an end.
 
Post-2015 development agenda
The eight MDGs – which range from halving extreme
poverty to halting the spread of HIV and AIDS, and providing
universal primary education – have been a milestone in
global and national development
efforts since 2000.
 
The framework has helped to galvanize development efforts
and guide global and national development priorities.
 
While three of the eight goals have been achieved prior to
the final deadline of 2015 progress has been uneven within
and across countries.
 
Further efforts and a strong global partnership for development
are, therefore, needed to accelerate progress and
reach the goals by 2015.
 
Following the outcome of the Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable
Development, which initiated an inclusive intergovernmental
process to prepare a set of sustainable
development goals, there is broad agreement that there must
be close linkages between the two processes and agendas.
 
Access to energy is widely regarded as a “missing” MDG
and debate among development experts is that poverty alleviation
and the general global socio-economic condition
would improve if energy is identified as the ninth MDG.
 
Development experts argue that the failure to recognize
the central role of energy in the original MDG list has had an
impact on how the world responds to issues of sustainable
development and poverty reduction.
 
Energy affects all aspects of development – social, economic,
and environmental, including livelihoods, access to
water, agricultural productivity, health, population levels,
education, and gender-related issues.
 
For example, the majority of people in southern Africa still
rely on traditional energy sources such as wood, or other biomass
such as crop residue, which is the dominant fuel for
cooking. This comes at a huge cost to the environment as
families continue to cut down trees for much-needed fuel.
 
Therefore, attaining energy self-sufficiency would go a
long way in improving SADC’s chances of meeting the
MDGs, creating opportunities for people to come out of the
poverty trap.
 
Regional initiatives
To improve access to energy, Southern Africa has embarked
on a programme to increase the availability of various energy
sources by 2027 at a total cost of more than US$200 billion.
 
The recently announced Energy Sector Plan, part of a
broader regional infrastructure master plan approved in
2012, addresses four key strategic objectives, namely ensuring
energy security, improving access to modern energy services,
tapping the abundant energy resources, and achieving
financial investment and environmental sustainability.
 
The plan identifies “hard” infrastructure projects that include
the planned electricity generation and transmission
projects; refineries, storage facilities and pipelines for the petroleum
and gas; and transport facilities for coal distribution
and exports.
 
With regards to the electricity sub-sector, the master plan
identified 73 power generation projects to increase generation
from the current 56,000 megawatts (MW) and surpass
the projected demand of 96,000 MW by 2027.
 
In addition to the “hard” infrastructure projects, the master
plan has also identified 16 “soft” infrastructure issues that
need to be addressed before the region can achieved self-sufficiency
in the electricity sub-sector.
 
These include harmonised policies and increased cooperation
in energy development and trading.


Abstract:
ZAMBIA AND the African Development Bank (AfDB) have
signed a US$55 million loan agreement for the construction
of the Itezhi-Tezhi hydropower station and transmission
line.

body:
ZAMBIA AND the African Development Bank (AfDB) have
signed a US$55 million loan agreement for the construction
of the Itezhi-Tezhi hydropower station and transmission
line.
The agreement was signed by Zambian Minister of Finance,
Alexander Chikwanda and AfDB country representative
Freddie Kwesiga.
 
The project will involve construction and operation of a
120-megawatt (MW) hydropower plant at Itezhi-Tezhi dam
along the Kafue River.
 
Once completed, this project will significantly increase
Zambia’s and the region’s power supply. Zambia presently
produces 1,800MW which it shares with the rest of the region
through the Southern African Power Pool.


title:
Mozambique gets US$65 million loan for power station rehabilitation

Abstract:
MOZAMBIQUE IS expected to boosts power production
after the national power utility, Electricidade de Moçambique
(EDM) secured a loan from France for the rehabilitation
of two power stations.

body:
MOZAMBIQUE IS expected to boosts power production
after the national power utility, Electricidade de Moçambique
(EDM) secured a loan from France for the rehabilitation
of two power stations.
Mozambique will get a loan of 50 million Euros to rehabilitate
the Mavuzi and Chicamba power stations in the
central province of Manica, under an agreement signed in
October with the French Development Agency.
 
The rehabilitation project should increase the generation
capacity of the two power stations by 50 percent so that
Mavuzi produces 52 megawatts (MW) while Chicamba
will generate 38MW.
 
The two stations are owned by EDM and both are on the
Revue River.


title:
Four Congresses, similar perspectives, different processes, effective practices

Abstract:
FOUR OF the main political parties in southern Africa held
congresses in the last quarter of 2012, former liberation
movements that are ruling parties in four SADC Member
States.

body:
FOUR OF the main political parties in southern Africa held
congresses in the last quarter of 2012, former liberation
movements that are ruling parties in four SADC Member
States.
The leaders of all four of these political parties are Heads
of State and current office bearers in the Southern African
Development Community (SADC).
 
While many policy concerns are similar, their political
processes offer different aspects of effective practices.
 
The party congresses were held in Mozambique at end
September, Tanzania in early November, Namibia at end November,
and South Africa in mid-December.
 
These well-established political parties have similar
themes and policy issues about economic development and
empowerment, but different systems for political structure
and leadership transition.
 
All have faced challenges of leadership transition, especially
the first transition after achieving their goal of national
independence, and some have defined solutions.
 
All face elections in 2014-2015, and have held defining
Congresses well in advance of those dates.
 
NAMIBIA

The 5th Congress of the SWAPO Party in
Windhoek, Namibia presented a strong
political process that has evolved since Independence
in 1990.
 
With the theme “Towards Equity and
Economic Emancipation”, the Congress
considered 13 policy papers refined at a
policy conference three months earlier on a range of development
issues. The SWAPO congress resolved to strengthen
implementation mechanisms.
 
The most anticipated aspect of the 5th SWAPO Party
Congress as noted in the closing statement was the election
of the party leadership. President Hifikepunye Pohamba,
who currently serves on the SADC Organ Troika, was
elected unopposed for a second term as party leader 2013-
2017.
 
This means that he will remain as party leader
after stepping down as Head of State in 2015, following
the next national elections the previous
year.
 
Therefore, the leadership contest was not at
top level, but the next level down, for vice president,
secretary-general and deputy. The winner
who emerged from the hotly contested cam-
paign as Vice President of the SWAPO Party was Dr Hage
Geingob, the Minister of Trade and Industry, and a former
prime minister.
 
Geingob was appointed Prime Minister in a cabinet
reshuffle announced immediately after the Congress. He will
be the party candidate for President in the 2014 elections.
Thus the decision is made two years ahead of elections,
avoiding divisions at election time. The contest took place,
not at the top, but at second level, with no impact on the
Head of State or stability of the country.
 
The party President appealed to all candidates to accept
the results of the closely contested election, and avoid a repetition
of the previous leadership race when the losing candidate
left to form his own party.
 
This is Namibia’s second leadership transition, after the
first one was hard fought and fraught with allegations in
which the loser refused to accept the results.
 
At the previous Congress, when the founding President,
Sam Nujoma, stepped down, the party decided to confer him
with the title of “Leader of the Namibian Revolution” with
an open invitation to attend any meetings of the party.
 
MOZAMBIQUE
Mozambique faced some of the same
challenges at the 10th Congress of the
Frelimo Party, held in the northernmost
province of Cabo Delgado.
 
President Armando Emilio Guebuza,
the party leader, is Head of State and
the current chairperson of SADC.
 
The main policy issues are contained in the National
Agenda for the Struggle Against Poverty. The main result
was the election of the new party leadership through an inclusive
electoral quota system unique to Frelimo, called “continuity
with renewal”, in which there are separate candidate
lists of women and men, voted by all delegates.
 
The complex ballot papers for Central Committee had five
sections: for those seeking re-election, newcomers, young
candidates under 35 years, economic and social areas, and
veterans of the liberation struggle. Each section
has a quota of men and women candidates,
and the children of veterans are considered
as veterans for this purpose.
 
The Political Commission has 14 members
elected plus three ex-officio members
who are the president, secretary-general and
secretary of the verification commission.
 
The 14 members of the top party leadership are elected in
two categories: 60 percent continuity (those seeking re-election)
and 40 percent renewal (newcomers). For continuity,
there are eight places – four men and four women. For the
remaining six seats, for renewal, four are reserved for men
and two for women.
 
This resulted in a wide representation broadly inclusive
of various sectors and interest groups, including 35 percent
women. The Frelimo party has three separate wings for
women, youth, and war veterans.
 
Guebuza was overwhelmingly re-elected as party leader
with 97.3 percent of the votes.
 
The biggest upset was that of the prime minister and his
predecessor both losing their seats on the Political Commission.
Government was reshuffled immediately following
Congress, with a young man who is a newcomer to the Commission
appointed as Prime Minister.
 
Guebuza is serving his second and last term as Head of
State but can remain as President of the party, as his predecessor
did before him, and therefore the party and government
are likely to have different top leadership
following the next national elections in the last quarter of
2014.
 
Frelimo structures do not include a direct line of succession
to the presidency. Although the prime minister is often
seen as a potential successor, this has not been the case to
date. The presidential candidate will be selected closer to the
time of elections.
 
UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA
Further north, in the United Republic
of Tanzania, where Jakaya Kikwete is
the Head of State and currently serving
as chairperson of the SADC Troika on
Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation,
the ruling party Chama Cha
Mapinduzi (CCM) held its 8th national congress.
 
Kikwete was re-elected as national chairman of the CCM
party that brought national independence under its previous
name, the Tanganyika African National Union,
and its founding father, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere.
 
The United Republic of Tanzania is the
result of the union of the mainland (Tanganyika)
and Zanzibar in 1964, and the
CCM party structures also reflect this
union.
 
The 2012 congress saw the return of experienced cadres regarded
as hard-working and “clean” of corruption, who had
served the party previously in senior positions.
 
These included the top three positions under the chairman,
that is, the two vice-chairmen for the mainland and for Zanzibar,
and the secretary-general. All three posts are held by men
but a very senior and high-profile woman was elected to the
new post of secretary-general for foreign relations.
 
CCM also has no specific structure for succession and Kikwete
will remain as head of the party beyond the next national
election in October 2015 for continuity, as have his predecessors.
The presidential candidate for the next national election
will be chosen closer to the time, likely in first half of 2015.
 
SOUTH AFRICA
The last of the ruling party congresses in 2012
was the African National Congress (ANC) of
South Africa in December, when President
Jacob Zuma saw off a challenge from his
deputy, who is also deputy president of the
country.
 
The congress marked 100 years since the
ANC was formed in 1912 at the same city, in
Mangaung, with most of the party leadership re-elected, except
for the deputy president Kgalema Motlanthe who was
replaced with a well-known businessman. The chairperson
of the party remains a woman.
 
The pre-congress debate was more about leadership and
representation than the significant policy issues facing the
party, with threatened court challenges in some provinces
over the process of choosing delegates to the congress.
 
Amid a high-profile debate over party “slates” of leadership
candidates, the secretary-general denied that ANC
“arranges” the leadership, saying that lobbying is part of the
democratic process.
 
President Zuma is completing his first term as Head of
State and is a member of the SADC Troika on Politics, Defence
and Security Cooperation. He will stand for re-election
as President of South Africa in early 2014.
 
In its short history in government, the ANC
deputy president has succeeded to the top
job in the party and government, but it is
not yet clear if that will be the case in the
2019 elections by which time Zuma would
have completed his second term, as there
will be another party congress before that
time.


title:
Referendum 16 March New Draft Constitution for Zimbabwe

Abstract:
THE COMPLETION of a consultative
process on a new Constitution
for Zimbabwe clears
the way for a referendum on 16
March, followed later by elections.

body:
THE COMPLETION of a consultative
process on a new Constitution
for Zimbabwe clears
the way for a referendum on 16
March, followed later by elections.
“All parties have agreed.
We have finally agreed on the
finalisation of the draft Constitution,”
President Robert Mugabe
told a press conference in
early February, that was attended
by the other two principals
to the Global Political
Agreement (GPA) – Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
and Deputy Prime Minister
Arthur Mutambara.
 
According to the GPA
signed in 2008, the finalization
of the constitution-making
process paves the way for the
holding of general elections.
 
However, before that the
country is expected to hold a
referendum on whether to accept
or reject the new Constitution,
which replaces the
British-drafted Lancaster
House constitution that took
effect at Independence in 1980.
The referendum has been set
for March 16.
 
The main political parties –
Zanu-PF and the two MDC formations
– have started a campaign
urging their members to
vote “Yes” in the referendum.
 
Zimbabwe is expected to
hold presidential, parliamentary
and local government elections
thereafter. The date will be
announced after the referendum,
but elections are expected
this year. Under the current
Constitution, the duration of
this Parliament ends on 29 June.
 
Zimbabwe last went to the
polls in 2008, when the opposition
marginally won more
seats in Parliament while
Zanu-PF won the popular vote
and the Presidency.
 
The disputed polls resulted
in the GPA, a SADC-brokered
agreement for an inclusive gov-
ernment involving Mugabe,
Tsvangirai and Mutambara, implemented
in February 2009.
 
According to the GPA, President
Mugabe of Zanu-PF remained
Head of State, while
Tsvangirai of MDC-Tsvangirai
(MDC-T) became Prime Minister
and Mutambara of MDC
became the Deputy Prime
Minister.
 
A cabinet comprising 15
ministers from ZANU-PF, 13
from the MDC-T and three
from MDC was also sworn in.
A key component of the GPA
was the removal of sanctions
against Zimbabwe implemented
by the European Union
at the insistence of the United
Kingdom and the comprehensive
sanctions approved by
the US Congress, however this
has not happened yet and the
timeframe of processes in
those countries seem unlikely
to facilitate the lifting of sanctions
before the elections.
 
All SADC Member States
have campaigned actively for
the removal of these sanctions,
when speaking publicly and
during private discussions.
Zanu-PF organized a petition
with signatures of more than
two million Zimbabweans
calling for the lifting of sanctions.


title:
Highlights of the draft Constitution of Zimbabwe

body:
Executive authority is vested in the President, who is Head
of State and Government and Commander-in-Chief of the
Defence Forces. Provision is made for two vice-presidents.

The Parliament is made up of the National Assembly and
the Senate.

The National Assembly has 210 members elected by secret
ballot from 210 single-member constituencies. In addition,
for the first two parliaments after the adoption of the new
Constitution, 60 women members will be elected by proportional
representation, with six from each of the 10
provinces based on the votes cast for candidates representing
political parties in the constituency elections by
province.

The Senate will comprise of 80 members, six elected from
each province through a system of proportional representation,
based on the votes cast for candidates representing
political parties in the National Assembly elections and selected
from lists “in which male and female candidates are
listed alternatively, every list being headed by a female candidate.”
The remaining seats will be held by 18 traditional
chiefs – the President and Deputy of the Chiefs Council,
plus two each from the eight non-metropolitan provinces
elected by the provincial assembly of chiefs. Two Senate
seats are designated for representatives of people with disabilities,
with the method of election to be defined under
the electoral law.

Citizen rights have been broadened through a broader
chapter on the Declaration of Rights. The rights provided
for are the rights to life, labour, education, water, shelter,
environmental rights, freedom of expression and the media,
and marriage except for same-sex marriages.

The draft Constitution recognises 16 official languages –
Chewa, Chibarwe, English, Kalanga, Koisan, Nambya, Ndau,
Ndebele, Shangani, Shona, and sign-language, Sotho, Tonga,
Tswana, Venda and Xhosa. Previously only three languages
were recognized – English, Ndebele and Shona.

The Preamble exalts the “brave men and women who sacrificed
their lives during the national liberation struggles”,
acknowledges the richness of natural resources,
and celebrates the vibrancy of traditions and cultures.
Veterans of the liberation struggles including those who
assisted them and those who were imprisoned, detained
or restricted must be respected and empowered
economically.


title:
From stated intention to actual application SADC gender protocol enters into force

Abstract:
THE SADC Protocol on Gender
and Development has entered
into force following
ratification of the instrument
by the requisite two-thirds of
Member States.

body:
THE SADC Protocol on Gender
and Development has entered
into force following
ratification of the instrument
by the requisite two-thirds of
Member States.
According to a communiqué
issued after the annual
meeting of ministers responsible
for gender and women affairs
in the SADC region, held
in Mozambique in mid-February,
10 Member States have
ratified the protocol.
 
These are Angola, Lesotho,
Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles,
South Africa, Swaziland,
United Republic of
Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
 
“The meeting applauded
Member States efforts in depositing
instruments of ratification
that has subsequently
led to its entering into force,”
said the communiqué.
 
The meeting re-iterated the
importance of ensuring effective
implementation of the
SADC Protocol on Gender and
Development. This requires
the domestication of the Protocol
into national law.
 
The process of approval of
a regional legal instrument
requires, first, signing, and
then ratification, a process
that differs from country to
country.
 
The protocol “enters into
force” following ratification
by two-thirds of SADC Member
States. This advances the
regional law from being a
stated intention to actual application.
 
The objectives of the SADC
Protocol on Gender and Development
are to provide for
the empowerment of women,
eliminate discrimination, and
achieve gender quality and
equity through gender-responsive
legislation, policies,
programmes and projects.
 
The targets include, among
others, the achievement of 50
percent representation by
women and men in politics
and decision-making by 2015,
in line with the decision by
SADC Heads of State and
Government and the African
Union.
 
The ministers also approved
the proposal to develop
an Addendum to the
SADC Protocol on Gender and
Development to accommodate
gender and climate
change.
 
This is in response to the
concern that the impacts of climate
change affect women
and children disproportionately
in the region.


title:
Zimbabwe draft Constitution proposes gender equality 50:50

Abstract:
ZIMBABWE IS the first
SADC Member State to propose
a law guaranteeing 50
percent representation of
women and men in Parliament
and other government
bodies. According to a draft
Constitution developed by the
Constitution Parliamentary
Select Committee (COPAC),
the government must promote
full gender balance in Zimbabwean
society.

body:
ZIMBABWE IS the first
SADC Member State to propose
a law guaranteeing 50
percent representation of
women and men in Parliament
and other government
bodies. According to a draft
Constitution developed by the
Constitution Parliamentary
Select Committee (COPAC),
the government must promote
full gender balance in Zimbabwean
society.
The draft Constitution proposes
the introduction of a
quota system for women in
Parliament, setting aside 60
additional seats for women in
Parliament, six each elected
through a proportional representation
system from the 10
provinces. The draft Constitution
also proposes the establishment
of a Gender
Commission whose functions
will include monitoring issues
concerning gender equality.


title:
SADC adopts common position ahead
of UN meeting on women

Abstract:
MINISTERS RESPONSIBLE
for gender and women affairs
in the SADC region have developed
a common position
for the 57th Session of the
United Nations Commission
on the Status of Women
(CSW) scheduled for March.

body:
MINISTERS RESPONSIBLE
for gender and women affairs
in the SADC region have developed
a common position
for the 57th Session of the
United Nations Commission
on the Status of Women
(CSW) scheduled for March.
The ministers, meeting in
Mozambique in February,
adopted two important documents
– the Outcome Document
on the SADC Position on
the 57th Session of the CSW as
well as the Draft Agreed Conclusions
on the Priority Theme
on the elimination and prevention
of all forms of violence
against women and girls.
 
The ministers reiterated the
importance of key priority
concerns for the region, in particular
the need to address
domestic violence more effectively,
dealing with the root
causes of violence against
women, developing robust
sensitisation programmes targeting
families and communities
especially in rural areas.
 
Other regional priorities include
prioritisation of activities
on socialisation with a
view to change mindsets and
attitudes as well as strengthening
of efforts towards economic
empowerment of
women.


title:
African Union @ 50 Towards deeper integration

Abstract:
AS AFRICA celebrates 50
years since the formation of the
Organisation of African Unity
(OAU) – now the African
Union – African leaders have
called for deeper cooperation
among member states to ensure
the continent takes full control
of its development agenda.

body:
AS AFRICA celebrates 50
years since the formation of the
Organisation of African Unity
(OAU) – now the African
Union – African leaders have
called for deeper cooperation
among member states to ensure
the continent takes full control
of its development agenda.
This was one of the results
of the 20th Ordinary Assembly
of AU Heads of State and
Government held in late January
at the AU headquarters in
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
 
The theme for the summit
and Golden Jubilee celebrations
is “Pan-Africanism and
African Renaissance”.
 
Speaking soon after assuming
the AU chair, Ethiopian
Prime Minister Hailemariam
Dessalegn said there are a
number of priority issues
which need to be addressed to
promote continental integration.
 
“As we celebrate the
Golden Jubilee of our organization,
we need to take stock
of our achievements and challenges
over the last 50 years
and chart out a way forward to
realize our vision of creating a
peaceful, democratic, prosperous
and united Africa, taking
its rightful place in the world.”
 
He said that, over the past
few decades, Africa has managed
to register robust economic
growth, attracting
“growing interest as a new
frontier for business and investment”
from many developed
and emerging economies
such as China.
 
“There is no doubt that
Africa needs to sustain the
growth momentum that it has
been able to achieve over the
last decade. This can only be
done if we manage to bring
about structural transformation,”
Dessalegn said.
 
The transformation includes
improvements in infrastructure,
increased regional trade,
progress in the smooth movement
of goods and services
across the continent and promotion
of peace and security.
 
AU Commission chairperson,
Nkosazana Dlamini-
Zuma concurred, saying after
50 years, Africa has now
found the right conditions to
advance socio-economic development
on the continent.
 
For example, she said six of
the world’s 10 fastest growing
economies are in Africa and
that the continent has been
growing at an average of five
percent per annum for more
than a decade despite the
global financial and economic
crisis.
 
Africa is also endowed with
rich natural resources, which
are crucial ingredients for
growth and development.
 
Furthermore, the continent
has a growing, vibrant, resourceful
and youthful population
which is being
equipped with critical skills
that will drive Africa’s transformation.
 
“These are critical components
in the industrial and
agricultural developmental
processes that should drive
economic growth, trade and
social transformation,”
Dlamini-Zuma said.
 
“We must therefore take
bold steps and fight for the
pride of place in the world, as
a global growth pole. We must
develop our narrative and
challenge conventional thinking
and paradigms.”
 
Benin President and outgoing
AU chair Boni Yayi, called
for greater cooperation between
the private sector and
national governments in Africa.
 
“The AU has never tapped
into the resource presented by
Africa’s private sector. It is
time to do that,” he said.
 
The celebrations to mark
the AU 50th anniversary will
be held on 25 May to coincide
with the date the OAU was
formed in 1963.
 
Ethiopia is expected to host
the main celebrations, which
will be held during the Ordinary
Session of the AU in the
same month.
 
The AU traditionally holds
summits twice a year – in January/
February and in June/July.
However, to accommodate the
50th anniversary celebration,
the second annual summit has
been moved to 25 May.


body:
Refocusing the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) to support
the transformation agenda of the AU, the summit urged
the Secretary-General of the United Nations to provide the required
support to ECA to enhance its work in accordance with
Africa’s priorities.

Creation of the African Observatory on Science, Technology and
Innovation (AOSTI), the summit endorsed the project, and urged
development partners to avail the necessary technical and financial
support for sustaining the AOSTI and its programmes.

Coordination of the Committee of African Heads of State and
Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC) and Africa’s
preparation for the 19th Conference of the Parties to the UN
Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 19) in Poland,
the summit acknowledged the need to further refine and
streamline the coordination mechanism for CAHOSCC.

On the reduction of maternal, newborn and child mortality and
morbidity in Africa, the summit requested that the Ministers of
Health of the African Union examine the progress made regarding
the state of maternal, newborn and child health, map out
concrete and innovative strategies at a larger scale in order to
adequately address the health needs of African women and children
and submit a report to the 21st Ordinary Session of the AU
Assembly in Ethiopia.
 
 
The summit took note of the proposal by the Republic of Guinea
relating to the creation of a South-South and Triangular Coalition in
support of Africa’s post-2015 development agenda; it approved in
principle the creation of a South-South and Triangular Coalition.


body:
February 
11-14,
Mozambique

SADC Gender Ministers

Ministers responsible for Gender/Women’s Affairs meet
annually to consider policy issues and coordination for
international meetings, as well as to track progress on
ratification and implementation of the SADC Protocol
on Gender and Development.


18-22, Kenya

Governing Council of the Global Ministerial
Environment Forum

The council convenes annually to review existing and
emerging policy issues, as well as budgets. It aims to
promote international cooperation as well as provide
general policy guidance for the direction and coordination
of environmental programmes globally through
UNEP. This is the 27th session.
 


19-21,
Africa

South Africa Energy Indaba

The annual conference aims to explore ways in which
Africa can harness its huge energy resources to achieve
energy self-sufficiency.
 

20-23,
Zimbabwe

5th International Conference on ICT for Africa

The objective is to highlight the importance of South-
South collaboration between African countries and
other developing countries, and between African
countries and the industrialized countries towards ICT
advancement and development solutions.
 


27, Botswana

SADC Energy Thematic Group

The Energy Thematic Group is a coordination meeting
of cooperating partners, experts, SADC and its subsidiary
organizations to discuss ways of assisting the
region in tackling its energy challenges.
 

March
8-9, Mozambique

SADC Council of Ministers

The SADC Council of Ministers is responsible for supervising
and monitoring the functions and development
of SADC, and ensuring that policies are properly
implemented to advance regional integration. Council
is preceded by preparatory meetings of senior officials
which take place during the period 1-7 March.
 

8, Global

International Women’s Day

This is the day designated by the United Nations to commemorate
issues of equality of women with men, and
coincides with the 57th Session of the UN Commission
on the Status of Women held every year in early March.
The main CSW theme this year is “The Elimination and
the Prevention of all Forms of Violence against Women
and Girls” and a subsidiary theme “The Sharing of Responsibilities
between Women and Men, including in
Care Giving in the Contexts of HIV and AIDS”.
 

20, Mozambique

34th SAPP Executive Committee Meetings

The SAPP Executive Committee is composed of chief executives
of member power utilities. The committee acts
as the Board of SAPP and is responsible for the coordination
and formulation of the power pool’s objectives.
 

26-27,
South Africa

5th BRICS Summit

BRICS means Brazil, Russia, India, China and South
Africa. The leaders of these countries meet annually in
Summit to seek solutions to development challenges and
consider areas of collaboration for the BRICS economies.
 

April
15-17, Namibia

SADC Digital Broadcasting Migration Forum

SADC will meet to discuss and agree on activities that
would ensure that all member countries are ready for
digital broadcasting transition.


title:
In memory and honour of King Moshoeshoe I

Abstract:
MOSHOESHOE DAY is commemorated
in Lesotho on 11 March, the day on which
King Moshoeshoe I, founder of the Basotho
nation, is believed to have died in
1870. He became king 190 years ago, in
1823, and is regarded as a great diplomat
and leader who worked for the preservation
of his country’s language, art, and culture
through the Sesotho language.

body:
MOSHOESHOE DAY is commemorated
in Lesotho on 11 March, the day on which
King Moshoeshoe I, founder of the Basotho
nation, is believed to have died in
1870. He became king 190 years ago, in
1823, and is regarded as a great diplomat
and leader who worked for the preservation
of his country’s language, art, and culture
through the Sesotho language.
He was born in Menkhoaneng in 1786,
the son of Mokhachane, and was known as
Lepoqo, a name that marked the social
calamity of conflict that had erupted in his
community at the time he was born. He was
later known as Moshoeshoe, named after
the victory verse lyrics he composed after
raiding 500 cattle of nearby chief Moeletsi as
he imitated the scarping sound of the razor
“shoe-shoe-shoe” to portray his victory.
 
This was during the time when names
were significant tools through which major
national events could be documented and
safeguarded as lessons for future generations.
A significance of the day is to urge
Basotho to promote and preserve their
identity and language, as language serves
as a strong engine in defining the society.
 
During the Lifaqane wars, Moshoeshoe
and his people embarked on the great trek
from Menkhoaneng to Thaba Bosiu in
1824, a journey of nine days. Thaba Bosiu
means “mountain at night” and, according
to local belief, this high mountain plateau
elevated during the night and took the
shape of a high fortress, thus providing a
great defence during the various wars including
the third war against the Boer
farmers in Free State in 1868.
 
Thaba Bosiu is thus imbued with great
significance as the mountain is strongly associated
with the formation of the Basotho
nation. The grave of Moshoeshoe I on top
of the mountain contributes to the site’s
sanctity and this landscape was declared a
national monument in 1967 due to the intangible
cultural wealth.
 
This ancestral spot has both a symbolic
value and historical significance. Thus the
National Department of Culture is putting
efforts to ensure the area is awarded global
recognition, as it serves as a constant reminder
of who Basotho are and where they
were “manufactured and imagined” as a
nation, thus the birthplace of Lesotho, considered
sacred and a “faraway” land of
miracles and prophecy.
 
Moshoeshoe is commemorated for his
power and wisdom as he gave refuge to different
ethnic groups during the Lifaqane
wars and out of these communities he
“brewed” the Basotho. What made him outstanding
was his strong belief that in gaining
wisdom and power as a leader, one has to
first acquire qualities of clarity of mind,
goodness of heart and service to the people.
 
On this day in Lesotho, major symbolic
celebrations are held with the laying of
wreaths at the Moshoeshoe I statue, the
Moshoeshoe Memorial Lectures at the National
University of Lesotho, and a special
lecture for high school students at the
Lesotho National Library where
Moshoeshoe’s legacy and ideology are unpacked
in order to keep his memory
among young people vibrant. Traditional
performances showcasing Lesotho’s cultural
diversity and wealth of music and
dance is one of the pathways through
which his memory is kept alive.
 
The day’s events coincide with the
three-day annual heritage route from
Menkoaneng to Thaba Bosiu, in the footsteps
of this hero from his home place to
where he founded the nation called Basotho.
These memory initiatives are platforms
in which human beings come to
make sense of their identity and their relationship
with one another. Such commemorations
stamp the idea that culture is a
productive power that not only shapes
human concepts and impacts their behaviour,
but also contributes in no small measure
to the betterment of their material as
well as spiritual world.
 
This then poses a question to our leaders
with regard to making efforts to ensure
their names become educational memories
for the coming generations. What positive
traces do they leave behind in order to be
commemorated by generations to come?
What sketches do they leave to be celebrated
through music, memory, and heritage?
What legacies do they leave
archived locally and regionally for coming
generations, or has this calibre been destroyed
by the ideology of democracy?


Abstract:
THE NAME derives from Yuga Adi, “the beginning
of a new age”, and is New Year's Day for the people
of the Deccan region of India. It falls on a different
day every year because the Hindu calendar is lunisolar,
beginning with Chaitra (March–April), which is
the first month in the Indian calendar, Panchanga.

body:
THE NAME derives from Yuga Adi, “the beginning
of a new age”, and is New Year's Day for the people
of the Deccan region of India. It falls on a different
day every year because the Hindu calendar is lunisolar,
beginning with Chaitra (March–April), which is
the first month in the Indian calendar, Panchanga.
In Mauritius, this is a family event to reaffirm the
values and rites embedded in the culture. On that day,
the people of the Telegu community have a shower at
dawn with saffron and perfumed oil which is meant
to purify and forget all issues and misunderstandings
of the past year and to start afresh. Wearing new
clothes is the tradition as well as preparing the thoranam
composed of 18 mango leaves put at the entrance
of the house to bring positive energy. The
muggulu, made of flowers and coloured rice, is
sketched on the floor to represent harmony.
 
The eating of a specific mixture of six different
tastes, called Ugadi Pachhadi, symbolizes the fact that
life is a mixture of different experiences that should
be accepted together and with equanimity through
the New Year – sadness, happiness, anger, fear, disgust,
surprise. A prayer is done at home before proceeding
to the temple. The whole family gathers to
enjoy a traditional lunch, wishing one another “Ugadi
Subhakankshalu”.


title:
PUBLIC HOLIDAYS IN SADC February-April 2013

body:
1 February Abolition of Slavery Day Mauritius

3 February Heroes Day Mozambique

4 February Public Holiday Mozambique

4 February National Armed Struggle Day Angola

10 February Chinese Spring Festival Mauritius

12 February Carnival Day Angola
3 March Martyrs Day Malawi

4 March Public Holiday Malawi

8 March Women’s Day Angola, Zambia

10 March Maha Shivaratree Mauritius

11 March Moshoeshoe I Day Lesotho

12 March National Day Mauritius
Youth Day Zambia

21 March Independence Day Namibia
Human Rights Day South Africa

29 March Martyrs Day Madagascar
Good Friday All SADC except DRC,
Mauritius, Mozambique

30 March Public Holiday Botswana
Easter/Holy Saturday Seychelles, Zambia
1 April Easter Monday All SADC except Angola,
Mauritius, Mozambique

7 April Sheikh Abeid Karume Day Tanzania
Women’s Day Mozambique

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title:
BRICS and Africa
Partnership for development

Abstract:
AS THE impetus to reconstruct global affairs
gathers pace, emerging economies and Africa
are now exploring new models and approaches
towards a more equitable and inclusive system
that promotes sustainable socio-economic development.

body:
AS THE impetus to reconstruct global affairs
gathers pace, emerging economies and Africa
are now exploring new models and approaches
towards a more equitable and inclusive system
that promotes sustainable socio-economic development.
Emerging economies, comprising Brazil,
Russia, India, China and South Africa (commonly
referred to as the BRICS) reaffirmed this
shared goal towards global development,
equality and cooperation during the 5th BRICS
Summit held in Durban, South Africa in late
March.
 
In a communiqué dubbed the “eThekwini
Declaration” released soon after the historic
summit -- which saw Africa make a maiden appearance
at the meeting – BRICS countries said
they are committed “to increasing our engagement
and cooperation” with Africa to unlock
potential for cooperation, as well as finding
lasting solutions to challenges facing developing
regions.
 
Noting that Africa faces challenges of infrastructure
development due to insufficient longterm
financing and foreign direct investment,
especially investment in capital stock, BRICS
countries decided to establish a development
bank to contribute towards infrastructure development
in Africa.
 
Infrastructure development is critical for
the realization of the African integration and
industrialization agenda.
 
“In March 2012 we directed our finance ministers
to examine the feasibility and viability of
setting up a new development bank for mobilizing
resources for infrastructure and sustainable
development projects in BRICS and other emerging
economies and developing countries, to supplement
the existing efforts of multilateral and
regional financial institutions for global growth
and development,” BRICS leaders said in a
statement.
 
“Following the report from our finance
ministers, we are satisfied that the establishment
of a new development bank is feasible
and viable. We have agreed to establish the
new development bank.”
 
Although the location and other details of
the bank are yet to be finalized, the leaders said
that the initial contribution to the bank would
be substantial and sufficient for the bank to be
effective in financing infrastructure.
 
South African President Jacob Zuma, who is
the new BRICS chairperson, welcomed the move
to establish the bank, saying it can help forge a
new funding model for Africa in which projects
spanning a number of countries are favoured for
finance.
 
He said the major constraint
for funding infrastructure
in Africa was that most
international financial institutions
were often biased towards
funding projects in
single countries, rather than
those spread across a number
of countries.
 
“The BRICS process could
lead to a funding model that
promotes more multi-country
projects and accelerates the
pace of regional integration,”
he said, adding that Africa
should take advantage of this
facility to boost trade and
deepen integration.
 
The establishment of a
BRICS development bank is
expected to provide major relief
to most African countries,
considering that the continent
has gained little from other international
financial institutions
such as the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) and
World Bank (WB) due to a
number of factors, among
them stringent lending conditions
as well as piecemeal
funding packages.
 
Therefore, rather than wait
for the reforms of existing
multilateral financial institutions,
BRICS countries have
decided to act and establish a
development bank to promote
socio-economic growth in developing
regions, thus reshaping
global affairs.
 
Nevertheless, BRICS has
reiterated its call for the reform
of international financial
institutions to make them
more representative and to reflect
the growing weight of
BRICS and other developing
countries in global affairs.
 
“The reform of the International
Monetary Fund
should strengthen the voice
and representation of the
poorest members of the IMF,
including Sub-Saharan
Africa,” BRICS said, adding
that the leadership selection
should be through an open,
transparent and merit-based
process and truly open to
candidates from emerging
market economies and developing
countries.
 
On the selection of a new
World Trade Organization
(WTO) director-general,
BRICS said the post should be
filled by a candidate from a
developing country.
 
Since the formation of
these institutions, the top
posts have never been occupied
by a candidate from a developing
country, raising
suspicion that the institutions
are meant to serve a few selected
countries at the expense
of the majority.
 
With regard to global politics,
BRICS reaffirmed the
need for a comprehensive reform
of the United Nations Security
Council, with a view to
making it more representative,
effective and efficient, so that
it can be more responsive to
global challenges.
 
The UN Security Council
has been accused of “living in
the past” and “treating countries
differently”, hence the
call for urgent changes at the
council to make it more democratic
and credible.
 
The council, whose primarily
responsibility is to maintain
international peace and
security, is made up of five
permanent members as well
as 10 non-permanent members
who hold the seats for
two-year terms.
 
The five permanent members
are China, France, Russia,
the United Kingdom and the
United States. The other members
at present are Argentina,
Azerbaijan, Australia, Guatemala,
Luxembourg, Morocco,
Pakistan, Republic of Korea,
Rwanda and Togo.
 
Under the UN Charter, all
members of the UN agree to accept
and carry out the decisions
by the council, and while all
other organs of the UN make
recommendations to governments,
the council alone has the
power to take decisions which
member states are obligated to
carry out.
 
It is this kind of set-up that
most developing countries are
against and want reviewed to
ensure equality. For example,
they want a permanent seat
reserved for developing countries.
 
With respect to climate
change, BRICS made a commitment
to work with Africa
and other stakeholders to ensure
a global agreement is
reached by 2015.
 
Climate change talks are
ongoing, albeit with challenges
as most developed nations
are not willing to fulfil
their pledges, especially on increasing
finance to developing
countries and cutting down on
green house gas emissions
that cause climate change.
 
Developing countries,
particularly in Africa, are
worst affected by climate
change due to limited resources,
yet they are the least
contributors of green house
gas emissions.
 
On the internationally
agreed development goals, including
the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs),
BRICS said “Africa and other
developing countries of the
South, cannot achieve the
MDGs on their own and therefore
the centrality of Goal 8 on
Global Partnerships for Development
to achieve the MDGs
should remain at the core of
the global development discourse
for the UN System.”
 
Furthermore, the summit
urged stakeholders to accelerate
the implementation
progress to ensure the 2015
target is met.
 
“In this regard, we stress
that the development agenda
beyond 2015 should build on
the MDG framework, keeping
the focus on poverty eradication
and human development,
while addressing emerging
challenges of development
taking into consideration individual
national circumstances
of developing countries.”
 
The 5th BRICS Summit
was held on 27 March under
the overarching theme,
“BRICS and Africa: Partnership
for Development, Integration
and Industrialization”.
 
Brazil will host the 6th
BRICS Summit in 2014 following
the conclusion of the first
cycle of BRICS Summits,
where each member has
hosted a summit.
 
The BRICS mechanism
aims to achieve peace, security,
development and cooperation.
It also seeks to
contribute significantly to the
development of humanity and
establish a more equitable and
fair world.


