# tblSANF

title:
Challenge of overlapping membership in EPA negotiations

Abstract:
STICKY MARKET access concerns
and technical barriers to
trade have generally dominated
economic partnership negotiations
with the European Union
but the real challenge for SADC
has proved to be the issue of
overlapping membership.

body:
STICKY MARKET access concerns
and technical barriers to
trade have generally dominated
economic partnership negotiations
with the European Union
but the real challenge for SADC
has proved to be the issue of
overlapping membership.
Economic Partnership Agreements
(EPAs) are trade and development
contracts that the EU
is presently negotiating with the
six African, Caribbean and Pacific
(ACP) regions: the
Caribbean; Central Africa; Eastern
and Southern Africa; Pacific;
Southern Africa (the SADC
group) and West Africa.
The EPAs will replace the
trade chapters of the Cotonou
Agreement reached in 2000 between
the EU and the ACP countries.
This will replace the one-way
trade preferences under the
Cotonou Agreement with reciprocal
trade arrangements between
the ACP states and the EU,
more in line with the World Trade
Organisation (WTO) regulations.
Substantive negotiations
started in January 2005 and will
run until June 2007. These negotiations
are on market access for
agriculture and non-agriculture
products and fisheries, trade in
services, development cooperation,
other trade-related issues
and legal provisions.
They will seek to strengthen
SADC integration in all these
areas and, over time, define a reciprocal
trading relationship between
SADC and the EU.
Finalisation of the agreement
should take place by December
2007 and the EPA will enter into
force on 1 January 2008.
The issue of overlapping
membership has forced SADC
Member States to negotiate
under different banners.
Member states with dual
membership of both SADC and
the Common Market for Eastern
and Southern Africa (COMESA)
are negotiating as the Eastern and
Southern Africa (ESA) regional
grouping. These are the Democratic
Republic of Congo, Madagascar,
Malawi, Mauritius, Seychelles,
Zambia and Zimbabwe.
SADC-EU talks were
launched in Windhoek, Namibia
in July 2004, with seven countries
negotiating under the SADC configuration.
These are Angola,
Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique,
Namibia, Swaziland and
the United Republic of Tanzania.
South Africa participates only as
an observer, after concluding its
own trade agreement with the
EU in the late 1990s.
The ESA group met the EU in
Mauritius in February and closed the first phase of the negotiations
while the SADC group was expected
to hold its Regional
Preparatory Task Force (RPTF)
meeting in late March 2006.
On both groupings much is
yet to be agreed upon with the
EU. Sticking points remain on
Technical Barriers to Trade, Sanitary
and Phytosanitary Standards,
Rules of Origin, access to
EU legislation, the effect of the
EU's farm trade reform, and
fisheries.
Some ACP countries have
complained that they are into the
negotiations without vital information
on the implication of the
EPAs regime. Important impact
assessment studies are yet to be
done for some, and the constraint
has been lack of funding.
The divided SADC is expected
to have a negative effect on
the quality and progress of the
negotiations with the EU.
The issue of regional configurations
is a sore point in the negotiations,
particularly with respect
to the ESA group.
The SADC members in the
ESA group have made it clear
that negotiations should not
proceed as if these countries belong
only to COMESA, reflecting
the existence of other regional
obligations.
The depleted SADC and
loose ESA configurations are
not the best tools for negotiating
deals that can be good for
regional integration. The problem
has the potential of holding
up the talks until appropriate
institutional mechanisms
are in place.
SADC-COMESA relations
will converge with respect to
those states with dual membership
of both blocs.
Elijah Munyuki is a Programme
Associate with the Southern and
Eastern African Trade Information
and Negotiations Institute
(SEATINI) working mainly on the
EPA negotiations.


Abstract:
MALAWI AND Mozambique
have signed a preferential trade
agreement, which will strengthen
trade relations between the
two countries.

body:
MALAWI AND Mozambique
have signed a preferential trade
agreement, which will strengthen
trade relations between the
two countries.
The agreement replaces
a 1959 trade pact signed
between Portugal and the then
Federation of Rhodesia and
Nyasaland.

It will facilitate trade in sugar,
manufactured and unprocessed
tobacco, edible oil, poultry and
petroleum products.
Implementation of the agreement
is expected to start in July.
The Malawi-Mozambique trade
agreement comes at a time when
SADC is working towards a Free
Trade Area target for 2008.
Several countries in the region
have signed or are in the process
of negotiating bilateral agreements.
For example, as part of a
trade pact, Mozambique and
South Africa agreed in 2005 on a
waiver of visa requirements.
The free movement of people,
coupled with the removal of
barriers to trade between countries
in the region, is essential
in achieving economic integration
and closer ties among
member states.
The Mozambique-South
Africa preferential access agreement
is a wide ranging preferential
arrangement regulating mine
labour, railway and port matters,
and trade.


title:
Route cooperation drives regional air transport

Abstract:
REGIONAL COOPERATION
in air transport has been
the cornerstone of southern
Africa's aviation industry,
with activity revolving around
the Johannesburg International
Airport.

body:
REGIONAL COOPERATION
in air transport has been
the cornerstone of southern
Africa's aviation industry,
with activity revolving around
the Johannesburg International
Airport.
Johannesburg airport functions
like the regional air traffic
“switchboard” through
which flights to and from
other destinations in the region
are directed.
About four out of every
five trans-boundary commercial
flights pass through
Johannesburg International
Airport, from where passengers
are re-routed to their destinations
within the region or
elsewhere.
This arrangement has, however,
not been without its own
disadvantages, particularly in
terms of airfares and other costs
to business.
There are no direct flights
between most countries,
meaning that travellers have
to use the circuitous route of
going via Johannesburg. This makes it expensive to travel by
air across borders, especially
where countries are neighbours
and are a bit further from
South Africa.
There are also costs associated
with time wasted in waiting for
connections from Johannesburg.
Safety is paramount in civil
aviation and a project to develop
capacity at regional level for
safety oversight is currently
being developed.
SADC Executive Secretary,
Tomaz Augusto Salomão, told a
meeting of African aviation experts
in January that there is a
need to ensure there are more
direct flights between countries
in the same region.
“Europe has overcome this
undesirable phenomenon with
regular inter-state city to city
flights and it is now possible to
travel from any significant city
in Europe directly to another.
Africa needs to realise such a
dispensation and even adopt a
radical review of its freedoms
of the air,” he said.


title:
Rising demand, low investment behind South Africa's power shortages

Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA'S Western
Cape is facing a power crisis
that has also affected Namibia
and Eskom has embarked on a
programme to return the damaged
Koeberg nuclear station to
full production.

body:
SOUTH AFRICA'S Western
Cape is facing a power crisis
that has also affected Namibia
and Eskom has embarked on a
programme to return the damaged
Koeberg nuclear station to
full production.
Rising demand for electricity
caused by high economic
growth, lack of investment in
new generation capacity and
damage at the Koeberg nuclear
station near Cape Town have
triggered power blackouts in
the Western Cape and Namibia.
Koeberg is a major source of
electricity for Namibia, which
imports about half its power
from South Africa.
South-western parts of South
Africa have been plagued by
power outages since December
2005 when one of the generators
at Koeberg was damaged by a
loose bolt.
Eskom, South Africa's power
utility company, has announced
plans to repair the nuclear power
plant, which is capable of producing
about 1,800 megawatts
(MW) of electricity. The Western
Cape requires about 5,000MW of
electricity to power its industries
and households.
Eskom chief executive, Thulani
Gcabashe, said the utility
had acquired a 200-tonne rotor
needed to repair the plant.
A delay is anticipated in
bringing the nuclear station to
full production due to refuelling
and maintenance that will need
to be carried out at the plant. It
is expected to take until the end
of July to finish the maintenance.
Short-term plans to improve
supply to the Western Cape include
securing non-Eskom cogenerators
for an additional 80
MW at a cost of US$18.8 million,
and procuring a number of mobile
generation plants for an additional
100MW in the winter
period.
Most of South Africa's power
stations are coal-fired, which makes the Western Cape vulnerable
because it has no coal resources
and is furthest from
Mpumalanga where the bulk of
the stations are located.
The province is vulnerable
because the transmission line
connecting it to the national grid
can only take 3,500MW, leaving
a shortfall of 1,500MW.
The cost to the national economy
is estimated at more than
US$81 million, according to the
South African Chamber of Business.
The South African economy
has expanded at an average of
five percent per annum and, according
to Eskom, demand for
electricity has been growing by
1,200MW a year.
This translates to a need to build one nuclear power station
similar to Koeberg every 18
months.
There has been no investment
in new generation capacity
in South Africa since a 1998
proposal by the department of
minerals and energy to increase
competition in the electricity
sector by reserving 30 percent of
generation capacity for independent
power suppliers.


title:
Namibia considers water, power rationing

Abstract:
NAMIBIA IS taking precautionary
measures to save water
and electricity in the face of
power blackouts experienced
by South Africa.

body:
NAMIBIA IS taking precautionary
measures to save water
and electricity in the face of
power blackouts experienced
by South Africa.
The country's water utility,
NamWater, has warned that
the power shortage could also
affect the supply of water
around the country.
NamWater chief executive,
Vaino Shivute, said the shortage
of electricity was affecting his
company's ability to pump
water to its customers.

NamWater and NamPower,
the country's power utility,
have been meeting business
leaders to inform them of
the electricity shortage and prepare
them for the effects it
could have on them.
One of the options being
considered is the introduction
of load-shedding measures although
NamPower managing
director, Leake Hangala, says
such action will only be taken
as a last resort.
The power utility has also
asked mining companies to use
less power to prevent outages.
Hangala said NamPower
planned to invest N$8 billion
over the next four years to
strengthen Namibia's capacity
to import power from countries
other than South Africa.
Namibia is also working on
long-term projects such as
Kudu gas and Baynes hydropower
stations to increase
its power generation capacity.
Current generation capacity
is only 384 megawatts when
all its stations are operating
at full capacity, compared
to a peak demand of 500
megawatts.


title:
Regional body aims to ease Tanzania's electricity problems

Abstract:
THE SOUTHERN African
Power Pool (SAPP) is looking
for funds to help the United
Republic of Tanzania reduce
the impact of a power crisis
that has seen the country undergo
a lengthy load-shedding
programme.

body:
THE SOUTHERN African
Power Pool (SAPP) is looking
for funds to help the United
Republic of Tanzania reduce
the impact of a power crisis
that has seen the country undergo
a lengthy load-shedding
programme.
In the spirit of regional cooperation,
SAPP wants the United
Republic of Tanzania to tap into
the Zambian power grid.
Invocavit Swai, director for
planning at the Tanzanian
Ministry of Energy and
Minerals, said SADC has
approached the New Partnership
for Africa's Development
(NEPAD) for funding of
the project.
The Tanzania-Zambia interconnector
project will bring the
United Republic of Tanzania
into the regional grid.
A feasibility study on the project
has already been completed
and construction work will start
once funding is available.
Swai said the new Inter-Governmental
Memorandum of Understanding,
signed at the SADC
Council of Ministers in February,
will enable new private power
utilities such as Independent
Power Tanzania Limited to boost
regional supply of electricity.
The revised SAPP Inter-Governmental MOU aims to
bring on board member states
that are not yet connected to
the regional power grid and
encourage participation by
private players in electricity
generation.
Due to poor rains, the United
Republic of Tanzania's energy
production is at its lowest. (East
African)


title:
Gender considerations in rural electrification

Abstract:
GENDER MAINSTREAMING
is one of the key strategies of
ensuring equal benefits for
women and men from infrastructure
projects taking place
in southern Africa.

body:
GENDER MAINSTREAMING
is one of the key strategies of
ensuring equal benefits for
women and men from infrastructure
projects taking place
in southern Africa.
There is recognition within
the region that, in order to be
meaningful, infrastructure development
has to address gender
disparities in the availability,
management and usage of
facilities.
This is aptly captured in
SADC's Regional Indicative
Strategic Development Plan, a
15-year blueprint for the region,
which advocates for an efficient
and least-cost infrastructure system
that will unleash the potential
of communities.
Rural electrification has been
one of the strategies employed
to ensure women benefit from
development of infrastructure
in the region.
The target is to have at least
70 percent of rural communities
within southern Africa having
access to electricity. Member
states undertook to implement
rural electrification programmes
between 2004 and 2018, during
which they should meet or
surpass the agreed regional
target.
Zambia passed a
Rural Electrification
Authority Act in 2003.
About 17 percent of Zambia's population has access
to electricity at present and its
Rural Electrification Programme
aims to raise this figure above 50
percent.
Namibia plans to increase
the electrification level to
250,000 households by 2010
while Zimbabwe has extensive
plans to provide electricity to
rural homes and small and
medium rural industries using
funds raised from a levy on
power tariffs.
To empower the rural communities,
the Zimbabwe Electricity
Supply Authority procures procures
equipment for income generating
projects, which it
loans out to women and other
groups.
The United Republic of Tanzania
is finalising preparations
for the establishment of a Rural
Energy Fund (REF) to be used to
finance rural electricity projects.
The REF will be used to bring
down the cost of investing in
modern rural energy projects
and investors will get subsidies
or grants to enable them to co-finance
rural electrification.
The rationale is to reduce investor
risks and improve returns
on modern rural energy
investments in the United Republic
of Tanzania.
Other SADC Member States
have similar programmes to
electrify their rural areas, either
through solar energy or by connecting
households to national
power grids.
Most rural communities use
traditional sources of fuel such
as firewood for household energy
needs. This is, however, unsustainable
as it contributes to
deforestation, soil erosion and
land degradation.
Increased deforestation and
lack of accessible fuel sources
force most women to walk long
distances to get firewood.
The consequences are that
women spend a lot of time on
survival activities, which have a
low productive value within
cash economies.
Access to electricity has long term
benefits to do with health,
poverty reduction, easing of
task loads for rural women.
In addition to efforts to mainstream
gender in the energy sector,
SADC wants to increase participation
of small-to-medium
enterprises, marginalised communities,
the youth and women
in the tourism sector.
This involves programmes to
encourage increased private investment
in tourism projects in
marginalised communities.


title:
DRC polls 18 June the first in four decades

Abstract:
THE DEMOCRATIC Republic
of Congo (DRC) has set 18 June
as the date for its first democratic
elections in over four decades.

body:
THE DEMOCRATIC Republic
of Congo (DRC) has set 18 June
as the date for its first democratic
elections in over four decades.
This follows the promulgation
of a new Constitution and
electoral law in February and
March, respectively.
Apollinaire Malu Malu, president
of the country's Independent
Electoral Commission, announced
on 9 March that presidential
and parliamentary polls
would take place on 18 June and
not 29 April as previously
planned. The postponement
was due to delays in enacting
the electoral law.
Registration of candidates
was initially set to end on 23
March but was extended by a further
10 days to 2 April, with the
country's Interior Ministry saying
some 270 parties had registered
to contest the polls by the
close of the initial deadline.
Aspiring presidential candidates
were required to pay a non-refundable
nomination fee of
US$50,000 while parliamentary
candidates were to pay US$250 to
file nomination papers.
These are part of new measures
contained in the electoral
law and aimed at discouraging
opportunists from contesting
the polls.
“This is to prevent some adventurers
from applying,” said
Olivier Kamitatu, president of
the Congolese National Assembly,
after the promulgation of
the country's new Constitution
on 19 February.
At least 27 candidates, including
three women, have declared
interest in contesting for the presidency
of the former Zaire .
They include Pre President
Joseph Kabila who will represent
the People's Party for Reconstruction
and Democracy
(PPRD); Azarias Ruberwa contesting
on a Rally for Congolese
Democracy (RCD) ticket; and
Pierre Pay-Pay wa Syakassighe of the Convention of Democratic
Congolese (CODECO).
Others include Jean-Pierre
Bemba of the Movement for the
Liberation of Congo (MLC) and
Etienne Tshisekedi of the Union
for Democracy and Social Progress.
The three women candidates
are Justine Kasavubu of the Movement for Democracy,
Wivine Nlandu of Bandundu-Bas
Congo-Kinshasa Holding (BBKHolding)
and Cathérine Nzuzi
wa Mbombo, leader of Movement
for Popular Revolution.
Kasavubu is daughter of the
first post-independence president,
Joseph Kasavubu and has served as a minister for civil administration
and also ambassador
to Belgium during the administration
of the late Laurent
Kabila, father to the incumbent
president.
These will be the first democratic
elections in the DRC since
its independence from Belgium
in 1960.
Previous attempts to hold
elections have faltered due to
armed conflict often triggered
by disagreements on the Constitution
and how the vast central
African country should be run.
Conditions for the holding
of democratic elections brightened
after the 2003 signing of
an all-embracing peace deal
that ushered in a transitional
government led by President
Joseph Kabila.
The transitional government
had until 30 June 2005 to organise
polls, a deadline later moved
to 30 June this year.


title:
Focus on roads and telecoms as peace beckons in DRC

Abstract:
THE FIRST stage of the peace
process in the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC) ends in
June 2006 with the installation
of an elected leadership.

body:
THE FIRST stage of the peace
process in the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC) ends in
June 2006 with the installation
of an elected leadership.
Since the signing of the peace
agreement in South Africa on 17
December 2002, the former belligerents have been trying to
work as a functional government
should do.
While they are implementing
the electoral process – their
main mandate under the peace
deal – they are also trying to repair
what was destroyed during
the civil war. The transitional
government has identified two
priority areas of construction of
roads and the telecommunications
infrastructure.
The main objective is to reunify
the country, according
to the Minister of Planning,
Alexis Thambwe Mwamba.
The DRC is a huge country, measuring more than 2.3 million
sq kms.
Years of war have destroyed
most of the infrastructure in DRC,
particularly the road network. It is
presently not possible to join two
major cities by road. The consequence
of this is that, while people
are going hungry in urban centres,
there is an abundance of crops in
rural areas that cannot be transported
because of poor roads.
In the North Kivu province in
eastern DRC, people have to leave
their homes with perishable crops
and travel long distances to sell
their produce.As a result, most of
these products waste away.
In cooperation with the World
Bank and other international financial
institutions, the DRC
government has embarked on a
programme to rehabilitate roads.
So far, the road linking Kinshasa
to Matadi, the gateway to
the Congo river, has been rehabilitated.
Work is underway on other
major roads such as that connecting
the agricultural belt of North
Kivu province to Kisangani in the
eastern province. Kisangani is an
important river port from where
goods are easily moved to Kinshasa
via the Congo river.
The reunification of the
country also depends on an efficient
telecommunications infrastructure.
The DRC had one of
the first mobile phone networks
in Africa, Telecel, which started
operating in the country in the
early 1990s.
Two new private companies
– Celtel and Vodacom – were
installed during the time of
Laurent Kabila who was the
DRC president between 1998
and 2001.
According to Vodacom and
Celtel, more than 50 percent of
people in Kinshasa use mobile
phones. Internet facilities are also
available in the major cities.


title:
Mozambique strengthening management of natural disasters

Abstract:
THE VIOLENCE of the waters
six years ago washed away a 10-
metre tract of the road, isolating
the Mozambican capital of Maputo
from its satellite industrial
city of Matola, about 10 km to
the northwest.

body:
THE VIOLENCE of the waters
six years ago washed away a 10-
metre tract of the road, isolating
the Mozambican capital of Maputo
from its satellite industrial
city of Matola, about 10 km to
the northwest.
Ironically, nature dealt a further
blow to both cities by cutting
an alternative road somewhere
else, causing delays for thousands
of commuters travelling
daily between the cities. For almost
two weeks, road travel was
interrupted, resulting in major
losses to business in both cities.
Maputo was also cut off from
neighbouring South Africa and
Swaziland.
In addition, low-lying areas
of Xai-Xai, 200 km north of
Maputo, remained swamped
by floodwaters of the Limpopo
river for more than two months
after the defensive dykes
were breached.
The year was 2000, and this is
just a microcosm of what happened
throughout the country
during the 2000 floods. When
the waters finally receded and
the counting began, more than
700 people had died, a quarter
of a million people had lost their
homes, and as much as 12 percent
of the population had been
seriously affected.
Some 140,000 hectares of cultivated
and grazing land was
lost in the floods, about 200,000
head of cattle drowned. Agriculture
took severe losses because
of an estimated 90 percent loss
of irrigation infrastructure, and
tellingly, an economy that was
previously growing at a two digit
rate sputtered to four
percent growth.
At a United Nations
donor conference in
Rome, the Mozambican
government requested
US$450 million for post-flood reconstruction activities
– not all the money was disbursed.
Six years on, significant infrastructure development has
taken place. In the Limpopo valley
the dykes have been shored
up. However, there is still a long
way to go before Mozambique
can deal effectively with
natural disasters.
Climatology history shows
disasters are tied to a cycle, with
floods and droughts.
Scientists are well aware that
one way to forestall the insidious
cycle is putting infrastructure
such as dams in place. The
rationale is that during the rainy
season the dams would hold the
bulk of the water flowing into
the sea, which would prevent
flooding; and then the same
water could be used for irrigation
purposes during the dry
season.
The Mozambican government
has proposed a hydropower
scheme, the Mphanda
Nkuwa dam, 70 km downstream of the Cahora Bassa
Dam. The Mphanda Nkuwa dam is expected to be one of the
most competitive regional
power projects in southern
Africa, and a priority project for
the New Partnership for Africa's
Development (NEPAD).
With the region preparing to
face a power deficit by next
year, the Mphanda Nkuwa dam
would help to avert the impending
power crisis. The hydropower
project is expected to
generate 1300 megawatts (MW)
at a total cost of approximately
US$2 billion.
The Mozambican government
is in the promotion
phase of the project to attract
potential investors from around
the world.
The project was also selected
on the basis of its low unit
generation cost and its additional
function to provide re-regulation for Hydro Cahora
Bassa. Development of Mphanda
Nkuwa is supposed to enable
Hydro Cahora Bassa to increase the value of the energy it
produces by producing more
during peak hours and less
during low-tariff periods. This
is currently not possible due
to the requirement to maintain
a river level variation at a certain
level.
But the Mphanda Nkuwa is
just one such project. Owing
to its geographical location,
Mozambique lies downstream
of most regional rivers and is
more prone to floods because
of its low capacity to hold
water.
Therefore, investment in
dams can forestall the cycle of
disaster and spur development
not only in hydropower, but
also in agriculture. It is critical
that the violence of the waters
be harnessed in order to boost
and sustain regional economic
development.


title:
Region forecasts a million tonne cereal deficit

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA is projecting
a cereal deficit of about 1.07
million tonnes during the
2005/06 agricultural season and
countries with shortfalls will
have to rely on intra-regional
trade to meet their consumption
requirements for this year.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA is projecting
a cereal deficit of about 1.07
million tonnes during the
2005/06 agricultural season and
countries with shortfalls will
have to rely on intra-regional
trade to meet their consumption
requirements for this year.
Preliminary figures released
during the SADC Council of
Ministers in February show an
overall cereal supply for the
2005/06 marketing year of 30.94
million tonnes, made up of
about 26 million tonnes of gross
harvest and 4.68 million tonnes
of carry-over stocks.
This is insufficient to meet a
regional requirement of 32.01
million tonnes of cereals and the
shortfall is almost equivalent to
the 2004/2005 deficit of 1.11 million
tonnes.
According to the SADC Food
Security Early Warning System,
all SADC countries, except South Africa, are assessed with overall
cereal deficits, ranging from
100,000 tonnes in Zambia to 1.62
million tonnes in Zimbabwe.
The region is, however, projecting
a maize surplus of about
2.28million tonnes in 2005/06, resulting
from significant increase
in maize production and huge
carry-over stocks in South Africa.
Shortfalls are expected in all
the other cereal crops, including
wheat (2.18 million tonnes), rice
(1.05 million tonnes) and
sorghum/millet (121,000 tonnes).
South Africa has surplus
maize assessed at 5.46 million
tonnes. Price and other factors
permitting, the maize surplus in
South Africa is more than enough to cover import needs of the
other Member States.
SADC member states had
made plans to import 5.56 million
tonnes of cereals by mid-January 2006, including intra-regional
imports of maize mainly
from South Africa.
SADC Executive Secretary,
Tomaz Augusto Salomão, told
journalists ahead of the Council
of Ministers in February that
about 10 million people will
need humanitarian assistance
in the region.
“ Current reports indicate
that the number of people in
need of humanitarian assistance
has gone up from 9.71
million people to 10 million
people since the April/May
2005 vulnerability assessments
in the six countries of Lesotho,
Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland,
Zambia and Zimbabwe,”
said Salomão.


title:
Drought insurance cover for Malawi farmers

Abstract:
SMALLHOLDER FARMERS
in Malawi are set to benefit from
a new pilot programme that
gives them access to agricultural
loans and risk cover in the event
of drought.

body:
SMALLHOLDER FARMERS
in Malawi are set to benefit from
a new pilot programme that
gives them access to agricultural
loans and risk cover in the event
of drought.
The programme was launched
at the end of last year and seeks to
boost the farmers' ability to recover
from the effects of droughts.
Malawi's National Smallholder
Farmers' Association and
the Insurance Association of
Malawi designed the scheme,
with the support of the World
Bank and the Opportunity International
Network.
The insurance will help
farmers to obtain the financing
necessary to get certified seeds,
which can produce increased
yields and revenues, with
greater resistance to disease.
The Drought Insurance Pilot
Project will give small-scale
farmers an opportunity to get
loans from banks and have
their money secured when
there is drought.
If there is a drought that necessitates
a payout from the insurance
contract, funds will be
paid directly to the World Bank
to pay off the farmers' loans.
Nearly 900 farmers in four
areas will participate in the pilot
phase of the programme, which
covers groundnuts. If successful,
the project could be scaled
up to include other crops, such
as maize, and may be introduced
in other parts of Malawi
and Africa.
"This project is being implemented
for the first time in
Malawi and there are likely to
be a lot of challenges. One major challenge is that the rainfall pattern
in Malawi is not equal. So it
will still happen that some farmers
will not harvest enough to
ensure that they repay the loans
as required," said Duncan Warren,
crop production director for
the National Smallholder Farmers'
Association.


Abstract:
SADC MEMBER states are cooperating
on ways of curtailing the
impact of the avian flu virus in
the region and health authorities
have taken measures to pre vent
the spread of the disease.

body:
SADC MEMBER states are cooperating
on ways of curtailing the
impact of the avian flu virus in
the region and health authorities
have taken measures to pre vent
the spread of the disease.
These measures include bans
on imports of poultry products
in some countries and mobilisation
of resources to facilitate disease
diagnosis and surveillance.
Stephen Sianga, Director of
Social and Human Development
and Special Programmes at the
SADC Secretariat, said the region
is ready to deal with a possible
threat posed by the avian influenza.
“Our health and agricultural
authorities at all levels are
coordinating efforts to evaluate
the risks, prevent and prepare for the outbreaks including
surveillance, public awareness
creation on the flu to
avoid anxieties, as well as sharing
information, expertise and
facilities,” said Sianga.
Ministers responsible for
agriculture, health, wildlife and
livestock in Member States were
scheduled to meet in April in
South Africa to consider the
SADC Avian Influenza Epidemic
Preparedness Plan.
Avian flu, also known as
bird flu, is a disease that normally
attacks birds and is believed
to be caused by the
H5N1 virus. The virus is an Influenza
A subtype that occurs
mainly in birds and is highly
contagious among the species.
Bird flu does not spread easily
among humans, but there are
some fears that the virus could
mutate to a more deadly strain
communicable among humans.
Migratory wild bird species
are thought to facilitate the
long-distance spread of the disease
from Asia and Europe.


Abstract:
CORRIDORS ARE the focal point for regional development
initiatives. Initially based on transport routes, the corridors
are critical to the achievement of the region's economic and
political objectives. This is particularly so given that almost
half of the SADC Member States are landlocked and require
efficient regional transport links for access to the sea.

body:
CORRIDORS ARE the focal point for regional development
initiatives. Initially based on transport routes, the corridors
are critical to the achievement of the region's economic and
political objectives. This is particularly so given that almost
half of the SADC Member States are landlocked and require
efficient regional transport links for access to the sea.
Over the past decade, the corridors have become microcosms
of regional integration as manifestations of initiatives
targeted as regional development within the framework of
Spatial Development Initiatives (SDIs).
We profile some of the corridors in this issue.
Beira and Zambezi
Development Corridors
The Beira and Zambezi development
corridor initiatives aim to develop an
economic region linking Malawi,
Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe,
anchored to the port of Beira.
Key objectives are to re-establish
and upgrade the infrastructural linkages
inland. Infrastructure development projects
include upgrading of Beira port,
electricity supply, gas and liquid fuel
pipelines; the proposed Harare-Beira toll
road, the Harare-Beira railway
line upgrade and upgrade of airports.
Projects already being implemented
include the Sena
railway line commissioned in
2004. Development of the Shire
and Zambezi rivers into navigable
waterways is a strategic
project aimed at increasing
transport options for access to
the sea for landlocked Malawi.
The implementation of a
number of natural resources-based
projects include reopening
of Moatize coking
coalmine and development of a thermal power station, agricultural development
in Dondo and Chimoio, as well as
tourism in the Eastern Highlands of
Zimbabwe and the Zambezi Valley.
Limpopo Development
Corridor
This initiative by Mozambique, South
Africa and Zimbabwe (and ultimately
Botswana and Zambia) is spatially focused
on the Limpopo river basin. The
primary development and investment
focus areas are in the agriculture, mining
and mineral processing, tourism, and related
infrastructure sectors.
The mining and mineral processing
projects are focused on mineral sand deposits
at the Limpopo river mouth. Rehabilitation
and expansion of irrigated
agricultural development in the Combomune-
Chokwe area is in progress.
A programme has been implemented
to rehabilitate the irrigation infrastructure
and work is underway to reestablish
sugar growing and processing
activities at Maragra Sugar and at Xinavane
Sugar.
The initiative also aims to establish a
nature-based tourism development zone
of some 260,000 sq km. This will include
the key anchor projects of the Great
Limpopo Trans-Frontier Park.
Lubombo Spatial Development Initiative
The Lubombo SDI covers eastern Swaziland,
the southern part of Maputo
province in Mozambique and the northeastern
areas of KwaZulu Natal in South
Africa. At its epicentre is the development
of new roads and upgrading of
others to open up the area to agriculture
and tourism uses.
The Lubombo region has six major interlocking
ecosystems. The area has
great diversity of plant and birdlife,
game reserves and an extensive unspoiled
coastline.
The natural resources include coastal
lakes such as the St Lucia Wetland Park,
which is a World Heritage site, and a
range of archaeological sites.
The climate and soils in the Lubombo
area combine to provide an excellent environment
for agriculture and there is a
thriving sugar and forestry industry.
Tourism projects planned in the area
are the Machangulo Peninsula and Maputo
Elephant Reserve, and Trans-Frontier
Conservation Areas.
Mtwara Development Corridor
The Mtwara Development Corridor falls
within the territories of Malawi, Mozambique,
the United Republic of Tanzania
and Zambia.
The corridor runs from the port of Mtwara
in the east to Mbamba Bay in the
west on Lake Malawi. Transport projects
include expansion and upgrading of the
Indian Ocean port of Mtwara, and the
ports of Mbamba Bay and Manda located
on Lake Malawi/Nyasa/Niassa. Other
projects include upgrading of Mtwara Airport,
and road and railway infrastructure.
The Unity Bridge, proposed across
the Rovuma River, will contribute significantly
to improved road network connectivity
within the region. Other important
projects are the Mchuchuma Thermal
Power Station, the Mtwara-Mbamba
Bay petroleum pipeline and Songo
Songo gas.
Maputo Development Corridor
The Maputo Development Corridor
was the first of the SDIs to be implemented
in 1995. It links Gauteng
province of South Africa to the port of
Maputo in Mozambique.
Developments along the corridor
have focussed on rehabilitation and upgrading
of the traditional trade and
transport links as a basis for broad economic
development. The road, railway
and port infrastructure and operations
have been concessioned in Mozambique.
Private sector participation plays an
important role in the corridor, particularly
investment in the construction of a toll
road linking Witbank in South Africa to
Maputo (the N4 toll road), and the improvement
of rail and port operations in
Mozambique.
Other major private sector investments
include the Mozambique Aluminium
Smelter (MOZAL), the Maputo Iron and
Steel Plant, Beluluane Industrial Park and
various natural gas industry projects. It is
estimated that the corridor developments
have created over 15,000 jobs.
The Maputo Corridor Logistics Initiative
(MCLI) was launched in 2004 as a
public-private sector partnership to create
greater awareness and utilisation of
the corridor. The MCLI has emerged as
one of the most vibrant and inclusive
private-sector-driven corridor institutions
in southern Africa.

Walvis Bay Corridor
The Walvis Bay Corridor
serves the central and southern
parts of SADC, via the
Trans-Kalahari Corridor linking
Botswana, Namibia and
South Africa, and via the
Trans-Caprivi Corridor connecting
Namibia and Zambia
to Zimbabwe and the DRC. It
also links Angola and Namibia via the
Trans-Cunene Corridor.
Due to its location and efficiency, the
port of Walvis Bay offers substantial reliability
gains for time-sensitive cargo. Initiatives
within the corridor have focussed
on strategies to strengthen efficiency
of the corridor transport systems
along its three arms.
Initial development efforts focussed
on the Trans-Kalahari Corridor.
Botswana, Namibia and South Africa
have already concluded an agreement to
strengthen use of the corridor.
The northeastern arm, the Trans-
Caprivi Corridor, was completed in 2004
with the opening of a new bridge at Katima Mulilo and
provides an alternative importexport
route for the Coppperbelt
and for agricultural and
agro-processing industries in
the DRC and Zambia.
The Trans-Cunene Corridor
has great potential as a supply
route for the infrastructure and
economic rehabilitation of
southern Angola.
Walvis Bay has been
ranked among the best three
harbours in Africa since 2000.
In 2003 the UN Conference for
Trade and Development (UNCTAD) chose it as a model corridor on the
African continent.
Tazara Development Corridor
The Tazara Corridor (also called the Dar es
Salaam Corridor) is a strategic artery linking
southern Africa with east and central
Africa. There is increasing traffic on this
route from two directions: from South
Africa, Zimbabwe and Zambia in the
south, and from the Nacala Corridor in
Malawi and Mozambique. The traffic is
largely sugar, cement, fuel and machinery.
The Tazara Corridor, which provides
the shortest distance by rail from the Copperbelt to a port, is owned by the United
Republic of Tanzania and Zambia. The
corridor traverses some of the most fertile
land in southern Tanzania and northern
Zambia, and has potential for agriculture,
tourism, mining, forestry and fishing.
Nacala Development Corridor
The Nacala Development Corridor aims
to develop an economic corridor linking
landlocked Malawi to the port of Nacala
in Mozambique. About 70 percent of
Malawi's population lives in the corridor.
There is need to expand and
rehabilitate the transport infrastructure
to unlock the investment
potential in the corridor.
Railway systems in Malawi
and Mozambique have already
been concessioned and rehabilitation
work has started on sections
that are in poor condition.
Swaziland/South Africa
Tourism and Biodiversity
Corridor (STBC)
The south-eastern part of
Mpumalanga province in South
Africa and western Swaziland
are endowed with rich plant
and animal species, ancient geology
and archaeology.
The Barberton Greenstone Belt rocks in the area evolved
between 3.5 and 3.2 billion
years ago, making them the
second oldest in the world. The
STBC aims to combine these
areas into a contiguous band for
the protection of ecosystems,
species and geology. The strategic
objective is promotion of
sustainable and collaborative socio-economic
development.
Specific objectives aim to utilise
tourism and conservation potential, and to
increase the benefit to rural communities.
Okavango Upper Zambezi International
Tourism (Ouzit) SDI
The Ouzit was initially conceived and
presented as a wildlife sanctuary to be
located within the context of the Okavango
and Zambezi wetland systems.
The project centred on a core development
area comprising 260,000 sq km incorporating
game parks in Angola,
Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe.
Infrastructure development projects
within the SDI comprise of the networking
of the inland park regions, the fasttracking
of improvements to the air traffic
and transport infrastructure in participating
countries, and establishment and
management of a logistics platform
linked to the improved regional air
transport system. The Ouzit SDI connects
to the Namibe Development Corridor
in southern Angola.
Lobito Development Corridor
The Lobito Development Corridor provides
a strategic outlet to the sea through
Angola for much of the DRC and Zambia,
and is the shortest route linking the major
mining regions to their export markets.
The corridor serves several regions of Angola,
about 40 percent of the population.
The main transport infrastructure is
the port, the Benguela Railway line and
the roads to the DRC and Zambia. Critical
initiatives are the ongoing rehabilitation
and upgrading of the Benguela Railway
and the port of Lobito. The other
key element is the rehabilitation of the
existing road network that extends for
about 1,800 kilometres.
North-South Corridor
This is a transport corridor linking South
Africa to countries to its north and is the
busiest regional transit link in eastern and
southern Africa. The North-South Corridor
(also known as the Durban Corridor)
is also the most extensive corridor in the
region, linking the largest number of
countries in eastern and southern Africa.
It connects eight countries and interlinks
to other corridors including the
Trans-Kalahari, Beira, Lobito, Dar es
Salaam and Nacala corridors.
This corridor is critical because South
Africa is the largest African trading partner
for most of the countries in the region
and the port of Durban handles a significant
portion of transit traffic for the landlocked
states. Key infrastructure is the
port, the roads and the railway lines. The
port of Durban has the largest capacity
among regional ports.
While the corridor is a strategic road
route, rail transport handles a significant
amount of cross-border freight traffic. The
opening of the Beitbridge-Bulawayo railway
link in 1999 contributed significantly
to reducing railway distances.


title:
Expanding the frontiers of delivery for sustainable development
- The Development Bank of Southern Africa,
in partnership with NEPAD

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA'S reasonably welldeveloped
infrastructure and diverse natural
resource base have the potential to play
a leading role in driving Africa towards a
more prosperous 21st century.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA'S reasonably welldeveloped
infrastructure and diverse natural
resource base have the potential to play
a leading role in driving Africa towards a
more prosperous 21st century.
Awareness of past mistakes, together
with new opportunities, demands that a
fresh look be taken at the roles that governments
or public sector agencies and the
private sector should play in providing
more efficient and more responsive infrastructure for Africa's development. The
challenge is to determine those areas in
which competitive market conditions
can work and those that require public
intervention.
The Development Bank of Southern
Africa (DBSA), through partnership and
mobilization of its resources, contributes to
this leadership opportunity through the
funding of necessary supporting economic
infrastructure. It is through this growthdriven
strategy that the DBSA intends to act
as catalyst for the common vision of an empowered
and integrated region.
The effective and integrated delivery of
financial and non-financial (or knowledge)
products and services is at the heart
of the DBSA.
The Bank's ability to combine financial
support and development knowledge is
what sets the DBSA apart from commercial
funding institutions. Through its unique
product and service offering, the DBSA is
able to address the needs of clients and potential
clients in a comprehensive and sustainable
manner.
In this context, the DBSA plays a triple
role of Financier, Advisor and Partner to
mobilize finance and expertise for infrastructure
and development projects.
Smart Money targets sustainable
development

The DBSA aims to be a source of “smart
money” in southern Africa that will improve
the financial and operational efficiency
of both public and private companies
to enhance economies so the
region can become further integrated,
more competitive, better developed and
wealthier.
“Smart money” refers to funds that are
directly targeted at addressing the development
needs of the region in a sustainable
manner. This implies structuring finance in
a way that addresses needs and, in some
cases, this may involve an appropriate mix
of non-investment funds such as technical
assistance for capacity-building or knowledge
products.
To deliver on its mandate to promote
economic development in southern and
South Africa, the DBSA focuses on those
economic sectors that provide an enabling
environment for development and private
sector involvement, and that contribute
most to regional integration.
In this regard, the Bank has been
focusing primarily on power, telecommunications,
transport, tourism, mining,
agri-industrial, commercial and financial
services.
The DBSA has financed over 60 percent
of the public power utilities operating in
the region and the commitment beyond financing
is illustrated by the longstanding
relationship with Zambia Electricity Supply
Corporation (ZESCO). Since 1998, the
Bank has assisted ZESCO overcome many
challenges, through investment and
extensive technical assistance, with the
result that today ZESCO is a commercialised
utility looking to tap commercial
markets.
The DBSA's cumulative commitments in
SADC exceed US$ 1.2 billion, and comprise
medium and long-term finance in a range of
currencies for both public and private institutions
and projects.
The distinct ability to invest in both
public and private sector projects means
that the DBSA can offer comprehensive
solutions to the region's development
needs.
Smart Partnerships deepen
development impact

As a partner, the Bank leverages private,
public and community players in the development
process. By combining forces and
sharing resources we are able to enhance
the commercial viability of our projects
whilst at the same time deepening the project's
development impact.
The Bank's involvement in the Maputo
Port Rehabilitation Project, as the first Port
Public-Private Partnership on a Build Operate
Transfer (BOT) basis in southern Africa,
provided significant comfort to private and
institutional lenders. DBSA's role, in addition
to partly funding the project, included
facilitating participation of other lenders
and contributing to structuring of the deal
to ensure its bankability.
The Bank's insistence on inclusive, transparent,
participatory planning processes
often contributes significantly to the success
of the projects it supports, and has enabled
the DBSA to build a cohesive network of
key players in the region.
The DBSA's participation in large, complex
projects such as the Mozal Smelter, the
N4 Toll Road between Witbank and Maputo,
the Marromeu Sugar project and the
Lesotho Highlands Water project has resulted
in the strengthening of relationships
with commercial and development finance
institutions.
“Partnership is a
fundamental principle…
DBSA believes that
development is co-created
with others.”
Where commercial banks' participation
is limited because of the tenor of the loan or
the perceived riskiness of the project, the
DBSA will partner with its sister Development
Finance Institutions (DFIs), donor
agencies and the Multi-lateral Lending
Agencies (MLA).
It is this recognized relationship with the
international DFIs, amongst others, that
won the DBSA the mandate to lead, arrange
and underwrite the ZAR1.47 billion DFI
tranche of the Sasol Gas Pipeline Project.
Developing local financial
markets for economic growth

In addition to providing limited recourse
funding with long maturities, the DBSA is
able to credit enhance projects by underwriting
some of the financing (thus providing
comfort to the market) or by providing a partial
risk guarantee on a bond issue where
there may be a lack of investor appetite or the
pricing does not adequately reflect the risk.
The objective is the development of local
capital markets, seen as a prerequisite to unlock
local capital to achieve sustainable economic
growth. This will also reduce the enterprise's
exposure to foreign exchange risk,
a barrier to doing business in the region.
DBSA has been involved in bond issues
in SADC, such as the Lunsemfwa Hydro
Power Company's US$7 million corporate
bond issue in early 2004 in Zambia.
Also in 2004, together with the International
Finance Corporation (IFC), the DBSA
structured and provided the City of Johannesburg with a 40 percent partial guarantee
for a 12-year bond issue worth R1 billion.
The Bond had a higher credit rating than the
Municipality, allowing Johannesburg to
issue at a longer maturity with a substantially
lower spread.
Given the need for capital markets development,
the DBSA has reoriented itself to include
financial advisory and arranging service
for clients wishing to raise funds and
broaden their capital base. The importance
of local enterprise in creating employment
and broadening the tax base is often undermined
by the lack of appropriate capital to
support long-term investments.
The DBSA attempts to play a major role in
removing this constraint to enterprise development
in SADC by providing long-term
credit lines to strong financial intermediaries
with the capacity and specific mandate to support
this sector of the economy.
DBSA has extended several credit lines to
intermediaries in Angola, Mauritius, the United
Republic of Tanzania, and Zambia. In addition
to the impact that longer term financing
offers to local economies, the DBSA ensures
that its activities are complemented by skills
transfer and capacity-building of its partners.
With NEPAD in support of
regional integration
The DBSA is recognised for its ability to provide
financing using innovative instruments,
ensuring that its participation provides
comfort to private investors. This has
positioned the Bank as anchor financier and
as an ideal conduit for international funds
directed to NEPAD projects.
Through its African Partnership Unit, the
Bank can provide an early review of NEPAD
projects and advise on the criteria necessary
for projects to achieve bankability. If necessary,
the DBSA is able to grant technical and
preparatory assistance by way of the joint
Project Preparation Facility in partnership
with Agence Française de Développement.
Investor

To contribute to the delivery of basic
services and promote economic growth
through infrastructure funding.
Advisor

To build institutional, financial,
technical and knowledge capacity for development.
Partner

To leverage private, public and community
players in the development process.
Regional projects that have received support
through this initiative include the East
Africa Submarine Cable Project and the
Zambia-Tanzania-Kenya Inter-connector.
Having the NEPAD Secretariat housed in
the DBSA ensures that the Bank remains well
informed and very close to NEPAD.

A regional partner of choice
DBSA's unique ability to provide long-term finance
in a number of currencies to both the
private and public sector, combined with its
appetite and mandate to take risk and its
broad focus on financing viable projects to promote
socio-economic development, ensures its
position as the regional partner of choice.
An excellent network and relationships
with key players in the region, combined with
vast experience and in-depth understanding
of the challenges in financing infrastructure
development, ensures DBSA a central role in
realizing the common vision of a region free of
poverty, inequity and dependency.


Abstract:
SADC DEVELOPMENT plans set targets and timeframes for goals in various fields of cooperation
ranging from trade liberalisation to macroeconomic convergence, human development
to food security, infrastructure development to environmental management, and
gender equality to good governance.

body:
Partners in Knowledge for Development
SADC DEVELOPMENT plans set targets and timeframes for goals in various fields of cooperation
ranging from trade liberalisation to macroeconomic convergence, human development
to food security, infrastructure development to environmental management, and
gender equality to good governance.
One of the greatest challenges now lies in strengthening mechanisms for monitoring
and evaluation in order to track progress towards the set targets. For this purpose, a
smooth and efficient flow of information and knowledge becomes essential.
In order to take up the challenge of effectively implementing the two strategic plans,
SADC's partnerships with knowledge institutions must be strengthened.
Prof. J. A. van Ginkel, former rector of the United Nations University noted that, “An
Africa without a sustainable, strong knowledge sector of its own will always remain in a
dangerously dependent position.”
One characteristic of knowledge is that it can be obtained from individuals, groups of
people, and sometimes in organizational routines and processes. It is delivered through
structured media such as documents, Internet and person-to-person interactions. New
knowledge is created or acquired through experience, interacting and learning.
In organizations, knowledge often becomes embedded not only in documents or
repositories but also in organizational routines, processes, practices, and norms. The same
can be said about countries and regional communities, SADC included.
Whatever the form, the right knowledge needs to be harvested, managed and availed to
the right people at the right time if it is to be relevant to any aspect of social advancement.
SADC needs strong regional knowledge centres that fully understand the region's historical
context and share its development agenda and vision. Among these are the DBSA
and the Southern African Research and Documentation Centre (SARDC), a long-time
knowledge partner of SADC for more than a decade, whose founding patron was
Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, the first chairperson of the Front Line States.
In a paper to the Economic Commission for Africa, Jacques L. Hamel says, “As we
move into the 21st century, superior development knowledge bases, knowledge assets
and knowledge capital are conceivably the ultimate development resources for
the sustainable advancement of the African continent.”
This is pertinent for SADC as the regional community rolls out its RISDP and SIPO.
www.sadc.int www.dbsa.org www.sardc.net


Abstract:
THE SOUTHERN Africa Environment Outlook (SAEO) 2006 assesses
the current state of the environment
in the region, provides an
integrated analysis and offers a
reflection on trends over the past
decade and the next one beyond.

body:
THE SOUTHERN Africa Environment Outlook (SAEO) 2006 assesses
the current state of the environment
in the region, provides an
integrated analysis and offers a
reflection on trends over the past
decade and the next one beyond.
The book, to be published
during the first half of 2006,
highlights key emerging environmental
issues in southern
Africa and presents a set of future
scenarios for the region.
The SAEO comes a decade
after the first comprehensive State
of the Environment in Southern
Africa published by SADC and
partners at the end of 1994, and
five years after the first report on
a single ecosystem, State of the Environment Zambezi Basin 2000.
Preparation of the Outlook
was based on a wide consultative
and participatory process in
the region, during which consensus
was built around regional
perspectives and priorities.
The findings were constructed
around a firm data and indicator
development process. In particular,
regional projects on geographic
information systems and on indicator
development for environment
assessment and reporting
were supportive to the process.
Experts from specialised organisations
and from national
institutions mandated to carry
out state of environment reporting
were involved in providing
inputs, as well as in the review
of the manuscript. This ensured
regional balance, scientific credibility
and comprehensiveness
of the report.
Communicating the
Environment Programme

This process was coordinated by
Communicating the Environment
Programme (CEP), which
is a long-established partnership
of the Southern African Development
Community (SADC)
with IUCN-The World Conservation
Union and the Southern
African Research and Documentation Centre (SARDC) through
the Musokotwane Environment
Resource Centre for Southern
Africa (IMERCSA).
IMERCSA is the collaborating
centre in southern Africa for the
Africa Environment Outlook
(AEO) and the Global Environment Outlook (GEO), produced
by United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP).
The Southern Africa Environment Outlook benefited from a capacity
development process
driven by UNEP through the
Africa Environment Information
Network (AEIN). Areas covered
in the capacity-building initiative
included integrated environmental
assessment and reporting,
policy analysis, scenario
building, and data management
and analysis.
The process leading to this
Outlook started in 1998, initially to
build the foundation through issues
identification, consensus
building on the ideal framework
to use in the analysis, as well as
agreement on the core data sets
and indicators to support the
analysis.
The research and compilation
of data for the various topics
started in 2002, and contributors
were engaged in 2003 to develop
chapters containing data and
analysis. Priority was given to
research and writing of the manuscript
following a CEP partners
meeting hosted by SADC in
Gaborone in October 2003.
This meeting acknowledged
the targets for environmental reporting
given in the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) and the fact that 10
years have elapsed since the first
regional report.
Ten contributors were engaged
to research and write the chapters.
The draft manuscript was then reviewed
at a regional workshop in
South Africa. This gave a cross-
section of stakeholders an opportunity
to discuss the draft chapters
and the structure of the report.
Comments from the workshop
and from regional reviewers
were used by the Technical Editor
to finalise the chapters, for review
by the partners.
Although this has been an
ambitious undertaking, it was
deemed to be a worthy initiative
that continues to showcase the
results of SADC activities and
partnerships, and it is a targeted
output of the RISDP.
Framework

The traditional approach of environmental
reporting in the region
focused on national boundaries,
sectors or natural resources.
In this report, the issues
are presented in an integrated
manner, using the Drivers Pressure State Impact Response
(DPSIR) framework.
Drivers and pressures are defined
as the root causes of environmental
change, and they can
be natural or human-induced.
The State is a reflection of the
current situation and trends over
the last decade, while Impacts
are the consequences of the environmental
change on human
and ecological systems, and on
social and economic development
potential.
Responses include national
policies, plans, laws and strategies,
and regional and global
agreements and strategies for cooperation.
The DPSIR framework describes
societal developments
and natural processes to explain
change in environmental state,
using appropriate indicators to
show trends over time. An
analysis of the impact of the various
pressures on ecosystems
and human welfare in the region
is made, and appropriate responses
that have been taken to
mitigate the impacts articulated.
The integrated assessment
and reporting approach, through
the DPSIR framework, answers
four questions that are key to effective
decision-making. The
questions are:
What is happening to the
environment?
Why is it happening?
What can we do, and what
are we doing about it?
What will happen if we do
not act now?

Format

The  Southern Africa Environment
Outlook 2005 contains nine chapters,
which are interlinked as
they address the southern
African region, its physical environment
and the way its people
interact with the resources.
The book includes a regional
overview and covers topics such
as land, atmosphere, freshwater
resources, marine and coastal resources,
forests and woodlands,
wildlife, and human settlements.

The final Outlook chapter is
a presentation of trends and
scenarios, giving a 10-year, forward-looking analysis of the
way three scenarios are likely
to play out: Market Forces, Policy
Reform and Fortress World.
Call for Action

The SAEO is also a call for action,
emphasising the need to
address environment and development
together, as one option
for reducing poverty and moving
towards a sustainable development
path.
A key aim is to provide policy
options for reversing
the current environmental
degradation trends in
southern Africa.
Of concern to the report
is progress towards
achieving goals and targets as set out in key
continental and global strategies
such as the RISDP,
NEPAD, Johannesburg Plan
of Implementation and the
UN Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs).
There fore the target audience
for the book includes decision
and policy makers in governments,
environmental practitioners
and organisations, educational
institutions, private
sector, cooperating partners
and development agencies,
parliaments, journalists and editors,
people of the South and
people of the North.
The Southern Africa Environment Outlook 2005 is the beginning
of a long-term process
contained in the strategic plan
for the region, the RISDP,
which calls for five-yearly state
of environment reports.


title:
Global impacts - Are current floods in the region an indicator of
climate change?

Abstract:
THE PLANET is heating up, almost
certainly due to the increase
in greenhouse gases caused by
human activity, and the signs are
to beginning show in various
parts of the SADC region.

body:
THE PLANET is heating up, almost
certainly due to the increase
in greenhouse gases caused by
human activity, and the signs are
to beginning show in various
parts of the SADC region.
Debate on climate change
and its link to natural disasters
has been revived in the wake of
recent floods that swept across
some areas of the region following
a prolonged drought.
Speaking at the UN Climate
Change Conference held in
Quebec, Canada, in December
2005, the principal secretary in
the Ministry of Lands, Housing
and Surveys in Malawi, George
Mkondiwa said although local
scientists are yet to publish their
findings, there is no doubt that
climate change has influenced
climate trends in southern
Africa over the last decades.
“Everyone is asking questions
such as, ‘…is this due to
climate change or not?' We don't
think that there is any doubt
that this is due to climate
change,” said Mkondiwa.
The flooding followed heavy
and continuous rains that
pounded many parts of southern
Africa from December 2005
through March 2006 and caused
considerable structural damage,
destroying schools, crop s ,
telecommunications and roads
while in some places whole villages
were flooded prompting
the relocation of people and
livestock to higher ground.
In Zambia, the floods disrupted
power supplies after the main
hydroelectric power station at
Kafue Gorge was damaged.
Ironically, the downpour
compounded the challenges of a
severe drought which caused
Botswana, Malawi and Zambia to declare a state of disaster as
starvation threatened.
With recent research showing
that due to global warming
the 12,000-year-old glaciers at
the summit of Mt Kilimanjaro
are melting so quickly that they
could be gone by 2020, there is
well-founded concern that excessive
emission of greenhouse
gases may have already set in
motion irreversible climatic
changes.
The sub-Antarctic Marion
Island, 1,700 km southeast of
Cape Town and the site of a
South African weather station,
is one of the most isolated
places on earth and is presented
by scientists as another clear
indicator of the impact of global
warming.
There is alarming new data
from the island on rainfall patterns,
temperature, plants and
animal behaviour. The data reveal
that monthly rainfall figures
are dropping, the island is hotter
than ever, and overrun with rats,
mice and alien vegetation.
The South African National
Weather Services regional office
has been monitoring annual
rainfall patterns on Marion Island
for the past 20 years,
showing a steady decline from
around 2,500mm to 1,750 mm,
and says, “…it just seems to be
getting drier and drier.”
Scientists and government
officials in South Africa have
warned that such changes
could soon be common
throughout the region as the
planet heats up.
South Africa has set up
monitoring and research mechanisms,
and the Department of
Environmental Affairs and
Tourism has called for climate
issues to be integrated into all
levels of government.
In the Zambezi Basin climate
variability has been most
felt through water shocks caused by droughts and floods,
and this has worsened food insecurity.
The variation in the beginning
of the wet season has
left farmers in the basin unsure
about when to plant their crop.
According to Mkondiwa, in
2004 Malawian farmers who had
planted during the first rains on
the advice of agricultural extension
scientists had to helplessly
watch their crops wilt.
Zambia has experienced a
shift in recent years in the onset
of the rainy season and when
the rains do come they are interspersed
with dry spells. This resulted
in a food deficit for 2005
as production fell from 1.2 million
tonnes in 2004 to 866,000
metric tonnes.
In the SADC Zambezi Action
Plan Project 6, Phase II (ZACPRO
6.2) initiative, development
of measures to mitigate
the effects of hydrological extreme events (floods and
droughts) is a key activity.
According to Jefter Sakupwanya,
the Water Resources Expert
in the ZACPRO 6.2 project,
hydrologists from the eight
basin states are spearheading a
process to establish synergies
with all meteorological departments
in the basin. Early warning
and communication mechanisms
in the region still need to
be improved.
All countries in SADC have
acceded to the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate
Change which compels
them to regulate levels of greenhouse
gas concentration in the
atmosphere so as to avoid the
occurrence of climate change on
a level that would impede sustainable
economic development,
or compromise initiatives in
food production.
The entire African continent
produces only five percent of
total output of greenhouse gases
worldwide.


Abstract:
ANGOLA PLANS to introduce
a new electoral management
system that will enable
voters to register electronically and identify voters through
fingerprints.

body:
ANGOLA PLANS to introduce
a new electoral management
system that will enable
voters to register electronically and identify voters through
fingerprints.
The new system was unveiled
in Luanda recently by the
country's National Electoral
Commission (CNE) and the
Inter-Sectoral Commission for
the Electoral Process (CIPE).
CNE president, Caetano de
Sousa, said the system meets
the requirements of the electoral
process and is fast.
He noted that the system will
also serve as a voters' roll, with
voters identified by their fingerprints.
(Angola Press Agency)


Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA has embarked
on a project to turn
Nguni cowhides into car
seat covers.

body:
SOUTH AFRICA has embarked
on a project to turn
Nguni cowhides into car
seat covers.
The project is a partnership
between the University of
Limpopo, the Limpopo Department
of Agriculture, and
the Industrial Development
Corporation (IDC) of South
Africa.
The IDC has provided funding,
which will be used to buy
Nguni cattle, build facilities,
offer training to farmers, research
and other resources to
roll out the project.
Each farmer will be given
three to five cattle for breeding
purposes over the next
five years.
Nguni cattle are indigenous
to Africa and were chosen for
the project because they cope
well during droughts, have high resistance to ticks and a
strong immunity against tickborne
diseases.
The cattle also have beautiful
markings and the cows can
produce at least 10 calves
in their lifetime, about one
every year.
Carmaker BMW has shown
an interest in the Nguni cattle
project. (BuaNews)


title:
Maize-power fuel plant on the cards in South Africa

Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA is about to
embark on a large-scale
maize-to-ethanol project following
the announcement of
a US$1.1 billion venture to
build the first of eight ethanol
plants in major maize-producing
areas.

body:
SOUTH AFRICA is about to
embark on a large-scale
maize-to-ethanol project following
the announcement of
a US$1.1 billion venture to
build the first of eight ethanol
plants in major maize-producing
areas.
The ethanol plant will be
built in the Bothaville area ,
which has large quantities of
maize. Of the 400,000 tonnes
of maize produced in Bothaville
annually, the plant is capable
of consuming as much as
375,000 tonnes, according
to Ethanol Africa, one of
the companies spearheading
the project.
Construction of the first
plant is expected to commence
this year and should be in full
production by the middle
of 2007.
The plant is expected to
produce more than 470,000
litres of ethanol daily and the
initiative is expected to
supply up to 12 percent of
South Africa's fuel needs
by 2015.
Ethanol Africa was established
by commercial farmers
to turn surplus maize into environmentally
friendly biofuel.
It is being partnered in the
project by Sterling Waterford.
(Business Day)


Abstract:
ZIMBABWE SAYS a new concoction
of herbal drugs under
clinical tests in the country has
proved effective in prolonging
the lifespan of people living
with HIV and AIDS.

body:
ZIMBABWE SAYS a new concoction
of herbal drugs under
clinical tests in the country has
proved effective in prolonging
the lifespan of people living
with HIV and AIDS.
According to the country's
Deputy Minister of Health and
Child Welfare, Edwin Muguti,
clinical tests done on the herbal
medicine, locally called gun -
damiti , have so far proved
that it possesses healing
properties for people living
with HIV.
Clinical trials started on 1
December 2005 with 45 patients.
Muguti said preliminary results
are encouraging as the condition
of patients on the herbal therapy
has improved tremendously
with some opportunistic infections
disappearing.
“I can safely say their CD4
count had increased, while viral
load decreased,” the deputy
minister said, adding, “This
herbal combination is very safe
with no deaths recorded and no
side effects detected so far.”
(Daily Mirror)


Abstract:
SOME COMMUNITIES in
Namibia now have rights to
manage forests in their vicinity
under a new empowerment
programme.

body:
SOME COMMUNITIES in
Namibia now have rights to
manage forests in their vicinity
under a new empowerment
programme.
The Namibian government
has designated eight forests in
the north of the country as community
forests and has, with
technical assistance from German
Development Service (DED),
been offering training in forestry
management and planning.
The eight community forests
in the Kavango and Caprivi regions
as well as Tsumkwe, are
part of 13 gazetted by the Namibian
government in February.
The Community Forestry in
North-Eastern Namibia (CFNEN)
is a joint venture between the
Ministry of Agriculture, Water
and Forestry, DED and the German
Development Bank.
The project also promotes the
establishment of private orchards
and vegetable gardens.
“Within the declared community
forests local people are
able to control the sustainable
use and protection of valuable
wood and non-wood forest resources
against over-utilisation,
illegal harvesting and wild
fires,” said DED.
The communities now have
the right to issue permits for use
of trees, firewood and other forest
products, and can link resources
utilisation to management
plans and relevant regulations
or by-laws. (Namibian
Economist)


title:
Southern Africa leads the way in IT trends

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA has
some of the most developed Internet
country markets on the
continent. As a result, a number
of trends developing in the region
are beginning to spread
across the continent. These are
the findings of a new report
published by Balancing Act.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA has
some of the most developed Internet
country markets on the
continent. As a result, a number
of trends developing in the region
are beginning to spread
across the continent. These are
the findings of a new report
published by Balancing Act.
The region has the largest
broadband market. South Africa
leads the way in this area, with
120,000 users at the end of 2005, and is the largest broadband
market in sub-Saharan Africa.
Outside of South Africa,
competition on fibre infrastructure
is growing with four companies
getting licenses in the
past year, two in Zambia and
two in Zimbabwe.
Most of these companies are
power utilities and the network
of regional energy providers offers
many opportunities for connecting
the region.
The region is also a pioneer in
terms of Voice over Internet Protocol-
based (VoIP) calling. VoIP is a
technology that allows one to
make phone calls using broadband
Internet connection instead of a
regular (analog) telephone line.
South Africa again leads the
way in this area but at least two
other countries in the region
(Zambia and Zimbabwe) have
embarked on policy processes
that will see VoIP legalised.
(AllAfrica.com)


title:
Mozambique, Portugal conclude negotiations on Cahora Bassa

Abstract:
MOZAMBIQUE HAS concluded
an agreement with Portugal
for the transfer of ownership of
the giant Cahora Bassa Dam.

body:
MOZAMBIQUE HAS concluded
an agreement with Portugal
for the transfer of ownership of
the giant Cahora Bassa Dam.
Teams from the two countries
finalised “technical negotiations”
in March, paving the way for
signing of the final agreement by
President Armando Guebuza of
Mozambique and Portuguese
Prime Minister, José Socrates.
The two countries will later
agree on the date for the formal
signature in Mozambique of the
document resulting from the negotiations,”
said Salvador Namburete,
Mozambique's Minister
of Energy.
A memorandum of understanding
(MOU) on Cahora Bassa Dam was signed in November
last year during President
Guebuza's visit to Portugal.
Under the MOU, control of
the company that operates the
dam, Hidroeléctrica de Cahora
Bassa (HCB), would pass from
Portuguese into Mozambican
hands. Portugal owns 82 percent
of shares in HCB, with Mozambique
holding the remainder.
On conclusion of the agreement,
Mozambique will control
85 percent of the company, with
Portugal owning the remaining
shareholding.
The deal requires Mozambique
to pay US$950 million before
transfer of the dam and
company. (Aim)


Abstract:
ANGOLA PLANS to hold an international
mining fair to showcase
its mining industry and
source funding for the sector.

body:
ANGOLA PLANS to hold an international
mining fair to showcase
its mining industry and
source funding for the sector.
The International Mines Fair,
which will take place from 27-30
April, is being organised by the
country's Ministry of Geology and
Mining, Angola Diamond
Company and Expo-Angola.
The event will be used to
establish new partnerships
for Angolan mining
industry.
According to Edgar de
Carvalho, director of studies at
the Ministry of Geology and
Mining's Planning and Statistic
Office, the fair has attracted
huge interest from local
and international companies.
(AllAfrica.com)


Abstract:
ZAMBIA REDUCED prices of
petroleum products by up to
seven percent in January, passing
on the benefits of its appreciating
currency.

body:
ZAMBIA REDUCED prices of
petroleum products by up to
seven percent in January, passing
on the benefits of its appreciating
currency.
In trying to encourage the use
of unleaded petrol, the country's
Energy Regulation Board (ERB)
has made prices of leaded and unleaded
fuel the same.
"The ERB has benchmarked
the new prices to those of unleaded
petrol," ERB chairperson
Mwangala Zaloumis said. Unleaded
petrol used to cost more
than leaded fuel.
Zambia has announced that it
will phase out leaded petrol from
March as part of an African Union
pledge to use cleaner fuels considered
less harmful to human health
and the environment. (The Post)


Abstract:
A MASSIVE dry dock arrived in
the Walvis Bay harbour in January
– the first of its kind along
the western coastline of Africa.

body:
A MASSIVE dry dock arrived in
the Walvis Bay harbour in January
– the first of its kind along
the western coastline of Africa.
The floating dock represents
an alternative to Cape Town and
Durban as the only ship-repair
facilities in the region.
“This is a deliberate effort by the
Namibian government through
NamPort to intensify ship-repair
activities with the aim of job creation
and economic development,”
said NamPort managing director,
Sebby Kankondi. (The Namibian)


Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA'S Telkom
has set its sight on expansion
into five African countries – including
Angola, Botswana and
Democratic Republic of Congo
– it considers ripe for investment.

body:
SOUTH AFRICA'STelkom
has set its sight on expansion
into five African countries – including
Angola, Botswana and
Democratic Republic of Congo
– it considers ripe for investment.
Faced with tough competition
from cellphone operators at
home, the fixed-line operator
has turned its attention to the
three SADC member states as
well as Kenya and Nigeria in its
quest to boost revenues. (Business Day)


title:
De Beers to invest in new Tanzanian plant

Abstract:
THE DE Beers Group has announced
plans to invest US$150
million in a new processing plant
at Mwadui Williamson Diamond
Limited (MWDL) in the United
Republic of Tanzania.

body:
THE DE Beers Group has announced
plans to invest US$150
million in a new processing plant
at Mwadui Williamson Diamond
Limited (MWDL) in the United
Republic of Tanzania.
The world's leading diamond
mining company said the new
processing plant will enable the
firm to process 16 million tonnes
of ore annually and increase diamond
production to a million
carats.
Presently MWDL has a production
capacity of 3.5 million
ore tonnes a year and the new
plant will increase diamond production
to 1 million carats from
190,384 carats.
The expansion and construction
of the processing plant
would enable MWDL to extend
the life of the mine by a further 25
years. (East African)


title:
Oscar winning film raises regional profile on film industry

Abstract:
TSOTSI, A South African drama
film, put the southern African
filmmaking industry under the
international spotlight when it
won an Oscar for the best foreign
language movie.

body:
TSOTSI, A South African drama
film, put the southern African
filmmaking industry under the
international spotlight when it
won an Oscar for the best foreign
language movie.
The film is about a township
thief who learns to take care of
an infant whose mother he shot
during a car hijacking.
This was the second time a
South African was nominated for
the Oscars, the highest recognition
that a film can get in the United
States. Last year's nominee was
Yesterday, a feature film about a
woman who was HIV positive.
Directed and written by Gavin
Hood, Tsotsi stars Presley
Chweneyagae as a violent young
gangster who realises the value of
human life after discovering a
baby in a car he had stolen. His
outlook to life changes after being
forced to care for the baby.
It beat four other films that
were also vying for the Best Foreign
Language Film Award. These
were Paradise Now (Palestine),
Joyeux Noel (France), The Final Days
(Germany) and Don't Tell (Italy).
The Oscar for Tsotsi dramatises
southern Africa's filmmaking
renaissance and points to the vast
talent available in the region.
The region's filmmaking industry
has undergone major
changes since the late 1990s and has in the past few years produced
award-winning films
such as Everyone's Child by Zimbabwean
film-maker Tsitsi Dangarembga
and Fools, a collaborative
effort between South
African production house, Native At Large, and Mozambique's
Ebano Multimedia.
Other countries in the region
such as Angola, Mauritius and
Mozambique have produced
short films that have featured at
international festivals.
Regional cooperation has
been crucial to the development
of the industry, with events such
as the Zanzibar International
Film Festival, Zimbabwe International
Film Festival and Cape
Town World Cinema Festival
playing an important role.


Abstract:
ABOUT TEN groups from five
SADC countries are to compete
in a regional musical contest in
Mozambique.

body:
ABOUT TEN groups from five
SADC countries are to compete
in a regional musical contest in
Mozambique.
The Music Crossroads Southern
Africa contest takes place from
27-30 April and will feature musical
groups from Malawi, Mozambique,
United Republic of Tanzania,
Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The show is part of an international
programme that empowers
young people aged between
15 and 25 years through musical skills and HIV and
AIDS education.
It also seeks to increase the
level of professionalism among
musicians and acts as a platform
for launching their careers. It encourages
the participants to take
pride in their cultural heritage.
Each competition is preceded
by a workshop where the young
musicians learn marketing skills,
public relations, music management,
contract negotiation, copyright
laws and musician rights.
Winners of this year's competition
will land a trip to Europe
and a recording contract.
Music Crossroads was initiated
by Jeunesses Musicales International
(JMI) recognised as
the premier global network for
youth and music. JMI has members
in 70 countries worldwide.
The Norwegian Agency
for Development Cooperation,
Swedish International Development
Cooperation Agency and
UNESCO have funded the programme
since 1996.


title:
Theatre project to “ save this generation ”

Abstract:
ARTISTS AND the youth from
southern Africa are set to benefit
from a continental project
on fighting HIV and AIDS
through theatre.

body:
ARTISTS AND the youth from
southern Africa are set to benefit
from a continental project
on fighting HIV and AIDS
through theatre .
The puppet theatre project resulted
from one of the resolutions
taken by representatives of the
organisation, African Theatre for
Children and Youth Centres, at
its annual meeting in the United
Republic of Tanzania in March.
Puppet theatre is an innovative
way of getting across the
message on HIV and AIDS to
children and young people.
The project is designed to enable
young people to contribute to
the alleviation of HIV and AIDS
by supplementing efforts by their
governments. It is targeted at
artists and nationals of southern,
west and east Africa, and will be
implemented around the theme,
"Save This Generation".
SADC is represented by
Botswana, Malawi, Mauritius,
Mozambique, Namibia, South
Africa, Swaziland, United Republic
of Tanzania, Zambia and
Zimbabwe. Other participating
countries are Benin, Burundi,
Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria,
Rwanda and Uganda.
The 18 countries are members
of the International Association of
Theatre for Children and Young
People. The African network
and cooperation programme is
funded by the Swedish International
Development Cooperation
Agency (Sida). (New Era)


title:
SADC: Major Achievements and Challenges – 25th Anniversary 1980-2005

Abstract:
THIS BOOK was published to commemorate
25 years of regional cooperation and integration
since the founding of the Southern Africa
Development Coordination Conference
(SADCC), which fostered confidence and a
spirit of solidarity that laid the foundation for
the Southern African Development Community
(SADC) established through the Windhoek
Treaty in 1992.

body:
THIS BOOK was published to commemorate
25 years of regional cooperation and integration
since the founding of the Southern Africa
Development Coordination Conference
(SADCC), which fostered confidence and a
spirit of solidarity that laid the foundation for
the Southern African Development Community
(SADC) established through the Windhoek
Treaty in 1992.
The book profiles “a region with potential”,
gives some historical background and
explains the institutional restructuring and financing.
It reviews policies and strategies, including
the Regional Indicative Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP) and the SADC
Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation
(SIPO).
Many achievements are noted, especially
the signing and ratification of a number of
protocols in areas such as trade, finance and
management of shared watercourses, agreements
on sugar, textiles and clothing among
others, and establishment of the Southern
African Power Pool (SAPP).
The book also presents current challenges
facing the region, including HIV and AIDS,
socio-economic and human resources challenges,
political, defence and security challenges,
as well as regional integration, institutional
restructuring, and policy harmonization
and implementation.
In closing, the book reviews the way forward
as SADC moves into higher levels of
integration as a building bloc of the African
Union.
The book is available from the
SADC Secretariat

registry@sadc.int
or http://www.sadc.int.


Abstract:
THIS GEM of a book taps into a
wealth of research and experience to
depict the relationship between
Africans and our environment, including
conservation of the land by
those who have had the longest connection
with it over time.

body:
THIS GEM of a book taps into a
wealth of research and experience to
depict the relationship between
Africans and our environment, including
conservation of the land by
those who have had the longest connection
with it over time.
It captures
on paper startling and unusual film
images that can last only a second or
split second on screen. The images in
this book are exceptional not only
for their visual impact and beauty,
but for the vision they communicate
of oneness with the physical world and their exploration of the relationship
between people and animals,
the physical and the spiritual.
The book of 154 pages is written by
Damon and Craig Foster with
Michael Hutchinson, and has a Foreword
by the South African President,
Thabo Mbeki. Published in
2005 by New Africa Books in Cape
Town, this source of knowledge and
imagery is available through bookshops
or contact the publisher.
info@newafricabooks.co.za
http://www.newafricabooks.co.za


title:
Lest we forget… The long road to South African freedom

Abstract:
THE ROAD to freedom in South Africa was littered with institutionalised
racial discrimination, brutality and cross-border forays
targeted at liberation movements and their supporters.

body:
Lest we forget… The long road to South African freedom
THE ROAD to freedom in South Africa was littered with institutionalised
racial discrimination, brutality and cross-border forays
targeted at liberation movements and their supporters.
Through a series of repressive laws, successive South African
regimes entrenched the system of white supremacy and disenfranchised
millions of blacks, Indians and people of mixed race.
Enactment of apartheid laws in 1948 institutionalised racial discrimination.
Race laws touched every aspect of social life, including
prohibition of marriage between non-whites and whites, and
introduction of “whites only” jobs.
The Bantu Authorities Act of 1951 was used to create ethnic governments
in African reserves, known as “homelands”. The homelands
were “independent” states to which all non-whites were assigned
according to the record of origin, even though many of them
did not actually live in these areas.
All political rights, including voting, held by non-whites were restricted
to the designated homelands. The idea was that they would
be citizens of the homeland, losing their citizenship in South Africa.
The homelands denationalised millions of South Africans who
became aliens in their own country following the introduction of a
requirement that they must have passports to enter South Africa.
The 1950 Population Registration Act required that all South
Africans be racially classified into one of three categories: white,
black (African) or coloured, with the latter including major subgroups
of Indians and Asians.
All blacks were required to carry “pass books” containing fingerprints,
photo and information that determined where they
could live and work.
Resistance to the apartheid system eventually led to majority
rule in 1994. The resistance came from black, Indian and coloured
movements, political parties and other countries, organisations
and individuals.
Led by the African National Congress (ANC) of South Africa
and the South African Indian Congress, South Africans launched a
Defiance Campaign in 1952 in which they abandoned tactics of
moderation such as petitions in favour of militant protest. This included
mass actions, boycotts, strikes and civil disobedience.
About 300 black South Africans in Sharpeville refused to carry
their passes, resulting in a state of emergency. The emergency lasted
for 156 days, leaving 69 people dead and 187 wounded in
Sharpeville on 21 March 1960.
The Sharpeville Massacre, as the event became known, signalled
the start of armed resistance in South Africa, and prompted
worldwide condemnation of South Africa's apartheid policies.
All of South Africa's neighbours right up to the United Republic
of Tanzania – long independent but targets of the apartheid
regime's destabilisation campaign – provided logistical and moral
support to South African exiles and freedom fighters.


Abstract:
“OUR ACHIEVEMENT of independence imposes upon us a heavy responsibility,
not only to defend our hard won liberty, but also to set for ourselves higher
standards of equality, justice and opportunity for all, without regard to race,
creed or colour.” – Sam Nujoma, first post-independence president of Namibia,
in his inauguration address on independence day, 21 March 1990.

body:
“OUR ACHIEVEMENT of independence imposes upon us a heavy responsibility,
not only to defend our hard won liberty, but also to set for ourselves higher
standards of equality, justice and opportunity for all, without regard to race,
creed or colour.” – Sam Nujoma, first post-independence president of Namibia,
in his inauguration address on independence day, 21 March 1990.


body:
CURRENCY CHECKLIST
Country Currency (US $1)
Angola Kwanza (100 lwei) 80.36
Botswana Pula (100 thebe) 5.44
DRC Congo Franc 432.00
Lesotho Maloti (100 lisente) 6.15
Madagascar Ariary 9,400.00
Malawi Kwacha (100 tambala) 132.72
Mauritius Rupee (100 cents) 30.68
Mozambique Metical (100 centravos) 26,775.00
Namibia Dollar (100 cents) 6.16
South Africa Rand (100 cents) 6.16
Swaziland Lilangeni (100 cents) 6.15
Tanzania Shilling (100 cents) 1,193.25
Zambia Kwacha (100 ngwee) 3,295.00
Zimbabwe Dollar (100 Cents) 99,201.00

March 2006



body:
EVENTS DIARY 2006
April
2 - 5 South Africa
World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion

Theme is “Data to Action”. The focus of the 8th
conference is on how injury and safety information
can be translated into concrete prevention policies
and practices. Injury and safety researchers,
practitioners and decision-makers will attend the
conference.

25-30 Zimbabwe
Harare International Festival of the Arts

A multi-cultural celebration of the arts, encompassing
theatre, visual arts, dance and music, and attracting
participants from all over southern Africa and other
parts of the world.

26-27 Namibia
SADC Consultative Conference

Since the last Consultative Conference in 2002, SADC
has developed a 15-year Regional Indicative Strategic
Development Plan (RISDP) that provides strategic
direction for SADC programmes. The 2006
Consultative Conference is aimed at marketing the
RISDP and the Strategic Indicative Plan of the Organ
on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation (SIPO).
Focus will be on mobilisation of resources for
implementation of the plans and adoption of a
Windhoek Declaration on a New SADC/ICP
Partnership. International Cooperating Partners,
representatives of civil society, the private sector and
governments will attend the Conference under the
theme: “Partnership for the Implementation of the
SADC Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan
and the Strategic Indicative Plan of the Organ on
Politics, Defence and Security.”

27-30 Angola
International Mines Fair

An international mining fair organised by the Ministry
of Geology and Mining, Angola Diamond Company
and Expo Angola, to showcase the country's mining
industry, establish new partnerships and source
funding for the sector.

May
24-26 Ethiopia
International Conference on ICTs for Development
The conference is a capacity-building event for
 stakeholders engaged in planning and implementation of
 technology-supported learning and training in Africa.
 Supported by the United Nations Commission for
 Africa, the conference will be accompanied by an
exhibition.


June
31-2 June South Africa
Economic Summit

Africa Organised by the World Economic Forum, the summit
brings together private sector, civil society and political
leaders to discuss trade and investment opportunities
in Africa.

17-20 South Africa
Cape Town Book Fair

In partnership with Frankfurt Book Fair, the Publishers
Association of South Africa will host the country's first
international book fair. To be held at the Cape Town
International Convention Centre, the fair will showcase
leading international and local publishers and is
expected to attract thousands of visitors.

21- 23 South Africa
Regional Adjudication on the SADC Media Awards

A SADC sub-committee is to adjudicate on the entries
for the 2006 media awards. This year the media
awards will focus on HIV and AIDS to encourage
dissemination of information on the pandemic.


body:
Public Holidays in SADC
 April - June 2006
4 April Peace and National Reconciliation Day Angola
7 April Women's Day Mozambique
7 April Sheik Abeid Amani Karume Day Tanzania
14 April Good Friday All except Mauritius, DRC, Mozambique, Madagascar
15 April Public Holiday Botswana
15 April Holy Saturday Zambia
15 April Easter Saturday Zimbabwe
17 April Easter Monday All except Mauritius, DRC, Mozambique, South Africa
17 April Family Day South Africa
18 April Independence Day Zimbabwe
19 April King's Birthday Swaziland
21 April* Maulid Day Tanzania
25 April National Flag Day Swaziland
26 April Union Day Tanzania
27 April Freedom Day South Africa
1 May Labour/Workers Day All
4 May Cassinga Day Namibia
25 May Ascension Day Botswana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Namibia, Swaziland
25 May Africa Day Angola, Zambia, Lesotho, Namibia, Zimbabwe
1 June International Children's Day Angola
5 June Whit Monday Madagascar
14 June Freedom Day Malawi
16 June Youth Day South Africa
25 June Independence Day Mozambique
26 June Independence Day Madagascar
30 June Independence Day DRC
* Depends on visibility of the moon


body:
PUBLICATIONS
What UN for the 21st Century? A
New North-South Divide

The South Centre, 2005

170pp.

This is a collection of comments and
working papers prepared in the context
of the most recent drive to reform the
United Nations. It begins with the paper
entitled “Multilateralism Besieged”,
which was submitted in June 2004 as an
input into the proceedings of the High
Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and
Change. It ends with a comment on the
UN Secretary General's Report “In Larger
Freedom: Towards Development, Security
and Human Rights for All”, which was
circulated to the member states of the
Group of 77 in June 2005.

Available in electronic and print format
from 
South Centre,
 P O Box 228, Chemin

du Champ d'Anier 17, 1211 Geneva 19,

Switzerland.

south@southcentre.org

http://www.southcentre.org

Why Developing Countries Need
Tariffs? How WTO NAMA
Negotiations Could Deny Developing
Countries' Right To A Future

by Ha-Joon Chang

The South Centre, 2005

129pp.

If they are to fulfill the developmental
promises made in Doha and prevent the
creation of a world economy divided by
a growing gulf between haves and havenots,
the powerful players in the World
Trade Organization (WTO) must ensure
that any NAMA (Non-Agricultural
Market Access) agreement gives developing countries the largest possible
policy space so that that they can work
out what is good for them and find their
own ways to achieve it. An immediate
suspension of the NAMA negotiations
until a new and pro-developmenttext
can be agreed would be a good place to
start.

Available in electronic and print format
from South Centre, Geneva, Switzerland.

E-mail: south@southcentre.org

http://www.southcentre.org


Knowledge Management and the
Development Bank of Southern
Africa: A Knowledge Strategy

by Debbie Blackburn, Snowy Khoza and
Graham Tate

South Africa, Development Bank of
Southern Africa, 2003

61pp

Internationally, it is well recognised that
corporate society is on the verge of a
new horizon in which intellectual
capital is rapidly becoming the new
currency. In this context, the question of
implementing a knowledge
management way of doing things
becomes one of paramount importance
and will enable it to align more closely
with emerging global trends. In
adopting this path the Bank allows itself
the freedom to apply institutional
resources to all types of socio-economic
development.

Available in print and
electronic format from the DBSA
Development Information Business
Unit,

P O Box 1234, Halfway House,

1685 Midrand, South Africa.

debbieb@dbsa.org

http://www.dbsa.org




title:
New partnership for regional development

Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA has advanced another step
towards regional integration with the signing of a
partnership agreement with International Cooperating
Partners (ICPs).

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA has advanced another step
towards regional integration with the signing of a
partnership agreement with International Cooperating
Partners (ICPs).
The new partnership between SADC and
ICPs is set to expedite regional integration by
improving resource mobilisation and strengthening
the region's ability to implement programmes.
The Windhoek Declaration on a New SADC-ICP
Partnership, adopted in April at the SADC Consultative
Conference in Namibia, lays the foundation
for a fresh start in SADC-ICP relations and is set to
turn the dream of a unified market and Customs
Union in southern Africa into a reality.
The Declaration will have several implications
for SADC and the ICPs.
The Windhoek Declaration is closely modelled
on the 2005 Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, which seeks to provide guidelines and
mechanisms for increasing the impact of external
development assistance in accelerating the
attainment of the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs).
President Hifikepunye Pohamba noted in
his official opening address that the new partnership
has far-reaching implications, and that
future interaction between SADC and the ICPs
should emphasise partnership building “as opposed
to the traditional donor-recipient relationship”.
“It is important, therefore, that we urge everyone,
especially our international cooperating
partners, to join hands with the people of the
southern African sub-continent in our pursuit of
sustainable socio-economic development to end
poverty, hunger and underdevelopment,”
Pohamba said.
The SADC Executive Secretary,
Tomaz Augusto Salomão,
emphasised that a greater role is
envisaged for other stakeholders
such as the private sector
and civil society in advancing
the regional integration agenda.
“Another imperative in this is
a mainstreamed participation of
the region's stakeholders, namely, the business sector and the
civil society, and the region's
blueprints have made clear provision
for their direct participation,”
said Salomão.
According to the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP), the private sector
has an important role to play in
funding of some projects, particularly
on infrastructure development,
as well as in social sectors
such as health and education.
Civil society is key to the successful
implementation of programmes
and projects on gender
equality, sustainable food security, environment and sustainable
development, and HIV and AIDS.
The Windhoek Declaration
will require the region to show
renewed leadership in the implementation
of programmes
and projects articulated in the
RISDP and the Strategic Indicative
Plan for the Organ on Politics,
Defence and Security Cooperation
(SIPO), the two SADC
blueprints.
Irene Freudenshuss-Reichl,
Director-General for Development
at the Austrian Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, said the main
challenge for SADC is to assume
greater ownership of projects
and programmes.
Speaking on behalf of the
ICPs after the adoption of the
Declaration, Freudenshuss-Reichl
noted that the renewed
leadership will require setting of
clear priorities and ensuring that programmes and projects
are implemented to attain regional
objectives.
Among the challenges is to
align national and regional
priorities through greater cohesion
between RISDP/SIPO
and national development
plans.
This is also a challenge for
the donor community which
will need to improve cohesion
between what they support at
the national level and their regional
programmes.
The Windhoek Declaration is
a commitment by the ICPs to
support SADC's integration
agenda and to interact regularly at ministerial level, with more
resources to be made available
to support the region's programmes
and projects.
Direct support to the SADC
Secretariat and other SADC
bodies has increased significantly
following its shift from managing
projects to emphasising
policy development.
Other channels of development
assistance from ICPs include
via individual governments,
through private institutions
such as non-governmental
organisations and through
multilateral institutions such
as United Nations bodies or
the World Bank.


title:
Building blocks of international cooperation

Abstract:
THE ROME Declaration on
Harmonising Donor Practices
for Effective Aid Delivery was
signed in February 2003 by government
ministers, heads of aid
agencies and other senior officials
representing 28 aid recipient
countries and more than 40
multilateral and bilateral development
institutions.

body:
THE ROME Declaration on
Harmonising Donor Practices
for Effective Aid Delivery was
signed in February 2003 by government
ministers, heads of aid
agencies and other senior officials
representing 28 aid recipient
countries and more than 40
multilateral and bilateral development
institutions.

They reaffirmed their commitment
to eradicating poverty,
achieving sustained economic
growth, and promoting sustainable
development. The development
institutions undertook
to harmonise their operational
policies, procedures and
practices with those of
partner countries to improve the effectiveness
of development assistance,
and there by
contribute to meeting
the Millennium Development
Goals.
Among others, the Declaration
sought to align the requirements
of ICPs with national development
priorities of recipient
countries, and called on developing
countries and regions to
assume greater leadership roles
in coordinating development assistance.
The Rome Declaration is
complemented by the Paris Declaration
on Aid Effectiveness
adopted in March 2005. The
Paris Declaration commits the
ICPs to addressing capacity constraints
in developing countries
and ensuring sufficient integration
of global programmes and
initiatives into recipient countries'
broader development
agendas, including in critical
areas such as HIV and AIDS.


Abstract:
THE FOLLOWING are the partnership commitments under the
Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness:

body:
Paris declaration commitments
THE FOLLOWING are the partnership commitments under the
Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness:
Ownership

Partner countries to exercise effective leadership over their
development policies, and strategies and co-ordinate development
actions.

Alignment

Donors to base their overall support on partner countries' national
development strategies, institutions and procedures.
Donors to align with partners' strategies;
Donors to use strengthened country systems; and
Partner countries to strengthen development capacity with support from donors.

Recipient countries to strengthen public financial management capacity.
Recipient countries to strengthen national procurement systems.

Harmonisation

To ensure donors' actions are more harmonised, transparent and collectively effective.
Donors to implement common arrangements and simplify
procedures.

Managing for Results

Both parties must manage resources and improve decision-making for results.

Mutual Accountability

Donors and partners to be accountable for development results.


title:
SADC, ICPs adopt Windhoek Declaration on a New Partnership

Abstract:
SADC AND its International Cooperating
Partners (ICPs) have
adopted the Windhoek Declaration
on a New SADC-ICP Partnership,
which will guide future
relations between the two parties.

body:
SADC AND its International Cooperating
Partners (ICPs) have
adopted the Windhoek Declaration
on a New SADC-ICP Partnership,
which will guide future
relations between the two parties.
The Declaration on a New
SADC-ICP Partnership was
adopted on 27 April at the
SADC Consultative Conference
in Namibia and lays the
groundwork for a fresh start in
the donor-recipient relationship
between the regional body and
its ICPs.
The overall objective of the
New Partnership is to contribute
towards the achievement
of the SADC Common Agenda,
and the attainment of the SADC
Mission of promoting sustainable
and equitable economic
growth, and to achieve deeper
regional cooperation and integration.
It also aims to ensure good
governance, strengthened regional
capacity, and durable
peace and security in the region.
The Declaration establishes
an institutional structure for dialogue
on political, policy and
technical issues, and improves
coordination of efforts between
SADC and the ICPs.
It provides for regular dialogue
at Ministerial level and at
a Joint SADC-ICP Task Force
comprising the SADC Secretariat,
SADC Double Troika at senior
official level and ambassadors
from both sides.
The Ministerial Group will
provide high level guidance to
the decision-making entities of
SADC and the ICPs. Its mandate
will include specifying issues
where political decisions
will be required and transmitting
these issues through the
relevant fora such as the Council
of Ministers and the individual
governments.
The group will also analyse
the implications of changing political
conditions, and advise the
political authorities and the policy/
technical level groups of
new policy approaches and
their possible implications.
The Joint SADC-ICP Task
Force will provide a mechanism
that links the top-level political decision makers and groups on
the ground.
The New Partnership will ensure alignment, harmonisation
and streamlining of operational
procedures, rules and other
practices in the delivery of development
assistance to SADC,
and guarantee synergies and
complementarity of support at
the national and regional levels.
Both parties made specific
commitments under the Declaration.
These included an undertaking
by SADC to exercise leadership
in developing, implementing
and monitoring the regional
development agenda and
to translate the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development Plan
(RISDP) and the Strategic Indicative
Plan for the Organ on Politics,
Defence and Security Cooperation
(SIPO) into prioritised,
result-oriented programmes.
The ICPs undertook to respect
SADC leadership and to
assist the region to build its capacity
to implement programmes
and projects.
With regard to the alignment
of procedures and rules, the
ICPs agreed to base their overall
support on the SADC Common
Agenda as specified in the
RISDP and SIPO.
The parties undertook to establish
mutually agreed frameworks
that ensure reliable assessments
of performance,
transparency and accountability.
Under the Declaration, SADC
commits to intensify efforts to
mobilise internal re sources and to
create an enabling environment
for public and private investments
while the ICPs commit to
providing reliable indicative
commitments of aid over a multiyear
framework and to disburse
the assistance in a timely and predictable
manner.


Abstract:
THE INAUGURAL session of
the SADC and Government of
India Forum was held in
Namibia on 28 April, opening a
new chapter in the relations between
the two parties.

body:
THE INAUGURAL session of
the SADC and Government of
India Forum was held in
Namibia on 28 April, opening a
new chapter in the relations between
the two parties.
The forum agreed to focus cooperation
in the sectors of trade,
industry, finance and investment;
food, agriculture and natural resources;
human resources development
and health, including
drugs and pharmaceuticals;
water resources management;
and information and communications
technology.
Teams of experts in the different
areas from both sides will
liaise on detailed action plans
for the implementation of projects
in the identified areas.
The forum was co-chaired by
the chairperson of the SADC
Council of Ministers, Baledzi
Gaolathe, and India's Minister
of State for External Affairs ,
Anand Sharma.
The inaugural session was
attended by SADC ministers
and senior officials from the region
and India. There was a
presentation by the SADC Secretariat
on various priority areas
proposed for cooperation between
SADC and India.
According to the final communiqué,
India concurred with
the principles and areas of cooperation
proposed at the meeting,
and agreed to work with SADC
in the spirit of South-South cooperation
and on the basis of the
two regions' comparative and
competitive advantages.
The government of India reiterated
the role of SADC as one
of the most important regional
organisations in Africa, noting
that it attaches utmost importance
to further strengthening
existing relations and ties with
the region in different sectors.
The forum noted that the
main objectives for which SADC was founded – improving the
standard of living and quality of
life of its citizens as well as the
promotion of peace and security
– are shared by India in its own
march towards development.
India also reiterated its interest
in sharing experiences with
SADC in meeting the challenges
of development in a globalised
world, as well as its commitment
as a development partner of
SADC particularly in jointly identified
areas where Indian expertise
and SADC's requirements are
complementary, and vice versa.
Both sides agreed that it was
important to continue cooperating
in multilateral forums, including
the bodies of the United
Nations where issues of crucial
importance to developing countries
are discussed.
The forum agreed to institutionalise
the partnership and
hold regular meetings at mutually
agreed times and venues.


Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA has taken
the first major step towards the
establishment of a Customs
Union by embarking on a programme
to modernise its customs
procedures and remove bottlenecks
on intra-regional trade.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA has taken
the first major step towards the
establishment of a Customs
Union by embarking on a programme
to modernise its customs
procedures and remove bottlenecks
on intra-regional trade.
The SADC Customs Modernisation
and Trade Facilitation Programme
was one of more than 50
projects endorsed by Member
States and the region's International
Cooperating Partners (ICPs)
during the SADC Consultative
Conference held in Namibia.
The programme aims to develop
computerised customs
procedures, networking systems
at national and regional levels as
well as introduce transit management
systems in all SADC
Member States.
The project is meant to support
closer regional integration
and harmonisation of customs
legislation and procedures, including
improved transit flows,
and to prepare for a smooth transition
to the SADC Customs
Union by 2010.
An 18 million financing
agreement for the implementation
of the project was signed by
SADC and the European Commission
during the Consultative
Conference.
SADC's Regional Indicative
Strategic Development Plan
(RISDP) gives priority to
strengthening regional integration
with the eventual objective
of establishing a SADC Common
Market by 2015.
The SADC Common Market
will be preceded by a Free Trade Area by 2008 and the Customs
Union in 2010.
Some progress has been made
in the transition towards the Free
Trade Area, with most Member
States having effected significant
tariff reduction in line with the
SADC Protocol on Trade.
Paul Malin, head of the European
Union delegation in
Botswana, said the Customs
Modernisation Programme was
a demonstration of the joint
SADC-EU efforts to link trade
and development.


title:
Rehabilitation work starts on Nacala railway line

Abstract:
MALAWI, MOZAMBIQUE and Zambia are rehabilitating
the railway line in the Nacala
Development Corridor, which
will open a key transportation
route for the three countries.

body:
MALAWI, MOZAMBIQUE and Zambia are rehabilitating
the railway line in the Nacala
Development Corridor, which
will open a key transportation
route for the three countries.
Construction work started
in November 2005 but was halted
temporarily after persistent
heavy rains on the 77-km stretch
between Cuamba and Entra-Lagos within Mozambique.
Plans to repair the stretch
have been on the drawing board
since 2000 when the three governments
began sourcing for
funds from investors and development
agencies to bring the
railway line back to life.
The rehabilitation work is
being funded through a US$29.6
million loan secured by the three
countries from the Overseas Private
Investment Corporation, a
United States-based development
agency.
Wilfred Ali, the Nacala Development
Corridor coordinator
in Malawi's Ministry of
Transport and Public Works,
said rehabilitation work
was initially slow due to
problems in moving
equipment after heavy rains washed away culverts on
the Mozambican side.
He said Zambia recently
signed aMemorandumofUnderstanding
with Edlow Resources
for the development of the Mchinji-Chipata rail link in eastern
Zambia, which will be connected
to the Nacala railway line.
The primary transport link
along the corridor is that railway
line linking eastern Zambia,
central and southern
Malawi, and northern Mozambique
to the Port of Nacala on
the Indian Ocean.
Historically, the ports of
Nacala and Beira were the nearest
ports for Malawi and Zambia.
This railway line was developed
as a concession during the 1970s from Nacala Port to Nampula.
It was later extended into
Niassa province in Mozambique
to serve the rich agricultural
areas, as well as to Malawi.
Malawi was supplied primarily
along the Sena line from
Beira. In view of the shorter route
to the sea presented by theNacala
railway line, Malawian traffic
began to shift from the Sena railway
line to the Nacala line.
The Nacala route was closed
in 1984 after the railway line
was blown up during the internal
conflict in Mozambique. The
conflict changed the fundamentals
of the transport situation
significantly. Both Zambia and
Malawi made a shift away from
rail to road transport.
Distances were substantially
increased as Zambian goods
were moved through Dar es
Salaam and South Africa.
Malawi also shifted transport
mode to road, moving its supplies
along the Tete road to
Zimbabwe and the ports of
South Africa.
The road routes from Malawi
to Lusaka and via Mbeya to Dar
es Salaam then became strategically
important for Malawi, but
resulted in road transport costs
that were exceedingly high.
In terms of the Memorandum
of Understanding between
Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia,
the strategic objectives of the
Nacala Development Corridor
are to develop adequate, reliable,
cost effective, efficient and seamless
transport, telecommunications
and energy systems, and to
foster economic growth through
the promotion and coordination
of economically viable business
in transport, agriculture, fisheries,
commerce, industry, mining
and tourism.
The corridor aims to foster
increased economic activity
through the promotion of trade,
which in turn would facilitate
greater regional integration
among the three countries.


title:
Building investment bridges SADC-EU programme links private-public sector partners

Abstract:
A JOINT initiative by SADC
and the European Union is intensifying
efforts at boosting
economic growth and development
in southern Africa
through a programme that is
designed to attract investment
into the region.

body:
A JOINT initiative by SADC
and the European Union is intensifying
efforts at boosting
economic growth and development
in southern Africa
through a programme that is
designed to attract investment
into the region.
The EU-SADC Investment
Promotion Programme (ESIPP)
has been designed to facilitate
and simplify investment procedures
within the SADC region.
Targeted sectors include tourism,
mining, agro-industry, light engineering,
and construction and
building materials sector.
In the tourism sector, a major
forum called Tourism 2006 will
take place from 3-6 October in
Windhoek, Namibia. The meeting,
which will focus on the
tourism, hospitality and related
sectors in the 14 SADC Member
States, aims to encourage international
financial, technical and
commercial partnerships.
Forum organisers say this is
“where promoters and entrepreneurs
from the southern African
region will present a carefully
selected range of new and high quality
business development
projects in the tourism, hospitality
and related sectors to interested
European and other international
and southern African
businesses.”
With regard to the mining
sector, a meeting of investors
and promoters is planned for
November in Lusaka, Zambia.
As many as 100 mining projects
are expected to be presented at
Mines 2006 in Lusaka.
ESIPP  addresses the challenge
of mobilising both intra-SADC
and foreign direct investment
into southern Africa through a
two-pronged approach.
The programme helps in
building capacity of private sector tor intermediaries, such as investment
promotion agencies,
chambers of commerce, employers'
federations or financial institutions.
With its own team of
consultants, ESIPP provides this
kind of assistance on a demand-driven,
cost-sharing basis.
In addition, the joint programme
organises sectoral partnership
meetings to bring together
investors from SADC and EU
as well as other “third countries”.
These take the form of business-to-business events such as
Tourism 2006 and Mines 2006.
During the fora, one-on-one
meetings are facilitated. Once
the partnerships are formed,
ESIPP uses the same methodology
for follow up support, that is,
on a demand-driven, cost-sharing
basis.
The joint programme has already
organised similar sector
partnership meetings focusing on
the light engineering industry
and the construction and building
materials sector in Mauritius
and South Africa, respectively.
Light Engineering 2006 was
held in Grand Baie, Mauritius,
on 14-17 February. It was a four-day
opportunity for round table
discussions, workshops and networking
involving selected companies
from SADC, EU and
“third countries”.
Light engineering incorporates
a diverse array of business
and products sectors. It includes
cutlery, hand tools and general
hardware; various metal and
plastic fabricated products; industrial
machinery, electrical
and electronic components; refrigeration
and service industry
machinery; motor vehicles and
spares; medical instruments and
many others.
Mat Construct 2005, ESIPP's
building materials and construction sector partnership
meeting, was held in Johannesburg
from 30 November to 3 December
2005. With the principal
objective of promoting partnerships
between companies from
the two regions, the forum facilitated
more than 1,500 one-on-one
meetings. A total of 258 participants
attended the forum ,
representing 102 EU and 78
SADC companies, as well as intermediary
organisations from
the region.
ESIPP says about 400 potential
partnerships gained from
the one-on-one meetings at Mat
Construct 2005 are being followed
through between EU and
SADC companies.
One of the key themes discussed
was on the construction
opportunities presented by the
2010 World Cup that will be
hosted by South Africa.
An investment forum to
build partnerships in the agro-industry is due to be held in
Zimbabwe at a date yet to be
confirmed.
The current six-year financing
agreement of the EU-SADC
joint programme was signed in
2000 with an 18-million budget.
The previous agreement had
been signed in 1994, facilitating
a mining investment forum that
was held in Lusaka in the same
year.
In line with the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP), SADC's efforts at
attracting investment are increasingly
placing emphasis on
an integrated promotional approach.
Thus Member States are
keen on economic reforms that
make their countries more investor
friendly, allowing the private
sector to be more competitive
on the global markets.
ESIPP is seen as the vehicle
for advancing this vision, especially
insofar as it increases
intra-regional and foreign direct
investment in SADC.


title:
Southern Africa vulnerable to rising world oil prices

Abstract:
RISING INTERNATIONAL
crude oil prices are exerting upward
pressure on fuel prices in
SADC, with a number of countries
in the region already passing
on the higher costs to consumers.

body:
RISING INTERNATIONAL
crude oil prices are exerting upward
pressure on fuel prices in
SADC, with a number of countries
in the region already passing
on the higher costs to consumers.
The region remains vulnerable
to sharp increases in the
price of crude oil on world
markets. The price of a barrel
of crude oil has risen from
a round US$50 in May 2005 to
US$60 in December and
a round US$72 in May.
Pressure on oil prices to rise
is being fuelled by concerns
ranging from the West's diplomatic
confrontation with Iran, a
thin supply cushion and disruptions
of production in Nigeria
by armed militants.
Militant violence targeted at
oil facilities in Nigeria has cut more than 20 percent of the
country's 2.5 million barrels-a-day
production. Some 500,000
barrels per day of crude oil production,
most of it operated by
Royal Dutch Shell, are lost because
of the violence.
More than 300,000 barrels
per day have also been lost due
to the shut down of refineries in
the Gulf of Mexico since Hurricane
Katrina battered the United
States' offshore platforms in
August 2005.
Despite assurances from
Iran that it will not cut its oil
production and exports in
retaliation to the stand-off
with the West over its nuclear
programme, some recipients
are worried that oil exports
could be used as a political
weapon.
Iran is the second largest
producer in the Organisation of
Petroleum Exporting Countries
(OPEC) at more than four million
barrels a day.
Shocks on the world oil market
are being felt in southern
Africa where at least three
countries have hiked fuel prices
since April.
Botswana, Namibia and
South Africa have raised the
price of petrol and diesel to cushion suppliers from rising
world prices.
Fuel price increases in South
Africa have a domino effect on
prices of goods and services in other SADC countries that import
the bulk of their requirements
from that country. The
price of fuel went up by 6.8 percent
in May.


Abstract:
ANGOLA'S OIL production is
set to rise to two million barrels
per day by the end of 2007, according
to the government.

body:
ANGOLA'S OIL production is
set to rise to two million barrels
per day by the end of 2007, according
to the government.
Amadeu Azevedo, Angola's
National Director of Petroleum,
said the country will produce
two million barrels per day by
the end of 2007, much earlier
than their previous forecasts.
The new projections are
based on promising prospects
for oil coming from explorations
in the lucrative offshore Girassol
field.
Angola is sub-Saharan Africa's
second largest oil producer after
Nigeria, and an important supplier
to the United States and China.
The country has dislodged Saudi
Arabia as China's main supplier
of crude oil.
Current output stands
at 1.4-million barrels
per day, 100 000 daily
barrels more than initially
anticipated.


title:
Power trade project for Tanzania, Zambia and Kenya

Abstract:
ZAMBIA AND the United Republic
of Tanzania are set to
benefit from an electricity trade
project that also involves
Kenya.

body:
ZAMBIA AND the United Republic
of Tanzania are set to
benefit from an electricity trade
project that also involves
Kenya.
The three countries are working
together on the interconnection
project expected to assist the
United Republic of Tanzania
and Kenya access electricity
from SADC, reduce electricity
costs and eradicate shortages.
The tripartite electricity
trade project, known as
the Zambia-Tanzania-Kenya
Power Interconnection Project, is to be developed in two phases
at a projected cost of US$660
million.
The first phase, to cost
US$358 million, is scheduled to
start in late 2007 and to be completed
in 2009, and will build a
transfer capacity of 200
megawatts (MW) of electricity.
Phase two is to cost US$302
million for another transfer capacity
of 400 MW upon completion
in 2014.
Apart from transmission of
power, the towers carrying the
high voltage transmission conductors
will also carry low voltage
conductors for rural electrification
along the transmission
corridor.
The three governments
have secured grants worth
US$800,000 for preparatory activities
on the project from the
NEPAD Infrastructure Project
Preparatory Fund.
A consortium of consultants
has been hired as transaction
advisers to provide financial,
technical and legal advisory
services for the initial stage of
the project.


title:
“We need to bring SADC closer to the people”
Tjitendero a visionary with deep commitment to his region and people

Abstract:
IT IS rare to find a visionary endowed
also with the practical
skills of management, integrity
and implementation.

body:
IT IS rare to find a visionary endowed
also with the practical
skills of management, integrity
and implementation.
One such rare person was the
Hon Dr Mose Penaani Tjitendero,
who died in Windhoek,
aged 63, after a life dedicated to
his country, his region and his
family.
Honoured as a hero in his
own country, Namibia, where
he was given a state funeral and
burial at Heroes Acre, he also
provided inspiration beyond his
borders.
Dr Tjitendero was widely respected
throughout the SADC
region, and played a key role in
community building.
He was the vision, inspiration
and driving force for the establishment
of the SADC Parliamentary
Forum, persisting until
he won the support of all SADC
parliaments, for an initiative so
new and yet so obvious that it is
now taken for granted as an established
player in the region.
Most writers about Dr Tjitendero
have concentrated on his
considerable post-independence
achievements. He contributed to
drafting the Constitution for the
Republic of Namibia as a member
of the Constituent Assembly,
and emerged as the first Speaker
of the National Assembly, a post
he held for 15 years.
As Speaker, he built and reformed
the parliamentary system,
committee by committee,
to make it a transparent and effective
forum for legislation
and debate on national and regional
issues. He was an elected
member of parliament since
the pre-independence elections
in 1989 leading to Namibia's independence
in 1990.
Little has been written, however,
about his formation during
the liberation struggle as a
member of the South We s t Africa Peoples Organisation
(SWAPO), his commitment to
the independence of Namibia,
and his contribution as an educator,
notably as Assistant Director
of the UN Institute for
Namibia (UNIN) in Lusaka,
while in exile.
Mose Penaani Tjitendero was
born in Okahandja in 1943, and
left the country in 1964 through
what is now Botswana and
Zambia around the time of its
impending independence, via
Kazungula, making his way to
the United Republic of Tanzania
and the SWAPO office there.
He was involved in the radio
broadcasts from Dar es Salaam
to Namibia that were presented
in several languages, and he
was active in youth politics, rising
to a leadership role on the
youth executive.
He enrolled at the Kurisini
International School in Dar es
Salaam to get his high school
certificate, and was awarded a
scholarship for undergraduate
studies at Lincoln University in
the United States, where he read
history and political science.
He followed this with a
Masters in History from the
University of Massachusetts at
Am-herst, and a doctorate in
education from the same university.
The young and well-educated
Tjitendero then returned to
Lusaka in 1976 to share his
knowledge, as a Senior Lecturer
at UNIN, and later as Head of
Teacher Training and Assistant
Director of the institute.
Just prior to Namibia's independence,
he moved to Luanda
as Director of the UN Vocational
and Technical Training Centre in
1988-89.
A former UNESCO colleague
who worked with him
in that period says he was “a visionary
with a deep commitment
to the cause of
independent Namibia.”
Other colleagues
mentioned again and
again, his “honesty
and his principles”…
He was dedicated
to his own family and
his wife, Sandy, his life
partner for more than
30 years, but they
were often called
upon to share his time
and attention for his
wider family of
Namibians and southern
Africans, to whom
he was also committed.
A key objective of
his vision and his contribution
to the region was in
the broader role of the proposed
development community for
southern Africa.
He said the signing of the
SADC Treaty in Windhoek in
August 1992 was “not simply a
matter of transforming SADC
from a loose regional grouping
into a legal entity, but ushered in
the spirit of the treaty establishing
the African Economic Community
adopted by the OAU
Heads of State... in June 1991.”
When SADC followed up
with adoption of a community-building
programme to widen
its community beyond government,
Mr Speaker was ready
with his vision for a regional
Parliamentary Forum to “familiarise
the peoples of SADC
countries with the aims and objectives
of SADC.”
“ We need to bring SADC
closer to the people. Our people,
all our people, need to know,
understand and popularise the
aims and objectives of SADC.
“For example, what is this
concept of development, and of
a development community? We need to start from the beginning
and systematically inculcate the
values of SADC in the hearts
and minds of our constituents.”
Among the other objectives
that Tjitendero enunciated for a
regional forum of parliamentarians
in support of the SADC
ideal were the promotion of the
principles of human rights and
democracy, provision of a forum
for matters of common concern,
to facilitate networking and
popularise the concepts of development
and cooperation, as
well as inclusive participation
by other members of the community.
But, as he repeated many
times in many fora over many
years, the primary objective of a
SADC PF should be to encourage
effective implementation of
SADC policies, and to provide
services to SADC as required.
The late Dr Tjitendero seldom
worked alone, always with
a team and in partnership, and
he would expect therefore that
others are ready to continue the
work that he initiated, and in
the same spirit.


title:
New Partnership sets tone for wider participation in community building

Abstract:
THE WINDHOEK Declaration
on a New SADC-ICP Partnership
adopted by the SADC Consultative
Conference in April
opens new avenues for the implementation
of SADC's programmes
and projects, and underlines
the region's intentions
to widen participation in regional
development efforts.

body:
THE WINDHOEK Declaration
on a New SADC-ICP Partnership
adopted by the SADC Consultative
Conference in April
opens new avenues for the implementation
of SADC's programmes
and projects, and underlines
the region's intentions
to widen participation in regional
development efforts.
The partnership is a landmark
framework that will ensure more effective development
cooperation, based on
principles of ownership, alignment,
harmonisation and
streamlining of operational procedures,
rules and other practices
pertaining to the delivery
of development assistance.
Most important, the conference
endorsed the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP) and the Strategic
Indicative Plan for the Organ on
Politics, Defence and Security
Cooperation (SIPO) as the
roadmaps for deepening regional
integration.
The conference reaffirmed
SADC's commitment to working
with other non-state players
from the region such as the private
sector and civil society organisations.
In this edition we highlight
some of the issues identified
within the framework of
SADC's priority areas.

Infrastructure Support for
Regional Integration

Infrastructure plays a pivotal role
in the overall regional development
agenda as it unlocks opportunities
such as trade facilitation,
provision of agricultural infrastructure, and access to facilities
by both business and rural communities
at affordable cost.
Opportunities exist for the
private sector and other players
in the region to participate in new
infrastructural projects in the
tourism, energy, transport,
water and communications
sectors that could be
made possible by the
New Partnership.
Member States and
the ICPs agreed on the importance of prioritised investment
in infrastructural projects.
SADC is setting up a Project
P reparation and Development
Fund to develop Member State
capacity to appraise projects.
Support is, however, required
from the ICPs for the strategic
thrust of SADC in respect of spatial
development initiatives and
development corridors.
The various pillars under the
infrastructure cluster will also
benefit from the establishment of
separate thematic groups covering
the priority sectors of energy,
transport, tourism and water. So
far only one thematic group (the
Water Strategy Reference Group)
has been established. Other
g roups will be set up in cooperation
with interested ICPs.
Another re commendation
was that all infrastructural developments
should be sensitive to
issues of environmental compliance
and social acceptability. This
will ensure that future projects
will have to satisfy environmental
standards and cultural norms
prior to implementation.
Trade, Economic Liberalisation
and Development

This is one of the areas in which
SADC has set some crucial targets
whose achievement re quires the
participation of all stakeholders.
The overall objective of this
intervention area is to facilitate
trade and financial liberalisation,
competitive and diversified industrial
development, and increased investment for deeper regional
integration through the establishment
of a SADC Common
Market by 2015.
The regional development
blueprint targets to have a SADC
Free Trade Area by 2008 and a
Customs Union by 2010.
Potential areas of cooperation
include strengthening the
institutional capacity of the
SADC Secretariat and Member
States; speeding up the regional
integration process; addressing
complications on the regional
trade architecture emanating
from overlapping membership;
and harmonisation of data on trade, investment and business
development.
The sentiment was that economic
integration processes
within SADC needed to be expedited
and the Secretariat should
come up with a roadmap on
what needs to be done.
Overlapping membership to
regional organisations presents a
serious barrier to deeper regional
integration and the region's ministers
of trade must urgently meet
to discuss options and implications
for the region.
There is still more work to be
done in terms of attaining macroeconomic convergence.While the
stability targets have been agreed
upon, the extent of convergence
and timetables needs to be reconsidered.
Sustainable Food Security

A coherent policy and strategic
framework is required to enhance
SADC's ability to attain
sustainable food self-sustenance.
The policy should promote priority
areas such as irrigation and
input provision; address the role
of women in agriculture; recognise
the importance of disaster
preparedness; and guarantee
land tenure and security.
Support is required to improve
existing SADC capacity to
monitor and coordinate programmes
to boost food security.
Training was also identified
as having a special role in enhancing
regional food security.
The training will involve both
farmers and agricultural experts.
With regard to funding of
agriculture, an urgent need was
identified for increased financing
by Member States and the
ICPs, as well as the development
of absorption capacity
within SADC to ensure available
funds are fully utilised.
Marketing and agro-processing
are also priorities in the
quest to attain food security in
SADC while Member States undertook
to implement commitments
made in the Dar es
Salaam Declaration on Agriculture
and Food Security.
Social and Human Development

The cluster on Social and
Human Development aims to
contribute to poverty reduction
and improvement of the availability
of educated, well-informed,
skilled, healthy and culturally
responsive people.
The priority sectors of intervention
are health, education,
labour and employment, and
culture, information and sports.
Member States, business and
civil society organisations have
major roles to play in the implementation
of the SADC Health
Protocol, particularly sections
dealing with control of communicable
and non-communicable
diseases, strengthening of
health systems, promotion of
joint procurement and local production
of essential medicines,
and retention and training of
human resources.
Patients will benefit from
the strengthening of regional quality control capabilities to
avoid the dumping of substandard
medicines by suppliers
from outside the region. Implementation
of the SADC Protocol
on Education and Training
is another area that will open
opportunities for the region, in
particular the CSOs and the education
sector.
Areas of possible cooperation
in labour and employment issues
are the development of a regional
framework to facilitate
free movement of labour, implementation
of tripartism and social
dialogue, and strengthening
of regional capacity to improve
occupational safety and health
standards.
Priorities and possible areas
of collaboration under the culture,
information and sports
sector include strategies to promote
and facilitate intra-regional
cultural exchange; review
of existing mechanisms
for collection and dissemination
of information; protection
and development of indigenous
knowledge and cultural
industries; and establishment
of the SADC Culture Trust
Fund to mobilise resources and
facilitate regional cultural programmes.
HIV and AIDS

The major milestones for the region
in the fight against HIV and
AIDS include the adoption of
the Maseru Declaration on HIV
and AIDS, and the development
of a regional HIV and AIDS
business plan.
These offer opportunities for
a stronger partnership between
Member States, ICPs, civil society
and business, and reflect
growing political will to fight
the pandemic.
Through the Maseru Declaration
on HIV and AIDS, SADC
has identified the five areas for
urgent actions as prevention
and social mobilisation; care ,
treatment and support; development
and mitigation of the
impact; resource mobilisation;
and monitoring and evaluation.
The SADC Secretariat was
asked to adapt and develop its
role in facilitating Member
States in implementing agreed
policies, framework and action
plans, including coordination
with the African Union
HIV/AIDS Initiative and other
global initiatives.
Member States and ICPs undertook
to improve prevention
measures as one of the main
strategies in the fight against the
disease. The prevention strategy
must take into account issues of
poverty, human rights, gender
imbalance, sexuality and sexual
violence.
Strategic Indicative Plan of the
Organ on Politics, Defence and
Security Cooperation

Political stability, peace and security
are necessary conditions for
sustainable development and
economic growth. SADC has
committed itself to building a
community based on a Common
Future and recognises that peace,
security, democracy and good political
governance are key integration
and development enablers.
The New Partnership identified
the need for SADC and the
ICPs to engage in open and
frank discussions on issues of
peace and security. This will
help in establishing an environment
of mutual respect and contribute
to the existing peaceful
atmosphere in the region.
The SADC region is experiencing
an unprecedented period
of peace and the creation of a
framework for the engagement
with ICPs will enhance regional
stability.
Re-integration of ex-combatants
into society, funding of demining
and mine awareness programmes,
and assistance with
management and protection of
refugees are some of the areas
where SADC will benefit from
the New Partnership.
The partnership could also
open doors for the strengthening
of the capacity of the Directorate
on Politics, Defence and Security
Affairs and the SADC Standby
Force.


Abstract:
INVADER BUSH presents a
unique opportunity for farmers
and other rural people to become
electricity suppliers to the
Namibian market, according to
the Namibia Agricultural Union
(NAU).

body:
INVADER BUSH presents a
unique opportunity for farmers
and other rural people to become
electricity suppliers to the
Namibian market, according to
the Namibia Agricultural Union
(NAU).
The bush, which has infested
26,000 hectares of land in the
country, threatens the sustainability
of the beef industry by
reducing the carrying capacity
of the land.
However, the challenge of
Namibia's bush resources can
be turned into an opportunity
for generating biomass energy
such as cooking fuel, large-scale electricity generation,
charcoal production and
ethanol production.
This would strengthen
Namibia's generation capacity
and help to address its capacity
shortages.NAU, through its Bush
Utilisation and Debushing Committee,
has compiled a project proposal that will be submitted to
donors for possible funding.
Consulting Services Africa
(CSA), which is working with
NAU on the project, said the opportunities
could yield significant
economic benefits for the
entire nation.
Invader bush can be made
into charcoal briquettes which
could substitute firewood, increase
charcoal exports to South
Africa and Europe, or be used to
power a charcoal power station.
The bush can also be used to
produce wood gas, to be used in
modified diesel generators for
electricity production.
An in-depth study was carried
out in 1999 to determine the feasibility
of using invader bush to
power the Van Eck power station
and a proposed new power station
in Grootfontein, but at that
time this option was more expensive
than the price of electricity
from Eskom of South Africa.
Namibia imports about half
of its electricity requirements
from South Africa and has been
severely affected by the power
outage caused by damage to the
Western Cape's Koeberg nuclear
station, which triggered power
blackouts in the Western Cape
and Namibia.
Demand for electricity in
South Africa is outstripping supply due to high economic
growth, coupled with lack of investment
in new generation capacity
and damage at the Koeberg
station.
The contagion effects of the
South African power crisis have
affected Namibia's business sector
and the public through electricity
blackouts and water rationing.


title:
South Africa in pilot wind energy project

Abstract:
WIND ENERGY could provide
part of the answer to SADC's
electricity problems if a pilot
project being implemented by
South Africa is successful.

body:
WIND ENERGY could provide
part of the answer to SADC's
electricity problems if a pilot
project being implemented by
South Africa is successful.
Cape Town's mayoral committee
has approved a proposed
power purchase agreement
with Darling Wind Farm,
a R70m (approx. US$12m) national
pilot project funded
jointly by the Danish International
Development Agency,
the Department of Minerals
and Energy, and the Darling Independent
Power Producing
Company.
The project will open up opportunities
for further wind energy projects and other
"green energy projects" in
the Western Cape and
further afield.
It will also be an important
step in assisting
the city to boost its electricity
supply and to reach its target
of sourcing 10 percent of its
overall energy requirements
from sustainable sources by
2020.
Approval of the committee's
recommendation will pave the
way for Cape Town residents to
purchase energy from the Darling
Wind Farm. This will be
marketed to "willing buyers" at
an initial premium of R0.25 per
kwh.
It is expected that the demand
for green energy will outstrip
the 13,200 gigawatt hours
of energy that can be supplied
annually by the farm.
Darling Wind Farm is expected
to commence generation
in 2007 and the energ y
will be sold through the city's
electricity service provider.
(Sapa)


title:
Water kiosks for peri-urban dwellers in Zambia

Abstract:
ZAMBIA'S NATIONAL Water
Supply and Sanitation
Council (NWASCO) requires
20 million to set up water
kiosk systems in peri-urban
and low-cost residential areas
to ensure the availability of
clean water.

body:
ZAMBIA'S NATIONAL Water
Supply and Sanitation
Council (NWASCO) requires
20 million to set up water
kiosk systems in peri-urban
and low-cost residential areas
to ensure the availability of
clean water.
NWASCO estimates that
approximately 1.9 million of
the 4.5 million people in peri-urban
and low-cost areas do
not have access to clean water.
The council wants to introduce
a water kiosk system
to be run by water utility
companies in targeted areas.
Under the system, consumers
will be required to
pay K20 (less than US$0.01)
for a 20-litre container of water. The system will provide
services to peri-urban and
low-cost dwellers who walk
long distances to fetch water.
Water kiosk systems have
been set up as a pilot project
in Ndola under the management
of Kafubu Water and
Sewerage Company, and in
Western province under the
Western Water and Sewerage
Company. 
(Times of Zambia)


title:
Imperatives for deeper integration and development

Abstract:
THE FUTURE of SADC lies in
Member States' ability to rise to
the challenges of aligning national
objectives to the regional
common interest as well as setting
realistic priorities for programmes,
says former SADC
Executive Secretary, Simba
Makoni.

body:
THE FUTURE of SADC lies in
Member States' ability to rise to
the challenges of aligning national
objectives to the regional
common interest as well as setting
realistic priorities for programmes,
says former SADC
Executive Secretary, Simba
Makoni.
In a SADC lecture at the
University of Namibia ahead of
the SADC Consultative Conference
in Windhoek, Makoni said
one of the challenges faced by
SADC is the question of common
membership of regional
groupings.
Overlaps exist in the membership
of SADC, Common
Market for Eastern and Southern
Africa (COMESA), South
African Customs Union (SACU)
and East African Community
(EAC), with some countries belonging
to two or three organisations.
Three of these regional organisations
– SADC, COMESA
and EAC – have identical sectoral
programmes and are all
aiming to establish Free Trade
Areas and Monetary Unions.
“We have to rationalise these
overlaps in order to chart a
bright future for our region.
This will avoid duplication,
competition and conflict of interests,”
he said.
Another challenge for Member
States, he said, is a review of
their motives for joining these
organisations.
“Is it for political solidarity
or for the economic and other
benefits that derive out of membership
of such bodies? What is
it that we want out of being
members of SADC, COMESA,
SACU or EAC?,” Makoni challenged
the region.
The former executive secretary
noted that the success of
SADC initiatives lies in ensuring
that national programmes and projects are in line with regional
objectives. Regional programmes
and projects are
bound to fail unless national interests are subservient to the
common good, he warned.
He challenged SADC to
streamline the number of programmes
and projects it is implementing,
with a view to
having a leaner portfolio. He
said the region currently has
500 programmes or projects
valued at more than US$10 billion.
“It seems to me that not
much effort goes into project
identification and selection. I
believe Member States go for
all projects on offer in order to
enhance their chances of receiving
assistance, the so called
shopping basket and
fishing net approaches,” he
said.
Focus will be essential as
SADC moves towards establishing
a Customs Union and Common
Market by 2010 and 2015,
respectively. The region needs to
understand its partners well in
order to strike the right balance
or trade off.
The region needs to take control
of its destiny by becoming
financially independent.
He said the region must aim
for ownership of its programmes
and projects and this
should involve greater sacrifices
by Member States with
regard to funding of the organisation.
“Our challenge is to render
material support to regional initiatives
rather than wait for
someone in Brussels or some
other Western capital to come
with their money and its attendant
conditionalities,” he said.
Linked to that is the question
of how much of the resources for projects actually go
towards implementation of the
programmes. How much of
these are taken up by purely
administrative things like
salaries and office expenses,
and how much goes towards
actual implementation?
“More resources must be devoted
to the actual work on the
ground so that people see the
benefits of being members of
SADC. The perception out there
is that SADC only caters for the
leaders,” Makoni said.
In terms of the human resources
capacity of the SADC
Secretariat, he said competence
and professionalism must be accorded
top priority in the recruitment
process.
Under the present recruitment
system, Member States
a reallocated quotas on the
number of their nationals that
can be employed at the Secretariat
at any given time. Once a
country's quota is surpassed, its
nationals will no longer be eligible
for employment at the
Secretariat.
The momentum must be
maintained to ensure the region's
aspirations are entrusted
in the hands of individuals competent
and professional enough
to advance regional development
and integration.
“This is linked to the need to
take a critical look at the issue
of country quotas with regard
to recruitment. Do we need to
maintain the quota system or
the region will be served better
with an alternative recruitment
system?,” the former executive
secretary said.
Makoni sees a greater role
in the regional agenda for
non-state actors such as business,
academia, civil society
organisations and members of
the public. Non-state actors
have important roles to play in
ensuring that SADC projects
and programmes are implemented
and have the support
of people on the ground .
The importance of establishing
a partnership with business
and civil society was also highlighted
during the Consultative
Conference by various speakers,
most notably the SADC Executive
Secretary, Tomaz Augusto
Salomão.
The region's development
blueprints already make provisions
for the active participation
of non-state actors in the roll-out
of projects and programmes.
The challenge is to go beyond
nationalism and aim for
the common good.
“This can only be achieved
when we can all see beyond
our national flags and view all
the other countries in the region
as part of the same family,” Makoni said.
In the lecture, titled SADC:
Imperatives for Deeper Integration
and Development, Makoni also
spoke about the early days of
SADC and the motives behind
the current restructuring
process.
The lecture was jointly organised
by the Secretariat and
UNAM as part of efforts to
broaden understanding of
SADC and its objectives.


title:
Mozambique presses on with currency reform

Abstract:
MOZAMBIQUE IS moving
ahead with the reform of its currency,
which will result in the introduction
of new banking notes
and coins from 1 July.

body:
MOZAMBIQUE IS moving
ahead with the reform of its currency,
which will result in the introduction
of new banking notes
and coins from 1 July.
The reform seeks to make the
Mozambican currency, the metical,
more manageable by knocking
off the last three digits. This is
a simple matter of dividing by a
thousand so that the current
1,000 meticais coin will be worth
one of what the government calls
the "new family" of the metical.
The largest of the current banknotes,
for 500,000 meticais, will
be worth 500 of the new meticais.
The new banknotes and
coins should enter circulation as from 1 July. In the months prior
to this, all goods are supposed
to display prices in both old and
new meticais.
From July to 31 December,
both "families" of the metical
will be legal tender, but the old
coins and notes will gradually
be withdrawn from circulation.
The country's main opposition
party, the Mozambique National
Resistance (Renamo), has
opposed the currency reform ,
claiming that this is unconstitutional,
because the law approving
the currency reform was
passed last November by a simple
majority, rather than a two thirds
majority. (AIM)


title:
Undersea cable network beckons for Botswana, Namibia

Abstract:
BOTSWANA AND Namibia
plan to take part in an ambitious
undersea regional cable network
project to improve the current
capacity and reliability of
telecommunication systems in
SADC.

body:
BOTSWANA AND Namibia
plan to take part in an ambitious
undersea regional cable network
project to improve the current
capacity and reliability of
telecommunication systems in
SADC.
President Festus Mogae said
Botswana has expanded connectivity
by participating in several
initiatives, including the West
African Festoon Systems, which
connects countries along the
west coast of Africa from Nigeria
to Namibia.
Considering that Botswana is
a landlocked country, Mogae invited
Namibia to become part of
the project to make use of
Namibian waters.
Participation of both Namibia
and Angola is critical as this
project qualifies a country for
two landing points and Mogae
said Botswana is also negotiating
with Angola to participate in
the project.
The project will enable
both countries to have a
reliable network of
high capacity, high speed
links, which can connect to similar networks in
neighbouring SADC countries
and internationally, thus improving
the region's global connectivity.


Abstract:
ZAMBIA APPEARS on course
to meeting the SADC target of
achieving single-digit inflation
by 2008.

body:
ZAMBIA APPEARS on course
to meeting the SADC target of
achieving single-digit inflation
by 2008.
The country's year-on-year
rate of inflation dropped to 9.4
percent in April from 10.7 percent
in March. The decline in inflation
came on the back of
lower food prices and an appreciating
exchange rate.
The Kwacha has gained in
strength against the major convertible
currencies over the past
few years. It is pegged at around
K2,900 to the US dollar compared
to K7,000 per US$1 in 2001.
Attainment of single-digit
inflation is one of the targets
set by SADC in its quest to
achieve macroeconomic convergence. It is envisaged that
the rate of inflation in all the 14
SADC Member States will
have declined to five percent
by 2012 and three percent by
2018.
A stable inflationary environment
will be essential in the
quest by the region to create a
Free Trade Area by 2008,
a Customs Union by 2010
and a Common Market by
2015.


title:
Economic summit considers growth strategies for Africa

Abstract:
TOP AFRICAN political and
business leaders have met at an
annual economic summit to
identify priorities to sustain recent
growth on the continent,
engage business as an agent for
change, draw lessons from best-performing
states, address risks,
and assess new opportunities.

body:
TOP AFRICAN political and
business leaders have met at an
annual economic summit to
identify priorities to sustain recent
growth on the continent,
engage business as an agent for
change, draw lessons from best-performing
states, address risks,
and assess new opportunities.
The summit, organised by
the World Economic Forum,
took place in Cape Town from
31 May to 2 June.
Held under the theme
“Going for Growth”, the objective
was to launch a public-private
sector partnership to address
poverty, to assess new opportunities
for growth, and to
encourage a change of perception
about the continent.
High on the agenda was a
discussion of how a legacy of
negative perception has hindered growth in Africa, and
how to use the continent's comparative
advantages to push forward
its development agenda.
There was also a focus on the
opportunities provided by
Africa's relationship with China
and India, and the challenges of
boosting physical and social infrastructure .
More than 700 participants
were expected to address the
underlying risks to Africa's development
such as whether the
average 5.3 percent growth is
adequate to create the jobs and
growth needed to turn the tide,
and how the different scenarios for developments on the global
stage affect the continent.
Also on the agenda was the
role of the media in shaping
government policies and impacting
on social behaviour
a round HIV and AIDS; and
ways of enhancing the role of
the private sector, particularly
agri-business, in food security.
Among the high-profile participants
invited to the summit
were presidents Armando
Emilio Guebuza of Mozambique,
Jakaya Kikwete of the
United Republic of Tanzania
and Thabo Mbeki of South
Africa.


title:
International flavour at Harare arts festival

Abstract:
TOP REGIONAL and international
artists converged on
Harare in April for the Harare
International Festival of the Arts
(HIFA) that transformed Zimbabwe
into southern Africa's entertainment
capital.

body:
TOP REGIONAL and international
artists converged on
Harare in April for the Harare
International Festival of the Arts
(HIFA) that transformed Zimbabwe
into southern Africa's entertainment
capital.
For six days from 25-30 April,
Harare played host to some of
Africa's best performing and visual
artists.
HIFA is an annual international
arts festival that encompasses
five main disciplines:
music, theatre, fine arts, dance
and spoken word. The festival
began in 1999 and since then it
has taken the Zimbabwean and
southern African arts scene by
storm.
It showcases the best of
Zimbabwean performances
and fine arts while at the same
time staging and exhibiting the
most exciting and creative international
and regional performances.
This year's festival brought
together musicians, poets, theatre groups, dance groups and
fine artists from Zimbabwe,
South Africa, Malawi, Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC),
Namibia, Zambia, Ghana, Nigeria,
Britain and Cote d'Ivoire.
The highlight of the festival
was a musical act by Benin's Angelique
Kidjo who put up
a good performance. Kidjo
charmed a huge main-stage audience
with her dancing, driven
by her desire to have a personal
interaction with her fans.
"I interact with the audience
because I want it to share my vision
of a united Africa," said
Kidjo.
A United Nations Children's
Fund (UNICEF) goodwill ambassador, Kidjo also spoke
about the children of Africa
and shared her views about
child physical and emotional
abuse.
Namibian group, Gazza,
was another attraction at HIFA.
Its blend of dance hall, ragga,
hip-hop and kwaito won
the group many hearts during
the festival.
Other established and upcoming
artists who took
part included poet Chirikure
Chirikure, mbira artist Chioniso
Maraire, both of Zimbabwe;
Democratic Republic of Congo
musician Lokua Kanza; Nigerian
singer Asha; Cote d'Ivoire's
reggae artist Tiken Jah Fakoly;
and South Africa's jazz artist
Steve Dyer and poet Anjie
Krog.
Kanza conducted workshops
during the festival, which were
attended by musicians from
Kenya, Malawi, Swaziland,
South Africa, Zambia and
Madagascar.
The festival aims to promote
cultural exchange programmes
throughout the continent and
beyond.
This year's theme was
“hAND in hAND”, symbolising
the solidarity among artists
from Africa and the rest of the
world. Organisers noted that
the high standard of international
and local artists who
participated at HIFA 2006
demonstrated the theory of ultimate
collaboration and exchange.


title:
World Cup debutants Angola short-listed to host 2010 AFCON

Abstract:
ANGOLA HAVE the enviable
task of carrying the hopes and
aspirations of southern Africa
at the FIFA World Cup in June
and of being the only country
from the region to be short-listed
to host the 2010 continental
football showcase.

body:
ANGOLA HAVE the enviable
task of carrying the hopes and
aspirations of southern Africa
at the FIFA World Cup in June
and of being the only country
from the region to be short-listed
to host the 2010 continental
football showcase.
The oil-rich southern African
country is the remaining SADC
candidate for the hosting of the
2010 African Cup of Nations following
a draw conducted in
Egypt on 14 May.
Angola was short-listed to
host the African soccer
showcase in four years time together
with Libya, Nigeria and
a joint Gabon-Equitorial
Guinea bid.
Bids from other SADC countries,
Mozambique, Namibia
and Zimbabwe were rejected.
The "Palancas Negras" are
SADC's sole representatives at
the World Cup set to start on 9
June and end on 9 July.
Angola, which is in Group D
together with Mexico, Iran and
Portugal, have already announced
a 23-member squad for
the tournament. The squad will
be led by Fabrice “Akwá”Maieco
and includes other star players
such as Nsimba “Zé Kalanga”
Baptista, and Flávio Amado.
The team pre pared thoroughly
for its maiden World Cup appearance
having played a number
of friendly matches against
some of the world's best teams
during the past two months.
The friendly matches included
a 0-1 loss to South Korea in
April. Other warm-up matches
were scheduled against former world champions, Argentina, in
Italy on 30 May, Turkey on 2 June,
and the United States on 5 June.
The preparations have also
included participation in the annual
regional Cosafa tournament
where the team is through
to the semi-finals after easily accounting
for Mauritius and
Lesotho.


title:
Regional Strategic Action Plan on Integrated Water Resources Development and Management

Abstract:
“THE SOUTHERN AFRICAN region is largely a
water deficit area. This underlines the importance
of planning, development and managing the resource
wisely...”

body:
Annotated Strategic Plan 2005-2010
Programme Implementation Manual 2005-2010

“THE SOUTHERN AFRICAN region is largely a
water deficit area. This underlines the importance
of planning, development and managing the resource
wisely...”
So begins the Foreword to SADC's second regional
strategic action plan on the management of
water resources.
The plan contains a review of the history and
context of the application of Integrated Water Resources
Management in the SADC region, as well
as progress and goals of implementation; and impact
on the development agenda, in terms of
poverty alleviation, hydropower and regional integration.
The plan's mission is “to provide a sustainable
enabling environment, leadership and coordination
in water resources strategic planning, use and infrastructure development through application of integrated
water re sources management at member
state, regional, river basin and community level.”
The publication is well designed and produced,
and user friendly. The plan is presented in two short
volumes: the Annotated Strategic Plan, and the Programme
Implementation Manuel. Both cover the
period of 2005-2010.
A review of the first phase implementation of
the SADC Regional Strategic Action Plan for Integrated
Water Resources Management (1999-2004)
has also been published, containing lessons and
best practices.
It is intended to inform, to record and to highlight
the efforts of the many individuals who
work towards the sustainable development
of water resources.
Both publications are available from
the SADC secretariat.

E-mail:  registry@sadc.int

Website: www.sardc.int


title:
Managing the HIV and AIDS Pandemic in the Southern African Development Community

Abstract:
HE SADC HIV and AIDS Strategic
Framework and Programme of Action
2003-2007 provides a multi-dimensional
response to the pandemic in southern
Africa. It is aimed at intensifying measures
and actions to address the devastating
and pervasive impacts of HIV and
AIDS in a comprehensive and complementary
way.

body:
THE SADC HIV and AIDS Strategic
Framework and Programme of Action
2003-2007 provides a multi-dimensional
response to the pandemic in southern
Africa. It is aimed at intensifying measures
and actions to address the devastating
and pervasive impacts of HIV and
AIDS in a comprehensive and complementary
way. The focus of the response is on the prevention of HIV and AIDS,
care and support, and the mitigation of
the impact in order to ensure sustainable
human development in the SADC
region. This 33-page booklet is available
from the 
SADC Secretariat, 
P. Bag 0095,
Gaborone, Botswana.

E-mail: registry@sadc.int

Website: www.sadc.int


Abstract:
THE PICTURE of Mbuyisa
Makhubo carrying the body of
his 13-year-old friend, Hector
Petersen, has become an iconic
image symbolising the struggle
of the youth of South Africa –
and the beginning of the end of
apartheid.

body:
THE PICTURE of Mbuyisa
Makhubo carrying the body of
his 13-year-old friend, Hector
Petersen, has become an iconic
image symbolising the struggle
of the youth of South Africa –
and the beginning of the end of
apartheid.
The photograph, taken by
Sam Nzima of The World newspaper,
appeared in newspapers
and on television channels all
over the world, sparking outrage
and a new awareness
which hardened opposition
within and outside South
Africa to the brutality of the
apartheid authorities.
On that day, 16 June 1976,
more than 20,000 Soweto schoolchildren staged a peaceful protest again the imposition of Afrikaans
as the language of instruction for black pupils and against the discrimination
they suffered under the inferior “Bantu education” curriculum.
The Bantu education system, which had been enforced for black South
Africans since 1953, was characterised by separate schools and universities,
poor facilities, overcrowded classrooms and inadequately trained
teachers.
Some 700 hundred people, many of them youths, were killed and property
destroyed in the violence that ensued during the next few weeks, after
police fired on the student demonstration.
The courage of the Soweto students in June 1976 is today commemorated
by a national holiday in South Africa, Youth Day, which honours all
the young people who lost their lives in the struggle against apartheid and
Bantu education.
Thirty years on, South Africa recognises the courage of the youth who
helped to bring an end to apartheid.
The 16 June student uprising epitomises the role played by young people
in the struggle to unshackle southern Africa from colonial rule. The
youth were at the forefront in the struggle for independence in all countries
in southern Africa.



title:
South Africa documents Mpumalanga history

Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA has embarked on a project to document
the pre-colonial history of Mpumalanga province to educate
young people about the region's past and promote
unity.

body:
SOUTH AFRICA has embarked on a project to document
the pre-colonial history of Mpumalanga province to educate
young people about the region's past and promote
unity.
The Mpumalanga Heritage Research Project is an indepth
research by a team of prominent historians, archaeologists,
geologists, and rock art experts, led by Professor
Peter Delius from Wits University.
It covers human history stretching back
40,000 years, with mining, ruined stone-walled
cities of African empires, anti-colonial warriors,
liberation struggle heroes and Stone Age San
rock art.
Mpumalanga Prime Minister, Thabang
Makwetla, said the project report will be
published in a version easily accessible to
the public, and will be used for books, websites,
promotional material for tourists and
branding of Mpumalanga.
"The most important benefit for the
province and the country of this type of research work is for us to promote unity in our
diversity," he said.
Mpumalanga also has the oldest gold
mines in South Africa, and this wealth stimulated
contacts with the outside world long
before European colonialism.
The study also confirms that Mpumalanga's
historical gold-mining town of Pilgrim's Rest installed
electric street lights before major global metropolises such
as London, and that the other mining town of Barberton
had the first stock exchange in Africa. 
(BuaNews)


body:
CURRENCY CHECKLIST
Country Currency (US $1)
Angola Kwanza (100 lwei) 80.58
Botswana Pula (100 thebe) 5.51
DRC Congo Franc 435.00
Lesotho Maloti (100 lisente) 6.10
Madagascar Ariary 9,150.00
Mauritius Rupee (100 cents) 30.70
Malawi Kwacha (100 tambala) 137.50
Mozambique Metical (100 centravos) 26,650.00
Namibia Dollar (100 cents) 6.43
South Africa Rand (100 cents) 6.31
Swaziland Lilangeni (100 cents) 6.30
Tanzania Shilling (100 cents) 1,239.00
Zambia Kwacha (100 ngwee) 3,045.00
Zimbabwe Dollar (100 Cents) 101,195.54

May 2006



body:
EVENTS DIARY 2006
June
31 May – 2 June South Africa
Africa Economic Forum

Organised by theWorld Economic Forum, the summit brings
together the private sector, civil society and political leaders
to discuss trade and investment opportunities in Africa.

21-23 South Africa
SADC Integrated Committee of Ministers

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

21-23 South Africa
Regional Adjudication on the SADC Media Awards

A SADC sub-committee is to adjudicate on the entries for
the 2006 media awards. This year the media awards will
focus on HIV and AIDS to encourage dissemination of
information on the pandemic.

29 – 8 July South Africa
Grahamstown National Arts Festival

The festival is one of the most important events on the South
African cultural calendar, and the biggest annual celebration
of the arts on the African continent. Running for between
eight and 10 days, the festival captures the rich diversity of
South Africa's arts industry.

July
1-2 Gambia
30th Tanzania International Trade Fair
The international exhibition that takes place in Dar-es-Salaam will host trade delegations from throughout Africa .
The fair offers opportunities to do business with Tanzania
and neighbouring countries. It will showcase general
consumer to specialised industrial products and
machinery.



10-11 Tanzania
4th International Workshop on Technology for Education in
Developing Countries

The goal of TEDC 2006 is to bring together researchers, and
educators to discuss various issues involved in developing
new techniques and on novel uses of technology for
education in developing countries.

August
13-18 Canada
International AIDS Conference 2006

Organised by International AIDS Society, the theme of the
16th International AIDS Conference will be “Time to
Deliver”. Participants will share the latest evidence, ideas
and lessons learned in HIV and AIDS research, policies and
programmes. The conference will focus on the shared
prevention, treatment and care obligations of those engaged
to respond to the pandemic.

10-19 Lesotho
SADC Summit
The Summit of Heads of State and Government is the
ultimate policy-making institution of SADC. The Maseru
Summit will witness the official handover of the rotating
SADC Chair from President Festus Mogae of Botswana to
Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili of Lesotho. SADC Council
of Ministers meet in advance of Summit to prepare policy
recommendations for adoption.


body:
Public Holidays in SADC
 June – August 2006
1 June International Children's Day Angola
5 June Whit Monday Madagascar
14 June Freedom Day Malawi
16 June Youth Day South Africa
25 June Independence Day Mozambique
26 June Independence Day Madagascar
30 June Independence Day DRC
1 July Sir Seretse Khama Day Botswana
3 July Public Holiday Botswana
3 July Heroes' Day Zambia
4 July Unity Day Zambia
6 July Independence Day Malawi
7 July International Trade Fair Tanzania
17 July President's Day Botswana
17 July King's Birthday Lesotho
18 July Public Holiday Botswana
22 July Public Holiday Swaziland
TBA July Umhlanga ReedDance Swaziland
1 August Parents' Day DRC
7 August Farmers' Day Zambia
8 August Peasants' Day Tanzania
9 August National Women's Day South Africa
14 August Heroes' Day Zimbabwe
15 August Assumption Day Madagascar
15 August Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Mauritius
15 August Defence Forces Day Zimbabwe
26 August Heroes' Day Namibia
29 August Ganesh Chathurthi Mauritius


body:
PUBLICATIONS
SADC and Donors - Ideals and
Practices: From Gaborone to Paris and
Back

by Elling N. Tjnneland

Botswana, Gaborone, 2006

36pp.

This report sets out to take stock of the current
relations between SADC and its international
cooperating partners, that is, the external
donor agencies providing support and
assistance. It identifies obstacles and
opportunities for making progress and
discusses the current efforts, inspired by the
Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, to
provide modalities and mechanism for a new
partnership between SADC and donors.

Available from The FOPRISA Coordinator c/o
BIDPA, P. Bag BR29, Gaborone, Botswana.

E-mail : foprisa@bidpa.bw

Website: www.foprisa.net


The New Partnership for Africa's
Development Progress Report -
Towards Development

By Prof. Firmino G. Mucavele

South Africa, Midrand, NEPAD, 2006

21pp.

Progress report for NEPAD covering the
period 2002 to 2006. It highlights some of the
NEPAD's major achievements that include
creation of a conducive environment for
sustained development.

Among other issues, NEPAD witnessed the
successful resolution of conflict in Cote
d'Ivoire, ongoing efforts in Sudan and the
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and
successful elections in the United Republic of
Tanzania, Liberia and Burundi.

Available from the NEPAD Secretariat, 
P.O Box
1234, Midrand, Halfway House 1685, South
Africa.

E-mail: mundiak@nepad.org

Website: www.nepad.org



Rules of Origin under EPAs:
Key Issues and New Directions

by Eckart Naumann

South Africa, Trade Law Centre for Southern
Africa, 2005

30pp

Rules of origin form a critical component of any
trade agreement or preferential trade
area, and thus an important role in the
implementation of trade policy. They are used
as a tool for determining the “economic
nationality” of a product, rather than merely
deeming the last geographic location from
which a product is shipped as its
nationality. As a result, the terms and conditions
contained in Rules Of Origin (ROO) are some of
the most important determinants of market
access as highlighted in this working paper.

Available in electronic format from Trade Law
Centre for Southern Africa, P.O. Box 224,
Stellenbosch 7599, South African.
 
E-mail: trudihartzenberg @tralac.org

Website: http://www.tralac.org


Namibia Trade Directory 2006:
A Review of Namibian Trade and
Industry

Edited by Sandra van Rooyen

Namibia, Windhoek, Namibia Trade Directory

(Pty) Ltd, 2006

235pp.

The directory presents the ideal opportunity
for the Namibian private and public sector
players to disseminate specific information on
their products and services to the rest of the
world. It is valuable reference and
comprehensive information tool as it provides
facts on company profiles, vital contacts and
classified listings.

Available from Ministry of Trade and Industry,

P. Bag 13340, Windhoek, Namibia

E-mail: Sandra@mac.com.na

Website: www.namibiatradedirectory.com





Abstract:
AN UNPRECEDENTED peaceful and stable environment
in southern Africa signals new opportunities
for a region that has witnessed successive
conflicts for the greater part of the last 50 years.

body:
AN UNPRECEDENTED peaceful and stable environment
in southern Africa signals new opportunities
for a region that has witnessed successive
conflicts for the greater part of the last 50 years.
For the first time since the late 1940s when
South Africa consolidated its then policy of
apartheid and African nationalism gave birth to
liberation movements in most SADC Member
States, southern Africa is enjoying relative peace,
political stability and security.
Lasting peace has returned to Namibia after independence
in 1990, to Mozambique following the
signing of the 1992 peace accord that ended 16 years
of civil war, and to South Africa after majority rule
and the end of the apartheid system in 1994.
The guns have fallen silent in Angola while small
pockets of armed insurgents periodically disturb the
generally peaceful and tranquil environment in the
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Guided by the Strategic Indicative Plan of the
Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation
(SIPO) - the region's 15-year blueprint on political
and security matters - SADC has been undertaking
various actions aimed at contributing to the maintenance
and consolidation of peace and security.
Structures have been designed to make the initiatives
to preserve peace and security more effective.
Implementation of SIPO is divided into four
main sectors: political, defence, state security and
public security.
Judging by the outcomes of elections held in the
past two years, the regional political situation is characterised
by an acceptance of political pluralism.
Regional cooperation in the political sector
builds on strong historical ties among Member
States, and a number of structures have been created
to facilitate regional integration and defence
cooperation.
One such structure is the
Inter-State Politics and Diplomacy
Committee (ISPDC), comprising
the ministers of foreign affairs
from SADC Member States.
At its annual meeting in
Namibia in June, the ISPDC observed
that the region generally
remained politically stable and
peaceful, and that the international
environment was
favourable towards the region
with regard to the flow of public
and private investment.
The real prize of peace and
stability in the region is the consolidation
of current macroeconomic
successes enjoyed by
Member States.
The return to sustainable
peace to Angola, DRC, Mozambique,
Namibia and South
Africa has strengthened their
ability to effectively exploit the
vast mineral and other resources
at their disposal, and to develop
policies for the provision of social
services and eradication of
poverty.
In the case of the DRC, the
country is home to one of the
world's largest deposits of diamonds,
copper and cobalt. DRC
(then Zaire) was the fourth
largest producer of industrial
diamonds in the 1980s and the
mineral continues to account for
over half of its annual exports.
The DRC also has vast untapped
agricultural capacity
and could be the next food-basket
of Africa, if the current peace
process can be sustained.
Straddling the equator and
spanning two tropical zones, its
climate favours the cultivation
of a wide range of tropical and
sub-tropical crops. More than
half of the DRC's land is arable
and suitable for farming
but currently just a fraction
is being utilised.
Angola, too, has vast
agricultural potential
and is beginning to reap a peace dividend from the
stability now existing in the
country.
Petrol-dollars have fuelled a
restoration boom in the country
torn by 27 years of civil war that
ended in 2002, and donors and
investors are also helping with
reconstruction, especially of
roads, railways and housing.
Angola is the second largest
producer of crude oil in sub-Saharan
Africa after Nigeria and
pumps 1.4 million barrels a day,
a figure the government sees rising
to two million barrels per
day by the end of 2007.
Since the end of the civil war
in 1992, Mozambique's economy
has grown on the back of economic
reforms and infrastructural
developments. It registered average
Gross Domestic Product
growth of about eight percent a
year from 1995 to 2004, with the
government and International Monetary Fund forecasting 7.9
percent growth in 2006.
Namibia has also enjoyed the
benefits of peace and stability
since its independence 16 years
ago.
The mining sector is the traditional
backbone of the economy
and generates the biggest
share of Namibia's foreign-exchange
earnings. Namibia is the
world's fifth-largest producer of
uranium and has large deposits
of diamonds.
It has contributed significantly
to regional integration and
hosts the SADC Parliamentary
Forum and the SADC Tribunal.
The fall of apartheid in South
Africa opened up enormous opportunities
for the region, putting
behind a lengthy period of
economic and military destabilisation.
The new South Africa has
been a major regional and international player in conflict resolution
efforts and plays host to the
Pan African Parliament (PAP)
and the New Partnership for
Africa's Development (NEPAD)
among other continental bodies.
PAP and NEPAD are two of the
most important institutions of the
African Union.
Another dividend from the
return to multiracial democracy
in South Africa has been its ability
to host major international
events such as the Rugby World
Cup in 1995, the soccer African
Cup of Nations in 1996 and the
World Summit on Sustainable
Development in 2002.
The country will host the
2010 FIFA World Cup, the first
time such an event will be held
in Africa. The World Cup is
going to attract international attention
to the SADC region,
with spin-off benefits for all the
Member States.


Abstract:
SADC HAS strengthened its
peace support capacity by building
a standby army whose role
will be to provide peacekeeping
duties in times of conflict.
A total of 1,330 peacekeepers
have been trained at the Harare-based
Regional Peacekeeping
Training Centre (RPTC) since its
establishment in 1995.

body:
SADC HAS strengthened its
peace support capacity by building
a standby army whose role
will be to provide peacekeeping
duties in times of conflict.
A total of 1,330 peacekeepers
have been trained at the Harare-based
Regional Peacekeeping
Training Centre (RPTC) since its
establishment in 1995.
The target is to have a 4,000-
5,000 strong regional standby
force by 2010 that will respond
to requests for peacekeeping duties
in the SADC region or in
other parts of the world.
Besides training army personnel,
the RPTC also trains civilians
who have an important role in
peace support missions where
they facilitate the smooth transition
from war situations to peace.
They provide the necessary
support services to military personnel
and lay the groundwork
for the establishment of crucial infrastructure to ensure a
smooth return to peace.
“Civilians are key in peace
support missions because they
manage the political and humanitarian
offices and their role
is to advise other players on how
to handle the whole process,”
said Joe Muzvidziwa, director of
RPTC.
Since 1991, SADC troops
have contributed to more than
15 peacekeeping missions within
and outside Africa.
Zimbabwe has been offering
training to the region on peacekeeping
duties since 1995. Previously,
the centre was a facility for
the Zimbabwean government and
was transformed into a regional
training centre when the Danish
government funded the construction
of the centre following a request
from SADC Member States.
The formation of a stand-by
force is in line with the African Union Commission's Article 13
on stand-by armies, which requires that each of the five
African regions should have a
minimum of 4,000 peacekeepers.
Namibian ambassador to
Zimbabwe, Kakena Nangula,
speaking at the college graduation
ceremony in March, said the
creation of the standby force was
a crucial condition for the attainment
of deeper regional integration
and cooperation as well as
the spirit of “prosper thy neighbour”.
“It is only when we are united
and speak with one voice that
our region can participate in
global debates and other activities
from a position of strength,”
she said.
Namibia chairs the SADC
Organ on Politics, Defence and
Security Cooperation which deals
with issues such as peacekeeping
and conflict prevention.


title:
Countries urged to decide on multiple membership

Abstract:
SADC MEMBER States have
been urged to resolve the question
of multiple membership as
the region moves towards establishing
a Customs Union by 2010.
Several SADC countries belong
to other economic blocs
with different trade arrangements
which presents challenges
because legally no country
can belong to more than one
customs union.

body:
SADC MEMBER States have
been urged to resolve the question
of multiple membership as
the region moves towards establishing
a Customs Union by 2010.
Several SADC countries belong
to other economic blocs
with different trade arrangements
which presents challenges
because legally no country
can belong to more than one
customs union.
“By 2010, SADC's own Customs
Union will be in place and
each country has to choose where
it wants to belong. The ICM has
thus urged the Member States to
submit their positions to the Secretariat
on this issue,” said SADC
Executive Secretary, Tomaz Augusto
Salomão, at the end of the
two-day Integrated Committee
of Ministers (ICM) meeting held
in South Africa in June.
Overlaps exist in the membership
of SADC, Common Market
for Eastern and Southern Africa
(COMESA), South African Customs
Union, East African Community
and the Regional Integration
Facilitation Forum (RIFF).
RIFF is a voluntary and nonbinding
arrangement under
which participating countries
implement measures aimed at
facilitating the flow of investment
into their economies and
across the region.
Not only do the RIFF measures mirror those called for
under the SADC and COMESA
treaties, but also several elements
of the programmes already
on the agenda of other
sub-regional organizations.
It is made up of 14 countries –
Burundi, Comoros, Kenya,
Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius,
Namibia, Rwanda, Seychelles,
Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda,
Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The ICM requested ministers
of trade to submit recommendations
on overlapping trading
arrangements to the Council of
Ministers meeting in August 2006.
Six countries – who are
members of both SADC and
COMESA – are currently negotiating,
outside the SADC configuration,
on Economic Partnership
Agreements (EPAs )
with the European Union.
The countries – DRC, Madagascar,
Malawi, Mauritius, Zambia
and Zimbabwe – are negotiating
under the Eastern and Southern
Africa (ESA) banner.
Angola, Botswana, Lesotho,
Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland
and the United Republic of
Tanzania are negotiating as
SADC.
South Africa participates as
an observer after having concluded
its own trade agreement
with the EU in the late 1990s.


title:
Visa-free entry for key tourist source countries by 2008

Abstract:
THE REGIONAL Tourism Organisation
of Southern Africa
(RETOSA), a SADC institution
responsible for promoting the region's
tourism sector, is aiming
for visa exemption for citizens
travelling between southern
African states, as well as introduction
of the SADC UniVisa for
visitors from key source markets,
by the end of 2008.

body:
THE REGIONAL Tourism Organisation
of Southern Africa
(RETOSA), a SADC institution
responsible for promoting the region's
tourism sector, is aiming
for visa exemption for citizens
travelling between southern
African states, as well as introduction
of the SADC UniVisa for
visitors from key source markets,
by the end of 2008.
This was the recommendation
of a meeting of SADC
tourism stakeholders in Swaziland
in May, which discussed
the findings of a study on the
implications of a SADC Uni Visa
and visa exemption.
According to RETOSA, the
tourism stakeholders agreed
that visa exemptions should
apply to key source markets for
the SADC region.
Countries not listed as key
source markets would be on the
UniVisa system, allowing them
to travel throughout the entire
SADC region with only one
visa, said RETOSA.
<pVisa exemptions for SADC
citizens were also discussed at
the Swaziland meeting and it
was agreed that this should be
the number one priority. About
three-quarters of Member
States are already exempting citizens of some fellow SADC
countries.
The SADC Integrated Committee
of Ministers (ICM),
which met in South Africa in
June, noted that this region
continues to achieve a low
global market share in tourism
due to low arrivals from global
source markets caused by impediments
such as visa restrictions.
The ICM resolved that the
SADC ministers responsible for
tourism should meet soon to finalise
the modalities for the Uni Visa implementation, in consultation
with key stakeholders.


title:
China, India become major trading partners for Africa

Abstract:
SADC IS poised to benefit from
the commodities boom triggered
by Chinese and Indian demand
and is set to cement existing relations
with these new economic
powerhouses.

body:
SADC IS poised to benefit from
the commodities boom triggered
by Chinese and Indian demand
and is set to cement existing relations
with these new economic
powerhouses.
Political and business leaders
from the region and other
parts of Africa, meeting in South
Africa for the World Economic
Forum on Africa in June, agreed
on the need to establish a new
partnership with China and
India so that they contribute to
the continent's development.
Widely seen as the “new centres
of economic power”, China
and India have emerged as
Africa's major trading partners
in the past five years.
The rapid economic growth
of China and India has boosted
their ties with Africa, and the
continent's trade with the two
countries has tripled in just five
years. Investment and aid have
also increased.
Tanzanian president, Jakaya
Kikwete, described the Asian
countries as models for change
that can significantly contribute
to Africa's transformation.
“They give Africa hope that
it is possible to transform our nations
from abject poverty and
put them on a development
path. One day, with the right
policies and the right actions, we
too can get there,” said Kikwete.
China and India have
emerged from underdevelopment
and widespread poverty to
become economic giants.
On a practical level, they can
contribute to Africa's development
by providing markets for
African goods, as well as through
being inexpensive sources for
technology and medicine.
Mandisi Mpahlwa,
South Africa's Minister of
Trade and Industry, said
the “new centres of economic
power” understand the issues that Africa is
grappling with.
“They have the experience of
similar conditions, such as huge
numbers of African people
whose livelihoods depend on
agriculture. That is very different
from the developed world,” said
Mpahlwa.
Trade between China and
Africa has more than trebled since
2000, rising from US$10 billion in
2000 to US$35 billion in 2005.
Chinese investment in Africa
is also growing fast, with some
800 Chinese firms doing business
on the continent.
China's appetite for raw materials
is helping to push African
economies to their fastest growth
in three decades. Chinese-made
products have provided cheaper
options for African consumers.
Much of China's African
trade and investment is energy-related.
Once the biggest oil exporter
in Asia, China became a undernet
importer of oil in 1993 as domestic
demand grew and local
production of crude oil declined.
It imports more than 40 percent
of its oil requirements and
about 25 percent of that is from
Africa. China has oil investments
in Angola, Sudan, Nigeria, Chad,
Algeria, Gabon and Equatorial
Guinea.
India has also been actively
promoting trade with Africa in
recent years. To boost the country's
trade with the Sub-Saharan
African region, the Indian government
launched the “Focus:
Africa” programme covering the
period 2002-07.
Target countries identified
during the first phase of the programme
include Mauritius,
Kenya and Ethiopia, but this has
been expanding to include more
countries.
India provides financial assistance
to various trade promotion
organisations, export promotion councils and apex chambers
in the form of market development
assistance under the
“Focus: Africa” programme.
Indian carmaker, Tata Motors,
has made significant inroads
into South Africa's lucrative
vehicle industry.
Through the SADC-India
Forum, southern Africa and
India have resolved to work together
in the areas of agriculture,
promotion of small and
medium scale industries, drugs
and pharmaceuticals, human resources
development, water resources
management, and information
and communications
technology.
The first session of the forum
was held in Windhoek, Namibia,
in April.
A SADC-India Business
Forum to spearhead promotion
of trade and investment on both
sides was proposed during the
Windhoek meeting.


Abstract:
BEITBRIDGE AND Chirundu
border posts have been
selected for the pilot phase of
the SADC one-stop border initiative
that aims to facilitate
trade and free movement of
persons between Member
States.

body:
BEITBRIDGE AND Chirundu
border posts have been
selected for the pilot phase of
the SADC one-stop border initiative
that aims to facilitate
trade and free movement of
persons between Member
States.
At present people travelling
from South Africa to Zimbabwe and vice versa have to complete
immigration formalities
on either side of the Beitbridge
Border Post. The same applies
to travellers between Zimbabwe
and Zambia who have to be
cleared on either side of
Chirundu Border Post.
Under the initiative, travellers
would be cleared just once for passage into another
country.
The project is meant to harmonise
customs and immigration
procedures at border
points within the SADC region.
Delays are often encountered
at border posts in the region due
to duplication of work ,and the
purpose of the one-stop border
initiative is to remove the barriers
to trade through improvement
of operational procedures.
The initiative will require the
harmonisation of the customs
and immigration procedures of
South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
It will go a long way in
improving efficiency and decongesting
the two border posts,
considered to be among sub-Saharan
Africa's busiest ports of
entry.


title:
Food security in southern Africa - More investment needed for irrigation

Abstract:
SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS
has been made in strengthening
southern Africa's capacity to
feed itself despite indications
that investment in agriculture is
declining.

body:
More investment needed for irrigation
SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS
has been made in strengthening
southern Africa's capacity to
feed itself despite indications
that investment in agriculture is
declining.
A review of progress in agriculture
and food security by the
SADC Integrated Committee of
Ministers (ICM) in June revealed
that although the overall
cereal deficit in the region has
increased this year, food security
for most Member States has
improved compared to last year.
Speaking after the ICM in South
Africa, SADC Executive Secretary,
Tomaz Augusto Salomão
said the increase in the deficit
was due to a substantial reduction
in maize production in
South Africa.
However, some countries
such as Malawi, Mozambique,
South Africa and Zambia, have
reported surplus maize production
while Namibia, United Republic
of Tanzania and Zimbabwe
have recorded significant increases
in production.
Maize is the major cereal
crop in southern Africa. The
other cereal crops include
wheat, barley, rice, sorghum and
millet.
Production of cassava also
improved with 22.03 million
tonnes expected in 2006, up 19
percent from last years' production
of 18.47 million tonnes
Attributing the improved
food situation to the implementation
of the Dar es Salaam Declaration,
and improved rainfall
in the 2005/2006 season, the
SADC ICM noted that the region
is likely to require less humanitarian
assistance.
The region has recently experienced
highly erratic rainfall
patterns which have negatively
affected agricultural production
and regional food security.
In addition, as the SADC Directorate
of Food, Agriculture
and Natural Resources (FANR)
says, the last three decades have
seen a decline in financing inflows
into agricultural development
from the public, private
and donor sectors.
“The most significant decline
was in multilateral aid to
African agriculture,” says FANR
in a document on sustainable
food security prepared for the
SADC Consultative Conference
held in Namibia in April.
Perennial food shortages
prompted SADC leaders to call
an extraordinary summit in
2004, whose main outcome was
the Dar es Salaam Declaration.
The document is a framework of
short, medium and long term
measures needed to improve
food security in the region.
A communiqué issued after
the FANR Cluster Ministers
meeting held in South Africa in
April to review progress on the
implementation of the Dar es
Salaam Declaration noted that,
although some progress has
been made in improving the
availability and accessibility of
key agricultural inputs such as
improved seed and fertilizers to
small-scale farmers, declining investment and national budgetary
allocations to agriculture
remain a major concern.
In Zambia, budgetary allocation
to agriculture was a mere
two percent in 2001, rising to
seven percent in 2004, before declining
to about four percent in
2005, according to a presentation
on Resource Allocation for Agriculture
by Jones Govereh of the
Food Security Research Project.
In the United Republic of
Tanzania, there has been a gradual
decline in public sector investment
in agriculture over the
last two decades. Budgetary allocation
to the sector fell from 21
percent in 1980 to 2.1 percent in
1998 before rising marginally to
6.5 percent in 2002/03 farming
season, according to a Country
Strategic Opportunities Paper
prepared through collaboration
between the government and
the International Fund for Agricultural
Development.
The Dar es Salaam Declaration
calls for governments to progressively
increase budgetary allocations
for agriculture to at
least 10 percent of the national
total budgets as recommended in
the African Union's Maputo Declaration
on Agriculture and Food
Security adopted in July 2003.
investment
in agriculture over the
last two decades. Budgetary allocation
to the sector fell from 21
percent in 1980 to 2.1 percent in
1998 before rising marginally to
6.5 percent in 2002/03 farming
season, according to a Country
Strategic Opportunities Paper
prepared through collaboration
between the government and
the International Fund for Agricultural
Development.
The Dar es Salaam Declaration
calls for governments to progressively
increase budgetary allocations
for agriculture to at
least 10 percent of the national
total budgets as recommended in
the African Union's Maputo Declaration
on Agriculture and Food
Security adopted in July 2003.


Abstract:
THE SUCCESSFUL elections in
the Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC) on 30 July are a
major step toward national reconciliation
and reconstruction.

body:
Elections a major step toward reconciliation and reconstruction
THE SUCCESSFUL elections in
the Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC) on 30 July are a
major step toward national reconciliation
and reconstruction.
Final poll results are expected
to be announced by the
Supreme Court before 31 August,
with the inauguration of
the president-elect provisionally
set for 10 September.
In the event that there is no
clear winner from the 30 July
presidential poll, the inauguration
would be postponed to 10
December, after a second round
of voting to determine the winner.
DRC law requires that the
winner of the presidential election
garners at least 50 percent
of the votes to avoid a run-off.
The chairperson of the
Independent Electoral Commission
(IEC), Apollinaire
Malu Malu, said the management
of the electoral process
went according to plan.
Over 25.6 million people
were eligible to vote in the first
democratic elections since the
DRC attained independence in
1960.
The polls were contested by
33 presidential candidates, including
five women. More than
9,700 parliamentary candidates
contested 500 legislative seats.
The elections attracted a lot
of attention from various international
organisations, which
sent teams to observe the elections.
There were over 4,000 national
and 1,500 international
observers to monitor the
process. More than 70 international
journalists were on the
ground, covering the elections.
SADC sent a 200-member
observer team led by John
Pandeni, Namibia's Minister
of Regional and
Local Government,
Housing and Rural
Development.
In a preliminary statement issued
after the polls, the SADC
team described the elections as
“peaceful, credible, well managed
and transparent.”
“Despite the complexity of
the process in a country emerging
from armed conflict and a
long transition coupled with resource
and infrastructure constraints,
the people of Democratic
Republic of the Congo have
expressed their will in an impressive manner that will remain
in the annals of history of
not only of the people of Congo
but also of Africa and the world
as whole,” said SADC.
The SADC Election
Observer Mission is guided by
the SADC Principles and Guidelines
Governing Democratic
Elections.
Under the guidelines, SADC
Member States have agreed to
guarantee the full participation
of all citizens in their country's
political processes.
This includes, among others,
the need for 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; and
equal opportunity to exercise the
right to vote and be voted for.
Other countries where these
guidelines have been applied are Mauritius, the United Republic of
Tanzania and Zimbabwe.
Among other organisations
that sent observer teams to the
DRC were the African Union
(AU), the SADC Parliamentary
Forum (SADC PF) and the European
Union.
“I congratulate the Congolese
people for their patience,
courage and faith in the future
which they have demonstrated
throughout the long years of
war experienced by the DRC as
well as during the three years of
political transition,” said Alpha
Omar Konare, AU commission
chairperson.
Konare encouraged
DRC political parties and
their supporters to respect the
electoral verdict and said disputes
should be addressed only
through legal means.
The SADC PF, a regional organisation
of parliamentarians
from SADC Member States, deployed
a 115-member delegation
under the leadership of the
Deputy Speaker of Malawi's
National Assembly, Jones
Chingola.
South African President
Mbeki said the elections were a
decisive moment in the modern
history of the DRC and Africa
and a major step on the road to
reconciliation, reconstruction
and development.
The southern African region
hopes to extract immense benefits
from the vast central African
country, which boasts of rich diamond
fields and a vast market
for trade and investment.
With a population of 60 million
people, the DRC is set to
provide the much-needed market
to benefit the rest of the
SADC region.
The DRC has vast untapped
agricultural capacity and could
be the next food-basket of
Africa, only if current peace
holds.
Straddling the equator and
spanning two tropical zones, its
climate favours the cultivation
of a wide range of tropical and
Mediterranean crops. More than
half of the DRC's land is arable
and suitable for farming but
currently just a fraction is being
utilised.
The landmark election has
resulted from several peace-building
initiatives, culminating
in the 18 December 2005
referendum that embraced
changes to the national Constitution.
Through the referendum, the
Congolese decided that elections
should take place in 2006
to elect a popular government.
The holding of the elections
was postponed several times
this year to allow the IEC time to
prepare for the polls.
Preparations were hampered
by unforeseen hurdles mostly to
do with the immense size of the
country, coupled with the poor
state of the communications infrastructure.
South Africa assisted by providing
material and logistical
support in the run-up to the
polls. It contributed material for
printing the ballot papers and
assisted in the distribution of
voting papers to 14 hubs across
the country.


title:
Lesotho - Country driven by a shared national vision

Abstract:
“BY 2020, Lesotho shall be a
stable democracy, united, prosperous nation at peace with itself
and its neighbours. It shall
have a healthy and well-developed
human resource base. Its
economy will be strong, its environment well-managed and
its technology well established.”

body:
“BY 2020, Lesotho shall be a
stable democracy, united, prosperous nation at peace with itself
and its neighbours. It shall
have a healthy and well-developed
human resource base. Its
economy will be strong, its environment well-managed and
its technology well established.”
This is the vision statement
that has been the rallying point
for all Basotho since 2004 and is
expected to guide the development
agenda of this kingdom of
just over two million people up
to 2020.
The Vision 2020 was the culmination
of wide national consultations
that started in 2000.
Inspired by the Basotho values
of peace, unity, tolerance, selfrespect,
order and sharing, the
Vision 2020 blueprint was officially
endorsed as representing
the developmental aspirations
of the Basotho in 2004.
It is envisaged that by the
year 2020, Lesotho shall be a stable
democracy where the principles
of good governance will be
anchored on the respect for
human rights, the rule of law,
political openness, political participation
and tolerance.
This form of governance
will be based on five pillars of
democracy that encompass: supremacy of the will of people,
transparency, a devoted and efficient
public service, justice
for all and efficient chieftainship.
Changes to the country's
electoral system, from First Past
The Post (FPTP) to Mixed Member
Proportional (MMP) representation,
and the restructuring
of the defence forces in the past
few years have substantially improved the political environment.
The Vision 2020 programme
also envisages that Basotho shall
be a united nation with cherished
norms and values that will enhance a sense of belonging,
identity, and pride in every citizen.
The long-term national vision
foresees a prosperous
Lesotho, with a robust economy
whose performance will be underpinned
by good economic
policies. Its vibrant economy
with a strong industrial base
will fully exploit the potential
for locally available natural resources.
The country's key textile and
clothing industry, which has not
been performing well since
2005, is showing signs of recovering
from the slump caused by
the removal of privileges into
the lucrative European and
American markets.
Lesotho's single largest employer,
the textile industry has
made a remarkable comeback,
with several factories that were
closed being reopened. The
number of jobs which had
shrunk from just more than
50,000 to below 40,000 over the
past two years, has climbed
back to around 47,000.

Lesotho was one of the victims
of the 2005 phase-out of the
30-year-old Multi-Fibre Agreement
that protected smaller textile
industries in developing
countries by insulating them
from Chinese competition.
The phase-out, courtesy of a
World Trade Organisation ruling,
opened the United States
and European markets to market
forces, which allowed
Chinese textile and
clothing companies
to export to these
markets.
Lesotho has
also set its sights
on deepening its cooperation
with other countries in
the areas of trade, investment
and economic advancement as
part of the Vision 2020 strategy.
One of the areas it has been
deepening its cooperation is
tourism where the country has
just developed a strategy to take
advantage of South Africa's
hosting of the soccer World Cup
in 2010.
One of the measures proposed
by the Lesotho Tourism
Development Corporation is the
establishment of an “African
Pavilion” during the tournament
at which southern African
culture will be showcased
through handicrafts and works
of arts.
The corporation has also set
its sight on improving existing
and developing new infrastructure
ahead of the World Cup as
well as an improvement of facilities
at the country's border
posts.
The country has set out to
improve its education system, with emphasis on the improvement
of quality, efficiency and
effectiveness. The target is to
ultimately achieve universal
primary education and to improve
access to early secondary
education while securing high
quality and performance standards.
Lesotho also hopes to have
met all international environmental
standards by 2020. The
Basotho people will be empowered
in designing and managing
biodiversity conservation
projects relevant to their own
communities and environmental
education will be integrated
at all levels of learning.
Culture plays a crucial role in
the lives of the Basotho and it is
hoped that by 2020 all the country's
citizens will share common
goals based on their heritage.
They will also continue to show
respect for their national symbols
such as the national anthem
and flag.
The target is to create a country
characterised by sustained
political stability, political tolerance
and peaceful coexistence
among its people and with its
neighbours.
It is further envisaged that
Basotho shall be a healthy nation
with a well-developed
human resource base. The country
will have a good quality
health system with facilities and
infrastructure accessible and affordable
to all Basotho, irrespective
of income, disabilities, and
geographical location and
wealth. (Lesotho Government online)


title:
Integrated Committee of Ministers sets priorities for SADC 2006/07

Abstract:
THE INTEGRATED Committee of Ministers (ICM) is one of the new institutions
established in the restructuring of SADC, to ensure the
smooth implementation of regional programmes and projects.

body:
THE INTEGRATED Committee of Ministers (ICM) is one of the new institutions
established in the restructuring of SADC, to ensure the
smooth implementation of regional programmes and projects.
The role of ICM is to ensure proper policy guidance and coordination
of cross-sectoral activities. That mandate involves the review of the activities
of SADC directorates to ensure rapid implementation of programmes.
The ICM meets once a year to review progress. The 2006 meeting
was held in South Africa in June, during which the ministers reviewed
the implementation of 2005/2006 priorities of the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) and of last year's ICM decisions.
Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan

Successful implementation of the
RISDP holds the key to the attainment
of regional integration
objectives. Member States were
urged to mainstream the RISDP
into their national development
plans and the ICM resolved to
recommend to the Council of
Ministers in August to approve
the introduction of a Policy and
Planning element in the structures
of priority directorates.
This will strengthen the capacity
of directorates for operational
planning, monitoring
and reporting.
The RISDP has broad targets
and priorities, five of which
have been identified for immediate
implementation. These
are in the areas of:
 peace, security and democracy;
 trade and economic liberalisation;
 infrastructure and services
development;
 human and social imperatives,
such as HIV and AIDS
and food security; and,
 cross-cutting issues with a
critical bearing on these core
integration areas.
The ICM approved and
adopted cluster reports on the
implementation of programmes
and activities, including
priorities for the
next financial year.
Challenges faced in
the implementation of
regional programmes include inadequate human resources
capacity for the directorates
as some senior positions
are still to be filled, while others
remain frozen due to budgetary
constraints.

Trade, Industry, Finance and Investment

Member States plan to expedite
the decision on the extension of
an agreement on textiles between
the Southern African Customs
Union (SACU) countries and
Malawi, Mozambique, the United
Republic of Tanzania and Zambia
(MMTZ) due to end in July.
The agreement, known as the
SACU-MMTZ Textiles and
Clothing Quota Arrangement,
allows duty-free access for
MMTZ textiles and clothing exports
into SACU countries.
The SACU-MMTZ Textiles
and Clothing Quota Arrangement
is in line with the implementation
of the SADC Trade
Protocol, which came into force
in 2000, paving the way for the
creation of a free trade area in
SADC over an eight-year period.
The MMTZ countries have
for the past five years been able
to export their clothing and textile
products to the SACU region
on the basis of what is termed a “single stage transformation”
rule of origin.
This rule is used to ensure
that Member States at least add
a certain minimum value of
local content to imported products
before they can re-export
to other SADC countries.
The actual quotas vary on the
basis of current production capacity
and the arrangement was
in place for a period of five years
commencing 1 August 2001.
SACU comprises Botswana,
Lesotho, Namibia, Swaziland
and South Africa. Its members already enjoy duty-free trade
among themselves and the
SACU-MMTZ agreement is an
attempt to broaden such treatment
to other countries in SADC
under the Trade Protocol.
Meanwhile, progress has
been made on the review of the
SADC rules of origin and the
Secretariat is expected to finalise
recommendations on the
rules. The recommendations
will quicken the implementation
of the Protocol on Trade.
Member States must submit
their gazetted tariff phase-down
schedules for 2006 to the
Secretariat. Tariff phase-down
is one of the provisions of the
SADC Protocol on Trade approved
by Heads of State and
Government during the SADC
Summit in 1996, and came into
force in September 2000.
The protocol aims to create a
Free Trade Area in the SADC
region by 2008.
A task force was formed
during the ICM comprising ministers of trade and finance
from selected Member States
whose role will be to spearhead
activities leading to the formation
of the SADC Customs
Union by 2010.
Social and Human Development and Special Programmes

There are plans to improve interventions
on combating communicable
and non-communicable
diseases.
This will involve improvement
of the coordination and
facilitation of programmes on
the prevention and control of
major communicable and noncommunicable
diseases, including
traumas and accidents,
and the development of a regional
strategy to accelerate
HIV and AIDS prevention in all
Member States.
Of particular concern is the
limited progress made in reducing
incidence of tuberculosis
despite having been declared TB an emergency in
Africa, including the SADC region.
Ministers attending the ICM
noted that the Cluster on Social
and Human Development continued
to face the problem of
limited policy guidance and direction
at the ministerial level,
especially in the areas of labour
and employment, culture, information
and sports.
The ICM endorsed the
Human and Social Development and Special Programmes
Directorate's business plan and
priorities for 2007/08, as well
as actions that would address
some of these challenges and
constraints and facilitate effective
implementation of the
RISDP.
Identified priorities include
coordination and implementation
of business plans for the
protocols on health and education
and training; strengthening
of national quality assurance
systems within the context
of the Regional Qualifications
Frameworks; and
implementation of the
SADC/African Development
Bank project on open and distance
learning.
Infrastructure and Services

The Infrastructure and Services
Directorate facilitates programmes
that promote access
to transport, communications,
energy, water and tourism by
rural communities, and seeks
to promote community participation
in the mainstream business
as a vehicle for poverty reduction
and attainment of Millennium
Development Goal
targets.

Projects that the directorate
is undertaking include the following.


WESTCOR

Western Corridor Project
(WESTCOR) is a regional project
conceived through the combined initiative of the SADC
Secretariat and the power utilities
of Angola, Botswana, Democratic
Republic of Congo
(DRC), Namibia and South
Africa. There are plans to include
other SADC countries.
The project intends to exploit
the hydroelectric energy
of the Inga rapids on the
Congo river in the DRC and
will add about 3,500
megawatts of power to the regional
grid. It will also develop
associated telecommunications
and transmission infrastructure in the western part
of SADC.
The consortium has established
an office in Gaborone,
Botswana, and is in the
process of mobilising resources to start the project by
constructing power transmission
lines to countries in need
of energy.
Energy sector reforms

The ICM said Member States
need to speed up reforms of
their power utilities to improve
access to electricity by rural
communities and quicken the
pace towards attainment of
MDGs.
The meeting also directed
the SADC Secretariat to facilitate
the sharing of regional
modalities for best practices regarding
access, ownership, and
financing options for rural electrification.
Under its rural electrification
programme, the region has
set a target of electrifying 70
percent of rural households by
2018.
In view of the fact that the
majority of SADC's population
lives in rural areas, an efficient
and integrated infrastructure
system - including access to
electricity - will unleash the
production potential of these
communities and contribute to
poverty eradication.
2010 promotion strategy

The SADC Secretariat and the
Regional Tourism Organisation
of Southern Africa are formulating
a tourism strategy to benefit
from visitors to the 2010 FIFA
World Cup.
Member States are currently
preparing proposals on how to
benefit from the 2010 tournament.
These include how the
Member States can utilise the
various Trans-frontier Conservation
Parks that have been established.
Air transport

Significant progress has been
made by the region in terms of
institutional reforms aimed at
facilitating implementation of
the air transport liberalisation
process in line with the SADC
Protocol on Transport, Communications
and Meteorology.
Article 9.2 of the protocol requires
SADC countries to implement
gradual air transport liberalisation
of intra-regional air
transport markets for regional
airlines.


Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources

The food security situation for
most Member States has improved
this year as compared to
last year.
However, the cereal production
for 2006 is expected
to be lower than 2005.

Total regional cereal production
for 2006 is assessed at 21.31
million tonnes, which is 15 percent
lower than last year's production
of 24.99 million tonnes.
This is due to a substantial reduction
in maize production in
South Africa from 11.45 million
tonnes in 2005 to the 2006 forecast
of 6 million tonnes.
Regional maize harvest for
2006 is estimated at 15.78 million
tonnes, representing a 20
percent decrease over last
year's harvest of 19.74 million
tonnes.
Other harvests are estimated
at 2.82 million tonnes for
wheat; 713,000 tonnes rice and
1.84 million tonnes for
sorghum/millet.
Cassava production was up
19 percent over last year at
22.03 million tonnes. Only 18.47
million tonnes were produced
in 2004/05.
Transboundary animal diseases

To avert the avian influenza,
SADC has approved a ban on
imports of poultry and poultry
products and other birds from
infected countries.
The ICM approved the ban
in compliance with recommendations
of the World Organisation
for Animal Health.
The ICM also approved a
five-year programme on
strengthening institutions for
risk management of transboundary
animal diseases
(TADs) which aims to enhance
animal health through improved
capacity for detection,
identification, monitoring and
surveillance of TADs in the region.
The programme is estimated
at US$21.86 million and the
proposal was expected to be
presented to the African Development
Bank in July for funding.


title:
Tanzania develops drought-resistant wheat variety

Abstract:
TANZANIAN SCIENTISTS
have developed a new wheat variety
which is high-yielding, matures
fast and is drought-resistant.

body:
TANZANIAN SCIENTISTS
have developed a new wheat variety
which is high-yielding, matures
fast and is drought-resistant.
Called Riziki, the wheat variety
is the product of six years of
trials and matures in only 90
days, yielding up to three
tonnes a hectare.
The Riziki variety is also resistant
to major fungal diseases
affecting the crop, especially
stem and leaf rust.
Richard Ndondi, principal
agricultural research officer
with the Arusha-based Selian
Agricultural Research Institute,
said the variety was suitable for regions of the United Republic
of Tanzania that normally
receive marginal rainfall.
Released by the country's
Ministry of Agriculture, Food
Security and Cooperatives early
this year, the new wheat variety
will prove successful in Hanang
district, a major wheat growing zone hit by drought in recent
years.
Ndondi said four more
wheat seed varieties will be released
by the ministry before
the end of this year. According
to him, currently there are nine
wheat seed varieties grown in
the country. (Arusha Times)


Abstract:
A ZIMBABWEAN engineering
student has invented a mini hydroelectric
plant capable of generating
electricity for irrigation.

body:
A ZIMBABWEAN engineering
student has invented a mini hydroelectric
plant capable of generating
electricity for irrigation.
According to Christopher
Chinhongo, a student at the
Harare Polytechnic, the mini
plant is powered by water from a
dam through pipes that force turbines,
sprockets and the flywheel
to turn as they generate
electricity.
It is already in use in some
villages in the Macheke resettlement
area to the north-east of
the capital, Harare.
The development of the
mini power plant comes at a
time southern Africa is facing
electricity generation shortfalls,
which are projected to worsen
from 2007, unless new projects
take off.
Rising demand for electricity
caused by high economic
growth and lack of investment
in new generation capacity are
blamed for the power shortage.
Zimbabwe has significant
small hydropower potential,
particularly in the Eastern Highlands.
Feasibility studies that
have been carried out show that
there are a number of perennial
rivers with sufficient capacity
that can be tapped for mini
hydro power development.
A United Nations Development
Programme-sponsored
study conducted in 1996
identified 12 potential
hydro sites on irrigation
dams and a further 32
run-of-river sites.
Potential also exists at many
irrigation dams throughout
Zimbabwe to develop small-scale
hydroelectric projects to
partially offset the energy importation
requirements of the
country.
Existing micro hydropower
schemes include the Rusitu Project in the Eastern Highlands,
which is the country's first and
only small hydropower plant to
be developed as an independent
public-private partnership and
connected to the national grid.
The 750 kilowatt (kW) project
was commissioned in June 1997
and has been selling power to the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply
Authority.
Claremont Hydropower Project,
also in the Eastern Highlands,
was one of the earliest
private sector small hydro
plants to be developed in Zimbabwe
in 1962 with a capacity of
450kW.


title:
Mozambique signs up for e-schools project

Abstract:
MOZAMBIQUE HAS become
the eighth African country - and
the third from SADC - to sign up
for the New Partnership for
Africa's Development (NEPAD)
e-schools programme.

body:
MOZAMBIQUE HAS become
the eighth African country - and
the third from SADC - to sign up
for the New Partnership for
Africa's Development (NEPAD)
e-schools programme.
The southern African country
signed a memorandum of
understanding (MOU) with the
NEPAD e-Africa Commission,
Microsoft and HP to join Ghana,
Kenya, Lesotho, Senegal, South
Africa, Rwanda and Uganda as
the only countries to sign up for
the e-schools project.
The NEPAD e-schools project
aims to equip young Africans
with information and communication
technology (ICT) skills to
enable them to compete
favourably in the information
society and global economy.
First announced in 2003 at the
Africa summit of the World Economic
Forum in Durban, South
Africa, the e-schools project focuses
on providing ICT solutions
that will connect schools across
Africa to the NEPAD e-schools
network and the Internet.


Abstract:
A GROUP of researchers says a
new antibiotic found in South
African soil could be the solution
to two dangerous germs
that are bedevilling hospitals.

body:
A GROUP of researchers says a
new antibiotic found in South
African soil could be the solution
to two dangerous germs
that are bedevilling hospitals.
The antibiotic is yet to be
tested in humans and is years
away from showing up
on pharmacy shelves but the
researchers said it has plenty of
potential, especially since no
other similar drugs have landed
on the market since 2000.
They hope to use the antibiotic
to fight several bacteria that
have developed resistance
against existing drugs. One
is an infection known as
methicillin-resistant staphylococcus
aureus (MRSA), which
can cause pneumonia in hospital
settings and skin infections
in the general population. Another
is vancomycin-resistant
enterococcus (VRE).
In mice, the antibiotic,
known as platensimycin, destroyed
both MRSA and VRE.


title:
Cahora Bassa becomes a “technically complex issue”

Abstract:
NEGOTIATIONS TO finalise
the deal allowing Portugal to
sell the giant Cahora Bassa dam
to Mozambique have stalled because
Eurostat is yet to make a
technical ruling on the impact of
the deal on the Portuguese economy.

body:
NEGOTIATIONS TO finalise
the deal allowing Portugal to
sell the giant Cahora Bassa dam
to Mozambique have stalled because
Eurostat is yet to make a
technical ruling on the impact of
the deal on the Portuguese economy.
Eurostat is the European
Union's statistical body whose
responsibility is, among other
things, to assess member states'
public expenditure and national
accounts.
The two countries signed a
Memorandum of Understanding
on 2 November 2005 under
which Mozambique would pay
US$950 million for an 85 percent
controlling stake in Hydroelectric
of Cahora Bassa (HCB),
the company that operates the
dam.
Currently, Portugal holds 82
percent of the shares, while the remainder
is held by Mozambique.
Mozambique would pay the
amount in tranches, with the official
handover initially scheduled
for December.
President Armando Guebuza
raised the issue after meeting
Portugal's Prime Minister, José
Socrates, during the Summit of
the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP) held
on 18 July in Bissau, the capital of
Guinéa Bissau.
“I did not negotiate with Eurostat
or the European Union. I
negotiated with Portugal and it
is from that country that I await
a response,” he said.
Former Portuguese Prime
Minister and current President
of the European Commission,
José Manuel Durão Barroso, has told Guebuza that the sale of
Cahora Bassa is "a technically
complex issue" which will take
"some time to solve".
Barroso stressed that Eurostat
"is trying to determine
whether this operation is compatible
with the obligations assumed
by Portugal under the
convergence plan for budget
deficit reduction."


Abstract:
THREE SOUTHERN African
countries that share the Limpopo
Trans-Frontier Conservation Park
are putting together investment
incentives to spin benefits from
South Africa's hosting of the soccer
World Cup in 2010.

body:
THREE SOUTHERN African
countries that share the Limpopo
Trans-Frontier Conservation Park
are putting together investment
incentives to spin benefits from
South Africa's hosting of the soccer
World Cup in 2010.
Mozambique, South Africa
and Zimbabwe agreed on a
s h a red investment drive at a
conference held on 28 July in
Polokwane, South Africa.
The three countries are directly
involved in the soccer fiesta
through one of the 10 host stadiums
- the Peter Mokaba Stadium
in Polokwane. The stadium is less
than 300 kilometres from both
Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
The Limpopo trans-frontier
park is made up of South Africa's
Kruger National Park, the
Limpopo National Park in
Mozambique, and Zimbabwe's
Gonarezhou National Park.
The programme by the three
countries is backed by a Master
Plan launched by the SADC
Council of Ministers in February to develop a joint strategy to improve
infrastructure ahead of the
World Cup. The strategy is
known as the Trans-Frontier Conservation
Areas 2010 Soccer
World Cup.
Local and foreign companies
wishing to invest in the
Limpopo region will be granted
incentives ranging from tax
relief to investment grants.
The Limpopo initiative is targeting
US$1.4 billion worth of
investment and expects to create
5,000 jobs in the next three to
five years with spin-off impact
on the surrounding areas of
Mozambique and Zimbabwe.


Abstract:
MOZAMBIQUE AND Zimbabwe
have removed three zeroes
from the value of their money as
part of currency reforms aimed at
making business and other transactions
manageable.

body:
MOZAMBIQUE AND Zimbabwe
have removed three zeroes
from the value of their money as
part of currency reforms aimed at
making business and other transactions
manageable.
The Bank of Mozambique introduced
a “new family” of metical
banknotes on 1 July. The new
notes bear the face of the country's
first post-independence
president, Samora Machel.
The old banknotes and coins
will remain legal tender until 31
December when they will be removed
from circulation.
In a midterm monetary policy
review at the end of July, the governor
of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe,
Gideon Gono, announced
a "new family" of bearer cheques
effective from 1 August, after removing
three zeroes from all denominations.
The old notes will
cease to be legal tender from 21
August at the latest.


title:
Thermal power station planned for Swaziland

Abstract:
A PRIVATE company in Swaziland
has announced plans to construct
one of southern Africa's
largest thermal power stations to
contribute to easing the region's
electricity shortages.

body:
A PRIVATE company in Swaziland
has announced plans to construct
one of southern Africa's
largest thermal power stations to
contribute to easing the region's
electricity shortages.
The power station is expected
to produce about 3,500
megawatts (MW) of electricity.
Peter Canham, one of the
project promoters, said the electricity
to be produced will satisfy
local demand while the surplus
can be exported to other
countries in the region.
"It will satisfy the local demand,
as we will be facing
shortages from next year when
South Africa stops supplying
the country," Canham said.
The project is worth over
US$1 billion and should provide
about 15,000 jobs.
The Swaziland Electricity
Board is carrying out a feasibility
study on the project before
construction can start.
Swaziland currently has an
installed capacity of 51 MW and
relies on South Africa for about
80 percent of its electricity.


title:
Natural wealth key to poverty reduction in Africa, study

Abstract:
POVERTY CAN be eradicated
for Africa's 800 million inhabitants
if the continent's wealth of
natural resources is effectively,
fairly and sustainably harnessed.

body:
POVERTY CAN be eradicated
for Africa's 800 million inhabitants
if the continent's wealth of
natural resources is effectively,
fairly and sustainably harnessed.
However, rapid deforestation,
widespread land degradation,
wasteful water use and climate
change must be urgently
addressed, according to a new
report.
“The report challenges the
myth that Africa is poor,” the
UN Environment Programme
(UNEP) executive director,
Achim Steiner, said of the Africa
Environment Outlook 2 (AEO 2).
“Indeed, it points out that its
vast natural wealth can, if sensitively,
sustainably and creatively
managed, be the basis for an
African renaissance - a renaissance
that meets and goes beyond
the internationally agreed
Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs),” he added.
According to AEO-2, African
countries face stark choices.
“If policies remain unchanged,
political will found
wanting and sufficient funding
proves to be elusive, then Africa may take a far more unsustainable
track that will see an erosion
of its nature-based wealth
and a slide into even deeper
poverty,” the study noted.
Beyond home-grown issues
such as deforestation and water
wastage, the report notes some
imported challenges, ranging
from genetically modified organisms
and the cost of alien invasive
species to a switch of
chemical manufacturing from
the developed to the developing
world.
It also cites a wide range
of international environment
treaties to which many African
countries are now parties as
well as new cooperative agreements
covering shared river
basins and ecosystems such as
the Limpopo and the Zambezi,
and the Congo basin's globally
important forests.
Initiatives such as the African
Union's New Partnership for
Africa's Development (NEPAD)
also promise to propel the continent
onto a more prosperous
path that balances economic, social
and environmental concerns.
Several African countries,
such as the Gambia and Zambia,
are mainstreaming the environment
in their Poverty Reduction
Strategy Papers and other countries
are starting to use taxation
and other market mechanisms
to conserve ecosystems including
forests.
“I am convinced that we are
fast reaching a watershed in
Africa's response and that the
pieces of a sustainable jigsaw
puzzle are being steadily put
into place,” Steiner said.
He noted that African governments
are showing an increased
willingness to cooperate
and engage over a wide range of
pressing regional and global issues.
“The economic importance
of the environment is increasingly
recognized by Africa's
leaders as an instrument for development,
for livelihoods, for
peace and for stability. I sincerely
believe we have a real opportunity
to take this impetus a
long way,” he concluded.
Among the sources of possible
wealth the report cites the
"huge but relatively untapped"
potential for tourism based
around nature and cultural sites;
suitable land to feed its people;
abundant but little used water
resources for irrigation, drinking
water and power generation;
and Africa's status as "a
mining giant", producing nearly
80 percent of the world's platinum, more than 40 percent of
the globe's diamonds and more
than a fifth of its gold and cobalt.
The report calls for a transition
for Africa from being a
major exporter of primary resources
to being one with a vibrant
industrial and manufacturing
base.
The report warns against the
pitfalls in development, noting,
for example, that pure market
forces alone in food production
could lead to greater land degradation,
and industrial expansion
could deprive the general public
of water.
AEO 2 was produced
through a participatory and collaborative
process involving
many African experts and government
officials. Overall coordination
was provided by
UNEP, while sub-regional coordination
was provided by a network
of six collaborating centres.
The six collaborating centres
are the Southern African Research
and Documentation Centre
(SARDC); National Environment
Management Authority
(NEMA); Indian Ocean Commission
(IOC); Centre for Environment
and Development in
the Arab Region and Europe
(CEDARE); Network for Environment
and Sustainable Development
in Africa (NESDA); and
Agence Internationale pour le
Development de l'Information
Environnementale (ADIE).


Abstract:
THE UNITED Republic of Tanzania
has banned plastic bags
and containers and ordered people
to stop farming and logging
on Africa's highest mountain,
among other environmental
measures.

body:
THE UNITED Republic of Tanzania
has banned plastic bags
and containers and ordered people
to stop farming and logging
on Africa's highest mountain,
among other environmental
measures.
Manufacturers were given
six months from 1 April to find
alternative materials after the
government outlawed the importation,
manufacture
and sale of plastic bags
and plastic containers for
drinks. From 1 October
manufacturers and
importers will be penalised
for using plastic wrapping
material.
The announcement by Tanzania
marks the first time an
African country has banned all
plastic bags outright.
South Africa introduced laws
in May 2003 forcing shopkeepers
to hand out thicker, stronger
plastic bags that are more easily
re-used or face a R100,000 fine
or 10 years in jail.
The Tanzanian government
also ordered farmers and people
logging trees on Mount Kilimanjaro
to leave the mountain
by June.


title:
2010 World Cup a unifying event for SADC

Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA has stepped
up preparations for the 2010 FIFA
World Cup, the biggest single-
event sporting activity in
the world, which is set to be a
major unifying occasion for the
country and the entire SADC
region .

body:
SOUTH AFRICA has stepped
up preparations for the 2010 FIFA
World Cup, the biggest single-
event sporting activity in
the world, which is set to be a
major unifying occasion for the
country and the entire SADC
region .

The whole of South Africa -
from the business community
and soccer administrators to
the media and fans - responded
enthusiastically to the call by
P resident Thabo Mbeki to
show the world that the 2010
soccer showpiece will be the
“most successful World Cup
ever.”
Unveiling the 2010 World
Cup logo in Berlin, Germany, in
July, President Mbeki promised
to make the tournament a
unique event that celebrates
Africa “in all its magnificent
splendour, its vibrancy and its
diversity.”
He dismissed sceptics who
doubted South Africa's ability to
stage the tournament, which has
been held alternately in Europe
and the Americas since it started
in 1930.
The only other time that pattern
was broken was in 2002
when it was hosted jointly by
Japan and South Korea.
President Mbeki's pledge
and the coming down of the curtain on the 2006 FIFAWorld Cup
in Germany in July have triggered
a lot of interest within
South Africa and neighbouring
countries.
Soccer administrators have
started preparations to ensure
all the necessary facilities will be
in place by 2010.
About R8.5 billion (US$1 is
approx. R7) has been budgeted
for infrastructure development,
with five existing stadiums earmarked
for renovations while another
five new stadiums will be
built ahead of the tournament.
“Other costs will go towards
the upgrading of infrastructure,”
said Danny Jordaan, chief
executive of South Africa's 2010
World Cup Local Organising
Committee.
South Africa's hosting of the
tournament will create an opportunity
for soccer lovers to experience
tourism in the southern
African region.
From the beautiful stadiums
of Germany, soccer lovers will
have a chance to sample African
cultural tourism.
The hosting of the World
Cup is set to increase pre-tournament
activities throughout
southern Africa to ensure increased
direct and spillover benefits
in the region.
Southern Africa has developed
a joint strategy to improve
infrastructure ahead of
the soccer World Cup.
The strategy, known
as the Trans - Frontier
Conservation Areas
2010 Soccer World Cup
Strategy, will be used
to develop and market
various trans-frontier
parks and trans-frontier
conservation areas
in southern Africa as
premier tourist destinations
for the region .
Together with SADC
neighbours, South
Africa boasts of a range of landscapes and a teeming cast
of free-range animals, giving the
World Cup lovers a double treat
never experienced in any of the
developed countries that have
hosted the trophy before.
South Africa's World Cup
ambassador and retired
Ghanaian football star, Abedi
Pele, said “Africa will do it the
African style,” brushing aside
thoughts that South Africa
should adjust to the Western
standards.
The country has previously
successfully hosted big events
such as the Rugby World Cup finals
in 1995, the African Cup of
Nations in 1996 and Cricket
World Cup finals in 2003, which
it co-hosted with Zimbabwe and
Kenya.
A 23-year-old soccer fan,
Lebo Mashile, summed up the
mood among supporters when
she talked about how valuable
the tournament was to the region.
She said, "Yes, we are rough
around the edges but our core is
tremendously valuable. What
hosting the World Cup means is
that our generation can dream
as big as they want to dream.
And it gives South Africans and
all Africans the chance to show
they can do anything and excel
at anything by world-class standards."
André Pruis of the South
African Police Services and
chairperson of the joint operations
and intelligence structure
for the 2010 World Cup has
promised tight security for all
the visitors in 2010.
The government is also developing
a "transport master
plan" that will improve South
Africa's public transport system
ahead of 2010.
The plan proposes the development
of new routes for formal
public transport to conform to
the growing population and urban
expansion.


title:
SABC gets broadcasting rights for 2010, 2014 finals

Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICAN Broadcasting
Corporation (SABC) has
won broadcasting rights for the
2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cup
finals.

body:
SOUTH AFRICAN Broadcasting
Corporation (SABC) has
won broadcasting rights for the
2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cup
finals.
SABC was also awarded the
broadcasting rights for all
FIFA competitions between
2007 and 2014, which include
the two FIFA World Cup
final competitions and two
FIFA Confederations Cups
due to take place during this
period.
The agreement consists of
all audiovisual rights for both
free and pay TV as well as radio.
It is expected to create opportunities
for other players in
the communication industry
within South Africa and in the
SADC region.
SABC has already committed
to ensuring wide access for the
entire South African media industry,
including potential sublicensees.
The South African broadcaster
will also benefit from the
fund that has been set aside to
upgrade infrastructure ahead of
2010.
"The SABC ... will move from
analogue to high-definition digital,"
said Danny Jordaan, chief
executive of South Africa's 2010
World Cup Local Organising
Committee, explaining how the
fund will be used.
SABC also hosts the Southern
African Broadcasting Association
(SABA), an association of
national broadcasters in the region.


title:
The limits to free trade in agricultural products

Abstract:
CAN DEVELOPING countries trade their way
out of poverty?

body:
CAN DEVELOPING countries trade their way
out of poverty?
International trade has grown dramatically in
the last two decades in the global economy, and
trade is an important source of revenue in developing
countries. Yet, many low-income countries
are still poor.
This book recasts the so-called Coffee Paradox
- the coexistence of a "coffee boom" in consuming
countries and of a "coffee crisis" in producing
countries.
While coffee bar chains have expanded rapidly
in consuming countries, international coffee
prices have fallen dramatically and producers received
the lowest prices in decades.
The paradox exists because what farmers sell
and what consumers buy are increasingly "different"
coffees.
Reviewers describe this book as, "A masterful
job showing the limits to 'free' trade in agricultural
products as well as providing some concrete
proposals as to what must be done to promote
greater equity."
Published in 2005 by Zed Books in London, it
is distributed in southern Africa by David Philip,
an imprint of New Africa Books, Cape Town, 99
Garfield Road, Claremont 7700, P.O. Box 46962,
Glosderry 7702, South Africa.
The Coffee Paradox: Global Markets, Commodity
Trade and the Elusive Promise of Development, by
Benoit Daviron and Stefano Ponte. 295pp.


title:
The New Conditionality – The Politics of Poverty Reduction Strategies

Abstract:
POVERTY REDUCTION Strategies
(PRSs) are the new buzzwords in development
aid.
This book presents detailed, fieldlevel
research on the application of
PRSs in three countries: United Republic
of Tanzania, Vietnam and Honduras.

body:
POVERTY REDUCTION Strategies
(PRSs) are the new buzzwords in development
aid.
This book presents detailed, fieldlevel
research on the application of
PRSs in three countries: United Republic
of Tanzania, Vietnam and Honduras.
It describes the changing relations
between the governments of these
countries, donor agencies and civic organisations
that have taken part in
formulating the new generation of
PRSs.
Poverty Reduction Strategies run up
against a central paradox: in giving decisive
policy-making powers to external
agencies, the very process of drawing up
development strategies to prioritise reducing
poverty can gravely undermine the
consolidation of democratic forces, structures
and ideas in developing countries.
Edited by Jeremy Gould. 180pp.

Available from Zed Books, c/o David
Philip, Cape Town.

E-mail: info@newafricabooks.co.za

Website:  www.zedbooks.co.uk


title:
Remembering heroes Solidarity shaped liberation struggles

Abstract:
“THE BLOOD of all these sons and daughters of Namibia watered the
tree of our liberty and will always be remembered by present and future
generations of the Republic of Namibia.”

body:
“THE BLOOD of all these sons and daughters of Namibia watered the
tree of our liberty and will always be remembered by present and future
generations of the Republic of Namibia.”
These words taken from Where Others Wavered, Autobiography of Sam
Nujoma aptly portray the story of the liberation struggle for not only
Namibia but most of southern Africa.
A striking common factor in all the liberation struggles was the importance
attached to regionalism. Regional solidarity played a key role
in shaping the future of an independent southern Africa.
As a result, the heroes in the liberation of Angola, Mozambique, Namibia,
South Africa and Zimbabwe were not limited to those countries' sons
and daughters but include the citizens of other countries in the region.
Mozambique this year commemorates the 32nd anniversary of victory
in the war against colonialism. It was in Lusaka on 7 September
1974 that the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO) and
the Portuguese government signed an agreement ending the war and
paving the way for full independence nine months later.
The day is celebrated as Victory Day and is a public holiday. In remembrance
of its heroes, Mozambique also commemorates Armed
Forces Day on 25 September each year to mark the anniversary of the
start of the armed struggle for national liberation.
Angola's independence in 1975 had geo-strategic implications for
southern Africa as the country became a battleground of ideologies, the
African nerve-centre of the Cold War between the former Soviet Union
and the United States.
Angola's foreign policy at the time of its independence was motivated
by a desire by the country's first post-independence president,
Agostinho Neto, and his government to fend off attacks from internal
and external forces.
Neto saw the struggles for independence in the rest of Africa as directly
connected to his own government's long-term survival.
Neto died on 17 September 1979 before seeing his dream of creating
a peaceful neighbourhood. A holiday, Founder of Nation and National
Heroes' Day on 17 September, was set aside in his honour in Angola.
Heroes' Day in Zimbabwe is commemorated on 14 August but the
story of the country's struggle is incomplete without mention of thousands
of people in neighbouring countries who stood by their Zimbabwean
brothers and sisters. Thousands of Mozambicans and Zambians
supported the struggle to liberate their neighbour, and monuments
have been established in those countries for remembrance.
Heroes' day is marked as a public holiday, following by acknowledgement
of the essential role of the Defence Forces on their day, 15 August.
The same can be said of Namibia's struggle for independence which
produced many heroes within and outside the country's borders, and
strengthened regional solidarity despite the loss of lives and destruction of
property due to destabilization by the apartheid South African regime.
Namibia remembers its Heroes on 26 August each year.


Abstract:
SADC IS set to embark on a project to collect
the history of the liberation struggle in the region,
through the SADC History Project,
whose patron is Ambassador Hashim Mbita.

body:
SADC IS set to embark on a project to collect
the history of the liberation struggle in the region,
through the SADC History Project,
whose patron is Ambassador Hashim Mbita.

Mbita was Executive Secretary of the
Liberation Committee of the Organisation
of African Unity (OAU) for more than 20
years, until his mission was accomplished
with the democratic elections in South
Africa in 1994.
The Liberation Committee was wound up on 15 August 1994 with a
special ceremony hosted by Mwalimu Julius Nyerere in Arusha, attended
by 10 heads of state and government, two vice-presidents and nine foreign
ministers. The ceremony paid tribute to the courage of the freedom fighters
who fought and won independence.
SADC has now taken up the task of documenting that history. An office
has been established in Dar es Salaam under the leadership of Professor
A. Temu, and preliminary preparations have been done.
Focal points who are the lead researchers have been identified for all
eight countries, and contracts have been issued. Milestones have been established
for the two-year project, and now that resources have been
sourced, the main challenge is to ensure the cooperation of those people
who have stories to tell.
The project is operational in Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia,
South Africa, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
In an inspirational address to the researchers last year, Mbita stressed
the need to “record the inspiration, commitment, determination, sacrifices,
means, strategies and experiences gained at different stages.”
He said the “decolonisation struggle which engulfed the African continent
during the last 60 years was basically one, though fought in various
parts and against different colonizing powers.
“History should be reflected in proper perspective through the
African eye because many a time it has been written from outside the
continent,” Mbita said.
The project was approved by the Summit of SADC Heads of State and
Government when they met in Botswana in August 2005 to mark the Silver
Jubilee of the regional community. The project is funded entirely by
SADC governments.


body:
CURRENCY CHECKLIST
Country Currency (US $1)
Angola Kwanza (100 lwei) 80.38
Botswana Pula (100 thebe) 5.93
DRC Congo Franc 436.00
Lesotho Maloti (100 lisente) 7.23
Madagascar Ariary 9,275.00
Malawi Kwacha (100 tambala) 139.25
Mauritius Rupee (100 cents) 30.95
Mozambique Metical (100 centravos) 26,18
Namibia Dollar (100 cents) 6.93
South Africa Rand (100 cents) 6.93
Swaziland Lilangeni (100 cents) 7.05
Tanzania Shilling (100 cents) 1,288.00
Zambia Kwacha (100 ngwee) 3,550.00
Zimbabwe Dollar (100 Cents) 250.00

August 2006



body:
EVENTS DIARY 2006
August
11-14 Lesotho
Standing Committee of Senior Officials of SADC

The technical advisory committee to Council of Ministers
meets in advance of Council and is chaired by the country
chairing SADC, as are the Council and Summit. Current SADC
chair is Botswana.
15-16 Lesotho
SADC Council of Ministers

The Council is responsible for supervising and monitoring the
functions and development of SADC and ensuring that policies
are properly implemented. Council comprises ministers of
foreign affairs, international cooperation, economic
development or planning and finance from each Member
State. Council precedes the Summit and prepares policy
recommendations for adoption by the leaders.
17-18 Lesotho
SADC Summit

The Summit of Heads of State and Government is the ultimate
policy-making institution of SADC. The Maseru Summit will
witness the official handover of the rotating SADC Chair from
President Festus Mogae of Botswana to Prime Minister
Pakalitha Mosisili of Lesotho.
13-18 Canada
International AIDS Conference 2006

Organised by the International AIDS Society, the theme of the
16th International AIDS Conference will be “Time to Deliver”.
Participants will share the latest evidence, ideas and lessons
learned in HIV and AIDS research, policies and programmes.
The conference will focus on the shared prevention, treatment
and care obligations of those engaged to respond to the
pandemic.

20-26 Sweden
World Water Week
The World Water Week in Stockholm is the leading annual
global meeting place for capacity-building, partnershipbuilding
and follow-up on the implementation of international
processes and programmes in water and development.
September
11-15 South Africa
Highway Africa @ 10 Conference

More than 500 journalists from 40 African countries are
expected to attend the tenth anniversary of the Highway Africa
conference. The conference will assess the state of Africa's
media and focus on the role that it plays in democra cy and
development.
26-29 Germany
Africa Business Summit

The summit aims to increase European investment in Africa by
raising private sector awareness of the many commercial
opportunities in Africa. Organised by NEPAD, the summit will
also address specific policy issues that confront the European
private sector in the African market place and to develop
partnerships among African and European businesses.
October
3-6 Namibia
Tourism 2006

This is the third in a series of investment promotion meetings
held under the auspices of the EU-SADC Investment Promotion
Programme (ESIPP). Tourism 2006 is a unique forum aimed at
encouraging SADC countries to engage in international,
financial, technical and commercial collaboration for
development of tourism and hospitality in the region.

25-27 Italy
World Congress on Communication for Development (WCCD)

The WCCD aims to analyse and evaluate new developments in
the field of communication. The congress will focus on the
importance of communication to development and come up
with recommendations on how to apply it in developmental
policies.


body:
Public Holidays in SADC
 August – October 2006

1 August Parents' Day DRC
7 August Farmers' Day Zambia
8 August Peasants' Day Tanzania
9 August National Women's Day South Africa
14 August Heroes' Day Zimbabwe
15 August Assumption Day Madagascar
15 August Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Mauritius
15 August Defence Forces Day Zimbabwe
26 August Heroes' Day Namibia
29 August Ganesh Chathurthi Mauritius
6 September Somhlolo Day Swaziland
7 September Victory Day Mozambique
17 September Founder of Nation and National Heroes' Day Angola
24 September Heritage Day South Africa
25 September Armed Forces Day Mozambique
30 September Botswana Day Botswana
1 October Public Holiday Botswana
2 October Public Holiday Botswana
4 October Independence Day Lesotho
4 October Reconciliation Day/Peace Day Mozambique
9 October Mother's Day Malawi
14 October Mwalimu Nyerere Day and Climax of “The Uhuru Torch Race” Tanzania
21 October Divali Mauritius
24 October* Eid ul Fitr Mauritius, Tanzania
24 October Independence Day Zambia
* Depends on visibility of the moon


body:
PUBLICATIONS
The Millennium Development Goals -
Raising the Resources to Tackle World
Poverty

Edited by Fantu Cheru and Colin Bradford

South Africa, Cape Town, Zed Books in
association with Helsinki Process, 2005
238pp.

The is an up-to-date and detailed analysis of the
diversity of new proposals and mechanisms
currently being discussed in order to raise the
necessary financial resources to achieve the MDGs
by 2015. Some key issues examined include official
development assistance, foreign direct investment,
remittances by migrants, commodity export prices,
and new ideas to secure sustainable debt relief,
including special drawing rights, debt cancellation,
revaluation of International Monetary Fund gold
reserves, debt arbitration and other proposals.
Available from Zed Books,

c/o David Philip,

Cape Town, 99 Garfield Road, Claremont 7700,

P.O. Box 46962, Glosderry 7702.

E-mail : info@newafricabooks.co.za

Website: www.zedbooks.co.uk


Status of Food Security and Prospects for
Agricultural Development in Africa

Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, African Union, 2006
26pp.

This review of the agriculture sector and its
contribution to GDP, export earnings and
employment reveals the unchallenged prominence
of the sector in the economies of most African
countries. For the continent as a whole, the
agriculture sector accounts for approximately 60
percent of total employment, 20 percent of total
exports and 15 percent of GDP.
Available from African Union,

P.O. Box 3243, 
Addis
Ababa, Ethiopia.

E-mail: webmaster@africa-union.org

Website: www.africa-union.org










The New Partnership for Africa's
Development Progress Report -
Environmental Assessment and Reporting in
Africa: Knowledge Base 2005

South Africa, Green Point, Empowerment for
African Sustainable Democracy EASD/UNEP, 2005

This compact disk (CD) contains a knowledge base
of documents on state of the environment reporting
in Africa. It includes city, provincial, national, subregional and regional state of the environment
reports as well as resources such as training
manuals and publications on environmental
indicators.
Available in CD format from EASD, 
P.O Box 165,
Green Point, South Africa.
 
E-mail: info@easd.org.za

Website: http://easd.org.za


The WTO Agreement on Agriculture
Impact on Farmers

by Agnes Chaonwa

Zimbabwe, Harare, Trades Centre, 2005
14pp

The booklet highlights the primary objective of
the World Trade Organisation Agreement on
Agriculture, which aims to reform the principles
and disciplines on agricultural policy as well as
to reduce distortions in agricultural trade caused
by agricultural protectionism and domestic
support, among others.
Available from Trades Centre, Harare.

E-mail: tradesc@tradescentre.co.zw

Website: www.tradescentre.org.zw




Understanding the WTO Dispute
Settlement System

by Felix Maonera

Zimbabwe, Harare, Trades Centre, 2005
32pp

Dispute settlement is explained as the central
pillar of the multilateral trading system, making
the trading system more secure and predictable.
Without a means of settling disputes, there would
be no way of enforcing the rules.
Available from Trades Centre, Harare.
 
E-mail: tradesc@tradescentre.co.zw

Website: www.tradescentre.org.zw







Mainstreaming ICTs:
Africa lives the information Society

by Spurr, Nicola

South Africa, Johannesburg, WOMEN'SNET, 2005
114pp.

Ten case studies are highlighted reflecting on the
innovative and creative ways in which Information
and Communications Technologies (ICTs) have
been used to promote people-centred development
in various sub-Saharan African countries.
Available from WOMEN'SNET, 
31 Quinn Street,
Newton, Johannesburg 2001, South Africa.

Website: www.womensnet.org.za





Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICAN countries are optimistic
that a booming regional economy and political stability
are the right ingredients for increased inflows
of foreign direct investment (FDI) and deeper
regional integration.

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICAN countries are optimistic
that a booming regional economy and political stability
are the right ingredients for increased inflows
of foreign direct investment (FDI) and deeper
regional integration.

Buoyed by prospects of a six percent economic
growth in 2006, SADC Member States have moved
to strengthen the region's competitiveness as an investment
destination.
The economy of the 14-member SADC expanded
by five percent in 2005 and is expected to better
that performance this year on the back of strong
performances by countries such as Angola.
Angola achieved the highest real Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) growth in 2005 of 15.6 percent,
followed by Botswana at 8.3 percent, Mozambique
at 7.7 percent and the United Republic of Tanzania
with 6.9 percent growth.
Regional economic powerhouse, South Africa,
registered a modest five percent real GDP growth
last year, according to figures released in August at
the SADC Summit in Maseru, Lesotho.
Angola's impressive growth has been driven by
firming international oil prices and a subsequent
scramble for its oilfields by investors.
There is a similar scramble for Madagascar's oilfields,
with a number of international oil firms targeting
the Indian Ocean island's vast reserves of
the “black gold”.
Statistics from the SADC Committee of Central
Bank Governors show that there is great potential
for investment within SADC. One of the indicators
is the gross national savings as a proportion of
GDP where countries such as Botswana, Lesotho
and Mauritius had average savings of more than
20 percent per annum since 2000.
In terms of sources of FDI in SADC, the increasing
role of South Africa as an investor in the region, and
specifically in the services industries, is significant.
Since the mid-1990s, and particularly after 1997,
there has been a distinct trend for the “internationalisation”
of South African companies where they
have made forays into southern African markets,
particularly in the retail sector.
To sustain the robust economic
growth, leaders of the 14-
member economic bloc approved
the SADC Protocol on
Finance and Investment, which
aims to harmonise financial and
investment policies of Member
States and ensure that changes
in policies in one country do not
affect other countries.
The protocol is an important
stepping stone for a region
whose target is to become a free
trade area by 2008 and a customs
union two years later.
It was signed by seven Member
States - Democratic Republic
of Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar,
Mauritius, Mozambique, South
Africa and the United Republic
of Tanzania. Other Member
States require certain internal
processes such as approval of
their parliaments or the concurrency
of their Attorney General
before signing international
agreements.
The SADC Protocol on Finance
and Investment will
enter into force 30 days after
ratification by at least nine
Member States.
The protocol will facilitate
the creation of a favourable investment
climate within SADC;
attainment of macroeconomic
stability and convergence; cooperation
in taxation matters; and
coordination and cooperation on
exchange control policies.
Through the protocol, Member
States will facilitate and create
favourable conditions to attract
investment into their
countries via appropriate administrative
measures and the
expeditious clearance of project
approvals.
According to information
from national investment promotion
agencies, it currently
takes between two
days and four weeks to
have an investment
project approved in
the region.
Some countries such as the
United Republic of Tanzania
have stationed officials from all
key departments within the Tanzania
Investment Centre to provide
information assisting investors
to obtain approvals and
permits. This one-stop investment
facility ensures that investors
do not have to move
from one government department
to another.
In the interest of creating a
predictable investment climate,
SADC Member States have also
agreed not to arbitrarily amend
or modify - to the detriment of
investors - the terms, conditions
and any benefits specified in letters
of authorisation given to investors
on approval of projects.
Governments have also
agreed to support the development
of local and regional entrepreneurs
and enhance regional
productive capacity through
skills development, small-tomedium
enterprise development
and appropriate investment
in support infrastructure.
A greater role is envisaged
for public-private partnerships
(PPPs). Member States have resolved
to cooperate on policies
and related issues that will encourage
and facilitate the use of
PPPs to ensure regional development.
The PPP concept will be crucial
in the implementation of infrastructural
projects. The role of
the private sector has been identified
in some of SADC's infrastructure
projects such as the
Transport and Trade Facilitation
on the Walvis Bay/Trans
Caprivi Corridors Project.
This project aims to, among
other things, develop guidelines
on the creation of one-stop
border posts within the two
corridors and develop infrastructure.
It will be implemented
by the Namibian government,
the Walvis Bay Corridor
Group and transport operators.
With regards to the protection
of investments, the protocol provides an undertaking that
Member States will not nationalise
or expropriate investments,
except “for a public purpose,
under due process of law, on a
non-discriminatory basis and
subject to the payment of
prompt, adequate and effective
compensation”.
The Member States undertook
to eventually harmonise
their respective domestic policies
and legislation within the
spirit of non-discrimination of
investors.
“State Parties shall pursue
harmonisation with the objective
of developing the region
into a SADC investment zone,
which shall, among other things,
include the harmonisation of investment
regimes, including
policies, laws and practices in
accordance with the best practices
within the overall strategy towards regional integration,"
reads part of the protocol.
The Member States will
strive to attain macroeconomic
convergence, one of the main
building blocks in the quest to
establish a SADC Free Trade
Area and Customs Union.
The challenge for Member
States will be to promote and
establish predictability, confidence,
trust and integrity by
adhering to and enforcing open
and transparent policies, practices,
regulations and procedures
on investment.
SADC countries also recognise
the need to adhere to best
practices in terms of safeguarding
domestic health, safety or
environmental measures and
agree not to disregard international
treaties they have ratified
for the sake of getting investment.
Highlights of the Finance and Investment Protocol
FROM THE date of entry into
force of the protocol, Member
States agree to take steps to:
 Converge on stability-oriented
economic policies;
 Cooperate in taxation matters
and coordinate their tax
regimes within the region;
 Cooperate and coordinate
exchange control policies;
 Harmonise the legal and operational
frameworks of their
respective central banks;
 Cooperate among their central
banks with regards to
payments, clearing and settlement
systems;
 Harmonise banking supervisory
standards and practices;
 Establish a Development Finance
Institutions Network
to increase cross-border
capital flows;
 Strengthen domestic capital
and financial markets with
the intention of creating a
regional capital and financial
market;
 Strengthen cooperation
among respective stock exchanges;
 Cooperate with regard to
anti-money laundering;
 Establish a Project Preparation
and Development
Fund to provide technical
assistance towards project
identification, selection
and feasibility studies. The
Fund will also be used to
finance selected projects;
and
 Establish a Peer Review
Panel which will meet once
a year to conduct macroeconomic
monitoring and surveillance.


title:
Ministerial taskforce to recommend action to fast-track implementation

Abstract:
SADC HAS established a ministerial
taskforce to recommend
action on fast-tracking implementation
of agreed policies to
unleash the potential of the regional
economic community.

body:
SADC HAS established a ministerial
taskforce to recommend
action on fast-tracking implementation
of agreed policies to
unleash the potential of the regional
economic community.
The taskforce comprises ministers
of finance, economic development,
planning, trade and
industry from all SADC Member
States.
SADC Heads of State and
Government established the
ministerial taskforce at their
Summit in Lesotho in August, to
work with the Secretariat to define
a roadmap for “eradicating
poverty and propose measures
for fast-tracking implementation.”
The leaders directed the taskforce
to present recommendations
to an extra-ordinary summit
scheduled for “not later
than October” at a venue to be
advised.
The SADC leaders were
highly critical of the slow pace
at which regional programmes
and projects are being implemented.
Difficulties caused by overlapping
membership of Regional
Economic Communities
(RECs) could have contributed
to delays in achieving regional
integration targets such as the
SADC Free Trade Area and
Customs Union scheduled for
2008 and 2010, respectively.
Most SADC members belong
to more than one REC, some of
which have plans to create a
customs union. World Trade Organisation
rules, however, require
that a country should not
belong to more than one customs
union.
Overlaps exist in the membership
of SADC, the Southern
African Customs Union
(SACU), the Common Market
for Eastern and Southern Africa
(Comesa), East African Community
(EAC) and the Regional Integration
Facilitation Forum (RIFF).
The African Union Summit
in Banjul, The Gambia, in July
issued a moratorium on the
recognition of new RECs while
recognizing only eight existing
ones across the continent. In east
and southern Africa, only
SADC, EAC and Comesa are
among the eight.
The African Union decision
brings yet another dimension,
adding to the complexity within
which SADC Member States
have to make urgent decisions
on the issue of overlapping
membership.


Abstract:
MEMBER STATES will have to
shoulder greater responsibility
for funding of SADC programmes
and projects if the region
is to progress faster towards
attainment of a common vision.

body:
MEMBER STATES will have to
shoulder greater responsibility
for funding of SADC programmes
and projects if the region
is to progress faster towards
attainment of a common vision.
The structure of SADC funding
was a major cause for concern
during the 2006 Summit in
Lesotho, with the Heads of State
and Government agreeing that
the current financing scenario is
unsustainable and does not
show sufficient commitment to
regional development.
Currently, 61 percent of the
SADC budget comes from international
cooperating partners,
with the remainder being contributions
from Member States.
“We need to show commitment
by contributing significantly
more from our own resources
towards programmes and projects,” said President
Festus Mogae of Botswana, the
outgoing SADC chairperson.
The summit mandated the
Secretariat to accelerate the
process leading to the establishment
of a SADC Regional Development
Fund, which will finance
development projects
based on mobilisation of Member
States' own resources such
as insurance and pension funds,
as well as other regional funding
sources.

Toward a SADC Protocol on Gender
THE ANNUAL SADC Summit
held in Maseru endorsed the
process of drafting a SADC Gender
Protocol and directed the
SADC secretariat to ensure that
thorough consultations are undertaken
with Member States.
The endorsement of the
process to draft the SADC Gender
Protocol will accelerate activities
towards consideration of the protocol, which is to be
presented to the next SADC
Summit of Heads of State and
Government, in Lusaka, Zambia
in 2007.
A taskforce to guide the
p rocess was constituted in
March this year comprising the
SADC Gender Unit, government
and civil society representatives.


Abstract:
THE COUNCIL of Ministers
has directed the SADC Secretariat
to refine the regional organisation's
institutional framework
to enhance its restructuring
process and create a more efficient
and focused body.

body:
THE COUNCIL of Ministers
has directed the SADC Secretariat
to refine the regional organisation's
institutional framework
to enhance its restructuring
process and create a more efficient
and focused body.
The Secretariat will work in
consultation with the Troika to
produce recommendations on
refining the restructuring
process that SADC embarked on
six years ago. He is expected to
report back to Council at its next
meeting in February 2007.
It was noted that at the current
stage of regional integration,
there was no need to centralise
and prioritise all areas of
cooperation.
The Troika comprises the
SADC chairperson, Prime Minister
Pakalitha Mosisili of
Lesotho; deputy chairperson,
President Levy Mwanawasa of
Zambia; and immediate past
chairperson, Botswana's President
Festus Mogae.
SADC Executive Secretary,
Tomaz Augusto Salomão, stated
his priorities as being the stabilisation
of the Secretariat and improvement
of its capacity to implement
the key priorities of
SADC.


title:
SADC wants EU funding de-linked from EPA negotiations

Abstract:
SADC HAS established a technical
committee to engage the European
Union, with a view to delinking
development fund programming
and the Economic
Partnership Agreement (EPA)
negotiations.

body:
SADC HAS established a technical
committee to engage the European
Union, with a view to delinking
development fund programming
and the Economic
Partnership Agreement (EPA)
negotiations.
The European Union (EU)
has expressed concern over the
configuration of SADC Member
States into two groupings for the
EPA negotiations and is insisting
on a fast-tracked SADC Customs
Union as one condition for the
negotiations.
The objective is to push
SADC Member States into resolving
the issue of multiple
membership in Regional Economic
Communities (RECs) so
that they can undertake the EPA
negotiations as a single bloc.
This approach has stalled the
roll-out of the 10th European Development
Fund (EDF) programming.
Member States with dual
membership of both SADC and
the Common Market for Eastern
and Southern Africa (Comesa)
are negotiating as the Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) regional
grouping. These are the
Democratic Republic of Congo,
Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius,
Zambia and Zimbabwe.
SADC-EU talks were
launched in Windhoek, Namibia
in July 2004, with seven countries
negotiating under the SADC configuration.
These are Angola,
Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique,
Namibia, Swaziland and the United
Republic of Tanzania.
South Africa participates as
an observer, after concluding its
own trade agreement with the
EU in the late 1990s.
The SADC Council of Ministers,
meeting ahead of Summit in
Lesotho in August, resolved to
engage the EU over the matter
and concluded that any conditions
set by the EU must take
due regard of SADC's regional
integration timelines.
“Council reiterated the
SADC position that the EPA negotiations
and the 10th EDF Programming
are to be based on the
SADC integration agenda outlined
in the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan
(RISDP) and the Strategic Indicative
Plan of the Organ on Politics,
Defence and Security Cooperation
(SIPO),” said Timothy
Thahane, chairperson of Council
and Lesotho's Minister of Finance
and Economic Planning.
The ministers also noted that
multiple memberships of RECs
was a political and sovereign
issue, over which only individual
Member States can take a decision
and cannot be dictated
upon by anyone.
The EDF is the EU's main instrument
for development cooperation
in the African Caribbean
and Pacific (ACP) countries.
Each funding period is concluded
for five years and the cycles
have generally followed those of
EU partnership agreements with
ACP countries since the conclusion
of the first partnership convention
in 1964.
The ninth EDF was concluded
at the same time as the Cotonou
Agreement reached in 2000 between
the EU and the ACP countries.
The EPAs will replace the
trade chapters of the Cotonou
Agreement and the one-way
trade preferences with reciprocal
trade arrangements between the
ACP and the EU.
Substantive negotiations,
started in January 2005, are expected
to run until June 2007. These negotiations
are about market access
for agricultural and non-agricultural
products and fisheries, trade
in services, development cooperation,
other trade-related issues and
legal provisions.
A SADC/EU ministerial
Troika meeting is scheduled for
16-17 November in Maseru,
Lesotho, under the theme "Accelerating
Implementation of the
SADC Regional Integration and
Development Agenda"


Abstract:
BOTSWANA, ZAMBIA and
Zimbabwe have signed an agreement
for the construction of a
bridge at their common border
on the Zambezi river.

body:
BOTSWANA, ZAMBIA and
Zimbabwe have signed an agreement
for the construction of a
bridge at their common border
on the Zambezi river.
Leaders of the three countries
signed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) in
Harare in August, signifying
their commitment to greater
intra - regional trade and the
cross - border movement of
persons.
A one-stop border control
facility will be put in
place at the Kazungula
bridge once the legal and administrative framework
has been developed.
The countries will explore
suitable financing for the bridge,
to be constructed on the basis of
competitive bidding in accordance
with agreed procurement
and tendering procedures.
"In all instances, the parties
will make equal contributions
towards all the costs of the design
and construction of the
bridge and the border control
facilities," the MOU says. A
technical steering committee
will be established to coordinate
the project.


title:
Limpopo-Shashe to have Transfrontier Conservation Area

Abstract:
BOTSWANA, SOUTH Africa
and Zimbabwe have signed a
Memorandum of Understanding
for the establishment of the
Limpopo-Shashe Transfrontier
Conservation Area, which will
eventually cover 140,000 hectares.

body:
BOTSWANA, SOUTH Africa
and Zimbabwe have signed a
Memorandum of Understanding
for the establishment of the
Limpopo-Shashe Transfrontier
Conservation Area, which will
eventually cover 140,000 hectares.
There are conservation areas
in all three countries at the confluence
of the two rivers which
will form one big international
park. Large areas of the proposed
park are still in private
hands and it has taken 16 years to draw up the international
agreement.
Transfrontier conservation
areas are a fairly new concept
based on the principle that the
flow of nature, including rivers,
wind, vegetation and animals,
are not bound by political
boundaries.
Neighbouring countries can
derive greater financial benefit
from the natural resources that
they share, in a process that also
promotes peace and stability.


title:
SADC strengthens HIV and AIDS interventions

Abstract:
A TWO-YEAR US$5.3 million
funding arrangement to fight
the spread of HIV and AIDS has
been signed by SADC with a
number of donors under the
leadership of Swedish International
Development Cooperation
Agency (Sida).

body:
A TWO-YEAR US$5.3 million
funding arrangement to fight
the spread of HIV and AIDS has
been signed by SADC with a
number of donors under the
leadership of Swedish International
Development Cooperation
Agency (Sida).
The SADC Secretariat has
also secured US$30 million from
the African Development Bank
to support a programme to fight
the triple communicable diseases
of HIV, tuberculosis (TB)
and malaria.
The Council of Ministers
said SADC is determined to
“forge ahead and scale down
the pandemic by scaling up our
interventions.”
He announced the setting up
of a ministerial committee to
oversee the development of the
Regional Fund for HIV and
AIDS.
Thahane also announced the
first donations from Member
States. South Africa and Swaziland
have remitted their pledges
of R1 million (about
US$139,000) and US$30,000, respectively.
Lesotho has pledged
US$100,000 to the fund, while
Angola has pledged
US$200,000.
“It is important that we take
the lead in the fight against HIV
and AIDS through availing of
the resources needed,” said Thahane,
noting that the SADC HIV
and AIDS programme faces numerous
challenges, resulting in
limited success in prevention interventions.
“This is tied to the feminisation
of HIV and AIDS in the region
due to gender inequality,
low socio-economic status of
women, gender-based violence;
and inadequate access to
treatment among women in
most Member States,” Thahane
said.
According to the Joint United
Nations Programme on HIV
and AIDS (UNAIDS), only three southern African countries have
achieved the “Three by Five”
target. These are Botswana,
Mauritius and Namibia.
The “Three by Five” initiative,
launched by UNAIDS
and the World Health Organisation
in 2003, is a global target to provide three million
people living with AIDS in
low- and middle-income countries
with life-prolonging ARV
treatment by the end of 2005,
as well as counselling on the
accompanying nutritional
needs.
The limited progress in the
fight against HIV and AIDS, Thahane
said, is "coupled with the
lack of a locally driven research
agenda in SADC Member States
and the slow implementation of
national, regional, continental
and global commitments."


title:
Brazil assists Angola, Mozambique to strengthen public health research

Abstract:
BRAZIL PLANS to launch a
project to boost public health research in Portuguese-speaking
African countries.
The project will begin in Angola
before being introduced to
Mozambique and elsewhere.

body:
BRAZIL PLANS to launch a
project to boost public health research in Portuguese-speaking
African countries.
The project will begin in Angola
before being introduced to
Mozambique and elsewhere.
Under the plan, Brazilian researchers
will teach a two-year
Masters course in public health
research at the Angola National
School of Public Health in Luanda,
starting in October.
The Oswaldo Cruz Foundation
(Fiocruz), a leading research
centre linked to Brazil's
Ministry of Health, is coordinating
the project with support
from the Brazilian federal research
funding agency, Capes,
and the Angolan government.
Together, the three institutions
are providing just over
US$1 million for the project.
“Students from Angola and
Mozambique already attend
Fiocruz for Masters and PhD courses, but they seldom find
work opportunities in their
countries when they go back,”
said Maria do Carmo Leal,
Fiocruz's vice-president of education,
information and communication.
The aim of the project is to
help Portuguese-speaking countries
to consolidate local research
infrastructure that could absorb
researchers trained elsewhere.
The master's programme at
the new Angolan institute will
focus on research relating to Angola's main public health issues,
such as infectious diseases.
Students will spend three
months of their second year in
Brazil doing research and writing
their dissertations in collaboration
with supervisors at Fiocruz .
They will be given free access
to over 10,000 scientific journals
via a website currently used by
Brazilian scientists.
The project also includes
plans to renovate Angola's technical
colleges and to equip their
libraries.


Abstract:
ZAMBIA used a new computerised
voter system during the
28 September tripartite elections
as part of measures to improve
the administration of elections
and boost voter confidence.

body:
ZAMBIA used a new computerised
voter system during the
28 September tripartite elections
as part of measures to improve
the administration of elections
and boost voter confidence.
The country voted for the President
of the Republic, members of
parliament and city councillors.
For the first time, the Electoral
Commission of Zambia (ECZ)
used an electronic system in
which voter details were loaded
onto a database, making it less
prone to manipulation in the verification
of voters' identification.
Previous polls have been conducted
using national identification
documents.
The new system uses “biometrics”,
that is, fingerprints,
palm prints or iris scans to provide
an accurate identification
and verification of a voter.
The ECZ also produced Geographical
Information System
(GIS) maps for all constituencies.
GIS is a system of creating, storing,
analyzing and managing spatial
data and associated attributes.
The use of the “biometrics”
system was complemented by a
set of new security measures announced
on 22 August by the Inspector-
General of Zambia Police,
Ephraim Mateyo.
The security measures included
the use of unarmed police
officers to guard polling stations.
“The move will ensure that
members of the public will vote
without any intimidation,” said
Mateyo.
Police officers were also not
allowed to take firearms to their
houses.
Officers-in-charge of police
stations were allowed to authorise
applications for public rallies
by political parties. Previously,
only provincial commanding
officers were allowed
to authorise political processions
in consultation with the
inspector-general of police.
More than 700 candidates
contested for 150 elected parliamentary
seats while four opposition
leaders filed nominations
to challenge President Levy
Mwanawasa who was seeking
the second tenure of office after
assuming power in 2001.
The parliamentary election
was contested by 705 candidates
from the country's nine provinces.
The Eastern province, Zambia's
breadbasket, had the
biggest number of parliamentary
candidates, with 136 vying
for 19 seats. The Copperbelt
province, which is the copper
production base of the southern
African country, had 100 candidates
contesting for 22 seats.
The MMD was the only party
to field candidates in all constituencies.
Zambia uses a unicameral
parliamentary system, with 150
members of parliament elected
by popular vote using the simple
majority or first-past-the post
system. Eight members are
appointed by the president.
Members of parliament serve
five-year terms.
The president is elected by
direct popular vote for a five-year
term.
SADC sent a team to observe
the conduct of the Zambian elections
to ensure they conformed
with the SADC Principles and
Guidelines Governing Democratic
Elections.
These include, among others,
the need for 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; and equal
opportunity to exercise the right
to vote and be voted for.
Zambian polls well-managed and credible: SADC
THE SADC Election Observer
Mission described the Zambian
elections as peaceful, transparent,
well-managed and credible.
The mission, headed by the
Minister for Good Governance
of the United Republic of Tanzania,
Philip Marmo, said the civil
behaviour and enthusiasm
demonstrated during the campaigning
period, vote casting
and counting bear testimony of
total commitment and adherence
to the laws and regulations
governing electoral processes in
Zambia.
“SADC is proud of Zambian
political leadership and the electoral
management authorities,”
Marmo said. He praised the Electoral Act and the Electoral
Code of Conduct, saying the
legislation fully complies with
SADC Principles and Guidelines
Governing Democratic
Elections.
SADC sent a 49-member observer
mission comprised of 37
men and 12 women. The mission
deployed one week before
the elections and covered all
nine provinces.
President Levy Mwanawasa
was re-elected for a second
five-year term. His party, the
Movement for Multiparty
Democracy also took the majority
seats in parliament, winning
in more than 50 percent of the
constituencies.


title:
DRC presidential runoff set for 29 October

Abstract:
FINAL RESULTS of the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC)
presidential election were delayed
after some opposition parties
petitioned the Supreme Court
over the legality of dates for the
run-off set for 29 October.

body:
FINAL RESULTS of the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC)
presidential election were delayed
after some opposition parties
petitioned the Supreme Court
over the legality of dates for the
run-off set for 29 October.
The first round of voting on
30 July did not produce a
winner with a clear majority
of the valid votes cast.
Preliminary election results
were announced on 20 August and a presidential run-off was called after Pre s i d e n t
Joseph Kabila and his closest
challenger, former rebel leader
Jean-Pierre Bemba, failed to
amass the required 50 percent-
plus-one of total votes cast to
avoid a second round of polls.
The run-off will be between
Kabila and Bemba, who won
44.81 percent of votes and 20.03
percent, respectively.
Antoine Gizenga came third
with 13.06 percent in this first democratic election since the
country's independence from
Belgium in 1960.
The DRC Constitution states
that the second round of the presidential
elections shall be held
within 15 days after the announcement
of the initial election results.
The challenge could stall the
completion of the electoral
process, which would have seen
the president-elect inaugurated
on 10 December.
Neither of the main political
alliances - Alliance for the Presidential
Majority of President Kabila
and Bemba's Regrouping of
the Congolese Nationalists -
reached the target of 251 elected
Members of Parliament required
to have a majority of seats.
President Kabila's coalition
led the polls with 111 seats in parliament
against Bemba's party
that won 64 seats, and both were
seeking addition coalitions.


title:
Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili, SADC chairperson

Abstract:
THE PRIME MINISTER of
Lesotho, Pakalitha Mosisili, is the
2006/07 chairperson of SADC. He takes over the rotating SADC
chair from President Festus
Mogae of Botswana who led the
region from August 2005.

body:
THE PRIME MINISTER of
Lesotho, Pakalitha Mosisili, is the
2006/07 chairperson of SADC.
He takes over the rotating SADC
chair from President Festus
Mogae of Botswana who led the
region from August 2005.
Born on 14 March 1945, Mosisili
has been Lesotho's prime
minister since 29 May 1998
when he first led his party, the
Lesotho Congress for Democracy
(LCD), to a near-total victory
in the elections.
He is a member of the African
Languages Association of Southern
Africa and the Southern
African Pedagogical Society, and
has contributed significantly to
the development of African languages
in the SADC region.
He started as an assistant
teacher in the early 1970s and
rose to become a lecturer in
African languages at various tertiary
institutions in the region, including
the National University
of Lesotho, and the Universities
of Fort Hare, Transkei and Zululand,
all in South Africa.

Mosisili was elected as member
of parliament for the Qacha's
Nek constituency in 1993 and
sworn in as Minister of Education
and Training, Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs, later renamed
the Ministry of Education and
Manpower Development.
He was appointed Deputy
Prime Minister in February
1995 and later became the minister
responsible for home affairs
and local government, the
position he held until the 1998
general elections.
He heads the SADC Troika
at a time when southern Africa
is enjoying relative peace and
political stability and has scored some successes on the
economic front.
Political stability has returned
to Angola, the Democratic
Republic of Congo and Mozambique,
with these countries leading
a resurgence of the SADC
economy in the past five years.
Mosisili's deputy is Zambia's
President Levy Mwanawasa.
The SADC Troika for the next 12
months includes these two leaders
and the outgoing chairperson,
Botswana's President Festus
Mogae.
The United Republic of Tanzania
will chair the Organ on Politics,
Defence and Security Cooperation
for the coming year, with
Angola as deputy. Namibia, the
immediate past chair, completes
the Organ Troika.


Abstract:
ZAMBIA WILL host the 27th
SADC summit in Lusaka next
year after joining the SADC
Troika as deputy chair.

body:
Zambia to host Summit 2007
ZAMBIA WILL host the 27th
SADC summit in Lusaka next
year after joining the SADC
Troika as deputy chair.
Following his election as
deputy chairperson, President
Levy Mwanawasa
thanked SADC members for
the trust they have in him
and his country.
The tradition is that the
deputy chair of SADC hosts
the next summit during which
it will take over the chair.


Abstract:
THE UNITED Republic of
Tanzania is committed to the
realisation of SADC's regional
integration agenda, President
Jakaya Kikwete pledged in
his first address to summit
following his election last
year.

body:
THE UNITED Republic of
Tanzania is committed to the
realisation of SADC's regional
integration agenda, President
Jakaya Kikwete pledged in
his first address to summit
following his election last
year.
The new Tanzanian leader
assured colleagues of his country's
continued cooperation
and commitment to SADC.
“I would wish to assure you
that among the people of Tanzania
there will be no shortage
of fervour and enthusiasm in
working with their kith and kin
of southern Africa to realise the
aims and aspirations of SADC,”
Kikwete said.
He will chair the SADC
Troika on Politics, Defence and
Security Cooperation for the
coming year, and he promised
to continue the legacy left by
his predecessor, Benjamin
Mkapa, who played a pivotal
role in advancing regional integration.
He noted that some people
have referred to him as “the
new Mkapa” during his tour of
regional capitals to introduce
himself. As of August, he had
visited nine SADC countries since his election and inauguration
in December 2005.
Mkapa is credited with
spearheading significant macroeconomic
reforms in the United
Republic of Tanzania.
He also left a regional legacy
in the agricultural sector
through hosting a summit of
SADC leaders on agriculture
and food security that set development
targets and plans, including
a regional food reserve.
He was at the helm of SADC
when the regional organisation
produced its 15-year blueprint,
the Regional Indicative Strategic
Development Plan, which was
launched in A rusha, and the
Strategic Indicative Plan for the
Organ on Politics, Defence and
Security Cooperation.


Abstract:
SUMMIT DEFERRED a decision
on the readmission of Seychelles
and resolved to engage
in further consultations.

body:
SUMMIT DEFERRED a decision
on the readmission of Seychelles
and resolved to engage
in further consultations.
Seychelles has applied to rejoin
SADC after pulling out of
the regional bloc in 2004, citing
financial constraints.
Its readmission has been
stalled by discussions over how
much the country must pay before
coming back. SADC had initially
written off arrears amounting
to US$2.6 million previously
accumulated by Seychelles.
The SADC Secretariat was
mandated to engage Seychelles
in further consultations on the
way forward.


title:
Foreign direct investment trends in southern Africa

Abstract:
AS SOUTHERN Africa steps
up efforts to lure Foreign Direct
Investment (FDI), a survey of
global flows into Africa reveals
some issues and trends relevant
to current initiatives.

body:
AS SOUTHERN Africa steps
up efforts to lure Foreign Direct
Investment (FDI), a survey of
global flows into Africa reveals
some issues and trends relevant
to current initiatives.
One such global trend, reflected
in the SADC region, is
the growth of FDI flows in the
services sector.
According to the United Nations
Conference on Trade and
Development (UNCTAD), service
industries accounted for 49
percent of total FDI flows in
1990, growing to 60 percent by
2002.
A 2005 study conducted by
the Namibian Economic Policy
Research Unit (NEPRU) confirms
that this global trend is
seen in southern Africa, albeit
with a few exceptions.
The period beginning 1990
saw a strong push towards privatisation
and trade liberalisation.
Before that, most infrastructure
services such as transport
and telecommunications
were predominantly state owned
enterprises.
Despite new efforts by SADC
Member States, after the privatisation
period, to direct FDI towards
manufacturing and other
areas such as mining, investment
flows have tended to
favour the services sector, with
new areas such as banking and
retailing becoming increasingly
popular.
The NEPRU study notes yet
another trend - the role of
South African companies increasing investments in the region,
particularly in the services
sector.
NEPRU says the rapid movement
of South African companies
into the region could be
partly explained by the “internationalisation
of South African
corporates” such as South
African Breweries, Anglo
American, Old Mutual,
Sasol and others that are
now listed in London,
New York, Frankfurt
and Paris.
“The comparative efficiency
and business experience of these
firms in a southern African context
and in Africa more broadly,
have led to a new era of multinational
corporate activity in
Africa - with South African
firms emerging as the new
multinational corporations,”
says NEPRU.
However, investment by the
South African private sector in
other countries in the region has
not been without criticism, particularly
where it has represented
an extension of the country's retail
networks throughout southern
Africa and further afield.
For instance, in 2002, a South
African retail firm, Game Stores,
was dragged before the Zambia
Competition Commission, accused
of unfair trade practices
by a local company. The commission
ruled in favour of the
Zambian company.
“For those countries in the
region that do not have competition
law and policy and a competent
enforcement agency, such practices would go unchecked,”
says NEPRU in its study report.
“Otherwise the benefits to regional
integration from such
intra-regional investment and the
associated trade flows will accrue
asymmetrically and so bring the
risk of attempts to stall processes
to enhance regional integration.”
Angola, South Africa lead in attracting FDI flows
The NEPRU study confirms
UNCTAD figures that show Angola
and South Africa as by far
the most important destinations
for FDI in southern Africa.
The largest chunk of investment
into South Africa flowed
from the privatisation of
Telkom in 1997, which resulted
in the purchase of a 20 percent
stake by SBC from the United
States and Telkom Malaysia
Berhad. The unbundling of
cross-shareholding between the
London-based Anglo American
and the related mining conglomerate De Beers substantially
accounted for South
Africa's FDI performance in
2001.
In 2005, South Africa's FDI
came through the R33 billion
acquisition of a local bank,
ABSA, by the British-based
bank, Barclays.
Foreign investment into Angola
has mainly been through
the oil industry, whose offshore
operations survived decades of
civil war. The advent of peace has opened the country to massive
FDI, particularly into infrastructural reconstruction and
mining.
FDI in SADC countries 1997-2003
(US$ millions)
Country 1992-1997
Annual Average 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
Angola 304 1,114 2471 879 2,146 1,643 1,415
Botswana -10 96 37 57 31 405 86
Democratic Republic of Congo -6 61* 11* 23* 82 117 158
Lesotho 25 27 33 31 28 27 42
Madagascar 13 16 58 69 84 8 50*
Malawi 10 12 59 26 19 6 23*
Mauritius 27 12 49 277 32 33 70
Mozambique 46 235 382 139 255 155 337
Namibia 106 77 20 186 365 181 84
South Africa 1045 561 1,502 888 6,789 757 762
Swaziland 45 109 100 91 51 47 44
United Republic of Tanzania 90 172 542 282 467 240 248
Zambia 93 198 163 122 72 82 100
Zimbabwe 72 444 59 23 4 26 20*
Total 1,860 3,134 5,486 3,093 10,425 3,727 3,439
* = Estimate

Source: World Investment Report 2004, UNCTAD


While the bulk of the SADC
states have received FDI in the
services sector in the last 15
years, Lesotho's major attraction
has been its textiles industry.
Until recently, Lesotho enjoyed
preferential access into the US
market through the Africa
Growth and Opportunities
(AGOA) trade preferences.
However, the trade preferences
ended last year, opening
Lesotho's once thriving garment-
making industry to the
chilly winds of international
competition and leaving more
than 10,000 Basotho factory
workers to face an uncertain future.
The current global trading
system does not favour small
nations and as NEPRU says, “…
the experience of Lesotho offers
lessons to the region.”
Factors influencing investment decisions
Economic and political stability;
Large and expanding markets;
Low and stable interest and
inflation rates;
Effective competition policy;
Low transaction and business
costs for labour and
trade regulation, entry and
exit rules;
Human capital with diverse,
modern skills;
Low cost infrastructure such
as efficient communication
systems and transportation
links; and
Free trade and foreign exchange
regimes.
The BusinessMap Foundation
Rapid increase in South-South FDI inflows
Although Africa has been attracting
as low as two percent
of global FDI, a key emerging
trend acknowledged by UNCTAD
is the South-South dimension.
UNCTAD says that, over the
last 10 years, there has been a
rapid increase in South-South
FDI flows into developing countries,
Africa included.
In fact recent trends show
that “South-South flows have
grown far faster than North-
South flows,” according to another
report, entitled Africa in
the World Economy - The Nation -
al, Regional and International
Challenges, published in December
2005.
The report says the key source
of South-South investment into
Africa is Asia as represented by
China, Taiwan and India. The investment
is into industries such
as mining, IT, automotive, steel
and pharmaceuticals.
The report says the second
major source of South-South investment
into Africa is from
South African firms which in
2004 had as many as 600 projects
throughout the continent.
Much less investment is coming
into the continent from
South America, says the report,
noting the contribution of
Brazilian firms that are "starting
to move quite actively into the
.....­ Lusophone countries in
Africa, Angola and Mozambique
in particular."


title:
Loss of textile market costs African jobs

Abstract:
AFRICAN TEXTILE producers
and exporters are reeling from the
impact of new World Trade Organization
rules opening up to free
market forces a sector previously
protected for more than 30 years.

body:
AFRICAN TEXTILE producers
and exporters are reeling from the
impact of new World Trade Organization
rules opening up to free
market forces a sector previously
protected for more than 30 years.
January 2005 marked the expiry
of a quota system in industrial
nations which, as a side effect,
had provided a ready market for
textiles and apparel from Africa
and other developing countries.
The result is that more than
250,000 jobs have been lost in
Africa, affecting more than one
million family members, reports
the International Textile, Garment
and Leather Workers' Federation
(ITGLWF).
Most jobs have been lost in
Lesotho, South Africa, Swaziland,
Nigeria, Ghana, Mauritius,
Zambia, Madagascar, Tanzania,
Malawi, Namibia and Kenya.
The ITGLWF is calling on
African governments to convene
an urgent continental conference
on the future of the clothing, textile
and footwear industries so
that governments, trade unions
and producers can develop
plans to respond to the current
crisis, increase efficiency, attract investment and improve the
welfare of workers.
The Multi-Fibre Arrangement
(MFA), set up in 1974, was designed
to protect producers in the
world's biggest markets - the US,
Canada and the European Union
(EU) - from the more efficient ones
emerging in Asia at the time.
For decades, there was a limit
to the amount of textiles other
countries could export to the
largest markets. This limit mainly
affected the world's major
producers, such as China, India,
Hong Kong, Taiwan and the Republic
of Korea. But these restrictions
brought advantages to
the many smaller textile-exporting
countries that stepped in to
fill the gap.
Textile companies from the
major Asian producers set up
subsidiaries in less developed
countries such as Lesotho, a
country that enjoyed duty-free
access to the US under the
African Growth and Opportunity
Act of 2000. As a result, textiles
and clothing became Lesotho's
economic mainstay, and at one
point the industry employed
56,000 workers, accounting for virtually every manufacturing
job in the country.
Today, Lesotho provides a
telling example of the grave impact
of the expiry of the MFA.
"Most if not all our foreign investors
come from Asia, mainly
Taiwan and China," says Daniel
Maraisane, head of the main
clothing workers' union. With the
end of the quota system, those investors
"say it's now easier and
cheaper to manufacture in China
and India. So they are starting to
go back home....- There's simply
no way little Lesotho can compete
with such giants."
By the end of 2004, six of the
country's 50 clothing factories
had already closed in anticipation
of the deadline, leaving 6,600
workers without jobs or termination
benefits. The surviving companies,
faced with shortfalls in export
orders, placed 10,000 workers
on short-term work, using
them only when needed.
"If things go on like this,"
says Maraisane, "we are afraid
that unemployment, which already
stands at 40 per cent, will
end up reaching 70 percent . "

(Africa Renewal)


title:
Science and technology protocol on the cards

Abstract:
SADC HAS resolved to elevate
the role of science and technology
in the region and is working
on a draft Protocol on Science,
Technology and Innovation
to be tabled for consideration
at next year's summit.

body:
SADC HAS resolved to elevate
the role of science and technology
in the region and is working
on a draft Protocol on Science,
Technology and Innovation
to be tabled for consideration
at next year's summit.
In view of the rapid growth
of communications technology,
the digital divide and issues of
access, the Council of Ministers
endorsed the decision of the
ministers responsible for science,
technology and innovation
to promote these issues as
a critical cross-cutting programme
in support of regional
development objectives.
A SADC Protocol on Science,
Technology and Innovation will
be “formulated, adopted and
enter into force within one year
as a binding instrument to re g ulate
collaborative initiatives in
the region and support the implementation
of the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP) and Africa's Science
and Technology Consolidated
Plan of Action.”
South Africa has offered to
provide requisite human and
financial resources to fast-track
the development of this protocol
if need be to facilitate the
tabling of the protocol before summit for approval and signature
during its next meeting.
Science and technology is a
key driver of socio-economic
development and, through the
RISDP, the region acknowledges
that the achievement of
most of the objectives of the
SADC Common Agenda may
be facilitated by scientific and
technological solutions.
Technological innovation,
on the other hand, is an important
factor in the development
and competitiveness of regional
economies, leading to wealth
creation and improvement in
the quality of life for SADC citizens.
Most of the challenges facing
SADC such as food insecurity,
energy shortfalls, water
shortages, and poor transport
and communications infrastructure,
will require scientific
and technological solutions.
The RISDP identifies some
of the areas of regional focus as
the strengthening of cooperation;
development and harmonisation
of science and
technology policies; boosting
research capacity in the region ;
and raising public awareness
of science and technology issues.


title:
South Africa flexes muscle in space technology

Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA will launch
an earth-orbiting satellite that
will act as a research vehicle to
support disaster management,
food security, land use and national
security.

body:
SOUTH AFRICA will launch
an earth-orbiting satellite that
will act as a research vehicle to
support disaster management,
food security, land use and national
security.
The low earth-orbiting satellite,
which has been christened
SUMBANDILAsat, will be
launched into space from a
Russian submarine in December.
The craft is part of a three-
year satellite development programme
unveiled in 2005 by
South Africa's Minister of Science
and Technology, Mosibudi
Mangena.
The project is aimed at providing
South Africa with affordable
access to space technology
and to demonstrate
the country's space science
capabilities.
The name Sumbandila
means “lead the way”
in Venda, and was chosen from more than 3,000
entries in a national schools
competition initiated by the department
of science and technology.
SUMBANDILAsat will rotate
about 80km above the
earth. The high resolution images
it can generate will,
among other things, help to
manage disasters such as oil
spills, fires and floods. It will
also assist in the monitoring of
crops and urban planning.
The 1.8m-long satellite will
also gather data on climate
change such as sea temperature
measurements, rainfall, wind,
vegetation covers, and sea levels.
The data will be received at
the Hartebeesthoek Satellite Application
Centre, which is managed
by the Council for Scientific
and Industrial Research
(CSIR). The centre will also operate,
track and control the craft.


title:
Pan-African e-network hub may go to Mauritius

Abstract:
MAURITIUS HAS been shortlisted
as one of four African
countries able to host a continental
hub earth station being
developed as part of a Pan-
African e-network project
funded by India.

body:
MAURITIUS HAS been shortlisted
as one of four African
countries able to host a continental
hub earth station being
developed as part of a Pan-
African e-network project
funded by India.
The giant project - estimated
to cost more than US$1 billion -
is to connect 53 African countries
via satellite, fibre optic and
wireless links.
The “Hub Earth Station” in
Africa will be the main connection
point for the continent,
linking African participants
with their Indian counterparts.
The main service location
would be in India.
The other three countries
short-listed are Ghana,
Ethiopia and South Africa.
The Pan-African e-network
project was announced by the
Indian President, Abdul Kalam,
at an African Union (AU) conference
in Johannesburg, South
Africa, in September 2004.
A memorandum of understanding
was signed between
the Indian government and the
AU in October 2005, after
which Telecommunications
Consultants India Limited
(TCIL) was selected to implement
the project.
The project is expected to be
the largest Information Communication
Technology (ICT) infrastructure
project in Africa. It will
promote tele-medicine, tele-education
and Voice over Internet
Protocol (VoIP) connectivity.
VoIP is a technology that allows
telephone calls to be made
using a broadband Internet
connection instead of a regular
telephone line.
The e-health and e-education
services are to be provided
by seven universities -two in
India and five in Africa - and
eight hospitals, five of which
will be in Africa. Pilot projects
have been initiated in Ethiopia
and Ghana. (Afrol)


title:
South African hospitals to go electronic

Abstract:
PATIENT CARDS could soon
be a thing of the past if an ambitious
plan by the South African
government to introduce paperless
health facilities goes
through.

body:
PATIENT CARDS could soon
be a thing of the past if an ambitious
plan by the South African
government to introduce paperless
health facilities goes
through.
The dog-eared clinic card
may one day be little more than
a curious historical artefact if the
government's plan to overhaul the way patient records are
stored is successful.
The dream is that one day
every South African will have
their own “smart card” containing
their entire medical history
and current conditions - vital information
that could mean the
difference between life and
death in an emergency.
The project will see the introduction
of a nationwide electronic-
health record system in
South Africa.
The South African government
called for information
technology companies to bid for
the project, which is estimated
to cost more than R500 million
(about US$70 million).
There is no uniform standard
for gathering and storing patient
data in South Africa, making
it difficult for clinics and
hospitals to share information to
reduce the risk of duplication or
misdiagnosis, said the health
department's director-general,
Thami Mseleku.
This also makes it difficult
for the health department to obtain
reliable data on the country's
disease patterns and resource
allocation.
Patient records and management
systems range from
state-of-the-art computerised
operations to simple pen and
paper.
So far, the 849-bed Inkosi
Albert Luthuli Central Hospital
in KwaZulu-Natal is the only
paperless public hospital in
South Africa, while most of the
country's clinics still rely almost
entirely on paper systems.
Although a significant proportion
of public hospitals have
introduced computerised patient
records, their use is generally
confined to administrative
tasks.


Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICAN taxpayers
can now submit tax returns via
the Internet following the
launch of an electronic tax return
and submission service in
June.

body:
SOUTH AFRICAN taxpayers
can now submit tax returns via
the Internet following the
launch of an electronic tax return
and submission service in
June.
eFiling is a secure electronic
tax return and submission
service offered by the South
African Revenue Service
(SARS) that removes the risks
and hassles of manual tax returns.
It also allows taxpayers
to settle their tax obligations
online.
The introduction of eFiling
is in line with the 2002 SADC
Memorandum of Understanding
(MOU) on Cooperation
in Taxation and Related Matters.
The MOU provides for the
creation of a SADC tax database
and commits Member States to
work together in responding to
information technology and
digital challenges.
The Member States have committed
themselves to a review of
issues relating to e-commerce, ebilling
or e-customs clearance,
and the impact this may have on
tax revenue collection and on the
flow of goods and services.
Harmonisation of taxation
policies is one of the building
blocks towards the establishment
of a SADC Customs
Union by 2010. The Customs
Union is a precursor to the
SADC Common Market set for
2015.


title:
National policy on traditional medicine in Madagascar

Abstract:
THE GOVERNMENT of Madagascar
has shown its political
commitment to traditional medicine
by supporting, through an
inter-ministerial convention, a
commission to study regulations
on traditional medicine
and its pharmacopoeia in the
country.

body:
THE GOVERNMENT of Madagascar
has shown its political
commitment to traditional medicine
by supporting, through an
inter-ministerial convention, a
commission to study regulations
on traditional medicine
and its pharmacopoeia in the
country.
An Advisory Committee on
Traditional Medicine was created
in 2002. The committee
brings together the principal public and private stakeholders
in a spirit of partnership, and
has recently drafted the national
policy on traditional medicine,
which will move forward to be
validated by the World Health
Organisation (WHO).
The general objective of this
traditional medicine policy is
to improve access for the population,
especially the most vulnerable
populations, to quality
care and service.
Madagascar is endowed with
a flora of unique global importance
on account of its biodiversity,
endemicity, and ethnomedical
uses.
Out of some 13,000 species
present in Madagascar, over 80
percent are endemic to the island,
and more than 3,500 are
reported to have medicinal
properties. (IK Notes, World
Bank)


Abstract:
NAMIBIA IS set to become
the second country in southern
Africa to establish a fish
laboratory that will test for
microbiological properties
and the possibility of toxins in
fish.

body:
NAMIBIA IS set to become
the second country in southern
Africa to establish a fish
laboratory that will test for
microbiological properties
and the possibility of toxins in
fish.
The facility will be built in
2007 at Walvis Bay with the assistance
of Thailand.
Only South Africa has set
up two such laboratories in
the SADC region. Namibian
shellfish producers have to
send their shellfish to Pretoria
or Cape Town for testing before
they can export the pro duct,
thus losing time and
money.
International standards demand
that shellfish be tested
for toxins before export.
Thailand has offered to
train a team of Namibians to
run the laboratory while the
Namibian government will
fund the construction of the
facility.
Thailand has a vibrant fish
industry, with technical expertise
in handling and assessing
the quality of fish.
Namibia's fishing industry
is one of the country's thre e
major foreign currency earners.
The performance of the
industry has, however, been
on a downward spiral for the
past four years, resulting in
several companies shutting
down and the retrenchment of
thousands of workers.


title:
Madagascar next centre in Africa's oil boom

Abstract:
INTERNATIONAL OIL conglomerates
are scrambling for a
share of Madagascar's oil sector
as the Indian Ocean island is
fast emerging as the next centre
of Africa's energy boom.

body:
INTERNATIONAL OIL conglomerates
are scrambling for a
share of Madagascar's oil sector
as the Indian Ocean island is
fast emerging as the next centre
of Africa's energy boom.
Initial projections are that
Madagascar could produce
60,000 barrels per day in three to
four years, with revenue of several
billion dollars, which
would quickly make the oil industry
the main contributor to
the country's Gross Domestic
Product (GDP). The GDP was
US$5.5 billion in 2003.
The government has started
auctioning oil-drilling rights
and, according to Hugues Rajaoson
of the Ministry of Energy and Mines, the potential for production
is high.
“The sector could contribute
up to 15 percent of GDP within
five years,” Rajaoson said.
Among the global oil giants
scrambling for a share of
Madagascar's resources are
those from the United States,
the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, Norway,
China and South Korea.
Official estimates put offshore
reserves as high as five
billion barrels, but the exact size
remains unknown.
If development of the oil industry
proceeds as planned,
Madagascar will join Angola as
a beacon of SADC in the oil industry. Namibia has also been
assessing the feasibility of establishing
a viable oil sector.
Angola is sub-Saharan
Africa's second largest oil producer
after Nigeria.
Madagascar's economy
emerged from a recession in 2002,
and reached a growth rate of 9.8
percent in 2003.
The country's other major export
is vanilla, for which it is the
largest producer in the world. It
is also the second largest producer
of rice in Africa.


title:
Parliamentarians lobby government over uranium

Abstract:
LEGISLATORS IN the United
Republic of Tanzania are lobbying
the government to consider
exploration of uranium reserves
for electricity generation.

body:
LEGISLATORS IN the United
Republic of Tanzania are lobbying
the government to consider
exploration of uranium reserves
for electricity generation.
Tanzanian reserves of uranium
are known but have not been
exploited despite the adoption of
an Atomic Energy Act in 2003.
Uranium has not been included
in the mining sector's plan of
action because it falls under the
Science and Technology Ministry,
rather than the Energy and Minerals
docket, say experts.
Parliamentarians, led by Mohamed
Habib Mnyaa, are pushing
the Bunge (Parliament) to
amend the Atomic Energy Act
No. 7 of 2003 to place uranium
exploration under the Ministry of
Energy and Minerals.
The Mkuju river basin in the
south of the country boasts 2,000
sq km of uranium-rich land. An
estimated one-third of the continent's
known uranium deposits
are located in this region. Yet
Tanzanian industry has
been severely disrupted
by recent shortages of
electricity.
The Deputy Minister
of Energy and Minerals,
Lawrence Masha, has said
the use of nuclear technology in
the United Republic of Tanzania
would be limited by low
electricity demand.
A single nuclear plant generates
at least 500 megawatts
(MW), while Tanzania's
peak demand is about 400
MW.


title:
Indian firm to manage Tanzania railway network

Abstract:
RAIL INDIA Technical and
Economical Services (Rites) has
won the tender to run the operations
of Tanzania Railways
Corporation (TRC) on a 25-year
lease beginning in September.

body:
RAIL INDIA Technical and
Economical Services (Rites) has
won the tender to run the operations
of Tanzania Railways
Corporation (TRC) on a 25-year
lease beginning in September.
Rites is to pay US$100.5 million
to the Tanzanian Railway
Asset Holding Company over the
life of the concession, and will be
responsible for rehabilitating infrastructure
and train operations,
both passenger and freight.
The Indian company is expected
to offload 19 percent of
its shares to Tanzanians and to
remain with 51 percent of shares
so as to outsource capital more
smoothly through such international
funding institutions
as the World Bank and the
African Development Bank,
according to the 25-year concession
agreement.
Rites, which is whollyowned
by the Indian government,
now has 35 ongoing projects
in 13 countries, mostly in
the transportation sector.
TRC is a state-owned enterprise
that runs a railway network
that once was part of the East
African Railways Corporation
operating in Kenya, Uganda, and
the United Republic of Tanzania.
TRC is the largest transportation
enterprise in Tanzania, providing
services to both domestic
goods and cross-border cargo to
neighbouring Burundi, Rwanda,
Uganda and the Democratic Republic
of Congo.


title:
Second phase of Lesotho Highlands Water Project planned

Abstract:
LESOTHO AND South Africa
plan to construct the second
phase of the Lesotho Highlands
Water Project to meet the needs
of their growing economies.

body:
LESOTHO AND South Africa
plan to construct the second
phase of the Lesotho Highlands
Water Project to meet the needs
of their growing economies.
According to the Trans-
Caledon Tunnel Authority, the
bulk-water infrastructure company
owned by South Africa, a
treaty signed by the two countries
in 1986 envisages four possible
phases of the project.
Phase One, which cost R16.7
billion (about US$2.4 billion),
was completed in 1998 with the
construction of Katse Dam and
delivery tunnels to transfer
water to the Vaal River system
in South Africa.
The project aims to meet the
needs of South Africa's Gauteng
province, which generates
about 60 percent of the country's
industrial output and 80
percent of its mining output.
The province needs more water
than its main source - the Vaal
River - can provide.
A tender was issued last December
for a joint feasibility
study on the next phase.


Abstract:
THE LEVEL of awareness and
knowledge among diverse interest groups about southern
Africa's development strategies
needs to be intensified if the different
poverty reduction efforts
are to yield a common objective.

body:
THE LEVEL of awareness and
knowledge among diverse interest groups about southern
Africa's development strategies
needs to be intensified if the different
poverty reduction efforts
are to yield a common objective.
SADC leaders attending the
2006 Summit in Maseru were
critical of the slow pace in implementing
the region's two socio-
economic and political development
blueprints.
These are the Regional Indicative
Strategic Development
Plan (RISDP) and the Strategic
Indicative Plan for the Organ on
Politics, Defence and Security
Cooperation (SIPO) which were
developed as part of a restructuring
exercise that began in
2001.
Implementation has not progressed further than the unbundling of the blueprints into
1-year, 5-year and 15-year business
plans. This exercise was
done in the 2004/05 financial
year.
In a discussion that ran parallel
to the summit and was
broadcast live on SABC Africa,
panelists cited a lack of knowledge
about the RISDP and SIPO
among the wider regional community
as a key factor hampering
positive contribution by other
stakeholders.
The panel discussion, organized
by the UK-funded Southern
Africa Trust and a network
of non-governmental organizations,
attracted a wide range of
stakeholders from media, civil
society, business, government
and cooperating partners.
The discussion noted that the
weakness in implementation is not an indication of lack of political
will and commitment by
Member States. Rather, Member
States have to attend to competing
objectives and balance national
with regional priorities to
achieve acceptable trade-offs
within national budgetary constraints.
The lack of self-financing instruments is yet another factor
that continues to hamper
SADC's central coordinating
institutions such as the Secretariat
and the National Committees.
When SADC centralized its
administration, it created National
Committees which are
supposed to drive implementation
of SADC programmes at
the national level. The wide
spectrum of stakeholders at the
national level is expected to feed
through the National Committees.
However, these committees
remain largely non-functional in
most Member States.
It was noted that regional
representative groups of stakeholders
can still engage with the
RISDP and SIPO by placing a
person at the Secretariat, a proactive
arrangement that has
worked well for business.


Abstract:
WINNERS OF the 2006 SADC
Media Awards were presented
with their prizes at the SADC
Summit in Maseru .

body:
WINNERS OF the 2006 SADC
Media Awards were presented
with their prizes at the SADC
Summit in Maseru .
The awards were presented
in the four categories of television,
radio, photojournalism
and print media. The winners
are from Mozambique, South
Africa and Zimbabwe.
Alfredo Lazaru Mueche of
Mozambique won the award
for the best photojournalist
from the region in 2006.
There were five entries in
the radio categories and the
winner was Fazila Dahall of
South Africa whose entry portrayed
the many facets of HIV
and AIDS.
Andre Smith of South Africa
was the best television journalist
for his entry that explored
the notion that HIV and AIDS
is a black disease and depicted
the stigmatised racial definitions
of risks of contracting the
disease. The documentary encouraged
white South Africans to also acknowledge their place
in the pandemic.
Takawira Musara of Zimbabwe
took the prize in the
print category. His entry focused
on the effects of HIV and
AIDS in southern Africa and
the need for a regional response
to the pandemic.
The aim of the awards is to
encourage the media to play a
leading role in the dissemination
of information on SADC
and to recognise the role of
journalists in the promotion of
regional integration.
The 2007 SADC Media
Awards competition was also
launched during the summit.
There will be no theme for the
2007 competition, which means
that all entries promoting regional
integration will be accepted.
Entries are invited from
work published or broadcast in
a recognised media house or
agency between January and
December 2006.


title:
Winners of Schools Essay Competition announced

Abstract:
WINNERS OF the SADC
Schools Essay Competition for
2006 were announced during
the SADC Summit and presented
with their prizes.

body:
WINNERS OF the SADC
Schools Essay Competition for
2006 were announced during
the SADC Summit and presented
with their prizes.
The topic for the 2006 competition
was “Food and Nutrition
in the SADC region has
been unsatisfactory for many
years now. Discuss the causes of
this situation and suggest possible
actions which the people and
governments of SADC should
take to ensure that there is adequate
food available for proper
nutrition in the region.”
Herry Mapesi of Benjamin
W. Mkapa High School in the
United Republic of Tanzania
won first prize.
The second prize went to
Boitshwarelo Mokgethi of
Botswana while Lorraine
Chitereka of Lesotho took third
prize.
The competition aims to raise
awareness among the youth
about the activities and programmes
of SADC and to bring to
their attention issues that affect
them.


Abstract:
THE SADC Gender Unit has published a
new edition of the SADC Gender Monitor,
giving progress toward gender equality in
the region, and presenting the steps to be
taken over the next year in preparation for
a gender protocol to be presented to the
SADC Summit in Lusaka in 2007.

body:
THE SADC Gender Unit has published a
new edition of the SADC Gender Monitor,
giving progress toward gender equality in
the region, and presenting the steps to be
taken over the next year in preparation for
a gender protocol to be presented to the
SADC Summit in Lusaka in 2007.
The head of the SADC Gender Unit,
Magdeline Mathiba-Madibela, says in her
Foreword that “Southern Africa has scored
relatively good results in the implementation
of the gender commitments set by the
Beijing Platform for Action and its Declaration,
and the SADC declaration on Gender
and Development (1997) and its Addendum
(1998). However, a lot still needs to be done
to fully address the critical areas of concern
and special target groups such as the poorest
of the poor, rural women, women with
disabilities and the girl child.
“The SADC Secretariat's role to coordinate
and facilitate the implementation of
the commitments on gender should not be
viewed in isolation. As affirmed by the
RISDP, the role of all stakeholders is crucial
in the realisation of gender equality
targets in the region.”
For Southern Africa, “this is an important
time to reflect and re-strategise for the
future and make full utilisation of the investments
that we have made to date in
pursuing gender equality in the region.”
The SADC Gender Monitor is produced
for SADC by the Southern African Research and Documentation Centre
(SARDC) Women in Development Southern
Africa Awareness (WIDSAA) programme.
Available from SADC registry@sadc.int
or SARDC widsaa@sardc.net

Full text online at Southern Africa

Virtual Library www.sardc.net


title:
Report of Think Tank on HIV Prevention in High-Prevalence Countries in Southern Africa

Abstract:
IN A bid to increase the pace of HIV prevention
in Africa, SADC, with the support
of the regional HIV Prevention Group ,
convened a three-day think tank meeting
in Maseru, Lesotho in May 2006 focusing
on HIV prevention in high-prevalence
countries in southern Africa.

body:
IN A bid to increase the pace of HIV prevention
in Africa, SADC, with the support
of the regional HIV Prevention Group ,
convened a three-day think tank meeting
in Maseru, Lesotho in May 2006 focusing
on HIV prevention in high-prevalence
countries in southern Africa.
In the foreword, SADC Executive Secretary,
Tomaz Augusto Salomão, acknowledged
that the scale of the epidemic in
southern Africa makes HIV and AIDS the
“single greatest threat” to attaining SADC's
objective of sustainable and equitable socioeconomic
growth and development.
The findings and recommendations of
the meeting were compiled into a report, which established that in Uganda, Kenya
and Zimbabwe, the reduction in multiple
sexual partners was the most extensive
contributing factor for the decline in HIV
incidence.
The meeting observed that high-risk
sexual activities such as casual sex are no
longer main drivers of new infections.
The report recommended that there is
need for alignment of national policies and
programmes to regional and continental
commitments, and urged community monitoring
of the dynamics of the pandemic.
Available from SADC Secretariat

Email registry@sadc.int

Website www.sadc.int


Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA will
commemorate in October the
20th anniversary of the death
of Samora Moises Machel,
Mozambique's first president
and leader of the Front
for the Liberation of Mozambique
(Frelimo).

body:
SOUTHERN AFRICA will
commemorate in October the
20th anniversary of the death
of Samora Moises Machel,
Mozambique's first president
and leader of the Front
for the Liberation of Mozambique
(Frelimo).
Machel and 34 others, including
some of his closest
aides and advisors, died when the presidential plane, returning from a summit in Zambia,
crashed at Mbuzini in South Africa on 19 October 1986.
The cause of the crash has not been officially determined,
although circumstantial evidence points to a false
navigational beacon placed by the former apartheid
regime in South Africa to draw the plane off course.
President Armando Emilio Guebuza, who chaired the
Mozambican inquiry in 1986 which did not have full access
to materials held by South Africa, said his government will
not rest until the circumstances of the death of the country's
first president have been fully clarified.
Unveiling a plaque in memory of Machel, Guebuza
described him as “as farsighted leader and a visionary
politician.”
He was speaking at ceremonies in the north of the country,
in Pemba, to mark Armed Forces Day, the anniversary
of the launching on 25 September 1964 of the liberation war
to free the country from Portuguese colonial rule.
This year, the date marks the start of a month of commemorations
of the 20th anniversary of Machel's death,
including a ceremony at Mbuzini.
The memorial at Mbuzini is perched on an isolated
hillside and has embedded in a cement base 35 vertical
steel pillars, one for each person who died. They cast long
shadows over the base, and the wind causes a permanent
whispering through small incisions in the pillars.
The monument was designed by the well-known
Mozambican architect, José Forjaz, who is Director of the
Faculty of Architecture at Eduardo Mondlane University
in Maputo. Forjaz says the memorial “has a number of
meanings – symbolic, aesthetic, and even acoustic…”
Machel was the leader of Frelimo, which toppled the
colonial Portuguese administration through guerrilla
warfare.
Machel became the first president of Mozambique at
independence on 25 June 1975, and his government accommodated
liberation fighters from South Africa and
Zimbabwe who were still battling to overthrow the
apartheid and Rhodesian regimes.



Highlights of the Finance and Investment Protocol

WE WILL REMEMBER

The aeroplane carrying President Samora Moises Machel of the
Republic of Mozambique and 34 of his compatriots and colleagues
crashed here in Mbuzini, in unexpected circumstances,
on 19 October 1986.
SAMORA MOISES MACHEL

Born: 29 September 1933 Died: 19 October 1986
“Throughout the day we shall mourn with you a mighty soldier,
a courageous son, a noble statesman. We must believe his death will
strengthen your and our resolve to be finally free… Our struggle has
always been linked and we shall be victorious together.”
(Message of condolence from Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, while
still imprisoned, to President Machel's widow, Graça Machel)
Declared, National Monuments Council, 1998




Abstract:
A CULTURAL CENTRE in honour of Angola's first president and leader
of the liberation struggle for independence, António Agostinho Neto, is
being built in his home area in the Northern Bango province. The centre ,
being built on a 19,000 sq m plot in Neto's Catete village, will comprise
of a museum, arts exhibition room, conference halls, kiosks, an auditorium
and playgrounds.

body:
A CULTURAL CENTRE in honour of Angola's first president and leader
of the liberation struggle for independence, António Agostinho Neto, is
being built in his home area in the Northern Bango province. The centre ,
being built on a 19,000 sq m plot in Neto's Catete village, will comprise
of a museum, arts exhibition room, conference halls, kiosks, an auditorium
and playgrounds.


body:
CURRENCY CHECKLIST
Country Currency (US $1)
Angola Kwanza (100 lwei) 80.37
Botswana Pula (100 thebe) 6.07
DRC Congo Franc 462.00
Lesotho Maloti (100 lisente) 7.11
Madagascar Ariary 9,275.00
Malawi Kwacha (100 tambala) 137.16
Mauritius Rupee (100 cents) 32.75
Mozambique Metical (100 centravos) 25,86
Namibia Dollar (100 cents) 7.19
South Africa Rand (100 cents) 7.19
Swaziland Lilangeni (100 cents) 7.18
Tanzania Shilling (100 cents) 1,312.00
Zambia Kwacha (100 ngwee) 3,887.50
Zimbabwe Dollar (100 Cents) 250.00

September 2006


body:
EVENTS DIARY 2006
October
3-6 Namibia
Tourism 2006

This is the third in a series of investment promotion meetings
held under the auspices of the EU-SADC Investment
Promotion Programme (ESIPP). Tourism 2006 is a unique
forum aimed at encouraging the 14 SADC countries to
engage in international, financial, technical and commercial
collaboration for development of tourism and hospitality in
the region.
17-19 South Africa
Energy Summit in Africa


The summit to be held in Cape Town will provide a forum
for all the main actors in the energy sector (government,
NGOs and energy companies) to debate and propose
recommendations oriented to the African energy sector.
18-19 South Africa
African Business Leaders Forum

The forum aims to identify and propose implementation of
sustainable solutions to the continent's developmental
challenges. The fourth forum will have leaders from public
and private sectors to discuss critical issues such as service
delivery, infrastructure development and poverty alleviation.
25-27 Italy
World Congress on Communication for Development (WCCD)

The WCCD aims to analyse and evaluate new developments
in the field of communication for development. The
congress will focus on the importance of communication to
development and make recommendations of how to apply it
in developmental policies.
TBA
SADC Extraordinary Summit
The extraordinary summit will consider the report of a
ministerial taskforce set up during the 26th SADC Summit of
Heads of State and Government in Maseru in August.
The taskforce was tasked to come up with recommendations
on overlapping membership of regional economic
communities, staffing of the SADC Secretariat and
implementation of SADC programmes and projects.

November
16-17 Belgium
EU-Africa Business Forum

The first EU-Africa Business Forum, will take place in
Brussels, to provide an opportunity for African business to
boost private sector development and encourage European
investors to consider opportunities in Africa.
29-1 Dec. Zambia
Mines 2006

Mines 2006 is the fourth in a series of sectoral partnerships
meetings funded by the EU-SADC Investment Promotion
Programme (ESIPP). It focuses on the mining sector in the 14
SADC countries by encouraging international financial,
technical and commercial partnerships.
December
4-5 Switzerland
Tourism 2006

Implementation and follow-up of WSIS Meeting
As follow up to resolutions of the WSIS conference held in
November 2005, an experts meeting will be held under the
theme “Using ICTs to Achieve Growth and Development”.
The meeting will discuss the impact ICTs have on aspects of
development such as industrial sectors, international trade
and employment.
3 Madagascar
Madagascar Presidential Elections

These will be the eighth presidential elections held since
1965. The President is elected by direct popular vote for a
five-year term and the country's electoral system provides for
the conduct of a run-off in the event that there is no clear
winner from the first round.


body:
Public Holidays in SADC
 October - December 2006
1 October Public Holiday Botswana
2 October Public Holiday Botswana
4 October Independence Day Lesotho
4 October Reconciliation Day/Peace Day Mozambique
9 October Mother's Day Malawi
14 October Mwalimu Nyerere Day and Climax of
“The Uhuru Touch Race” Tanzania
21 October Divali Mauritius
24 October Eid-Ul-Fitr * Mauritius, Tanzania
24 October Independence Day Zambia
1 November All Saints Day Madagascar
2 November All Saints Day Angola
2 November Arrival of Indentured Labourers Mauritius
11 November Independence Day Angola
9 December Independence Day Tanzania
10 December International Human Rights Day Namibia
16 December Day of Reconciliation South Africa
22 December National Unity Day Zimbabwe
25 December Christmas Day All SADC
26 December Boxing Day Botswana, Lesotho,
Swaziland, Malawi
26 December Family Day Namibia
26 December Day of Goodwill South Africa
26 December Public Holiday Zimbabwe
* Depends on visibility of the moon


body:
PUBLICATIONS
HIV/AIDS and Militaries in Southern
Africa

CCR and UNAM

Cape Town and Windhoek, 2006

The Centre for Conflict Resolution and the
University of Namibia convened a two-day
policy advisory group seminar in early 2006
under the theme, “Namibia's Chair of the SADC
Organ: HIV/AIDS and Militaries in Southern
Africa”, bringing together a diverse group of
policy-makers, representatives of civil society,
military experts, HIV and AIDS management and
mitigation practitioners. This report captures
their discussions.
Available in electronic format from Centre for
Conflict Resolution, University of Cape Town, 31-
37 Orange Street, Cape Town 8000, South Africa.

Email mailbox@ccr.uct.ac.za

Website ccrweb.ccr.uct.ac.za


Global Trade: Past Mistakes,
Future Choices

Greg Buckman

South Africa, Cape Town, Zed Books, 2005

294pp

The author details possible future directions in
global energy supplies and balance of payments
imbalances. He argues that, just as current
trading arrangements have been the product of
past decisions emerging out of apparently
unrelated considerations, factors such as future
fossil fuel costs, global warming, and the
economic imbalances between the North and
South are likely to impel a radical reshaping of
the World Trade Organisation and the principles
enshrined in its agreements as well as the global
trading system in general.
Available from Zed Books, c/o David Philip,
Cape Town, 99 Garfield Road, Claremont 7700. P
O Box 46962, Glosderry 7702,

Email info@newafricabooks.co.za

Websitewww.zedbooks.co.uk




Human Rights Monitoring and

Enforcement Mechanisms: a Practical
Guide to the United Nations and the
African Union Human Rights Protection
Mechanisms

Philiat Matsheza and Leonard Zulu

Harare, Zimbabwe: SAHRIT, 2006

109pp

This guide seeks to explain what human rights law
means and the main human rights enforcement
and implementation mechanisms of the United
Nations and the African Union. The handbook has
been updated and republished to take into account
changes in the international and regional
protection and enforcement systems.
Available from Human Rights Trust of Southern
Africa (SAHRIT), 12 Ceres Road, Avondale, PO
Box 2448, Causeway, Harare, Zimbabwe.
 
E-mail: sahrit@sahrit.org.zw
 
Website www.sahrit.org


The Millennium Development Goals:
Raising the Resources to Tackle World
Poverty

Edited by Fantu Cheru and Colin Bradford
South Africa, Cape Town, Zed Books in
association with Helsinki Process, 2005

238pp.

Provides an up-to-date and detailed analysis of the
diversity of new proposals and mechanisms
currently being discussed in order to raise the
necessary financial resources to make the
achievement of the MDGs a reality by 2015. Some
key issues examined include development aid,
foreign direct investment, remittances by migrants,
commodity export prices and new ideas to secure
sustainable debt relief, including debt cancellation,
revaluation of IMF gold reserves, debt arbitration
and other proposals.

Available from Zed Books, c/o David Philip, Cape
Town, 99 Garfield Road, Claremont 7700, PO Box
46962, Glosderry 7702.

Email info@newafricabooks.co.za

Website www.zedbooks.co.uk









Abstract:
WITH JUST over 12 months remaining before the
SADC region can create its Free Trade Area, Member
States remain confident that they can move a gear
up to iron out outstanding impediments for the region
to achieve set targets.

body:
WITH JUST over 12 months remaining before the
SADC region can create its Free Trade Area, Member
States remain confident that they can move a gear
up to iron out outstanding impediments for the region
to achieve set targets.
Since 2000, SADC countries have been implementing
a programme towards creating a Free Trade Area
by 2008, a Customs Union by 2010, a Common Market
by 2015 and a Monetary Union by 2018.
However, the last heads of state Summit, in the
Lesotho capital of Maseru in August, raised concern
about the pace at which SADC's economic integration
programme was being implemented.
The Summit appointed a Ministerial Task Force to
come up with a progress report which was tabled before
an extraordinary Summit of Heads of State and
Government in Midrand, South Africa, in October.
The extraordinary Summit noted that several
challenges needed to be overcome but reaffirmed
the region's commitment to achieving the trade
milestones.
“Summit noted progress made in the attainment
of an FTA [Free Trade Area] and concluded
that the SADC Free Trade Area programme is on
course and that it will be launched as planned by
2008,” reads the communiqué in part.
However, the Summit noted that SADC's trade
patterns consist mainly of commodities and that
there is need to diversify Member State economies
and increase intra-regional trade and growth.
“In addition, Summit noted
that the establishment of the FTA
should take cognisance of developmental
integration elements
such as infrastructure, poverty alleviation
and sustainable development,”
says the communiqué.

Category of goods Tariff reduction
A Immediate reduction of duty to zero upon
gazetting of tariff schedules Member States;

On average 47% of all goods traded under
this regime by 2001.

B Gradual tariff reduction over 8 years;
85% expected to trade at zero tariff by 2008.

C Sensitive products mainly in areas of security,
health and safety;

Constitute 15%;

Tariffs expected to be eliminated by 2012.

Note that the Trade Protocol as amended in 2000 does not cover second hand goods which shall continue
to attract duty at current levels.
SOURCE SADC Today Vol. 6 No. 1 April 2003
On whether the Customs
Union is based on an appropriate
model, the Summit directed the
Ministerial Task Force to undertake
and finalise a study to advise
on suitability of the model.
“In this regard, Summit directed
that a road map be developed
to facilitate the implementation of
the SADC Customs Union programme,”
says the communiqué.
As the SADC region moves towards
the planned Free Trade
Area, one of the challenges is to
bring down tariff and non-tariff
barriers in line with agreed
timetables within specific product
lines. The target is to ensure that
85 percent of all intra-regional
trade is at zero tariffs by 2008.
Economic integration in SADC
is guided by the Trade Protocol,
which was signed in 1996 and
came into force in 2000.
As part of its implementation,
Member States have been negotiating
tariff reduction schedules,
rules of origin, a dispute settlement
mechanism, special product
agreements, elimination of non
tariff barriers and harmonisation
of customs, trade documentation
and clearance procedures.
Tariff phase down is based on
a variable geometry model, taking
into account the asymmetrical
level of development in
Member States.
SADC Member States are at
different levels of development,
with South Africa far much more
developed than the rest in terms
of industrial base.
Key strategies being pursued
Gradual elimination of tariffs
Adoption of common rules
of origin
Harmonisation of customs
rules and procedures
Attainment of internationally
acceptable standards ,
quality, accreditation and
metrology
Harmonisation of sanitary
and phyto-sanitary measures
Elimination of non-tariff barriers
Liberalisation of trade in
services.



Major implementation challenges
Strengthen the supply side of
economies
Implement trade protocol
within the framework of the
WTO
Ensure that tariff reduction
does not negatively impact
on weaker or less developed
Member States
Cushion vulnerable groups
such as the rural and urban
poor, small businesses, informal
traders and women, as
well as ensuring that these
groups benefit from the Trade
Protocol.


Countries within the Southern
African Customs Union
(SACU) - Botswana,
Lesotho, Namibia, South
Africa and Swaziland -
are liberalising faster,
followed by Mauritius and Zimbabwe, while the rest follow.
Tariff reduction is divided
into three categories, the first
being goods that were to be liberalised
by 2001, the second by
2008 and the third by 2012.
Special agreements have been
concluded on trade in sensitive
products such as sugar, and textiles
and clothing.
Negotiations on rules of origin,
which seek to promote use
of local raw materials, were the
most difficult, but have since
been completed for most product
lines. The most sticky areas
were wheat flour products and
motor vehicles.
Another challenge for Member
States to achieve a successful
Free Trade Area is to address the supply side of trade.
This calls for a strong industrial
base in each member state to
produce exportable goods that
have a competitive edge.
The variable geometry model
is meant to allow Member States
time to adjust and prepare themselves
for inevitable competition
in a liberalised market. The
question is whether industries in
Member States have had sufficient
time to prepare for the new
market.

Multiple membership to Regional
Economic Communities
(RECs) that are working towards creating, or already
have, a Customs Union is yet
another challenge. Some SADC
Member States belong to
SACU, which is a functioning
Customs Union, while others
belong to either the East
African Community (EAC) or
the Common Market for East
and Southern Africa (COME-SA), which are planning their
own customs unions.
World Trade Organisation
(WTO) rules prevent countries
from belonging to more than
one Customs Union at the same
time. This calls for rationalisation
of existing and planned
customs unions if Member
States are to comply with WTO
rules.
Economic integration in SADC
is expected to boost intra-regional
trade, which stood at 25 percent of
all international trade in 2003. The
target is to increase trade among
Member States to between 35 percent
and 60 percent by 2008.
At present, intra-regional trade
is concentrated in the SACU countries
with far less trade happening
among non-SACU members.


Abstract:
SADC RECOGNISES water as
the engine for economic growth
and has renewed its commitment
to providing a framework
for developing, utilizing and
protecting water resources in
the SADC region.

body:
SADC RECOGNISES water as
the engine for economic growth
and has renewed its commitment
to providing a framework
for developing, utilizing and
protecting water resources in
the SADC region.
Through the recently released
regional water policy, which has
been endorsed by all Member
States, SADC presents the context
and intent for water resources
management, representing
the aspirations and interests
of the southern African countries.
Developed by the SADC
Water Division through a consultative
and participatory process,
the policy seeks to guide the harmonization
of national policies
and the implementation of activities
by all stakeholders in a region
where 70 percent of the
water resources is shared across
national boundaries.
SADC Executive Secretary,
Tomaz Augusto Salomão noted
in his Foreword that the region
is largely water deficient and
marked by high variability of
rainfall in both space and in
time, thus resulting in a mismatch
between water availability
and water demand.
“Water supply and sanitation
coverage in the region is still far
below acceptable standard and
this poses a serious challenge in
achieving the Millennium Development
Goals on water,”
says Salomão.
Salomão points out that the
living standard of the region's
rural population is still very low
with poverty still rife.
“Water resources development
through strategic infrastructure
is therefore seen as a
direct answer to the region's
poverty reduction goals and improvement
of living standards
of our peoples,” he says.
The water related challenges,
according to Salomão, “call for
cooperation amongst Member
States in Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM)
especially along shared watercourses.”
IWRM is the fundamental
approach that has been adopted
by SADC recognizing the fact
that water is cross-cutting in nature - both across political
boundaries and across sectors.
IWRM is the common thread
that links the elements of the new
regional policy. It is characterized
by methodologies for institutional
development, capacity-building,
stakeholder participation, integrated
planning, conflict resolution
and environmental management.
However, its application is
more likely when national water
policies adopt and incorporate
IWRM principles.
Throughout the policy,
SADC is impressing upon its
members to ensure that water
resources are developed and
managed in a manner that contributes
to regional economic integration
and development, ensuring
equity and mutual benefits
for all Member States.
Guided by the Revised SADC
Protocol on Shared Watercourses,
the policy encourages SADC states to exploit opportunities
for joint water resources development
in shared watercourses
to amicably prevent and resolve
water conflicts and consolidate
regional cooperation in accordance
with the principles enshrined
in the SADC Treaty.
The water policy emphasises
that water is a social and economic
good and, as such,
should be developed and managed
to provide economic benefits,
human dignity and social
well-being. In addition to clean
water for domestic use, SADC
states should seek to provide
water for productive activities
in rural and peri-urban areas in
order to alleviate poverty and to
correct imbalances in development.
According to the policy,
water is a vital resource for energy and industrial development.
In addition to ensuring
adequate water for industrial
use, Member States should optimize
the use of hydro-electricity
generation potential to provide
cheaper and environmentally
friendly sources of energy.
Areas with comparative advantage
for rain-fed and irrigated
agriculture must be targeted
in order to attain regional food
security. SADC Member States
should therefore promote improved tillage and rainwater
harvesting techniques to optimize
the use of water by rainfed
agriculture.
Affordable and sustainable
techniques for small-scale irrigation
should be developed as a measure to increase the production
of food and cash crops in
rural areas. Pricing of irrigation
water should also be consistent
with the need to provide economic
incentives for efficient use.
The water policy commits
SADC states to the protection of
human life, common property
and the environment against the
effects of water-related natural
and human-induced disasters.
The environment is recognized
in the policy as a resource
base and a legitimate user of
water. Member States should
therefore take all necessary
measures to sustain it, undertaking
strategic environmental
assessment where necessary.
The SADC water policy consolidates
water- related policy
provisions scattered in various
SADC documents into one single
document and provides for
the establishment of inter-sectoral
coordination on water related
management issues at regional,
river basin and national
levels. The policy will be implemented
through a regional
water strategy.
The policy recognises the
role of the SADC Secretariat and
calls for the creation of an enabling
institutional environment
that enhances the participation
of all stakeholders.
An important vehicle for implementing
the policy is the existence
of well-functioning river
basin organisations established
particularly for shared watercourses
and operating under
sound legislation.


title:
New regional customs clearance system adopted

Abstract:
A NEW regional customs clearance
system to facilitate speedy
processing of imports and exports
in southern Africa came
into force on 1 October.

body:
A NEW regional customs clearance
system to facilitate speedy
processing of imports and exports
in southern Africa came
into force on 1 October.
The Regional Customs Transit
Bond Guarantee System
(RCTBGS) will ensure that
goods in transit within SADC
are checked only at the point of
entry and final destination.
This will reduce costs of
moving the goods, reduce transit
time and guarantee bonds at
every point of entry.
A single bond would enhance
security of goods in transit
and protect government revenues.
The bonds will enable exporters
and importers to
smoothly move their goods
across the region using a single
guarantee bond to be accessed
in Durban, South Africa, or any
other port of entry into the
mainland.
Currently, traders must obtain
transit guarantee bonds at
every port of entry and pay
huge fees for the service.
Transit operations often involve
long delays that substantially
add to the transportation
cost. This is largely due to procedural
delays involving customs
documentation processing;
immigration, insurance,
and transit bond procedures; security
inspections and weigh
stations; phyto-sanitary and
traffic checks.
A World Bank study conducted
in July 2000 examined
delays at selected Southern
African border posts. Results
showed that, for example, delays
at Machipanda
(Mozambique-Zimbabwe)
amounted to 24 hours, 36
hours at Beitbridge
(South Africa-Zimbabwe),
36 hours at Victoria
Falls (Zimbabwe-Zambia) and 24 hours at Kazungula
(Botswana-Zambia).
Although not easy to quantify,
the loss in revenue due to
border delays in the SADC region
is estimated to run into millions
of dollars a year.
Transit procedures in landlocked
countries affect exports and imports differently. The
transit costs are somewhat less
for exports than for imports. Exports
frequently leave the country
without paying any duties,
so countries are less worried
about revenue loss, thus making
complex controls unnecessary.
Also, exporters are fewer
than importers and are better
equipped to deal with transit logistics.
Customs transit is,
therefore, largely an import
concern.
Member States of the Southern
African Customs Union
(SACU), except for Swaziland,
were already using a single customs
declaration form at their
common borders.
Swaziland started using the
new declaration form with effect
from 1 October. SACU comprises
Botswana, Lesotho,
Namibia, South Africa and
Swaziland.


title:
Malawi, Mozambique border to
open 24 hours

Abstract:
THE MAIN border post between
Mozambique and
Malawi at Zobue in Tete
province will shortly be open
24 hours a day if plans by the
two SADC neighbours are successful.

body:
THE MAIN border post between
Mozambique and
Malawi at Zobue in Tete
province will shortly be open
24 hours a day if plans by the
two SADC neighbours are successful.
Keeping the Zobue border
post open 24 hours a day will
be of considerable importance
for trade using the Tete corridor
- the road linking Malawi to
Zimbabwe.
The decision to open the
border post throughout the day
follows a meeting between
Mozambique's Defence Minister,
Tobias Dai, and his Malawian
counterpart, Davies Katsonga.
Malawi and Mozambique
also signed a cooperation protocol
which will help the two
countries deal with issues such
as cross-border trade and illegal
immigrants. (AIM)


title:
Reciprocal visa exemptions for Angola,
Namibia

Abstract:
ANGOLA AND Namibia have
agreed to exempt each other's
citizens from visa requirements
in a move expected to improve
trade opportunities and other
bilateral relations between the
two countries.

body:
ANGOLA AND Namibia have
agreed to exempt each other's
citizens from visa requirements
in a move expected to improve
trade opportunities and other
bilateral relations between the
two countries.
This means that with effect
from 5 October Namibian and
Angolan citizens do not require
visas to pass through their common
border points. This will
strengthen the flow of people and
enhances trade and tourism opportunities
between the two
countries.
“The visa requirements for
visiting Namibian nationals
have been one of the biggest
barriers to trade between Namibia and Angola,” said
Namibia Chamber of Commerce
and Industry chief executive officer,
Tarah Shaanika.
Namibia will be the first
SADC Member State whose nationals
will be exempted from applying
for visas when entering
Angola. Until now, Angola had
demanded visas for visitors from
all the other 13 SADC countries.
Some SADC countries have
already scrapped visa requirements
for citizens from other
Member States. These include
Mozambique, South Africa and
Swaziland, whose citizens no
longer require visas to cross borders
between the three countries.


title:
Additional access route for South Africa and Namibia

Abstract:
SOUTH AFRICA and Namibia
will open an additional access
route to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier
Park in 2007 as part of
tourism development ahead of
the 2010 Soccer World Cup.

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SOUTH AFRICA and Namibia
will open an additional access
route to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier
Park in 2007 as part of
tourism development ahead of
the 2010 Soccer World Cup.
The two countries plan to
open a border post at the proposed
Mata Mata access road
and gateway. This is an integral
part of an envisaged coast-tocoast
transfrontier tourist route
being developed for the 2010
World Cup.
The park has been identified
as a priority for implementation
within the first phase of the
Transfrontier Conservation Area
2010 strategy, which is an official
SADC initiative.
“As a tourism border post,
Mata Mata will increase revenue
for the TFCA by capitalising on
the new TransKalahari Highway
and attracting a new
stream of visitors from Namibia,”
said South Africa's Minister
of Tourism, Marthinus Van
Schalkwyk.


Abstract:
SOUTHERN AFRICA is poised
for another good agricultural
season as weather experts forecast
normal rainfall in 2006/07.

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SOUTHERN AFRICA is poised
for another good agricultural
season as weather experts forecast
normal rainfall in 2006/07.

According to 10th Southern
Africa Regional Climate Outlook
Forum (SARCOF), which
met in Botswana in September,
the rainfall 2006/07 season in
SADC will be split into two
parts - the first half stretching
from October to December and
the remainder from January to
March 2007.
The SARCOF meeting was
convened to come up with a
consensus forecast for the rainfall
pattern in SADC in 2006/07.
The outlook was prepared by
climate scientists from national
meteorological and hydrological
services within the SADC region.
Additional contributions
were from the Harare - based
SADC Drought Monitoring
Centre, and the International
Research Institute for Climate
and Society.
The SARCOF forecast comes
at a time when international
weather experts have warned of
developing El Niño conditions
across the Pacific Ocean over the
past five months, a development
likely to dampen
prospects of another good agricultural
season in southern
Africa.

October-December 2006
IT IS projected that in the first
half of the season, the northern
parts of SADC have an increased
chance of receiving normal
to above-normal rainfall.
This area comprises the Democratic
Republic of Congo
(DRC), northeastern Angola, the
northern part of the United Republic
of Tanzania, most of northern
Zambia, southern Malawi,
and part of northern Mozambique.
Also forecast to experience
normal to above-normal rainfall
in this period are most parts of
South Africa, Namibia, Madagascar,
Botswana, Swaziland, Angola
and the whole of Lesotho.
Elsewhere in the region, during
the first part of the season,
should receive normal to below-normal
rainfall.
This covers other parts of the
United Republic of Tanzania,
most of Mozambique, northern
Malawi, southern and extreme
northeastern part of Zambia,
Zimbabwe, northern parts of
South Africa and Swaziland,
most of Botswana, most of Angola,
Namibia, the southern
flank of South Africa, northwestern
part of Madagascar
and Mauritius.
January-March 2007
Most SADC countries have increased
chances of receiving
normal to above-normal rainfall
during January-March
2007.
Northern Tanzania has a
greater chance of receiving
above-normal rainfall.
However, some places may
receive normal to below-normal
rainfall during the second half
of the season. These are the
southwestern part of DRC,
greater part of Angola, western
Zambia, extreme western part
of Zimbabwe, Botswana, most
of Namibia, greater part of
South Africa, Lesotho, and most
of Swaziland.
In an El Niño update issued
at the end of September, the
World Meteorological Organisation
(WMO) warned that climatic
patterns across the equatorial
Pacific have since July developed
a notable tendency towards
El Niño conditions.
The WMO said there was
general agreement among
weather experts that the development
of “a weak to moderate
basin-wide El Niño is now likely
and that such an event
would persist into early 2007”.
Sea-surface temperatures in
the eastern equatorial Pacific
close to the South American
coast became warm towards
the end of July, while oceanic
and atmospheric patterns in
the central and western equatorial
Pacific also began to resemble
conditions typical of an
early stage of an El Niño event
in August.
The El Niño effect has been
associated with previous
drought periods that have hit
southern Africa. The phenomenon
causes the sea temperature
to rise significantly and the air
to become dry, affecting the
rain-formation process.
“In view of the evolving situation,
additional caution is required
in forming expectations
about impact in those regions typically affected by El Niño
events,” said WMO, noting that
the situation was likely to become
clearer by December.


title:
Region moves to harmonise seed regulations

Abstract:
PERMANENT SECRETARIES
of agriculture in the SADC region
have approved a harmonised
system of seed regulations as
part of measures aimed at boosting
regional food security.

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PERMANENT SECRETARIES
of agriculture in the SADC region
have approved a harmonised
system of seed regulations as
part of measures aimed at boosting
regional food security.
The harmonised seed regulations,
approved by the permanent
secretaries at a regional
meeting in South Africa in September,
comprise the SADC
Common Variety Release System,
SADC Common Seed Certification
and Quality Assurance
System and SADC Common
Quarantine and Phytosanitary
Measures for Seed System.
The technical agreements
will be presented to the ministers
of agriculture and thereafter
to the Council of Ministers.
SADC Common Variety Release
System establishes a regional
variety catalogue and enables
the marketing of all crop varieties in the 14 SADC Member States.
This will facilitate widespread
availability of improved varieties
of all crops to farmers.
Variety release systems in
most Member States require that
before a new variety is released it
has to pass through lengthy testing
and release procedures before
the seed can be marketed. This
denies or delays farmers' access
to new products.
A procedure manual for regional
variety release based on
process management is being
proposed and will provide the
mechanism for public and private
sector breeders to apply for
regional variety release.


title:
US$5.2 billion needed to boost generation capacity

Abstract:
THE SADC region requires at
least US$5.2 billion between now
and 2011 to rehabilitate existing
power stations and invest in
short-term electricity generation
projects, according to the Southern
African Power Pool (SAPP).

body:
THE SADC region requires at
least US$5.2 billion between now
and 2011 to rehabilitate existing
power stations and invest in
short-term electricity generation
projects, according to the Southern
African Power Pool (SAPP).
Rehabilitation and associated
infrastructure projects, most of
which are under construction
and scheduled for completion
before the end of 2007, will add
3,200 Megawatts (MW) of power
to the SADC grid at an estimated
cost of US$1.4 billion.
Short-term generation projects,
for which feasibility studies
and environmental-impact assessments
have been completed,
will cost the region an estimated
US$3.8 billion while adding about
4,200 MW to the regional grid on
completion around 2011.
With some of Africa's fastest
expanding economies, southern
Africa is expected to run out of
surplus generation capacity after
2007.
Net regional generation capacity
is expected to clock
45,000MW by 2007 against peak
demand of well over 45,000MW
at that time.
This is on the back of regional
demand for electricity which
has increased at the rate of three
percent per annum for the past
10 years against declining investment
in generation and
transmission infrastructure.
At present, the region has a
combined total installed generation
of 52,743MW but the net
generation output is around
45,000MW.
To operate optimally, SAPP
must ensure it maintains a generation
reserve level of 10.2 percent
or higher at all times. It is
projected that at current demand
growth levels, the region could
exhaust its reserve capacity after
2007 and would not be able to
meet further increases in
demand for power.
Another strategy being
pursued by SAPP is to
undertake short-term
transmission projects that focus on bringing onboard
three non-operating members,
Angola, Malawi and the United
Republic of Tanzania.
This strategy has involved investing
in inter-connectors to
supply electricity to the three
countries. The reinforcement of
the 220-kilovolt (kV) DRC-Zambia
inter-connector is expected to
increase the power transfer capacity
from the DRC to Zambia
and to increase trade between the
DRC and other countries. Work
on this line is still in progress.
The Zambian Electricity Supply
Corporation energised the
220-kV Zambia-Namibia interconnector
in August 2006, which
is being performance-monitored.
The line is meant to increase the security of supply to the northern
part of Namibia from Zambia.
An inter-connector between
Malawi and Mozambique is expected
to be completed within
two years of the signing of an
agreement between the buyer,
Escom of Malawi, and the seller,
HCB of Mozambique.
Zambia, Tanzania and Kenya
have agreed to implement the
Zambia-Tanzania-Kenya interconnector
project, through
which the power systems of the
three non-operating countries will be interconnected, enhancing
trade, supply security and
regional economic integration.
The three countries have, consequently,
mobilised funds for
technical, economic, financial
and environmental studies for a
three-part project.

ADB to raise funds for Inga project
THE AFRICAN Development
Bank (ADB) says it will mobilise
public and private funds
to finance the feasibility studies
for the Inga, the biggest energy
project in Africa.
Thanks to its huge hydroelectric
potential as well as its
potential impact on regional integration
in Africa, the “integrating
character” of the Inga project in the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC) has
been stressed to revive the project.
“Great Inga, with a power
production capacity of 39,000
megawatts, will provide the opportunity
of the project to export
electricity at the pan-
African level,” ADB said in October.


This will be made up of a
Zambia-Tanzania inter-connector,
beginning at Pensulo substation,
near Serenje in Zambia, and ending
at Mwakibete sub-station,
near Mbeya, in the United Republic
of Tanzania; reinforcement of
the Tanzanian transmission system
to allow transfer to Kenya;
and a Tanzania-Kenya transmission
line from Arusha to Nairobi.
The three governments have
agreed to proceed to the next preparation-for-implementation
phase, for which the African Development
Bank and the Development
Bank of Southern Africa
have provided grant funding. A
consultant is undertaking an environmental
and social impact
assessment study for the reinforcement
of the transmission
system in Tanzania.
Medium term to long term
generation projects to supply
power to the SADC region include
the Western Power Corridor
Project (Westcor), which is
expected to move some 4,000
MW of power from Inga Three
in the DRC, to the regional
power grid and to pick up 6,500
MW of generation at Kwanza
river in Angola.


