South African elections increase ruling party margin
South Africa’s African National Congress (ANC) now holds more than two-thirds of the seats in parliament after clinching 69.7 percent of the votes in the country’s third democratic elections held in April.

Regional integration key in multilateral trade negotiations
While the general objective of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) negotiations between the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries and the European Union (EU) is to foster the smooth and gradual integration of ACP states into the global economy, for SADC, the agreement should see the continuous strengthening of regional integration.

Dar es Salaam Declaration contains pro-active strategy for regional food security
SADC member states have initiated a pro-active strategy for agricultural development to address food security on a sustainable and regional basis, rather than rely on food aid from outside the region.

Stronger institutional mechanisms for gender equality needed
SADC has been challenged to strengthen institutional mechanisms for the advancement of women by providing adequate financial and human resources.