34th SADC Summit - SARDCThe country last hosted the SADC Summit in 1989 when the regional...

SADC TODAY Vol. 16 No 4 June 2014

by Kizito Sikuka

THE 34th Ordinary Summit of SADC Heads ofState and Government, set for Zimbabwe in Au-gust, will be an important milestone for socio-economic development in southern Africa.

The theme for the Summit on 17-18 Au-gust in Victoria Falls is “SADC Strategy forEconomic Transformation: Leveraging the Re-gion's Diverse Resources for Sustainable Eco-nomic and Social Development throughBeneficiation and Value Addition.”

Southern Africa has vast natural resourcesthat include minerals such as diamonds, goldand platinum.

Mining is an industry of strategic impor-tance in southern Africa. Roughly half of theworld’s vanadium, platinum, and diamondsoriginate in the region, along with an estimated36 percent of gold and 20 percent of cobalt.

In fact, two of the three countries that arethe largest producers of platinum in theworld are in the SADC region. South Africacurrently provides about two-thirds of theworld's platinum mining output, followed byRussia and Zimbabwe.

However, the region continues to beamong the poorest in the world despite theabundant natural resources since most coun-

POLICY 3

INFRASTRUCTURE 4

FOOD SECURITY 5

AGRICULTURE 6-7

ENERGY 8-9

BUSINESS BRIEFS 10

TRADE 11

ELECTIONS 12

GENDER 13

AFRICAN UNION 14

EVENTS 15

HISTORY TODAY 16

tries do not have beneficiation policies, withthe bulk of the value-addition taking placeelsewhere and benefiting others.

There is, therefore, need for southernAfrica to come up with a viable strategy thatensures that the extraction of natural re-sources benefits the people of the region.

As the incoming SADC chair, Zimbabwehas made a commitment to lead the regionalintegration agenda in southern Africathrough the promotion of industrialisationand value-addition to production.

Industrialisation and value-addition arekey components of the Zimbabwe Agendafor Sustainable Socio-Economic Transforma-tion (ZimAsset) launched in 2013.

ZimAsset is a government blueprintaimed at shaping the economic transforma-tion and development of the country for thefive-year period until December 2018.

Four clusters were identified to lead thistransformation: Food Security and Nutrition;Social Services and Poverty Eradication; In-frastructure and Utilities; and Value Additionand Beneficiation.

Another highlight of the 34th SADCSummit is expected to be the presentationof the revised Regional Indicative StrategicDevelopment Plan (RISDP).

continued on page 2...

34th SADC Summit Economic transformation takescentre stage

2 SOUTHERN AFRICA Today, June 2014

C O N T I N U E D F R O M P A G E 1

The RISDP is a 15-yearstrategic plan approved bySADC Member States in 2003as a blueprint for regional in-tegration and development,currently under review as partof efforts to realign the re-gion’s development agendawith emerging global dynam-ics.

A multi-stakeholder taskforce, including representa-tives of the SADC Secretariat,Member States and non-stateactors, was formed this year toimplement the recommenda-tions of an independent mid-term review undertakenbetween 2012 and 2013.

The task force has mettwice to formulate new priori-ties for the regional integra-tion agenda for the remainderof the RISDP timeframe.

The revised RISDP is ex-pected to be submitted to the2014 SADC Summit for ap-proval, as agreed at the previ-ous Summit.

The independent review ofthe RISDP recommended,among other things, a revisionof most SADC protocols toalign them with the new chal-lenges and emerging issues af-fecting regional integration.

SADC Member States havesigned 27 protocols and a num-ber of declarations, chartersand memoranda of under-standing on various mattersranging from trade, mining,and finance and investment toillicit drugs, forestry and sharedwatercourses.

Most of the protocols havebeen ratified and entered intoforce. However, the mid-termreview noted that there is noroadmap to enable a system-atic approach to implementa-tion of protocols at bothregional and national levels.

One shortcoming of mostof the existing protocols thatwas noted was that the obliga-

tions agreed are neither legallybinding nor obligatory.

Another key recommenda-tion by the independent re-view is that SADC shouldbroaden participation and be-come people-driven. The re-view called for the creation ofa platform for policy engage-ment by the SADC Secretariatwith the private sector andother non-state actors.

Existing engagement be-tween the Secretariat and non-state actors is on aprogramme-by-programmeand activity-by-activity basiswithout any clear strategic col-laboration and specific goals tobe achieved. Participation of allstakeholders in the regional in-tegration agenda is providedfor in the SADC Treaty.

The 2014 SADC Summit isalso expected to review imple-mentation of the SADC Infra-structure Master Planlaunched in 2012 in Maputo,Mozambique, and issue a dec-laration on its infrastructureprogramme.

The Master Plan is in-tended to guide the imple-mentation of cross-borderinfrastructure projects be-tween 2013 and 2027. It isbeing implemented throughthree five-year intervals –short term (2012-2017),medium term (2017-2022) andlong term (2022-2027).

At least 106 cross-border in-frastructure projects coveringthe priority sectors of energy,transport, tourism, water, infor-mation communication tech-nology, and meteorology havebeing identified for implemen-tation by SADC by 2017.

The new SADC ExecutiveSecretary, Dr StergomenaLawrence Tax will make herfirst presentation at Summitduring which she is expectedto articulate the programme ofaction and priorities since tak-

ing over from Mozambican DrTomaz Augusto Salomão inAugust 2013.

In one of her first inter-views as Executive Secretary,Dr Tax said her main task is totake the integration agendaforward.

“My goal is to continuestrengthening regional inte-gration and cooperation thathas existed in SADC since itsformation,” she said.

Summit is expected to re-ceive a report on the regionaleconomic integration agendafrom the Ministerial TaskForce on Regional EconomicIntegration.

The report is expected tohighlight the status of a frame-work for the proposed SADCCustoms Union and progresstowards the establishment ofthe Tripartite Free Trade Areainvolving the Common Marketfor Eastern and Southern Africa(COMESA), East African Com-munity (EAC) and SADC.

The ministerial task forcehas reported during the pasttwo years that some progresshas been made in developingthe parameters, benchmarks, amodel customs union for theregion, and the timing of ac-tivities leading to the launchof the Customs Union.

The SADC leaders are alsoexpected to discuss a commonregional position ahead of the20th Conference of the Parties(COP 20) of the United Na-tions Framework Conventionon Climate Change, to be heldin December in Peru.

The chairperson of theSADC Organ on Politics, De-fence and Security Coopera-tion, Namibian PresidentHifikepunye Pohamba, willtable a report on the politicalsituation in the region.

The re-admission ofMadagascar back into SADCwill mark the first time inseveral years that all 15SADC Member States willmeet together to chart theway forward towards deeperintegration in southernAfrica.

Madagascar was sus-pended from SADC in 2009after the then oppositionleader Andry Rajoelina seizedpower from President MarcRavalomanana in a publicdemonstration backed by themilitary, similar to the methodused by the latter when heseized power a few years ear-lier from his predecessor, Di-dier Ratsiraka.

SADC mediation eventu-ally achieved results at the endof 2013 when Madagascar suc-cessfully held presidentialelections, won by former fi-nance minister Hery Ra-jaonarimampianina.

The suspension was liftedby SADC in February follow-ing the restoration of constitu-tional order on the IndianOcean Island.

This will be the first timeZimbabwe hosts the annualregional meeting in 25 years.The country last hosted theSADC Summit in 1989 whenthe regional organization wasstill known as the SouthernAfrica Development Coordi-nation Conference.

At the Summit, PresidentRobert Mugabe will assumethe rotating SADC chair fromthe newly elected MalawianPresident Peter Mutharika,who won presidential elec-tions held on 20 May.

The Summit will be pre-ceded by meetings of seniorofficials and the Council ofMinisters. r

34th SADC Summit Economic transformation takes centre stage

SADC MEMBER States haveadopted guidelines to cushionconsumers from the impact ofthe planned migration fromanalogueto digitalbroadcasting.

The SADC Guidelines onConsumer Protection andAwareness on DigitalBroadcasting Migration wereadopted by the 7th SADCDigital BroadcastingMigration Forum held inKasane, Botswana in June.

“The Forum adopted theSADC Guidelines onConsumer Protection andAwareness on DigitalBroadcasting Migration, andMember States areencouraged to implement theGuidelines with immediateeffect,” the forum said.

The guidelines will enablegovernments to cushionconsumers from the effects ofthe transition from analogueto digital broadcasting andoutline measures to be takenby Member States to raiseawareness about themigration.

The measures to cushionconsumers include subsidiesfor purchasing digitalreceivers.

SADC is leading otherAfrican Regional EconomicCommunities (RECs) in termsof progress towards meetingthe global deadline for themigration from analogue todigital broadcasting.

Two SADC Member States– Mauritius and the UnitedRepublic of Tanzania – werethe first African countries tomigrate to Digital TerrestrialTelevision (DTT).

Mauritius was the firstAfrican nation to fullydigitise televisionbroadcasting for all regionsand islands in 2007.

The country initiated itsmigration process in 2005 with

a “soft launch” of its firstdigital services offering sixfree-to-air channels.

Two digital channels werelaunched in 2008 to speed upconsumer purchases of digitalTV sets and the appropriateSet-Top Boxes (STBs). Fullanalogue switch-off wascompleted in December 2013.

Tanzania completed themigration at the end of 2012and immediately commenceda staggered programme ofswitching off analoguebroadcasting in December inan exercise that has so far seensix of its regions nowaccessing DTT services.Theseare Dar es Salaam, Tanga,Dodoma, Kilimanjaro,Mwanza and Arusha.

Key success factors for themigration programmes inboth Mauritius and Tanzaniaincluded effective regulatoryenvironments andintroduction of subsidies toenable consumers to acquireDTT receivers.

The success of theTanzanian digital migrationexercise is also attributed to itseffective awareness campaignconducted parallel to theimplementation of theprogramme.

However, challengesencountered by most SADCMember States include lack offunding to roll out themigration programme, andstandardisation of receiversavailable on the market andtheir affordability.

To pursue a smooth DTTmigration, SADC MemberStates resolved to reflect onfinancing models that providefor an efficient process fordisseminating informationabout the DTT migrationprocess.

For example, to avoid thisproblem, the Tanzaniangovernment has exempted

Digital broadcasting consumer guidelines adopted

P O L I C Y

SOUTHERN AFRICA Today 3

taxes on decoders and Set TopBoxes.

Among other measuresintroduced by SADC is theintroduction of a DTT ProjectManagement Office at theSADC Secretariat tocoordinate the regional DTTprogramme.

The DTT office is a specialdesk at the Secretariat that actsas a one-stop shop forcoordinating, monitoring,evaluating and reporting onthe implementation of theSADC Roadmap for DigitalBroadcasting Migration toensure all Member States meetthe migration deadline.

The SADC region has alsoapproved a HarmonisedSADC Digital DividendStrategic Plan that outlines,among other things,

specifications for low-cost,free-to-air decoders and adigital licensing frameworkfor the region.

The global deadlineset by the InternationalTelecommunications Union(ITU) is 17 June 2015.

Digital broadcastinginvolves the use of digitalsignals rather than analoguewave forms to transmittelevision broadcast channelson assigned radio frequencybands.

Thanks to the use of datacompression, digital linksgenerally have more efficientbandwidth usage thananalogue, which makes itpossible for more services andchannels, and improvedpicture quality thanpreviously possible. r

SADC sets up risk managementcommittee

THE SADC Secretariat is taking steps to strengthen im-plementation of its Risk Management Policy to ensureproactive management of both the potential opportuni-ties and the adverse effects of regional integration.

As risk management is increasing prominence glob-ally due to the growing turbulence and uncertainty in theexternal environment, the SADC Executive Secretary, DrStergomena Lawrence Tax, has established an Audit andRisk Management Committee (ARMC) to strengthen in-stitutionalisation of risk management at the Secretariat.

The committee will play an important oversight rolein the implementation of risk management at the SADCSecretariat.

As part of its work, the Committee engaged an inter-national risk management expert to provide a two-dayorientation for the SADC Secretariat Management Teamand senior officers in April.

The course provided a platform for creating aware-ness and appreciationof risk management principlesamong the Secretariat’s management.

The SADC Risk Management Policy was approved bythe Council of Ministers meeting held in March 2012 inLuanda, Angola. r


international,” reads part ofthe declaration.

The declaration urgesSADC countries to implementregional agreements and pro-tocols to facilitate develop-ment of infrastructure, as wellas create the necessary condi-tions to attract investment andpromote industrialization.

Other key issues containedin the declaration include theneed to collaborate with inter-national cooperating partners,multilateral financial institu-tions such as the African Devel-opment Bank, the private sectorand other stakeholders to se-cure funding for the SADC in-frastructure programme.

Particular attention will alsobe put on the transport needsof landlocked SADC countrieswho because of “their geo-po-litical circumstances have spe-cial needs for transport andtransit services and bear highcosts for capacity and access toexternal markets.”

The ministers also commit-ted to the operationalization of

the SADC Regional Develop-ment Fund that was approvedin November 2013.

The fund is critical in sup-porting infrastructure projectsin the region. However, due tovarious challenges, amongthem the change in the financ-ing mode, the fund is yet to beoperational.

“We encourage all stake-holders, including all regionalfinance institutions and theprivate sector, to provide allnecessary support for the im-plementation of this declara-tion and the RIDMP,” readspart of the declaration.

“We will review progresson the implementation of thisdeclaration on a regular basisduring Summit meetings.”

The declaration was re-ferred to the Ministers of Jus-tice/Attorney Generals fromthe region for perusal before itis forwarded to the SADCCouncil of Ministers for finalapproval in August.

Once endorsed by Council,the declaration will be pre-

sented for approval by regionalleaders at the 34th OrdinarySummit of SADC Heads ofState and Government set forZimbabwe in August.

Tentative dates for the sum-mit whose theme is “SADCStrategy for Economic Trans-formation: Leveraging the Re-gion's Diverse Resources forSustainable Economic and So-cial Development,” are 17-18August in Victoria Falls.

Speaking at the officialopening ceremony of theSADC Infrastructure Ministersmeeting, Zimbabwe’s VicePresident, Joyce Mujuru, saidpoor infrastructure impedeson intra-regional trade.

“This challenge must beconfronted head on, workingclosely with our financial tech-nical experts who should as-sist with the mobilization ofsustainable long term funding,not forgetting the utilization ofour won natural resources,”Mujuru said.

The SADC Executive Secre-tary, Dr Stergomena LawrenceTax, concurred, saying that“the region needs to redoubleits efforts to deploy regionalinfrastructure to facilitatevalue addition.”

“The provision of inte-grated, efficient, and cost effec-tive infrastructure networks toaddress the region’s supplyside constraints and reductionof the cost of doing business isparamount,” she said.

Regional infrastructure de-velopment is key for socio-economic development as athriving economy depends ona reliable infrastructure base atboth the national and regionallevels.

The SADC Regional Infra-structure Development MasterPlan launched in 2012 identi-fies a total of 418 infrastructureprojects for implementationby 2027. r

ZIMBABWE ASSUMED con-trol of the New LimpopoBridge that links the countryto neighbouring South Africaat one of sub-Saharan Africa’sbusiest entry points.

This followed the expiry of a20-year Built Operate andTransfer (BOT) agreement withNew Limpopo Bridge Limited(NLB), a company that con-structed the bridge in 1994.

A BOT is an arrangementwhere a company undertakesan infrastructure project and isallowed to operate it in order torecover costs and make someprofits before transferring thefacility to the government.

The handover ceremonytook place in June at the Beit-

I N F R A S T R U C T U R E

SADC approves infrastructure declaration by Kizito Sikuka

SADC MINISTERS haveadopted a declaration that aimsto strengthen cooperation in thedevelopment of regional infra-structure projects and encour-age the participation of theprivate sector in construction ofdams, roads and other facilities.

The ministers responsiblefor Infrastructure adopted thedraft SADC Declaration on Re-gional Infrastructure Develop-ment at their meeting inHarare, Zimbabwe, on 20 June.

The declaration is expectedto unlock opportunities for fi-nancing various infrastructureprojects and inspire MemberStates to scale up and continueworking together on cross-border regional projects.

“We have agreed to makeour best efforts to promotemutually beneficial coopera-tion between Member Statesin the rapid development ofbankable projects that will fos-ter adequate and efficienttrade routes for regional and

Zimbabwe assumes control of Limpopo Bridge

Limpopo Bridge

bridge border post and waswitnessed by ZimbabweanTransport and InfrastructureDevelopment Minister, ObertMpofu, and his South Africancounterpart, Dipuo Peters.

Mpofu said officials fromboth countries have beentasked with developing amemorandum of understand-

ing by the end of September tocover the operations of thebridge.

Peters said private publicpartnerships are a viable op-tion for financing the infra-structure that countries shouldactively consider in order torelease funds for other press-ing needs. Herald r


Botswana reviews agricultural policy

better locust control. Har-vesting is expected tostart in June.

The food security out-look is generally better inMozambique this year com-pared to 2012/13 season, witha noticeable decreases in foodprices exceptfor areas thatwere affected by floods andcyclone Helen.

Areas affected by heavyrainfall and flooding in-cluded the Incomati, Maputoand Limpopo Basins in thesouth of the country, as wellas coastal Cabo Delgadoand Nampula in the north.

In the case of Namibia,national cereal productionis provisionally forecast at122,390 tonnes, reflecting anincrease of 50 percent over lastseason’s harvest but still twopercent below average.

Much of this improvementcomes from the commercialareas where most of the pro-duction is under irrigation. r

BOTSWANA HAS revised itsNational Policy on Agricul-tural Development to align itto the changing global dynam-ics, including ensuring it re-sponds to emerging issuessuch as climate change.

Permanent Secretary in theMinistry of Agriculture, MicusChimbombi said the policywas first launched in 1991 andthe need for its review arosefrom the fact that a number ofsector specific developmentsas well as international con-ventions and commitments onagriculture have taken place.

He said the revised policyand its newly introduced im-plementation plan will now bereviewed after every 10 years“to bring them in line with the

ever-changing national, re-gional and internationaltrends.”

The review will focus onthe policy performance interms of its objectives and ad-equacy of the instruments aswell as on major changes thatare necessary because of newnational, regional and interna-tional developments.

Among other things, thepolicy aims to improve foodsecurity, diversify the agricul-tural sector production base,increase agricultural outputand productivity, increase em-ployment opportunities, con-serve the scarce agriculturalland resources, and to providea secure and productive envi-ronment.

Some of the issues thathave necessitated the reviewof the policy include the adop-tion of the Botswana Vision2016 as an overarching strat-egy for social and economicdevelopment.

One of the aspirations ofVision 2016 is to eradicate ab-solute poverty by the year2016.

In addition, Botswanaadopted a National Strategyfor Poverty Reduction (NSPR)in 2003, to allow for a coordi-nated approach to poverty re-duction.

Given the high incidence ofpoverty in rural areas, agricul-ture has a role to play in con-tributing to the achievement ofpoverty reduction targets. r

Food security remains stable in SADC

F O O D S E C U R I T Y

THE 2013/2014 agriculturalseason has come to an end inmost southern African coun-tries, and the overall food se-curity situation remains stableas a number of countries areexpecting bumper harvests.

A joint assessment by theFamine Early Warning Sys-tems Network (FEWS), UNFood and Agriculture Organi-sation (FAO), World Food Pro-gramme (WFP), and theUnited Nations Office for theCoordination for Humanitar-ian Affairs, says the projectedaverage to above-average ce-real harvest is sufficient tomeet the region's require-ments for the next six monthsand beyond.

“Despite an erratic and de-layed start of season, the over-all regional perspectivereflects that the 2014/15 con-sumption season in terms ofcereals supplies is much betterthan last year’s with bumperharvests being recorded inZambia, South Africa and animprovement in Zimbabwecompared to last season,” ac-cording to the assessment.

Malawi and Mozambiqueare expecting good productiondespite the late onset of rainsand localized mid-season dry-ness.

Angola and Namibia werenegatively affected by adverseweather conditions during theseason.

Regional cereal availabil-ity is likely to be above lastyear and close to the pastfive-year average, and will besufficient to meet regional re-quirements for the next sixmonths and beyond – cover-ing the import needs of struc-turally grain-deficit countriesand leaving a surplus thatcould be exportedoutside ofthe region.

Major exportable maizesurpluses are expected from

Zambia (approximately1.1million metric tonnes), andSouth Africa (about 1.8 millionmetric tonnes).

In Tanzania, Mozambique,Malawiand Zimbabwe, cerealavailability is expected to meetnational domestic consump-tion needs, though poorhouseholds in localized areasin Malawi are likely to faceconstrained access.

Zimbabwe has “recordedone of the best maize perform-ances in the last close to 20years.” The area under cerealcrops in Zimbabwe rose by 16percent during the 2013/14farming season compared tothe previous year.

A second-round crop esti-mates report for Malawi esti-mates maize output at 3.93million MT, which is an in-crease on the output for2012/13.

Crop production is ex-pected to be more than lastyear in Madagascar due to

A G R I C U L T U R E

gascar, Malawi, Mozambique, the UnitedRepublic of Tanzania, Zambia and Zim-babwe.

The other demonstration centres are lo-cated in Benin, Cameroon, Ethiopia,Liberia, Togo, Sudan, Uganda and Rwanda.

The Gwebi Agricultural DemonstrationCentre project started in 2009 when the gov-ernments of Zimbabwe and China signedan agreement to build the facility.

Construction began in March 2010 andwas completed in 2012.Under the agree-ment, the 100-hectare centre will be man-aged by China between 2012 and 2015, afterwhich the centre will be handed to Zim-babwe.

Chinese experts at the Gwebi Agricul-tural Demonstration Centre said the facilityhas strengthened the capacity of local farm-ers to manage their crops and farming ma-chinery.

“Since we started operating in 2012, wehave trained over 3,000 students and farm-ers,” one of the experts, Richard Wang, said.

He revealed that the centre leased farm-ing equipment such as tractors and com-bine harvesters to Zimbabwean farmers aspart of a programme to improve agricul-tural mechanisation in the country.

At least four training courses are con-ducted at the centre every year, each target-ing 20 farmers.

The centre also conducts on-site coursesin rural areas for those that cannot afford toattend the training in Harare.

China contributes to African green revolutby Kizito Sikuka

AGRICULTURE HAS been identified as apriority area of development in the China-Africa strategic partnership.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang reaffirmedhis country’s commitment to assist Africaincrease agricultural productivity and im-prove food security during a visit to Africain May.

He announced that China plans to train2,000 agricultural technicians and manage-ment personnel in Africa during the nextfive years.

Under the Forum on China-Africa Coop-eration (FOCAC) launched in 2000, the twosides agreed to work together in boostingagricultural production in Africa and ensur-ing food security for its citizens.

China pledged in 2012 to increase thenumber of agricultural technology demon-stration centres from 15 to 20.

As Africa celebrates 2014 as the Year ofAgriculture and Food Security, a visit to theGwebi Agricultural Demonstration Centrenear Harare in Zimbabwe was undertakento find out how China is contributing to thegreen revolution in Africa.

The Gwebi Agricultural DemonstrationCentre is one of the 20 agricultural centresto be built in Africa by China. A total of 15centres are already operational, of whichseven are in the Southern African Devel-opment Community (SADC). These are inthe Democratic Republic of Congo, Mada-


“We mainly focus on farmers who cometo us, and our wish is to also train as manysmallholder farmers as possible, particu-larly those based in the rural areas,” Wangsaid.

The demonstration centre also workswith the Gwebi Agricultural College totrain its students, as well as offer technicalsupport in some of its commercial farmingventures.

He said Zimbabwe and the rest of Africahave the potential to become global playersin agriculture if right policies are put inplace.

“Africa could have enough food for itselfif things are done properly because the con-ditions for agriculture are there and verygood,” he said.

He said the continent has vast fertileland and enjoys good weather and abun-dant labour.

“What you call smallholder farms herein Africa in terms of space are actually com-mercial farms in China,” weighed in FrankYu, another Chinese expert at thecentre.

Yu noted that China isready to assist Africa toreach its full potential inharnessing its agricul-tural potential.

He dismissed the notionthat the involvement ofChina in African agriculturewas another scramble for land on

tion


For example, more than 62 percent of theSADC region’s 277 million people are de-pendent on agriculture for their livelihoods,according to the SADC Secretariat.

Furthermore, the sector contributes an av-erage of 17 percent to the regional GDP, andis therefore a very important sector to allSADC Member States in terms of job creationand income generation.

Dr Tax also urged the region to increasefood production to keep pace with growingpopulation.

She said while food production can be in-creased by increasing the area of land to beused for agriculture, “this is not a viable op-tion in the SADC region, the most desirableand sustainable option before us is to in-crease productivity so that more food can beproduced per unit area of land.”

She said there is need for the region to en-gage and co-opt the youths into agriculturaldevelopment.

“As we celebrate the African Union yearof Agriculture and Food Security, we need tolaunch a SADC-wide youth programme tocreate opportunities in agricultural valuechains and building agricultural entrepre-neur.”

African leaders adopted 2014 as the yearof agriculture at their 33rd summit held inAddis Ababa, Ethiopia to encourage the con-tinent to reflect and recommit its efforts toboost production.

For example, under the ComprehensiveAfrica Agriculture Development Programme(CAADP),African governments made a com-mitment to allocate at least 10 percent of theirnational budgets to the agricultural sectoreach year.

Ultimately, this ambitious and broad vi-sion for agricultural reform in Africa aspiresfor an average annual growth rate of six per-cent in agriculture.

The 1st CCARDESA General Assemblywas held on 6-8 May in Gaborone, Botswana.CCARDESA is a sub-regional organisationestablished in July 2011 to coordinate the im-plementation of agricultural research and de-velopment in the SADC region. r

SADC: “Let us support our farmers”

the continent motivated by the need tofeed its own people back home in Asia.

China, he said, was in Africa to help thecontinent develop its agricultural sectorand ensure global food security.

He said in 2015 the Chinese govern-ment will hand over full control of theGwebi Agricultural Demonstration Centreto Zimbabwe.

This is a general procedure in each ofthe African countries that have the agri-cultural demonstration centres.

“When we hand over the centre, wewill, however, be available to offer anytechnical support needed,” said Yu.

He indicated that similar handovers inother countries such as Mozambique havebeen successful as host governments “arealways keen to make the projects a suc-cess.”

The investment by China in African agri-cultural is thus critical in ensuring the greenrevolution on the continent. sardc.net r

SADC HAS urged stakeholders to redoubletheir efforts towards creating a conducive en-vironment for farmers to boost production.

Farmers are at the centre of Africa’s agri-cultural transformation agenda since they arethe ones that produce the food for the citizensof the region.

Therefore, right agricultural policies suchas access to inputs including seeds and fertil-izer, as well as credit facilities would help im-prove yields.

Appropriate and sufficient extension serv-ices also have the capacity to allow farmersto try out new crop or livestock enterprisesand then decide whether it would be possibleto upscale any of these enterprises to com-munity, national and regional levels.

Speaking at the 1st General Assembly ofthe Centre for Coordination of AgriculturalResearch and Development for SouthernAfrica (CCARDESA), SADC Executive Sec-retary Dr Stergomena Lawrence Tax said theregion should support its farmers as most ofthem continue to experience challenges intheir daily work.

“One of the major weak points in the stim-ulation of agricultural led growth in SADChas been the lack of a strong base for technol-ogy generation and public-private partner-ship models for commercialisation oftechnologies,” she said.

Dr Tax said climate change had also be-come a main challenge threatening food se-curity in the region, hence the need todevelop appropriate technologies for adap-tation and resilience.

“This calls for careful consideration of re-source allocation and applied research whichcan give results of immediate use to farmersin improving the resilience of their produc-tion technologies and farming systems to cli-mate change,” she said.

“In this regard, I wish call uponCCARDESA and its stakeholders to placeconsiderable attention on the needs of farm-ers in the development of programmes.”

These programmes include improving thetransport network and storage facilities sothat agricultural produce could smoothlymove from one place to another.

Storage facilities allow farmers to storetheir harvest for use in poor seasons. Accord-ing to the United Nations Food and Agricul-ture Organization (FAO), post-harvest croplosses are estimated to be as high as 40 per-cent in the region.

Agriculture is the backbone of mosteconomies in southern Africa hence the sec-tor should be identified as a priority area ofdevelopment.

A G R I C U L T U R E

Access to seeds and fertilizer improves yields

THE SADC region is poised tobecome a major continentalsource of energy if currentplans to boost generation ca-pacity are implemented.

The region is home to theworld’s largest proposed hy-dropower scheme, the GrandInga, which is the centrepieceof a grand vision to develop acontinent-wide power system.

Located in western Demo-cratic Republic of Congo(DRC), about 50 km upstreamof the mouth of the CongoRiver and 225km southwest ofthe capital Kinshasa, GrandInga is expected to generate40,000MW when completed.

Based on a feasibility studyconducted between 2011 and2013, Grand Inga will be con-structed in six developmentphases, with the Inga III Damand hydropower project beingthe first of these phases.

When completed, Inga IIIwill produce 4,800MW of elec-tricity.

The proposed dam is thefourth and largest of a series ofdams that have been built orare proposed for the lower endof the Congo River.

The dam site is on the largestwaterfall in the world by vol-ume, the Inga Falls – a series offalls and rapids that drop in ele-vation via small rapids.

Energy and Water MinisterJoão Baptista Borges said mostof the power will come fromthe Middle Kwanza hy-dropower station, Lauca sta-tion and the CentralCambambe hydro plant.

“Our ultimate goal is to reach9,000MW by 2025,” he said,adding that “This means multi-plying by four the current ca-pacity, our great resource ishydropower production.”

At least US$23 billion has al-ready been invested by Angolain the energy sector to rehabili-tee and expand some of the ex-isting power plants.

“The rehabilitation of powerstation and the expansion of thedistribution networks of thesedams are our priorities because

we want to be part of the bestproducers of power in Africa, aswell as produce and distributethe energy to Angolan popula-tion,” the Secretary of State forWater, Luís Filipe da Silva, said.

Key activities to fall underthe investment include the con-struction of a hydropower sta-tion at Lauca Dam which willadd 2,060 MW into the nationalsystem whilst another Com-bined Cycle Station with a pro-duction capacity of 750 MW willbe constructed. r

The falls are incorporatedinto the current Inga I and IngaII hydroelectric facilities, withthe volume of the river di-verted some 30 percent of theaverage discharge.

The power generated willbe double the capacity of thelargest dam in the world, theThree Gorges Dam in China.

The DRC and South Africasigned a Memorandum of Un-derstanding in November 2011for the development of GrandInga and followed that up witha cooperation Treaty in May2013 to jointly develop the IngaIII Dam.

South Africa will purchase2,500MW of the total 4,300MWgenerated, making it the princi-pal buyer for Inga III electricity.

The DRC has commencedthe process of selecting a devel-oper, with a number of consor-tia currently bidding forselection as developers of theGrand Inga.

These include SinoHydroand the Three Gorges Corpora-tion from China, Actividades deConstrucion y Servicios, and Eu-rofinsa, bothof Spain, and Dae-woo-Posco from South Korea.

Construction is planned tocommence in 2016 following theconclusion of social and envi-ronmental assessment studies.

The Grand Inga mega-pro-ject is a priority for a number ofAfrica development organiza-tions, including SADC and theAfrican Union’s New Partner-ship for Africa’s Development(NEPAD).

Grand Inga dam has been es-timated to cost more than US$80billion, including cost of thetransmission lines needed tocarry its power across Africaand potentially to Europe.

Another SADC country, An-gola, has also announcedplans to quadruple its powergeneration capacity from thecurrent 2,250MW to about9,000MW by 2025.

SADC – Africa’s energy source

Renewable energy centre to be launched


WITH PLANS to build ne21,500 megawatts (MW) bnent’s efforts to achieve enfront of developing renewa

THE PROPOSED SADC Centre for Renewable Energy and EnergyEfficiency (SACREEE) should be launched by September 2014 undera revised roadmap agreed by SADC and development partners.

According to the revised roadmap, a preparatory phase runsfrom January to July 2014.

This would be followed by the first operational phase runningfor three years, which includes the official launch by Septemberthis year.

SADC is working closely with the United Nations Industrial De-velopment Organisation (UNIDO) and the Austrian DevelopmentAgency (ADA) to accelerate implementation within the revised time-lines.

The proposed centre would, among other things, spearhead thepromotion of renewable energy development in the region.

It is expected to contribute substantially to the development ofthriving regional renewable energy and energy efficiency marketsthrough knowledge sharing and technical advice in the areas ofpolicy and regulation, technology cooperation, capacity develop-ment, as well as investment promotion.

It has been agreed that the centre should be an independentSADC institution that should be owned and supported by SADCmember states for sustainability purposes.

Communicating Energy in Southern AfricaUnderstanding the regional dimensions of energy generation

by September


ENERGY IS not only a na-tional issue in southern Africa,but incorporates significant re-gional dimensions.

The cross-border implica-tions of energy generation andenergy trading are not well un-derstood, nor is the manage-ment role of the SouthernAfrican Power Pool (SAPP). SAPP is the coordination centrefor most national electricityutilities in the region, and is lo-cated in Harare, Zimbabwe.

A project to deepen under-standing of the regional dimen-sions of energy provision insouthern Africa will be imple-mented in partnership withSAPP and SADC by the Re-gional Economic DevelopmentInstitute of the SouthernAfrican Research and Docu-mentation Centre (SARDC),with support from the AustrianDevelopment Agency.

The purpose is to strengthenthe knowledge base and thecross-border flow of informa-tion on development of the en-ergy sector in the SADC regioncomprising 15 Member States.This includes tracking the de-velopment of hydroelectricityand other regional energysources.

Key activities includeknowledge support to theSADC Energy ThematicGroup, production of regionalknowledge sources such asSouthern Africa Today (SADCToday) and Southern AfricanNews Features, as well as newpublications, the SADC EnergyMonitor and the SADC EnergyInvestment Year Book.

The SADC Energy Monitorwill track developments in theenergy sector and implementa-tion of commitments by Mem-ber States.

The proposed SADC EnergyInvestment Year Book will high-

light investments in energyprovision by the private andpublic sectors in the SADC re-gion.

Electricity generation isone area where regional coop-eration has advanced signifi-cantly.

The SADC Energy Protocolwhich entered into force inApril 1998 outlines the generalprinciples and objectives in thisregard.

The regional energy policyis centred on the interconnect-edness between energy andeconomic growth and develop-ment.

The SADC region is richlyendowed with energy re-sources with significant re-serves of coal, petroleum andnatural gas that can be ex-ploited for local consumptionas well as export.

Electricity in the region isgenerated mainly from ther-mal and hydroelectric re-sources, although natural gasis becoming a key energysource, especially in Mozam-bique, Namibia, South Africaand the United Republic ofTanzania.

Austria is the lead agencyfor SADC’s Energy ThematicGroup of International Cooper-ating Partners, and the projectwill assist the work of thegroup through research and in-formation support.

SARDC is an independentregional knowledge resourcecentre and a longstandingSADC partner in research andinformation, a collaborationrooted in a shared under-standing of the importance ofinformation access and com-munication to the achieve-ment of regional integrationand development, and the im-portance of "research that in-forms development". r

ew short-term generation projects to add more thanby 2017, southern Africa holds the key to the conti-nergy self-sufficiency. This region is also in the fore-able, clean energy sources.

Such a development would give the centre more authority tospearhead efforts to increase the uptake of renewable energysources in the region.

Various cooperating partners such as UNIDO and ADA havepledged to provide financial support to the centre for the firstthree years. After that, the centre should be self-sustaining.

The location of the centre is yet to be decided although a num-ber of SADC countries have expressed interest in hosting it.

Establishment of the SACREE is expected to see a gradual in-crease in the uptake of cleaner energy sources that could resultin reduced carbon emissions in line with the global trends to-wards clean and alternative energy sources.

According to the African Development Bank (AfDB), the re-gion has the potential to become a “gold mine” for renewableenergy due to the abundant solar and wind resources that arenow hugely sought after by international investors in their questfor clean energy.

For example, the overall hydropower potential in SADCcountries is estimated at about 1,080 terawatt hours per year(TWh/year) but capacity being utilised at present is just under31 TWh/year.

A terawatt is equal to one million megawatts. r

Cambambe dam on the Kwanza river


The new airport will have aterminal covering an area of160,000 square metres, with ca-pacity to handle 13 million pas-sengers per year as well as acargo terminal with 6.2 millionsquare metres to handle 35,000tons of cargo per year.

The new international air-port will have two double run-ways with capacity to receivethe world’s largest commercialaircraft. The northern runwaywill be 4,200 metres long andthe southern runway will be3,800 metres long.

CONSTRUCTION OF the newLuanda International Airportwill begin this year and is ex-pected to cost US$3.8 billion, ac-cording to a contract signed bythe Transport Ministry and theChina International Fund Lim-ited.

This is the second-largestpublic investment in infrastruc-ture in Angola after the Ca-panda hydroelectric dam inMalanje province. Macauhub r

The agreement was signedby the chief executive of the Sey-chelles Civil Aviation Authority,Gilbert Faure, and director-gen-eral of the Civil Aviation Au-thority of Madagascar, JamesAndrianalisoa, in late April.

“The new air services agree-ment between Seychelles and

Madagascar is consistent withour regional integration agendato improve connectivity in theregion and promote the twocentre-destinations also knownas the Vanilla Islands initia-tive,” Faure said. Seychelles Gov-ernment r

SECYCHELLES AND Mada-gascar have signed a new bilat-eral air services agreement,providing a framework to gov-ern air access between the twoisland states and heralding anera of enhanced connectivity tosupport the development oftrade and closer cultural links.

Seychelles, Madagascar sign new airservice agreement

Mauritius endorses framework onagriculturalMAURITIUS HAS approvedthe country programmingframework with the Food andAgriculture Organisation for2014-2019 which provides thebasis for support in agri-busi-ness development and the agrovalue-chain, promotion of sus-tainable agriculture for food se-curity, and sustainable fisheries,among others. It was signedwith FAO by the Agro Industryand Food Security Minister,Satya Veyash Faugoo.

The framework addresses theissue of sustainable agriculturefor food security with focus onstrengthening the enabling insti-tutional environment for land-use management, early warning

systems for animal and plantdiseases and pests, and agricul-tural statistics for improved evi-dence-based decision-making.

Priorities are set out for col-laboration in agri-business de-velopment with a focus onstrengthening the enabling envi-ronment as well as strategies,legal and management frame-works, and institutional capaci-ties.

The framework also dealswith sustainable fisheries withfocus on improving the enablingenvironment, policies and legalframework and institutional ca-pacities for the promotion of sus-tainable off-lagoon fisheries.gis.gov.mu r

Business and Intellectual Prop-erty Authority (BIPA) to easethe process.

A draft bill on business reg-istration and protection of intel-lectual property is underconsideration by cabinet andexpected to go to parliamentlater this year.

One option is for online reg-istration to reduce administra-tive bottlenecks, a process theBIPA chief executive officer,Tilelinge Andima, said wouldalso allow for better data captureon business activity in Namibia.

“Once those processes havebeen done and we are allowedto do a lot of things online, thenwe anticipate having a registra-tion process taking placewithin 24 hours to 48 hours,”Andima explained.

A notable innovation of BIPAwas the introduction of a web-based Integrated Company Reg-istration System in the lastquarter of 2013, which enablesthe agency to register companiesand close corporations as well asname reservation and namesearches online. r

ZIMBABWE PLANS to send ahigh-powered trade and invest-ment mission to Mozambiqueto revive its export markets,with contacts in Tete, Nampulaand Niassa provinces.

“The mission is expected tobuild on the momentum gainedduring November 2012, whenparticipating companies ob-tained orders and establishedcontacts in Tete,” ZimTrade saidin a statement. r

PREPARATIONS FOR PhaseTwo of the Lesotho HighlandsWater Project have started andshould be completed by 2023.

The project will generate hy-droelectric power for Lesothowhile increasing the volume ofwater transferred to SouthAfrica from the current 10 billioncubic metres a year to about 15billion.

Lesotho Highlands Develop-ment said the procurementprocess will be undertaken soonto ensure construction beginsnext year. Work on environmen-tal assessments, mitigationplans, resettlement and compen-sation has begun and should becompleted by November thisyear.

The first phase of the projectcomprising a series of dams, hy-dropower stations and tunnelsbetween South Africa andmountainous, landlockedLesotho was completed in 2004.The second phase will involvebuilding the Polihali Dam in theMokhotlong district, located inthe northeastern part of Lesotho.

Lesotho, South Africa inwater deal

Zimbabwe andMozambique tostrengthen trade

Angola to build new airport in Luanda

B U S I N E S S B R I E F S

Namibia’s Business and IntellectualProperty Authority online

A new tunnel will also beconstructed from the PolihaliDam to Katse Dam, alongwith new hydropower fea-tures and other advanced in-frastructure. r

THE MINISTRY of Trade andIndustry in Namibia has beenworking to reform the cumber-some process of business regis-tration and has set up the


T R A D E

INFORMAL CROSS-BOR-DER Trade is important to theeconomies of most countriesin southern Africa and pro-vides employment to manypeople, particularly womenand youth.

This has become a prof-itable business across severalborders in the region to the ex-tent that some people have leftformal employment to con-centrate on informal cross-bor-der trading.

However, despite its bene-fits, cross-border trading re-mains an expensive venturefor most traders as they con-tinue to face challenges, in-cluding bureaucracy andlong delays at border poststhat result in the loss of busi-ness for the traders and incuradditional costs that reduceprofits.

To address these challengesand ensure benefit from thesector, the region is engaged invarious programmes to har-monize customs and immigra-tion laws.

One practical example isthe Chirundu border post be-tween Zambia and Zimbabwe,which has simplified cross-border trade following itstransformation to a one-stopborder crossing.

Launched in November2009 as a pilot, the ChirunduOne Stop Border Post has sig-nificantly improved thesmooth movement of goodsand people across the border.Travellers and traders arecleared just once for passageinto another country in con-trast with the previous situa-tion when travellers had tocomplete immigration and

DEVELOPMENT OF cross-border rail corridors linkingSADC Member States is themost effective way to unlock re-gional trade and create sustain-able cooperation, a regionalconference was told recently.

“The rail corridor conceptshould be adopted as themodus operandi of the SADCregion,” South Africa PublicEnterprises director-generalTshediso John Matona told theSouthern African Railways As-sociation (SARA) at their con-ference held in South Africa.

Matona said there is astrong linkage between railand the extractive commoditysectors, which are consideredas key drivers of economicgrowth in the subcontinent.

A regionally linked rail net-work would enable more effi-

cient transport of these com-modities to the export centres,thus improving the region’ssupply-chain capability andenhancing its level of interna-tional competitiveness.

“We now need to move oncross-border rail projects. Thenature of railways and otherinfrastructure means that itmakes sense to take advantageof economies of scale, so weneed to focus on what eachcountry is doing and join upour economies,” he said.

A number of rail projectsplanned in the region includethe South Africa-Swazilandrail link, and another involv-ing Zambia, Botswana andNamibia to link the Zambianrail network and the WalvisBay rail corridor. Zambia DailyMail r

Chirundu one-stop borderImproving informal cross-border trade

customs formalities on bothsides.

According to the ZambianMinistry of Commerce, trafficat Chirundu has more thandoubled between 2009 and2012 as it is now easier totravel between Zambia andZimbabwe.

The clearance time forhaulage trucks has been re-duced from about six days toless than 24 hours. Clearanceof cross-border traders andother passengers now takesless than five minutes from anestimated one hour previ-ously.

The reduction of clearancetime is an essential cost factor

as traders and transporterspass on the extra charges tocustomers.

With the successful pilotingof the Chirundu initiative, it isenvisaged that SADC willnow replicate the concept atother entry points across theregion to ease the movementof goods and people, whichhas been hindered by bureau-cracy at entry and exit points.

Regional ports of entry thatrequire harmonization includethe Beitbridge border post be-tween South Africa and Zim-babwe, and the Kasumbalesaborder post between Zambiaand the Democratic Republicof Congo.

Beitbridge is considered tobe among sub-Saharan Africa’sbusiest border crossings, withhundreds of commercial truckspassing through the two borderposts every day in both direc-tions. r

THE AFRICAN DevelopmentBank has launched the Capac-ity Building Project tostrengthen the capacity ofAfrican countries to plan, pre-pare and coordinate the imple-mentation of regionalinfrastructure programmes.

The three-year US$8.6 mil-lion project aims to enhanceAfrica’s physical and economicintegration and socio-economictransformation with a focus onthe African Union’s Pro-gramme for Infrastructure De-velopment in Africa (PIDA).

AfDB is the executingagency for PIDA, which de-fines priority regional cross-border infrastructure projectsintended to interconnect, inte-grate and transform Africathrough modern infrastruc-ture at an investment cost ofUS $68 billion up to the year2020.

It provides the strategicframework for African stake-holders to develop regionaland continental infrastruc-ture necessary for more inte-grated networks to boosttrade, spark growth, createjobs and support regional in-tegration. r

Cross-border rail corridors key toregional development

AfDB strengthenscapacity for infrastructure development


The Economic FreedomFighters (EFF) led by expelledANC Youth League leaderJulius Malema won about 6.4percent of the vote.

The IEC results tallyshowed that 13 of the 29 polit-ical parties that contested theelections received enoughvotes to have seats in the Na-tional Assembly.

The ANC won the mostseats in the National Assembly,acquiring 249 seats out of atotal 400. This was 15 seatslower than the 264 seats it gotfive years ago and much lowerthan the 297 seats it controlledafter the 2004 elections.

The DA obtained 89 seats, upfrom 67 in 2009. This means themain opposition party hasnearly doubled its representa-tion in the National Assemblyfrom the 47 it controlled in 2004.

The EFF got 25 seats whilethe Inkatha Freedom Party(IFP) won 10.

Under the South AfricanConstitution, the leader of theparty with the majority seats inthe National Assembly iselected president of the country.

Thus the ANC leader, JacobZuma, was re-elected Presi-dent, and dedicated the vic-tory to the late anti-apartheidicon Nelson Mandela’s mem-ory, pledging to form a gov-ernment “that will serve all thepeople of our country, regard-less of who they voted for.”

Newly elected MalawianPresident Peter Mutharika ex-tended an invitation to his op-ponents to set aside theirpolitical differences and ac-tively participate in theprocess of nation-buildingafter a bruising election cam-paign marred by allegations ofvote manipulation.

The incumbent’s call forfresh elections was declared il-legal by the High Court inBlantyre and Banda later con-ceded defeat, urging the coun-try to throw its weight behindMutharika.

In a widely received inau-guration speech in early June,Mutharika said Malawineeded “collective participa-tion in development.”

“That is why I have ex-tended a hand of reconcilia-tion to my colleagues whocontested for this highest of-fice,” he said during the inau-guration ceremony held at theKamuzu Stadium in Blantyreand attended by several othersouthern African leaders.

Mutharika and his formeropposition Democratic Pro-gressive Party (DPP) won theelections that saw an unprece-dented number of independ-ent candidates elected to theHouse of Assembly.

Mutharikawon the presi-dential election, with nearlytwo million votes, or 36.4 per-cent of the ballot.

Results announced by theMalawi Electoral Commis-sion (MEC) showed that thenPresident Joyce Banda, with20 percent of the valid votes,was beaten into third placeby Lazarus Chakwera of theMalawi Congress Party(MCP) who garnered 27.8percent.

Malawi uses the first-past-the-post system where thecandidate with the largestshare of votes is declared win-ner of the presidential race.

The presidential electionswere held concurrently withpolls to choose parliamentari-ans and local councillors.

Results announced by theMEC showed that the DPP ledby Mutharika won 50 seats or26 percent of the 193-memberHouse of Assembly.

MCP, the country’s firstpost-independence rulingparty, got 48 seats, followed bythe People’s Party led by Bandathat could only manage 26 seatsduring the hotly contested elec-tions held on 20 May

The outcome of the parlia-mentary poll means thatMalawi will have a hung par-liament as no party has anoverall majority in the Houseof Assembly.

Independent MPs make up27 percent of the House,meaning that any party wish-ing to push through legisla-tion would have to get thesupport of these legislators.

The SADC Electoral Obser-vation Missions (SEOM), whilenoting some concerns andshortcomings in both elections,declared that these did not af-fect the integrity and credibilityof the electoral process.

SEOM concluded that bothelections were peaceful, free,transparent and credible, andreflected the will of the voters,urging that any complaintsshould be handled throughthe appropriate channels ac-cording to the laws of thecountry. r

Elections consolidate SADC peace credentialsTHE SUCCESSFUL electionsin South Africa and Malawihave consolidated SADC’s po-sition as a peaceful regionbased on good governance.

South Africa and Malawiheld hotly contested generalelections on 7 and 20 May, re-spectively, and the outcomes ofthe two polls indicate that theregional political situation ischaracterized by an acceptanceof the choice of the electorate.

The African National Con-gress (ANC) won anothermandate to rule South Africaalthough the elections con-firmed the strengthening ofprominent opposition groups.

Final results announced bythe Independent ElectoralCommission (IEC) showedthat, with all 22,000 voting dis-tricts counted, the ANC had62.1 percent of the popularvote – several percentagepoints lower than the 65.9 per-cent it got in the last electionsin 2009.

The ruling party garneredmore than 11.4 million votes ofthe 18.7 million people whovoted during the fifth demo-cratic elections since the end ofapartheid.

The main opposition Dem-ocratic Alliance (DA) was adistant second, with about 22.2percent of the popular vote.This was an improvement overthe 16.7 percent that the DAgot in 2009.

E L E C T I O N S

Presidents Peter Mutharika of Malawiand Jacob Zuma of South Africa


G E N D E R

ELECTIONS HELD in theSADC region in the first half of2014 have shown a static orweakening trend in perform-ance towards attaining genderparity in political decision-making positions, despite theSADC target of 50:50 by 2015.

Elections to choose mem-bers of the National Assemblyin South Africa that were heldon 7 May saw 165 womenelected, which is 41.3 percentof the 400-member Assembly.

This is less than the 42.3percent representation ofwomen in parliamentrecorded by the country dur-ing the last elections in 2009.The last poll five years agoproduced 169 women parlia-mentarians.

A similar picture emergedfrom the Malawi general elec-tions held on 20 May. Only 30of the 192 Members of Parlia-ment elected are women,translating to 15.6 percent ofthe total. This is significantlylower than the 26 percent rep-resentation of women

THE NATIONAL Chairper-son of the African NationalCongress, Baleka Mbete, waselected Speaker of the Na-tional Assembly during thefirst sitting of the House on 21May in Cape Town, replacingMax Sisulu who was sworn inas an ordinary ANC Memberof Parliament.

Mbete, who held the postpreviously from 2004 to 2008,defeated the Democratic Al-liance nominee for the post,former ANC Eastern Capepremier Nosimo Balindlelawho left to join the official op-position in 2012. She gained260 votes to 88 for Balindlela.

There were 366 ballots cast ofwhich 18 were invalid.

The Speaker is a powerfulposition in South Africa. Theconstitution provides that in theevent of unavailability of thePresident, the Speaker of theNational Assembly must act asPresident until the appoint-ment of another MP as head ofstate and government. r

achieved during the last elec-tions in 2009.

In local government elec-tions held concurrently withthe parliamentary poll, only 56of the 457 winning candidateswere women, accounting forjust 12 percent representation.

With regard to representa-tion of women in cabinet,there was also a slight declinein the number of women ap-pointed to the South Africancabinet announced by Presi-dent Jacob Zuma in May.

A total of 15 women werenamed in the 36-member cab-inet, making up 41.7 percent ofthe new executive team.Women accounted for 42 per-cent of the cabinet after the2009 elections.

The women named to thenew cabinet include Tina Joe-mat-Pettersson responsible forthe Ministry of Energy, No-siviwe Mapisa-Nqakula (De-fence and Military Veterans),Maite Nkoana-Mashabane (In-ternational Relations and Co-operation), and Nomvula

Mokonyane (Water and Sani-tation).

In the case of Malawi, onlythree women were appointedor 17.6 percent of the 17-mem-ber cabinet announced byPresident Peter Mutharika inJune.

These are Jean Kalirani(Minister of Health), GraceChiumia (Youth, Sports Devel-opment and Culture) and Pa-tricia Kaliati (Gender,Children, Disability and SocialWelfare).

The relatively poor per-formance in terms of genderparity has a negative impacton the region’s efforts toachieve its target of 50:50 rep-resentation in politics and de-cision-making by 2015.

Three more elections ex-pected this year, in Botswanaand Mozambique in Octoberand Namibia in November,are strategic as the 2015 dead-line approaches for SADC toattain the target of 50:50 repre-sentation of men and womenin key decision-making posi-tions.

According to the SADCProtocol on Gender and De-velopment signed in 2008 andentered into force in 2013 afterratification by two-thirds ofthe signatories, southernAfrican should achieve 50:50representations of men andwomen in key decision-mak-ing positions by 2015.

Only six SADC countriesare significantly close to thetarget of parity in parliament,having reached above the 30-percent threshold set previ-ously by regional leaders forrepresentation of women.

These are Seychelles (43.8percent), South Africa (41.3percent), Mozambique (39.2percent), the United Republicof Tanzania (36 percent), An-gola (34.1 percent) and Zim-babwe, which introduced a

quota system in the new con-stitution adopted prior to elec-tions in 2013 and now has 31.5percent women representationin the National Assembly and47.5 percent in the Senate.

The forthcoming electionsin SADC countries should aimto consolidate the gains andimprove the achievements. r

Setback for gender parity in Malawi, South Africa polls

Women elected to parliament in Malawi

Women elected to parliament in South Africa

Mbete returns asSpeaker in South Africa

Baleka Mbete


Other efforts must bechannelled towards researchdevelopment, and the main-streaming of gender in allsocio-economic activities, in-cluding agriculture, sincewomen are worst affected byclimate change.

In this regard, the leaders re-solved to develop a CAHOSCCWomen and Gender Pro-gramme on Climate Change toengage women and gender ex-perts on climate change-relatedactions.

CAHOSCC was establishedby African leaders in 2009 tospearhead the African Com-mon Position on ClimateChange and to ensure thatAfrica speaks with one voice in

AFRICAN LEADERS haveidentified five key priorities toaddress the impacts of climatechange on the continent.

These are climate financeand technology needs, adapta-tion, mitigation, participation,as well as institutional cooper-ation.

The priorities were identi-fied by African leaders whomet on the sidelines of the 23rdAfrican Union (AU) Summitheld in Malabo, EquatorialGuinea in late June.

Africa is the least contribu-tor of greenhouse gas emissionsthat cause climate change, yetthe most affected, hence thecontinent sees the need for de-cisive action to raise additionalfunds and technological ad-vancements to support mitiga-tion and adaptation.

Speaking at the meeting,President Jakaya Kikwete of theUnited Republic of Tanzaniaurged member states to worktogether in addressing the im-pacts of climate change.

“Climate change is a realchallenge but also an opportu-nity because if we decidewisely, we will benefit from thedifferent strategies available toreduce effects of climatechange,” said Kikwete, whochairs the Committee ofAfrican Heads of State andGovernment on ClimateChange (CAHOSCC).

He emphasized the need toprioritize skills development,the provision of training foryoung people and the need toimprove disaster prepared-ness and management to min-imize the effects of climatechange.

He said there is need to mo-bilize more resources as Africanow required in excess ofUS$15 billion per year to com-bat climate change.

Africa committed to eliminate diseasesIMPROVING ACCESS tomedication and health serviceis critical towards eliminatingdiseases such as malaria inAfrica.

This is one of the main rec-ommendations of the AIDSWatch Africa report adoptedby African leaders at the 23rdAfrican Union (AU) Summitheld in Malabo, EquatorialGuinea in June.

Other recommendations in-cluded prioritising HIV andAIDS, TB and malaria inter-ventions in the post-2015 de-velopment agenda to ensurethat continued international fi-nancing of the response is notthreatened.

HIV and AIDS, TB andmalaria remain major threatsto Africa’s health and develop-ment priorities. In 2012, AIDS

claimed about 1.2 million peo-ple on the continent, accordingto the report.

“Yet, based on the progressthat has been made, ending theAIDS epidemic is possible inthe Post-2015 era,” the AU saidin a statement.

“To achieve this, Africa willneed to accelerate antiretrovi-ral treatment as a catalytic ac-tion for ending AIDS.”

The report calls for Africancountries to take advantage ofthe current unprecedented ex-pansion of infrastructural de-velopment taking place on thecontinent to ensure that envi-ronmental impact assessmentscontribute to expanding accessto HIV and AIDS, TB, andmalaria services.

In addition to this, memberstates should continue to pri-oritise rights-based responsesto HIV and AIDS, TB andmalaria in the areas of accessto justice and law enforcement,including the prioritisation ofmarginalised populations. r

Africa to establish a monetary fund

AFRICAN LEADERS have adopted the Protocol and theStatute for the establishment of an African Monetary Fund

The fund aims to foster macroeconomic stability, sus-tainable shared economic growth and balanced develop-ment in order to facilitate the effective and predictableintegration of African economies.

The fund is expected to be headquartered in Yaoundé,Cameroon, and will be open to all member states who signand ratify or acceded to the Protocol.

The 23rd African Union (AU) Summit held in Equato-rial Guinea in June “called on member states to sign andratify that Protocol as expeditiously as possible, for itsearly entry into force.” r

A F R I C A N U N I O N

23rd Summit of African Union Towards a climate change response

global climate change negotia-tions.

The committee is also taskedwith finding the best possiblestrategies to tackle climatechange and its effects on theAfrican continent. r

Member states are urged to work together in addressing the impactsof climate.


June-August 2014

5, UN World Environment Day 2014World Environment Day 2014 has the theme “InternationalYear of Small Island Developing States” with the goal ofraising awareness of unique environmental challenges andsuccesses, including climate change, waste management,unsustainable consumption, degradation of natural re-sources, and extreme natural disasters.

18-20, Zimbabwe SADC Infrastructure MinistersMinisters responsible for infrastructure will meet to discussseveral issues including investment opportunities and solu-tions for the regional infrastructure. The meeting is also ex-pected to approve a SADC Declaration on RegionalInfrastructure Development for presentation to the SADCSummit in August.

20, Zambia SADC Tourism Ministers Ministers responsible for tourism meet annually ahead ofthe SADC Summit to discuss current issues affecting thesector in the region.

18-20, Turkey Africa Energy Forum 2014Africa Energy Forum brings together governments, powerutilities and major players in the energy sector of Africa andthe rest of the world to focus on delivery of power infra-structure projects in Africa.

20-27, Equatorial 23rd African Union SummitGuinea African Heads of State and Government meet at Summit

with the theme of “Agriculture and Food Security”. This sec-tor remains a priority and leaders are expected to discussways to achieve goals set earlier this year.

TBA, Namibia Ministerial Committee of the OrganMinisters will deliberate on peace and security issues in theSADC region. The committee is made up of the ministersresponsible for foreign affairs, defence, public security andstate security from the countries that make up the SADCOrgan on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation.

23-24, Renewables and Mining Summit 2014South Africa This will bring together energy decision-makers from African

mines to discuss energy challenges and assess the options forrenewables as part of the solution towards securing cost-ef-fective and reliable energy for their operations.

25, DRC SADC Ministers of Public Information DialogueMinisters responsible for information will meet to discussbest practices and policies that will contribute positively to-wards the attainment of regional goals. Information sharingis recognized as one of the key tools for regional develop-ment and sustainable development.

July2-4, Namibia Sixth Africa Carbon Forum

This is a knowledge-sharing platform for carbon invest-ments in Africa, a place to discuss the latest developmentsin the carbon market, and application of the Clean Devel-opment Mechanism in Africa.

August 10-18, Zimbabwe SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government

SADC leaders will meet to discuss regional integration anddevelopment, preceded by meeting of senior officials andthe Council of Ministers. The theme is “SADC Strategy forEconomic Transformation: Leveraging the Region’s DiverseResources for Sustainable Economic and Social Develop-ment through Beneficiation and Value Addition”. Zim-babwe will chair SADC for the next year.

E V E N T S

SADC TODAY Vol 16 No 4 June 2014

SOUTHERN AFRICA TODAYis produced as a reference source of

activities and opportunities in the Southern African Development Community, and a guide for

decision-makers at all levels of national and regional development.

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SOUTHERN AFRICA TODAY is published six times a year by the Southern AfricanResearch and Documentation Centre (SARDC) for the SADC Secretariat in Gaborone,Botswana, as a reliable knowledge source on regional development. Articles may bereproduced freely in the media and elsewhere, with attribution.

EDITORMunetsi Madakufamba

EDITORIAL COMMITTEEJoseph Ngwawi, Kizito Sikuka, Egline Tauya, Admire Ndhlovu,Phyllis Johnson, Danai Majaha, Shirley Pisirai, Anesu Ngadya

EDITORIAL ADVISOR

SOUTHERN AFRICA TODAY is supported by the Austrian Development Agency, insupport of the SADC Energy Thematic Group of International Cooperating Partners,which is co-chaired by Austria.

© SADC, SARDC, 2014

SOUTHERN AFRICA TODAY welcomes contributions from individuals and or-ganizations within the SADC region in form of articles, photographs, news items andcomments, and also relevant articles from outside the region. The publishers reservethe right to select or reject items, and to edit to fit the space available. The contentsdo not necessarily reflect the official positions or opinions of SADC or SARDC.

SOUTHERN AFRICA TODAY is published in English, Portuguese and French, andis available electronically at www.sardc.net Knowledge for Development, linkedto www.sadc.int

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H I S T O R Y T O D A Y

ON 6 JULY Malawi will celebrate 50 years since the coun-try attained independence from Britain in 1964. HastingsKamuzu Banda was instrumental in the fight for inde-pendence of the then Nyasaland, beginning with the for-mation in 1953 of the Nyasaland African Congress (NAC).Violent protests against British colonial authorities inMarch 1959 led to the arrest of opposition leaders and ban-ning of the NAC, later renamed the Malawi CongressParty. Despite his detention in Gwelo prison in SouthernRhodesia (now Zimbabwe), Banda was chosen to lead thenew party and invited to attend talks in London on con-stitutional reformation of the Federation. This resulted inthe creation of a new Legislative Assembly and electionswon by the MCP in August 1961. Nyasaland was grantedautonomous self-government in January 1963, with Bandaelected prime minister the following month; and Inde-pendence the following year after dissolution of the Fed-eration of Rhodesia and Nyasaland in December1963.Various activities are planned to celebrate the GoldenJubilee, with one of the highlights an international friendlysoccer match in Blantyre between the national team andneighbouring Mozambique.

PUBLIC HOLIDAYS IN SADCJune-August 2014

A shared future within a regional community

15 YEARS have passed since thehistoric signing of the LusakaAgreement for a Ceasefire in theDemocratic Republic of Congo. The Lusaka Peace Summit on 10July 1999 culminated in the agree-ment signed by the leaders of thesix countries involved and Zam-bian President Frederick Chiluba,witnessed by SADC, the Organisa-tion of African Unity (now AfricanUnion), and the United Nations. The countries militarily in-volved were Rwanda and Ugandawhich acknowledged supportingrebels who invaded DRC, andSADC Member States Angola,Namibia and Zimbabwe, whosupported the government. The peace agreement was ex-tracted after almost one month ofintense negotiations in the Zam-bian capital, involving first, Min-isters of Foreign Affairs andDefence from all SADC countries,and later restricted to representa-tives of those countries militarilyinvolved in the conflict, the hostsand the rebels. A dispute within the Rally forCongolese Democracy (RCD) asto who should represent themovement delayed the RCD sign-ing until 1 September, andbrought Uganda and Rwandainto open conflict with each otherinside DRC. Zambia and South Africa bro-kered a compromise within therebels under which all 50 found-ing members signed the docu-ment on behalf of the RCD. The rival Movement for theLiberation of Congo (MLC) hadsent representatives to the Lusakapeace summit who initially re-fused to sign, saying they woulddo so only after the RCD. However, with the involve-ment of SADC leaders, the MLCleader was allowed to sign the

agreement on condition he couldwithdraw his signature if otherrebel groups did not follow suit. Among its provisions, theagreement called for the cessationof hostilities within 24 hours ofsigning and the release ofhostages and prisoners of warwithin 30 days. It established a Joint MilitaryCommission (MC) composed ofthe belligerent parties to overseethe implementation of the cease-fire, withdrawal of foreign troopsand disarming of militias, investi-gate ceasefire violations, and un-dertake the peacekeepingoperations until deployment of alarger UN peacekeeping force.Chaired by the OAU, the JMC in-cluded two representatives fromeach of the signatories, and wasassisted in its operations by a jointOAU/UN observer mission. The agreement committed theDRC government and rebel move-ments to enter into “an open na-tional dialogue” of all politicalforces in the country, leading to anew political dispensation and na-tional reconciliation. President Laurent Kabila wasassassinated 18 months later, on18 January 2001, coinciding withthe assassination 40 years earlierof the country’s first indigenousPrime Minister, Patrice Émery Lu-mumba, on 17 January 1961. Kabila’s son Joseph, who wasmilitary commander, was ap-pointed President and the dia-logue continued, culminating inthe 2003 signing of an all-embrac-ing peace deal that ushered in atransitional government led byPresident Joseph Kabila. The transitional governmenthad until 30 June 2005 to organisepolls, a deadline later moved to 30June the following year, when Ka-bila was re-elected. r

5 June Liberation Day Seychelles16 June Youth Day South Africa18 June National Day Seychelles23 June Corpus Christi Seychelles25 June Independence Day Mozambique26 June Independence Day Madagascar29 June Ascension Day Lesotho29 June Independence Day Seychelles30 June Independence Day DRC

1 July Sir Seretse Khama Day Botswana6 July Independence Day Malawi 7 July Public Holiday Malawi7 July Saba Saba Industry Day Tanzania7 July Heroes Day Zambia 8 July Unity Day Zambia 17 July King’s Birthday Lesotho 21July President’s Day Botswana22 July Public Holiday Botswana22 July Birthday of late King Sobhuza Swaziland 27 July Eid Ul Fitr* Malawi, Mauritius, Tanzania

1 August Parents Day DRC4 August Farmers Day Zambia 8 August Nane Nane Peasant Day Tanzania9 August National Women’s Day South Africa 11 August Heroes Day Zimbabwe12August Defence Forces Day Zimbabwe 15 August Assumption Day Madagascar, Mauritius,

Seychelles 17 August SADC Day** All26 August Heroes Day Namibia 30 August Ganesh Chaturthi Mauritius

* Exact date depends on sighting of the new moon** SADC Day is not a public holiday but a commemoration of signing the SADC Treaty on17 August 1992

years

Malawi celebrates Golden Jubilee

15Lusaka Peace Accord to end war in DRC

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