by Kizito Sikuka – SANF 16 no 24
Industrialization has been identified as one of the key priorities in the regional integration agenda of southern Africa.
This is because an industrialized Southern African Development Community (SADC) will enable countries in the region to unlock their full potential and realize maximum benefit from their vast natural resources.
For example, value addition and beneficiation of resources such as diamond and gold would allow the region to get more in return when exporting finished or processed goods, unlike the current situation where the profits are being realized outside the region since value addition is taking place in other industrialized countries and not in SADC.
However, the process of developing and strengthening industries in SADC is not an easy task. It depends on a number of enabling factors including infrastructure development and availability of technology and energy.
Another critical factor is investing in human capital, which is in abundance throughout the region.
According to the SADC Secretariat, the region has a population of more than 277 million, with the majority being the youth – a key component of the labour force that needs to be harnessed.
A SADC region with a developed, knowledgeable and skilled human resource base is well-equipped to exploit its natural resources, promote socio-economic development and push the regional integration agenda forward.
In fact, the SADC Treaty, which laid the foundation for the establishment of a shared community of southern Africa acknowledges the important role of developing a strong and vibrant human resource base to achieve the longstanding goals of a “prosperous, integrated and united” region.
The theme of the 35th SADC Summit held on in Gaborone, Botswana in August last year that ran under the banner “Accelerating Industrialization of SADC Economies, Through Transformation of Natural Endowment and Improved Human Capital” highlights the strong importance that the region is placing towards investing in human capital to promote industrialization.
The theme takes into cognisance the natural resource endowment that prevails across the region and the need to utilize such resources for industrial development, contribute towards human capital growth, and engender a climate of progress.
In this regard, the SADC region is putting in place a variety of strategies to develop and improve human capital so as to improve investment, efficiency and competitiveness of the region in the global economy, as well as improve the quality of lives of its citizens.
One such strategy is mainstreaming human capital in all regional programmes, projects and activities including the recently approved SADC Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap 2015-2063 and the Revised Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) 2015-2020.
The SADC Industrialization Strategy and Roadmap adopted by the SADC Extra-Ordinary Summit held in April 2015 in Harare, Zimbabwe aims at accelerating the growing momentum towards strengthening the comparative and competitive advantages of the economies of the region, and is anchored on three pillars, industrialization, competitiveness and regional integration.
The Revised RISDP is a five-year plan that guides the implementation of all SADC programmes from 2015 until 2020, and focus on four priority areas: Industrial development and market integration; Infrastructure in support of regional integration; Peace and Security cooperation as a prerequisite for regional integration; as well as Special programmes of regional dimension.
Harnessing human capaital and establishing a workforce that is prepared for the demands of competitive economies is critical for the success of both the Revised RISDP and SADC Industrialization Strategy and Roadmap.
For example, one of the main targets contained in the Revised RISDP is the development, approval and implementation of a Regional Qualifications Frameworks (RQF) by 2017.
The RQF, which was initiated a few years ago seeks among other things to enable SADC countries to compare and recognize qualifications obtained in the region.
In the long run, the establishment of a standardized educational system should promote deeper regional integration as it would help facilitate the movement of students and professionals in southern Africa, allowing the region to share experiences and skilled labour.
Significant results of harmonizing educational standards in the region has promoted student mobility, especially in higher education across the region, with a number of countries now treating SADC students as locals in terms of tuition and accommodation.
With regard to employment, considerable progress has been made in the free movement of labour from one country to another.
Another key intervention by SADC to tap its human capital is adopting a collective approach to addressing the “brain drain” that has seen well-trained professionals including nurses, teachers and engineers being lured to work outside the region.
In this regard, SADC countries are crafting mechanisms to ensure that professionals remain in the region such as providing better remuneration and other attractive perks such as allowances, as well as training and study opportunities.
SADC countries including Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe are working with the International Organisation for Migration to create a database on the number of professionals who have left the region, in the hope of luring them back.
Parallel to this, SADC is engaging those in the diaspora who are not able to return home to assume a more active role in the development agenda of southern Africa.
Related to this, SADC is exploring ways on how the region could tap into the knowledge of think tanks and others experts on advancing its regional integration agenda.
One country that has recorded impressive results from engaging think tanks in socio-economic development is China, where research institutions take an active role in policy formulation and implementation.
Investment in education and health is also a top priority for SADC to develop its human capital.
With regard to education, the average expenditure on the education sector has been increasing over the years with enrolment rates at all levels namely primary through to tertiary and post-graduate reaching higher levels.
For example, from 1960 to 2010, enrolment rates in primary education increased at an average annual rate of 1.5 percent, with female enrolment increasing slightly faster at 1.6 percent, according to the SADC Secretariat. Tertiary enrolment rates were estimated at 6.3 percent in 2010.
In addition, SADC has intensified efforts to better link higher education and training so that people are better equipped to carry out their duties when on the job.
In this regard, the region is strengthening its technical and vocational education and training programme.
The region is addressing the shortage of critical skills in key areas vital for higher productivity and competitiveness by making the cost of education and training cheaper in specialized fields such as medicines.
For example, Zimbabwe is implementing the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programme that sees the government pay full school and boarding fees for students in public schools who register for science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects.
STEM is part of a long-term strategy to invest and harness human capital.
Another strategy that SADC has put in place to maintain a strong human resource base is improving the health sector so that citizens live longer and stay healthier.
A healthy SADC population is a necessary catalyst for socio-economic development and regional integration, particularly now that the region is moving towards industrialization. SADC Today
