SANF 21 no 16
As a culmination to the commemoration of the 40th Anniversary of SADC, President Filipe Jacinto Nyusi of Mozambique and Chairperson of SADC on 23 June launched the SADC 40th Anniversary publication titled: 40 Years of SADC: Enhancing Regional Cooperation and Integration, (40 Anos da SADC: Reforçando a Cooperação e a Integração Regional; Les 40 ans de la SADC: Renforcer la coopération et l’intégration regionals) which brings to light the history of SADC and key achievements that the region has made since 1980.
Published by the SADC Secretariat in conjunction with the Southern African Research and Documentation Centre (SARDC), 40 Years of SADC: Enhancing Regional Cooperation and Integration highlights the major milestones and achievements as well as the challenges encountered by the regional bloc over the past 40 years.
This is essential for raising awareness about the path that the regional organisation has travelled in its quest to integrate and for pointing to the future trajectory of the Regional Economic Community (REC) as a building block for the African Union and the African Economic Community.
The publication is very informative and its target audiences are the SADC Member States and policy makers, the SADC Secretariat and its subsidiary organisations, international co-operating partners, the private sector and investors, scholars, researchers and academic institutions, as well as media houses. Indeed, the publication is a SADC information treasure trove for posterity.
The 40 Years of SADC: Enhancing Regional Cooperation and Integration publication covers the period from the formation of the Southern African Development Coordination Conference (SADCC) in 1980 to the transformation from SADCC to SADC in 1992, and the SADC until 2020.
This is a commemorative publication intended to present and celebrate the achievements of unity and integration in the regional community, effective practices and lessons learnt, towards a shared future.
The publication describes milestones as those momentous events or development processes that have contributed to the development of SADC. These include the following:
- Historic Arusha and Lusaka conferences in 1979 and 1980 that led to the formation of SADCC;
- Decision by the 12th SADC Summit to transform the organisation from a Coordination Conference into a Community;
- Decision of the Summit in Maputo in August 1999 that led to the restructuring of SADC and centralisation of activities;
- Adoption of the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) in 2003;
- Launch of the SADC Free Trade Area (FTA) in 2008; and
- Adoption of the SADC Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap in 2015.
The publication also highlights the development of various protocols and other legal instruments for Community Building.
The 40 Years of SADC: Enhancing Regional Cooperation and Integration publication is divided into six chapters that look at the various facets of the 40-year journey travelled by SADC.
The first chapter gives the regional context and situation in the 1970s and 1980s, and the reason for establishing the SADCC in 1980.
The analysis looks at the role of the independence movement and the Frontline States, leading to Namibia’s Independence in 1990 and the signing of the SADC Treaty, and the transformation to SADC in Windhoek in 1992.
Chapter 2 provides an overview of the main achievements and milestones in terms of establishing the legal and institutional frameworks for SADC since its formation, while Chapter 3 looks at the SADC governance structure as it has evolved over the years.
Chapter 4 focuses on the achievements made over the past 40 years of SADC’s existence. The analysis is presented using the approach adopted under RISDP 2015-2020 where programmes, projects and activities are clustered under three of the four priority pillars of Industrial Development and Market Integration; Infrastructure Support for Regional Integration; and Special Programmes of Regional Dimension
Chapter 5 looks at the achievements under the fourth pillar of RISDP 2015-2020 that covers Peace and Security, which is regarded as the foundation upon which the three other pillars are anchored.
The last chapter provides some important lessons learnt over the last 40 years that could be considered to advance the regional integration agenda, including key observations and policy considerations.
The 40 Years of SADC: Enhancing Regional Cooperation and Integration publication is a very useful publication to those seeking information about the history of SADC, its achievements, programmes, projects and activities over the past 40 years.
Source: sadc.int
