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Groundwater Management Institute
                                SADC established a Groundwater Management Institute to be operational by early
                                2010 in response to the challenges of managing underground water in the sub-region,
                                to “ensure the equitable and sustainable use and protection of groundwater.” GMI is
                                          hosted by the University of Free State in South Africa. At least 70 percent
                                            of  the  SADC  population  of  about  250  million  people  rely  on
                                            groundwater for drinking and other uses.

                                            Strategies and Guidelines to address Power Shortages
                                            SADC Ministers responsible for Energy have taken action to address power
                                            shortages in the region through measures that address the structural,
                                            operational and institutional challenges hindering development in the
                                            sector. The strategies approved when the energy ministers met in Angola
                                            in  April  2010  include  Guidelines  for  Regulating  Cross  Border  Power
                                            Trading in Southern Africa and a framework for cost-reflective tariffs in
                                            the region.

                                Proposal for a Regional Parliament
                                The 27 Plenary Assembly of the SADC Parliamentary Forum held in Livingstone,
                                      th
                                Zambia on 27 May - 5 June 2010 called for a Regional Parliament to strengthen regional
                                integration and community building, discuss pertinent socio-economic issues from a
                                regional perspective, and strengthen monitoring of regional policy implementation.
        58
                                2.2.3 Major Milestones 2010-2020
                 2010-2011      The 30 SADC Summit was held in Windhoek, Namibia on 16-17 August

                                      th
                                2010, hosted and chaired by President Hifikepunye Lucas Pohamba, and
                                attended by several former Heads of State to commemorate the 30th
                                anniversary of SADC.

                                Regional Poverty Observatory
                                The  30th  Summit  established  the  Regional  Poverty  Observatory  to  facilitate  the
                                implementation  of  the  SADC  Declaration  on  Poverty  Eradication  and  Sustainable
                                Development, in which Member States committed to fully implement their strategies aimed
                                at  poverty  eradication  in  pursuance  of  their  commitment  to  SADC’s  long-term
                                development frameworks for deepening regional integration, that is RISDP and SIPO.
                                Customs Union
                                The  Summit  reaffirmed
                                commitment  to  establish  a
                                SADC Customs Union and
                                endorsed  the  Task  Force
                                decision  to  appoint  a  high
                                level expert group to reach
                                a  common  understanding
                                on parameters, benchmarks,
                                timelines,  a  model  customs
                                union and its implementation
                                modalities,  and  submit  a
                                report by December 2011.
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