The Southern African Development Community (SADC) has been in existence since 1980, when it was formed as a loose

alliance of nine majority-ruled States in Southern Africa known as the Southern African Development Coordination Conference (SADCC), with the main aim of coordinating development projects in order to lessen economic dependence on the then apartheid South Africa. The founding Member States are: Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. SADCC was formed in Lusaka, Zambia on April 1, 1980, following the adoption of the Lusaka Declaration - Southern Africa: Towards Economic Liberation. The transformation of the organization from a Coordinating Conference into a Development Community (SADC) took place on August 17, 1992 in Windhoek, Namibia when the Declaration and Treaty was signed at the Summit of Heads of State and Government thereby giving the organization a legal character. SADC was established under Article 2 of the SADC treaty by SADC Member States represented by their respective Heads of State and Government or duly authorised representatives to spearhead economic integration of Southern Africa. SADC VISION The SADC vision is one of a common future, within a regional community that will ensure economic well-being, improvement of the standards of living and quality of life, freedom and social justice; peace and security for the peoples of Southern Africa. This shared vision is anchored on the common values and principles and the historical and cultural affinities that exist amongst the peoples of Southern Africa. SADC OBJECTIVES Provided for in Article 5 of the SADC Treaty, the SADC Objectives are to: achieve development and economic growth, alleviate poverty, enhance the standard and quality of life of the peoples of Southern Africa and support the socially disadvantaged through regional integration; evolve common political values, systems and institutions; promote and defend peace and security; promote self-sustaining development on the basis of collective self-reliance, and the interdependence of Member States; achieve complementarity between national and regional strategies and programmes; promote and maximise productive employment and utilisation of resources of the region; achieve sustainable utilisation of natural resources and effective protection of the environment; strengthen and consolidate the long-standing historical, social and cultural affinities and links among the peoples of the region; TO ACHIEVE ITS AIMS, SADC SHALL: harmonise political and socio-economic policies and plans of Member States; mobilise the peoples of the region and their institutions to take initiatives to develop economic, social and cultural ties across the region, and to participate fully in the implementation of the programmes and projects of SADC; create appropriate institutions and mechanisms for the mobilisation of requisite resources for the implementation of the programmes and operations of SADC and its institutions;

develop policies aimed at the progressive elimination of obstacles to free movement of capital and labour, goods and services, and of the peoples of the region generally within Member States; promote the development of human resources; promote the development, transfer and mastery of technology; improve economic management and performance through regional cooperation; promote the coordination and harmonisation of the international relations of Member States; secure international understanding, cooperation and support, mobilise the inflow of public and private resources into the region; and develop such other activities as Member States may decide in furtherance of the objectives of SADC. The signatories of the SADC Treaty agree that underdevelopment, exploitation, deprivation and backwardness in Southern Africa will only be overcome through economic cooperation and integration. The Member States recognise that achieving regional economic integration in Southern Africa requires them to put their full support behind SADC to act on behalf of all Southern Africans for their common prosperity, peace and unity. In pursuit of this agenda, SADC has adopted milestones to facilitate the attainment of the SADC Free Trade Area (FTA) by 2008, the Customs Union (CU) by 2010, the Common Market (CM) by 2015, Monetary Union (MU) by 2016 and the Single Currency by 2018. The SADC Free Trade Area (FTA) was launched on August 17, 2008 at Sandton, South Africa during the 28th Summit of SADC Heads of State and Government. SADC PRIORITIES AND COMMON AGENDA The SADC Common Agenda is based on various principles, such as development orientation; subsidiarity; market integration and development; facilitation and promotion of trade and investment and variable geometry. The SADC Common Agenda includes: the promotion of sustainable and equitable economic growth and socio-economic development that will ensure poverty alleviation with the ultimate objective of its eradication; promotion of common political values, systems and other shared values which are transmitted through institutions which are democratic, legitimate and effective; and the consolidation and maintenance of democracy, peace and security.

Current Member States are: Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. SADC headquarters are located in Gaborone, Botswana. Updated: January 08, 2009 Public Relations Unit

THE SADC PROGRAMME OF ACTION -SPA

The SPA is a totality of Sectoral Programmes, with their policy objectives, strategies and projects designed to realise the overall goals and objectives of SADC. The SPA has evolved over time in line with the priorities and challenges facing the organisation. The number of projects under the SPA now stands at 407 with an estimated cost of US$8.09 billion. Approximately 90 per cent of this amount is from external sources and close to 50 per cent has already been secured. Under the SPA, several protocols have been developed and signed in the areas of Shared Water Course Systems, Energy, Combating Illicit Drug Trafficking, Transport, Communication and Meteorology, Trade, Education and Training, Mining, Immunities and Privileges, Health, Wildlife Conservation and Law Enforcement, Tribunal and Legal Affairs. Most of these have been ratified and are at various stages of implementation. The Trade Protocol is critical for SADC's integration process and entered into force on the 25th of January, 2000 following its ratification by the required number of member States. The implementation of this protocol was launched on 1st September 2000. In addition to these protocols, the Summit has signed a Declaration on Gender and Development. This declaration calls for the equal representation of women and men in the decision making of member states and SADC Structures at all levels, and the achievement of at least 30 per cent target of women in political and decision-making structures by the year 2005. In addition, a Declaration on Productivity which commits member States to increase productivity in order to meet global competetiveness challenges was signed in August 2000.

ACHIEVEMENTS
A lot has been achieved in SADC since its inception in April 1980 in Lusaka, Zambia. Some of the foremost achievements of SADC have been: to demonstrate that regional co-operation is NOT only desirable but possible; to inculcate a sense of regional belonging as well as a tradition of consultation among the people and governments of Southern Africa to put in place a regional programme of action - the SADC Programme of Action - which covers cooperation in various economic sectors. Under the SADC Programme of Action a number of infrastructural projects have been undertaken to rehabilitate roads, railway lines and harbours as well as the development through research of a number of seed various to cater for the different climatic conditions of the SADC Region. These hard-earned achievements have provided a firm foundation without which any attempt at building a regional development community would have definitely failed.

WAY FORWARD
The stage is now set for the implementation of the Report on the Restructuring of SADC Institutions and the first directorate, the Trade, Finance, Industry and Investment directorate is expected to start operations at the Secretariat by August 2001. The second one, the Food, Agriculture and

Natural Resources is expected to be established by December 2001. The others will be established during 2001. The implementation of the Trade Protocol is on track and the region hopes to attain a free trade area by 2008. The ultimate objective is to enable SADC to effectively address the developmental needs of the region and to position the region to meet the challenges of the dynamic, ever changing and complex globalisation process as well as to take advantage of the opportunities offered by globalisation. INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK In deciding on the Conference's institutions, the Founders were particularly sensitive to the lessons and experiences of past attempts at regional co-operation in Africa, some of which had ended in dismal failure and bitter disappointment. Such failures were largely because sensitive issues of how best to equitably share the costs and benefits of regional co-operation had not been sufficiently addressed and agreed upon at both national and regional levels. To avoid similar pitfalls, SADC, from the very beginning placed particular emphasis on a decentralised institutional arrangement that would ensure that Member States are the principal actors in the formulation and implementation of policy decisions. However, a restructuring exercise took place that saw SADC institutions streamlined and its operations centralised to the Gaborone, Botswana based Secretariat. The former 21 Sector Coordinating Units have been clustered into four directorates and units coordinating the cross cutting sectoral issues of gender, science and technology and , SADC POLICY ORGANS AND INSTITUTIONS The principal organs and institutions of SADC are as follows: SUMMIT: Comprising of all SADC Heads of State and/or Government, the Summit is the ultimate policy-making institution of SADC. It is responsible for the overall policy direction and control of functions of the Community. The Summit usually meets once yearly around August/September in the Member State holding the Deputy Chairpersonship of SADC at the time. Extraordinary meetings of the Summit are also held if and when the need arise. Summit elects SADC office bearers, namely, the Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of SADC; the Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation. The functions of Summit are enumerated under Article 10 of the SADC Treaty. ORGAN ON POLITICS, DEFENCE AND SECURITY: The Organ is coordinated at the level of Summit on a Troika basis and reports to the Chairperson of SADC. Like the Summit chairing the Organ is on a rotation basis for a period of one year. The Chairperson of the Organ does not simultaneously hold the Chair of the Summit. The structure, operations and functions of the Organ is regulated by the Protocol on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation which was approved and signed by Summit at its meeting of August 2001 in Blantyre, Malawi. At the executive level, its work is coordinated by the Directorate of the Organ at the SADC Secretariat.

TRIBUNAL: Was established by the Protocol on the Tribunal that was signed in Windhoek, Namibia during the 2000 Ordinary Summit. The Tribunal is entrusted with the responsibility to ensure adherence to, and proper interpretation of the provisions of the SADC Treaty and subsidiary instruments, and to adjudicate upon disputes, referred to it. COUNCIL OF MINISTERS: The Council of Ministers consists of Ministers from each Member State, usually, those responsible for Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Economic Planning and Finance. The functions of the Council are provided for under Article 11 of the Treaty, amongst others, overseeing the functioning and development of SADC and ensuring that policies are properly implemented. Council usually meets twice a year in February and just before Summit in August or September. SADC NATIONAL COMMITTEES: The Treaty provides for the establishment of these national level SADC institutions in each SADC Member State, to be comprised of of key stakeholders notably government, private sector and civil society in each Member State. The main functions of a National Committee are to provide inputs at the national level in the formulation of regional policies, strategies, the SADC Programme of Action as well as coordinate and oversee the implementation of the these programmes at the national level. The Committees are also responsible for the initiation of SADC projects and issue papers as an input into the preparation of the Regional strategies. STANDING COMMITTEE OF SENIOR OFFICIALS: The functions of this Committee are enumerated under Article 13 of the Treaty. The Standing Committee of Senior Officials consists of one Permanent/Principal Secretary or an official of equivalent rank from each Member State, preferably from a ministry responsible for economic planning or finance. As a technical advisory committee to the Council of Ministers, this Committee serves as the clearing house for the Council Agenda. The Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson of the Standing Committee are appointed from the Member States holding the SADC Chairpersonship and Deputy Chairpersonship of Council. SADC SECRETARIAT: The Treaty lays out the functions of the Secretariat, being the principal executive institution of SADC responsible for, amongst others, the strategic planning and management of SADC programmes, implementation of decisions of SADC policy organs and institutions, such as, Summit, Council and the Troikas. The SADC Secretariats Vision is to be a reputable, efficient and responsive enable of regional integration and sustainable development. Its Missions is to provide strategic expertise and coordinate the harmonisation of policies and strategies to accelerate regional integration and sustainable development. The Secretariat holds dear its Values of quality service and competency; Professionalism; Integrity; Commitment and passion; Team spirit; Mutual respect; courtesy; Equality of opportunity; Transparency and frankness. SADC POLICY LEADERSHIP SYSTEM SADC leadership takes place in the Troika system consisting of the Chair, Incoming Chair and the Outgoing Chair of SADC which has been effective since it was established by Summit at its meeting in Maputo, Mozambique in August 1999. Other Member States may be co-opted into the Troika as and when necessary. This system has enabled the Organisation to execute tasks and implement decisions expeditiously as well as provide policy direction to SADC programmes and operations in between regular SADC meetings.

The Troika system will operate at the level of the Summit, the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security, Council and Standing Committee of Senior Officials. CURRENT SADC TROIKAS - AUGUST 2008 - AUGUST 2009 The SADC Troika System vests authority in the incumbent Chairperson, Incoming Chairperson who is the Deputy Chairperson at the time and the immediate Previous Chairperson to take quick decisions on behalf of SADC that are ordinarily taken at policy meetings scheduled at regular intervals. The Summit of Heads of State and Government Summit meets annually, while the Council of Ministers meets biannually in February, to approve the Annual budgets and in August to prepare the Summit agenda. There is also provision for extra ordinary Summit and Council meetings if and when the need arise. The Troika is also applicable at the level of the Standing Committee of Senior Officials, that comprises Permanent or Principal Secretaries or accounting for government offices, ministries or departments. This also applies to the Troika of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation. The two Troikas are referred to as the Double Troika.

Updated: January 08, 2009 The Origins The Southern African Development Co-ordination Conference, SADCC, the forerunner of SADC, the Community, was established in April 1980 by Governments of the nine Southern African countries of Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The formation of SADCC was the culmination of a long process of consultations by the leaders of Southern Africa. Towards the end of the 1970's, it became clear to the leaders of the region that just having a national flag and a national anthem would not meet the needs of the people for improved living standards. Secondly, the positive experiences gained in working together in the group of Frontline States, to advance the political struggle, had to be translated into broader co-operation in pursuit of economic and social development. From 1977, active consultations were undertaken by representatives of the Frontline States, culminating in a meeting of Foreign Ministries of the Frontline States in Gaborone, in May 1979, which called for a meeting of ministers responsible for economic development. That meeting was subsequently convened in Arusha, Tanzania, in July 1979. The Arusha meeting led to the birth to the Southern African Development Co-ordination Conference a year later. The SADCC or the conference, was formed with four principal objectives, namely: to reduce Member States dependence, particularly, but not only, on apartheid South Africa; to implement programmes and projects with national and regional impact; to mobilise Member States' resources, in the quest for collective self-reliance; and to secure international understanding and support.

These objectives were pursued with determination and vigour. Through SADCC, the founding fathers sought first to demonstrate the tangible benefits of working together, and to cultivate a climate of confidence and trust among member States.

SADC has developed since then, to become a organisation that has a Programme of Action, covering several broad economic and social sectors, namely, Energy, Tourism, Environment and Land Management, Water, Mining, Employment and Labour, Culture, Information and Sport and Transport and Communications. Other sectors are Finance and Investment, Human Resource Development, Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources, Legal Affairs and Health. Sectors are each co-ordinated by a Member State with some member states co-ordinating more than one sector. Over the past two years SADC has undertaken an exercise to restructure its institutions and a report on this was adopted by an Extra-Ordinary Summit on March 9, 2001 in Windhoek, Namibia. This restructuring was necessitated by the number of difficulties and constraints encountered in the process of moving the organisation from a coordinating conference into a Community. These include: Inadequate institutional reforms to enable the effective transformation from SADCC (Coordinating Conference) to SADC (the Community). Furthermore, the resource provision and the management system were not adequately addressed. The need to put in place appropriate mechanisms capable of translating the high degree of political commitment to shape the scope and scale of community building through regional integration. This implies delegating authority and strengthening the capacity for decisionmaking to the relevant agencies responsible for implementing the SADC agenda. Lack of synergy between the objectives and strategies of the Treaty on one hand and the existing SADC Programme of Action (SPA) and the institutional framework on the other. Limited capacity to mobilise significant levels of the region's own resources for the implementation of its Programme. The external financial overdependence of the SADC Programme of Action (SPA) to the tune of more than 80 percent, which compromises the Programme's sustainability.