13 Mar 2016

 The SADC secretariat is committed to coordination and monitoring implementation of key milestones in the Revised Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) of 2015-2020.

According to the SADC executive secretary, Dr Stergomena Lawrence-Tax, the four pillars included; industrial development and market integration, infrastructure support for regional integration, peace and security cooperation and special programmes of the region.   

Giving opening remarks at the meeting of the Committee of Ministers of Finance and Investment in Gaborone on Saturday March 12, she said some progress was recorded during the year, noting that through the SADC Committee of Central Bank Governors, the SADC Integrated Regional Electronic Settlement System (SIRESS) had been consolidated, constituting to a sound and robust payment environment.

Dr Lawrence-Tax said the meeting was primarily convened to consider the outcome of the investigations sanctioned by ministers on the operationalisation of the SADC Regional Development Fund and device mechanisms to sustainably fund the SADC regional development and integration agenda.

The ministers directed the secretariat to widen the scope of consultations on the study and include all member states before convening the meeting of senior treasury officials and legal experts to review the report, she said.

She told the delegates that the senior treasury officials and legal experts met twice in the last three months to interrogate the findings of the report and also provide input to the finalisation of the study. 

The SADC secretariat also  reported that the SADC Project Preparation and Development Facility is progressing well, facilitating preparations of some regional projects. Nonetheless, she lamented, resources remain a challenge. 

She further reiterated that improvement of the region’s infrastructure is key to the realisation of SADC Development and Integration Agenda, thus sustainable financing of the integration agenda remains among top priorities. 

In the meantime the secretariat continues to develop proposals on alternative sources of fund, and a report will be presented for ministers' consideration in June 2016, and thereafter to Council in August 2016.

Nonetheless, Dr Lawrence-Tax said she was cognizant of the challenges facing the region, which impacted the economic performance of member states and by extension, the pace of implementation of the regional agenda. ENDS