The overall mandate of the Trade, Industry, Finance and Investment (TIFI) Directorate is to coordinate regional trade and financial liberalisation. The Trade, Industry, Finance and Investment Directorate also facilitates:competitive, diversified industrial development; increased investment and the integration of SADC into the global economy; and fostering of regional integration through the SADC Free Trade Area (FTA), the creation of the Customs Union, Common Market and the Monetary Union. The aim is to contribute to the SADC ultimate objective of poverty eradication in the region.

Reporting

The Trade, Industry, Finance and Investment Directorate is within the portfolio of the Deputy Executive Secretary: Regional Integration

Responsibilities

The following are the key Responsibilities of the Directorate:

• Promotion of Goods and Services Market Integration;
• Financial and Capital Market Development;
• Attainment of Deeper Monetary Co-operation;
• Formulation and Implementation of Stability-oriented Macroeconomic Policies and the Attainment of Macroeconomic Convergence;
• Attainment of Common Tax Policies;
• Increasing Levels of Intra-SADC Investment and Foreign Direct Investment;
• Enhancing Productive Competitiveness in industry and mining;
• Effective coordination to ensure compliance of regional trade arrangements with International Agreements.

The Trade, Industry, Finance and Investment Directorate undertake its mandate through designated Units, which include:

• Trade- comprising Multilateral trade, Regional trade, non-Tariff Barriers and Rules of Origin;
• Customs – including Documentation, Tariff monitoring and Capacity building;
• Macroeconomic Convergence – involving the Fiscal and Monetary offices;
• Finance and Investment – focusing on Taxation, Regional and Domestic, Regional Development Fund and Capital Markets;
• Standards, Quality Assurance and Metrology (SQAM) – facilitates trade through the harmonisation of standards based on international standards ; and
• Industry Productive Competitiveness - covers institutions, policies and factors that determine productivity of a country/economy.

Objectives

The overall Objectives of the Trade, Industry, Finance and Investment Directorate include the following:

• Pursuing market integration through the establishment of the Free Trade Area, the SADC Customs Union and the SADC Common Market;
• Attainment of macroeconomic convergence;
• Development and strengthening of financial and capital markets;
• Attainment of deeper monetary cooperation;
• Increasing levels of investment in SADC including the Foreign Direct Investment;
• Enhancing SADC competitiveness in industrial and mining and other productive activities for effective participation in the global economy; and
• Ensuring compliance with international trade agreements.

Organisational Structure

Relevant documents

• The SADC Trade Protocol
• The SADC Protocol on Finance and Investment
• The SADC Protocol on Mining
• The Global Economic and Financial Crisis Measures at SADC Regional Level- English / French / Portuguese