Basis for the Development of the Annual Corporate Plan
1.1.1 Each year, the Secretariat publishes an Annual Corporate Plan, which is a consolidation of the annual outputs to be achieved by the Secretariat in a specific Financial Year. The Annual Corporate Plan is approved by the SADC Council of Ministers in August to enable implementation of the set outputs in the following Financial Year of SADC, that is, 01 April to 31 March.
1.1.2 The development of the ACP is derived from Article 14 of the SADC Treaty, which mandates the Secretariat to, inter alia, play a lead role in strategic planning and management of SADC programmes. This legal foundation affirms the Secretariat’s role in driving results-based planning, ensuring alignment with regional integration priorities.
1.1.3 Financial Regulation 27 – Annual Budget Process, states that the Accounting Officer shall prepare the Annual Corporate Plan (Annual Operational Plans and Budgets) and is responsible for ensuring that Directors and Heads of Units submit quality information in the required formats by the deadlines determined by the Accounting Officer.
1.1.4 Section 4.3.1 of the SADC Policy on Strategy Development, Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Report (SPMER) also states that the Secretariat shall develop Annual Corporate Plans with clear linkages to the Five-Year Medium-Term Strategy, the Ten-Year Strategy, as well as Summit, Council and Sectoral/Cluster Ministerial decisions. Annual Corporate Plans shall be prepared from Annual Sector Operational Plans and Budgets.
1.1.5 The Policy outlines a structured planning hierarchy aligned with Results-Based Management (RBM), comprising:
(i)SADC Vision 2050 (Long-Term)
(ii)RISDP 2020–2030 (Ten-Year Intermediate Strategy)
(iii)MTS 2025/26–2029/30 (Five-Year Medium-Term Strategy)
(iv)Annual Strategy Updates
(v)Annual Corporate Plans (ACP)
