The Southern African Development Community (SADC) and International Cooperating Partners (ICPs) convened a virtual Dialogue Platform meeting on 6 December 2024, where they discussed coordinated approaches to enhance development cooperation and implementation of the SADC Regional Integration Programmes.
The SADC and ICP Dialogue is critical in ensuring that development cooperation is undertaken in a coherent manner that promotes ownership, accountability, harmonisation, mutual trust and respect, and transparency in implementing the regional integration agenda. It also provides an opportunity for the ICPs to network more among themselves, with a view to promote synergies and minimize duplication of effort and commitment of resources, as they facilitate or enable support to the SADC region.
Ambassador Albert Ranganai Chimbindi, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade of the Republic of Zimbabwe and Chairperson of the SADC Standing Committee of Senior Officials, co-chaired the dialogue with Her Excellency Ambassador Petra Pereyra, the Head of Delegation of the European Union to Botswana and SADC, and current Chairperson of the ICPs.
During the meeting, delegates from the SADC Member States reiterated the region’s call for the immediate and unconditional lifting of the sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe to facilitate economic and social progress in Zimbabwe. The dialogue was attended by representatives of the ICPs, the SADC Double Troika Member States, Angola, Malawi, Madagascar, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe, as well as officials from the SADC Secretariat, led by the Executive Secretary His Excellency Mr Elias Magosi and Deputy Executive Secretary responsible for regional integration Ms Angèle Makombo N’tumba.
The SADC secretariat is mobilising resources for implementation, and monitoring of the prioritized regional projects covering strategic areas in the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plans (RISDP) 2020-2030 which is based on a firm foundation of Peace, Security and Democratic Governance, and is premised on the following Pillars:
- Industrial Development and Market Integration;
- Infrastructure Development in Support of Regional Integration;
- Social and Human Capital Development; and
- Crosscutting Issues, including Gender, Youth, Environment, Climate Change; and Disaster Risk Management.
