Community (SADC) summit
18 October 2006
Pretoria - South African President, Thabo Mbeki, will lead a senior South
African government delegation to the Extraordinary SADC Summit on Regional
Integration being hosted by South Africa at Gallagher Estate in Midrand,
Gauteng, on Monday, 23 October 2006.
Foreign Minister, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, will lead the South African
charge to the meeting of the Ministerial Task Force on Regional Integration,
preceding the Summit from Saturday - Sunday, 21 - 22 October 2006.
The theme of the Summit is "Economic Integration of SADC" and it is expected
that all SADC Heads of State and Government will attend. Ministers of Foreign
Affairs, Trade and Industry and Finance of all SADC member states will attend
the Summit and meeting of the Ministerial Task Force.
The Extraordinary Summit occurs within the context of the appointment of a
task force of Ministers responsible for finance, investment and economic
development, trade and industry and the SADC secretariat, to review:
* SADC's regional economic integration agenda
* the milestones for achieving the Free Trade Area (FTA) and SADC Customs
Union
* review progress and propose measures for scaling up implementation of
regional integration.
The taskforce on Regional Economic Integration will present its report to
the Summit of Heads of State and Government on Monday, 23 October 2006.
The Summit will thus focus on the current status of implementation of the
FTA in terms of the main activities required to complete the FTA by 2008, as
planned for in the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP). In
addition, the requirements for achieving a SADC Customs Union will also be
considered as well as macro-economic convergence in the region.
The extraordinary meeting will also provide Ministers of Foreign Affairs
with a SADC mandate regarding the African Union Government, in preparation for
the African Union (AU) process on the matter.
Enquiries:
Ronnie Mamoepa
Cell: 082 990 4853
Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
18 October 2006
