Pretoria: International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane will on Friday, 4 September 2009, depart for Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to chair the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Council of Ministers meeting from 5 to 6 September 2009, ahead of the 29th Ordinary SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government.
South Africa will participate in the SADC Council of Ministers' meeting within the context of strengthening SADC which remains the primary vehicle to achieve regional development and integration. In addition SADC, as one of the Regional Economic Communities on the continent, is regarded as a building block in the consolidation of the African Agenda and wider continental integration.
Accordingly, the SADC Council of Ministers' session will consider the following:
- reports on the impact of the global economic crisis on the region
- update on the zimbabwe situation
- administration and finances of the organisation (SADC)
- consideration of the report of the executive secretary
- reports from sectoral and cluster ministerial meetings
- various legal instruments, including the draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Regional Cooperation and Integration amongst SADC and the East African Community (EAC) and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA); and
- the report from the SADC Tribunal
It is expected that the Council of Ministers will discuss progress made in the regional economic integration process in preparation for Summit, particularly relating to the consolidation of the SADC Free Trade Area (FTA) launched in August 2008 and the next milestone of the SADC customs union.
In her capacity as the Chair of the SADC Council, Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane will also chair the Ministerial Interview Committee Meeting on 4 September 2009, to interview candidates for the positions of SADC Deputy Executive Secretaries for Regional Integration and Administration and Finance, respectively.
For more information contact:
Nomfanelo Kota
Cell: 082 459 3787
Issued by: Department of International Relations and Cooperation
3 September 2009
