REGIONAL INTEGRATION Southern African Development Community - SADC In the promotion of regional integration, FES has been co-operating with the SADC Secretariat since 1995, mainly in the areas of political, social and economic dialogue. Presently its 14 member states are Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Governed by a summit of Heads of States and a Council of Ministers, SADC is administrated by a secretariat based in Gaborone. FES Botswana is the liaison office for all regional activities in co-operation with the secretariat. Co-operation so far has included seminars and conferences with respect to gender, economic dialogue, regional labour market, social security and socio-economic impact of integration. In May 2004, the FES-supported draft of a "SADC Code on Social Security" which was officially presented to the SADC Secretariat in 2005 The Code has recently been approved by the respective SADC Council of Ministers and – after final approval by the SADC Inter-Ministerial Committee – will become an official SADC Policy Guideline. Starting in late 2004, a regional research programme on "Deepening Integration in SADC - Macro-Economic Policies and Their Impact" was developed by a team of researchers from all over the region. Country studies on Macroeconomic Convergence, Macroeconomic and Trade Policies, a Social Impact Analysis as well as a Survey on the Perception of Regional Integration by NSA were elaborated for 10 countries. The results of these studies are published in the 12 volumes of the series “Regional Integration in Southern Africa” (for downloads see  Publications). The findings have been discussed in national workshops; a regional conference is planned for October 2007. The research programme aims at complementing the development of SADC policies with respect to the targets such as a Free Trade Area by 2008, a Customs Union by 2010, and a Common Market by 2015, followed by a Currency Union. In December 2005, FES supported a  Regional Consultative Conference on Gender and Development, a follow-up of a similar conference in 2000. The conference resulted in a concrete “Framework of Action” with one of the proposed activities being the upgrading of the Declaration on Gender and Development. With the support of FES a draft Gender Protocol was elaborated. Following extensive consultations at the national level, a regional Consultative Conference was held in Gaborone in April 2007, revising and consolidation the final, second “Zero-Draft” of the Protocol. The SADC Heads of State in their 2006 meeting in Maseru, Lesotho, have approved the process and confirmed their interest in signing the Gender Protocol in August 2007 at the Summit in Lusaka. Regional Non-State Actors More and more regional organisations open their offices and secretariats in Gaborone. Some have become partners of FES. The Southern African Trade Union Coordinating Council (SATUCC) is the regional umbrella body of trade union federations of the SADC-Region. FES Botswana is the liaison office with SATUCC, whilst activities are planned and implemented through FES offices in Namibia, Zambia and South Africa. The Electoral Commissions Forum of SADC Countries (ECF) is focusing on civic and voter education as well as the observation of elections in the region. Co-operation with FES has centred so far around activities trying to strengthen the independence of Electoral Management Bodies in the region. “Principles and Guidelines in the Independence of Electoral Management Bodies (EMBs) in the SADC Region” have been drafted on the Basis of a workshop in Windhoek in March 2006 and – after consultations on the national level – have been finalised in a workshop in Antananarivo in April 2007. Approval by the ECF Annual General Conference in Luanda, August 2007 is pending. The SADC Council of Non-Governmental Organisations (SADC-CNGO) was initiated in 1998 with support from FES Botswana. It has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the SADC Secretariat in December 2003 and established its regional secretariat in Gaborone in 2004. Cooperation with FES so far concentrated in the planning and implementation of the 1st and 2nd “Regional Civil Society Forum” held parallel to the respective SADC Summit Meetings in Gaborone and Maseru, respectively. The Forum is organised as a vehicle to promote the dialogue between SADC and Civil Society on the regional level. The 3rd Forum will be held in Lusaka in August 2007. FES will support the drafting of “Guideline on the Legal Environment for NGO in the SADC Region”. Top of the page
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