Energy Sector Plan targets surplus, sets priorities · Inga 3 dam in the Democratic Republic of...

by Joseph Ngwawi

THE SADC region has suffered a shortage ofelectricity since 2007 as demand exceeds sup-ply, and the expectation is that this energy gapwill be addressed by 2014. However, the imple-mentation of projects can lag behind theirplanned dates due to a lack of funding andother constraints. SADC is now taking longer term measuresto address the energy deficit and ensure self-sufficiency in energy generation and an end toelectricity shortages, through an ambitious En-ergy Sector Plan that calls for the region to in-crease power generation by more than 70percent and invest at least US$170 billion overthe next 15 years. The Energy Sector Plan is part of the SADCRegional Infrastructure Development MasterPlan approved by the 32nd Summit of SADCHeads of State and Government in Mozam-bique in August. The Energy Sector Plan addresses four keystrategic objectives: 1 ensuring energy security; 1 improving access to modern energy services;1 tapping the abundant energy resources;

and, 1 achieving financial investment and environ-

mental sustainability.

The Plan identifies “hard” infrastructureprojects that include the planned increase inelectricity generation and transmission; refiner-ies, storage facilities and pipelines for petro-leum and gas; and transport facilities for coaldistribution and exports. The plan for the energy sector has identified73 power generation projects to increase gen-eration from the current 56,000 megawatts(MW) and ensure that the projected demand of96,000 MW is surpassed by 2027. Prioritisation of the various projects was de-termined using a formula under which projectswere rated according to their ability to impacton the regional energy deficit. Seven generation projects that scored above50 percent and with capacity greater than1,000MW each were ranked as top priority. The seven projects alone are expected toadd about 26,000MW to the grid managed bythe Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) – 65percent of new generation capacity planned be-tween 2013 and 2027 (see Table). Highest priority is accorded to theHidroeléctrica de Cahora Bassa (HCB) NorthBank hydropower project in Mozambique. Theproject is expected to add 1,245MW to the re-gional power grid when completed in 2015.

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SADC TODAY Vol. 15 No 1 December 2012

POLICY 3

ENERGY 4

AFRICAN UNION 5

YEAR IN REVIEW 6

PEACE & SECURITY 7

ENERGY 8-9

ENVIRONMENT 10

CLIMATE CHANGE 11

REGIONAL INTEGRATION 12

PEACE & SECURITY 13

COMMUNITY 14

EVENTS 15

HISTORY TODAY 16

Energy Sector Plantargets surplus,

sets priorities

2 SOUTHERN AFRICA Today, December 2012

The other projects includeMphanda Nkuwa in Mozam-bique, the Batoka Hydro PowerStation jointly developed byZimbabwe and Zambia, and theInga 3 dam in the DemocraticRepublic of Congo (DRC). The Batoka project involvesthe construction of a dam and ahydropower plant on the Zam-bezi River with a potential ca-pacity of between 1,600 and2,000MW of electricity to beshared equally between Zambiaand Zimbabwe. The seven projects are ex-pected to cost a minimum ofUS$65 billion and a maximumof US$104 billion. The next priority will be 18other projects that scored above50 percent according to the Mas-ter Plan formula but have ca-pacity of less than 1,000MW. These include the extensionof the Kariba South Power Sta-tion in Zimbabwe that shouldadd 300MW of new power by2016, the 800MW Kudu GasPower Station in Namibia to becompleted by 2016, and the800MW Rumakali HydroPower Station in the United Re-public of Tanzania, due for com-pletion in 2018. The 18 projects are expectedto increase southern Africa’spower supply by 6,481MW bythe end of 2019 at a cost of be-tween US$7 billion and US$18billion. Three major interconnectingprojects would facilitate the con-nection of Angola, Malawi andTanzania to the SAPP grid. The three are the only SAPPmembers yet to be linked to theregional power grid. OtherSAPP member states areBotswana, DRC, Lesotho,Mozambique, Namibia, SouthAfrica, Swaziland, Zambia andZimbabwe. The island states of Mada-gascar, Mauritius and Sey-chelles are not members ofSAPP.

C O N T I N U E D F R O M P A G E 1

The SADC Execu-tive Secretary, TomazAugusto Salomão,says in a message ac-companying the Re-gional InfrastructureMaster Plan that anymeaningful imple-mentation of the planshould accord priority to ad-dressing power shortfalls in theregion through the develop-ment and commissioning ofpower generation and trans-mission infrastructure. “The interconnection of An-gola, Malawi and the UnitedRepublic of Tanzania is neces-sary to enable the migration ofthese Member States to Operat-ing Members of the SouthernAfrican Power Pool.” The grand total of all theseprojects to be implementedfrom 2015 to 2027 is estimatedto cost in the region betweenUS$93 billion and US$212 bil-lion. In addition to the “hard” in-frastructure projects, the masterplan has also identified 16“soft” infrastructure issues thatneed to be addressed before theregion can achieve self-suffi-ciency in the electricity sub-sec-

Energy Sector Plantargets surplus, sets priorities

tor. These include harmonisedpolicies and increased coopera-tion in energy developmentand trading. Lack of align-ment in regulatory policyframeworks and tariff struc-tures can hamper investmentand financing, and poor proj-ect preparation can cause de-lays. The master plan notes thatapart from the existence of en-ergy policies and, to some lim-ited extent, renewable energypolicy in all SADC MemberStates, comprehensive renew-able energy strategies and ac-tion plans exist only inMauritius and South Africa. Botswana, Mauritius andSouth Africa have put renew-able energy electrification tar-gets into their energy systems,while only Namibia and SouthAfrica have renewable energyregulatory frameworks.

SAPP PRIORITY GENERATION PROJECTS (Capacity >1,000MW)Priority Country Project Name Capacity Technology ExpectedRanking (MW) Commissioning Date 1 Mozambique HCB North Bank 1,245 Hydro 2015 2 Mozambique Mphanda Nkuwa 1,500 Hydro 2017 3 Zambia/Zimbabwe Batoka 1,600 Hydro 2022 4 DRC Inga 3 4,320 Hydro 2018 5 Zimbabwe Gokwe North 1,400 Coal 2017 6 South Africa New PF + FBC 6,250 Coal 2026 7 South Africa Nuclear 9,600 Nuclear 2023Total 25,915Source SADC Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan

Five countries have inte-grated the deployment of re-newable energy in their ruralenergy/electrification agen-cies. These are Botswana,Mozambique, Tanzania, Zam-bia and Zimbabwe. A key challenge to regionalplanning is to harmonise thefragmented policies and targetsset by the Member States. r

Impact on islandstatesTHE ISLAND states of Mau-ritius and Seychelles are notaffected by improvements tothe SAPP regional grid as theyare not connected to it.

They are already 100 per-cent or almost 100 percentconnected to electricity andhave access to modern energysources such as liquefied pe-troleum gas for cooking.

However, they can benefitfrom harmonised policies andregulatory frameworks to en-able trade of energy equip-ment between the mainlandand the island states. Coordi-nated financial resource mo-bilisation would also bebeneficial.

They can participate in theexchange of experiences forrenewable energy researchand development, the manu-facturing and trading of re-newable energy technologies,clean coal technologies andcoal export arrangements.They can also benefit fromharmonised tariffs and stan-dardised power purchaseagreements. r

A PLAN of Action has been developed to guide the region towardsimplementation of priority infrastructure projects as presented inthe Infrastructure Master Plan. Key elements include the following:v Proposed funding mechanismsThe Plan of Action outlines some key modalities for financing in-frastructure, which include public financing through fiscal mecha-nisms and sovereign loans, grants from development partners,private sector funding and private-public partnership arrange-ments.v Institutional structures/monitoring and evaluation mecha-

nismsThe following structures will continue to set the approval processof the SADC infrastructure programme as per SADC protocols:[ Sectoral project committees[ Sub-sectoral committees[ Committees of senior officials[ Sectoral ministerial committees[ Infrastructure ministers committee[ Council of Ministers[ Summit. r

Infrastructure Action Plan

SOUTHERN AFRICA Today 3

SAPP WAS created with theprimary aim to provide reli-able and economical electric-ity to consumers of each ofits member utilities, consis-tent with reasonable utiliza-tion of natural resources andthe effect on the environ-ment.

Co-operation in the elec-tricity sector is not a newphenomenon in the region --

it has taken place at policy,planning and operationallevels and involved govern-ments, power utilities and fi-nancial agencies over aperiod of several decades.

To formalize this interac-tion, utilities in the regioncame together under the aus-pices of SADC to form theSouthern African Power Poolin 1995. r

About the Southern African Power Pool

THE SADC Secretariat hascalled for Member States to re-view the role and function ofthe Southern African PowerPool (SAPP) to ensure that theregional body becomes moreeffective in its efforts to pro-mote development in the en-ergy sector.

SAPP is a regional bodythat coordinates the planning,generation, transmission andmarketing of electricity on be-half of member state utilitiesin SADC.

The power utilities inmainland SADC, with the ex-ception of Angola, Malawiand the United Republic ofTanzania, are interconnectedthrough SAPP, allowing themto trade in electricity througha competitive market.

Established in 1995through an IntergovernmentalMemorandum of Understand-ing (MoU), SAPP has, amongother things, managed to cre-ate a market for electricity inthe region, allowing cus-tomers to benefit from the ad-vantages associated withenergy cooperation.

The regional power poolhas also coordinated efforts toexploit the numerous energyresources that are in abun-dance in the region.

For example, SAPP hasidentified a number of priorityenergy projects for commis-sioning over the next fewyears to address energy short-ages in the region.

Most of these projects tar-get renewable energy sourcessuch as solar, hydro andwind – which are less pollut-ing to the environment thanother forms such as coal ther-mal.

Addressing the recent 33rd

SAPP executive committee

meeting held in Harare, Zim-babwe, the SADC Senior Pro-gramme Officer for Energy,Freddie Motlhatlhedi said forSAPP to fully carry out its du-ties, member states need to re-view the role and functions ofthe regional power pool.

Presently, SAPP has lim-ited power to implement en-ergy projects, andMotlhatlhedi says there isneed for the power pool tohave more authority in spear-heading efforts to ensure thatthe region recovers from crip-pling power shortages that be-came more widespread in2006/07.

“It is time we revise the In-tergovernmental Memoran-dum of Understanding(IGMOU) and other agree-ments that created SAPP sothat the organization is em-powered and given morepowers to enforce decisionsmade by member states,”Motlhatlhedi said.

The IGMOU of 1995 waslast reviewed in 2006 by theSADC Energy Ministers whenthey signed the Revised Inter-Governmental Memorandumof Understanding.

The IGMOU is one of fouragreements that govern SAPPoperations. Others are theInter-Utility Memorandum ofUnderstanding that estab-lished SAPP’s basic manage-ment and operatingprinciples; the Agreement be-tween Operating Memberswhich established the specificrules of operation and pricing;and the Operating Guidelines,which provide standards andoperating guidelines.

In this regard, SAPP oper-ations are mainly based on aset of agreements among themember utilities as opposed

“SAPP should have more authority topromote energy development”

to formal laws, which wouldallow the regional body tohave greater authority overenergy issues in the region.

Motlhatlhedi said consul-tations on the review of theIGMOU should commenceahead of the SADC EnergyMinisters meeting scheduledfor April 2013 in Lesotho.

He urged member statesto set up a committee thatwill look at how best to re-structure and review SAPP sothat the recommendationscould be approved by theSADC Energy Ministers nextyear.

Addressing the samemeeting, Zimbabwe Energyand Power Development Min-ister, Elton Mangoma, urgedSAPP to ensure that all mem-ber states are interconnectedon the regional grid.

“SAPP needs to connect itsthree non-connected mem-bers,” he said. “The continuedlack of interconnection ofthese member states is depriv-ing the region and the citizensin these countries the benefitsof interconnection that the restof the members currentlyenjoy.”

P O L I C Y

More transmission linesthrough the SAPP would alsoenable member states to bene-fit from new generation capac-ity installed in other countries.

With Angola, Malawi andTanzania not interconnectedthrough SAPP, it means thatany new generation capacityinstalled in any of the threecountries is not realized in thenine other SAPP members.

The 33rd SAPP executivecommittee was held on 18 Oc-tober and included the inau-guration of the new SAPPCoordination Centre offices inMt Pleasant, Harare.

The centre acts as a focalpoint for SAPP activities, par-ticularly through the technicaloversight of pool operationsand facilitating electricitytrading. sardc.net r


E N E R G Y

and 60MW respectively, whileLesotho will add about 25MW.These new electricity projectswill help the region to meet de-mand.

Southern Africa has beenfacing power shortages as longback as 2007, hence the South-ern African Power Pool (SAPP)has identified a number ofprojects for commissioning soas to sustain the region’spower supply.

Between 2012 and 2016,southern Africa expects to

commission newpower projectsthat will add atotal of about14,300MW to theregional grid.Most of thenew power is setto come fromSouth Afr ica ,w h i c h p l a n sto commission8 , 3 8 2 M W o felectricity proj-ects (see Table). r

SADC MEMBER States ex-pect to commission new en-ergy projects to add about1,060 megawatts (MW) of elec-tricity to the regional grid in2013.

This figure is slightly belowthe 1,770MW that was plannedfor commissioning in 2012, al-though the actual installedelectricity for this year is yet tobe made public.

New electricity generationin 2013 is expected to comefrom Lesotho, Malawi,Namibia, South Africa andZambia.

South Africa plans to com-mission projects that will adda total of 720MW, while Zam-bia will add 180MW.

Namibia and Malawiwill contribute 65MW

ZAMBIA AND Zimbabwehave stepped up efforts toconstruct the long-awaited Ba-toka Gorge hydropower sta-tion.

Batoka Gorge is locatedon the Zambezi Riverabout 50km downstream ofVictoria Falls and borderingboth countries. When opera-tional, the US$2.4 billionplant will have the capacityto produce up to 1,600Megawatts (MW) of electric-ity.

According to the agree-ment, Zambia and Zimbabwe

will share the power equally,but since the two countries aremembers of the SouthernAfrican Power Pool (SAPP)much of the electricity will befed into the regional powergrid.

All mainland SADC Mem-ber States with the exceptionof Angola, Malawi and Tanza-nia, are interconnectedthrough SAPP.

The Zambezi River Au-thority, a joint authority ofZambia and Zimbabwewhich manages develop-ments the Zambezi River for

the two countries, approvedthe project a few years ago.

Spokesperson ElizabethKaronga said the World Bankhas expressed interest infunding the project and anEnvironmental Impact As-sessment will soon be imple-mented in advance of theconstruction.

The Batoka hydro-stationis identified as one of themost attractive projects in theregion, with great capacity tohelp southern Africa to ex-ploit the huge hydro poten-tial of the Zambezi River. r

SAPP targets 1,060 MW new power in 2013

Batoka power project to commence soon

New SAPP headquarters. The new offices of the Southern African Power Pool will enable the regional energy coor-dinating body to improve its operations and effectively serve member utilities. The building was inaugurated duringthe 33rd Executive Committee meeting held in October in Harare, Zimbabwe.

New Power Generation Projects Planned in Southern Africa 2012-2016COUNTRY COMMITED GENERATION CAPACITY, MW

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 TOTAL

Angola 315 0 80 0 700 1 095Botswana 600 0 0 300 0 900DRC 120 8 0 580 0 708Lesotho 0 25 40 110 0 175Malawi 0 64 0 0 0 64Mozambique 100 0 265 300 0 665Namibia 92 60 0 0 0 152South Africa 303 722 3 591 2 244 1 522 8 382Swaziland 0 0 0 0 0 -Tanzania 160 0 0 0 0 160Zambia 56 180 915 40 339 1 530Zimbabwe 30 0 140 0 300 470

Total 1 776 1 059 5 031 3 574 2 861 14 301

Source SAPP


A F R I C A N U N I O N

Dlamini-Zuma, who is alsothe first woman to hold thepost of chairperson of the AUCommission, said women em-powerment is critical to theprogress of the continent.

In this regard, she saidAfrican countries must channelmore resources towards im-proving access to health, sanita-tion and water, and makechild-bearing safer for women.

Member states must alsoimplement regional and conti-nental agreements that ensuremore women are elevated intodecision-making positions, shesaid.

The Commission she leadscontains 50-50 representationof men and women by deci-sion of the AU Summit ofAfrican Heads of State andGovernment.

Dlamini-Zuma, who hasbeen a cabinet minister inSouth Africa since 1994, notedthat this is the first time awoman has been elected to thetop African position in 49years since the formation ofthe continental body, addingthat, “This election poses agreater responsibility onwomen in general.”

In her inaugural address,she traced the rich history ofAfrica in which womenplayed an important role ineconomic and governancestructures, and more recentlyin the struggle for liberationfrom colonial rule andapartheid.

by Kizito Sikuka

THE NEW Chairperson of theAfrican Union Commission, DrNkosazana Dlamini-Zuma hassaid that Africa has the capacityto achieve socio-economicgrowth if member states worktogether to address the chal-lenges affecting the continent.

Speaking at her inaugura-tion ceremony at AfricanUnion (AU) headquarters inAddis Ababa, Ethiopia on 15October, Dlamini-Zuma said,“the only way to ensure suc-cess in our continent’s endeav-ours is to move together as oneunited continent and people.”“We should look at ourselvesas a continent, not only as in-dividual countries. …

“We are a formidable forceas a continent if we are united,but if we are divided we areweak. Nobody can ignore usunited. Nobody can fail to seethe continent as a force forglobal change, if we look atourselves as a continent.”

She pledged to advance thevision of the African Union of“An integrated, prosperousand peaceful Africa, driven byits own citizens and represent-ing a dynamic force in theglobal arena.”

Dlamini-Zuma, who is thefirst southern African to headthe AU Commission, said thatAfrica’s vast natural resources,if fully exploited, could propelthe continent to development.

Africa accounts for morethan one quarter of the world’sarable land, and is well en-dowed with natural resources,including about 30 percent ofthe world’s known mineral re-serves.

“If we invest in increasingthe productivity of our landwe can have food security, ex-port and generate revenue,and also save the resources weuse to import food,” she said.

backs, with pockets of instabil-ity and conflict. …It is there-fore our responsibility asgovernments, as citizens, as re-gional bodies to ensure thatthe democratic process is irrev-ocable and to pledge ourselvesto work for its success.”

She said the AU Commis-sion will continue to workwith various stakeholders andregional organizations to pro-mote and consolidate peace inthe continent, and that theprinciple of finding African so-lutions to African problemswill always be maintained.

Dlamini-Zuma said Re-gional Economic Communities(RECs) must continue to leadthe integration process as themain agents for implementa-tion.

Three RECs are at an ad-vanced stage of forming an in-tegrated market covering 27countries in eastern and south-ern Africa. These are the Com-mon Market for Eastern andSouthern Africa (COMESA),East African Community(EAC), and SADC.

This Tripartite Free TradeArea is expected to increaseintra-regional trade anddeepen integration throughimproved investment flowsand enhanced competition.

Dlamini-Zuma takes overthe AU Commission chair fromGabon’s Jean Ping. Her ascen-dency followed intense lobby-ing by SADC Member States,who argued that it was time forsouthern Africa to lead the AUCommission as other regionshave had the opportunity to oc-cupy the top post.

A skilled administrator anddiplomat with a pan-Africanvision, Dlamini-Zuma waswidely respected in southernAfrica and in Africa during thedecade she served as SouthAfrica’s Minister of ForeignAffairs. sardc.netr

With regard to youth em-powerment, Dlamini-Zumasaid there is need to harnessthe energy, resourcefulnessand enthusiasm of the youngpeople so that they can con-tribute positively to societies,nations and the continent.

On peace and security, theformer South African HomeAffairs Minister said that,while Africa has witnessed sig-nificant progress in its politicallandscape, there are somecountries that are still experi-encing instability for variousreasons.

She said peace and stabilityare a prerequisite for socio-eco-nomic development, hence theneed to redouble efforts to ad-dress the conflicts.

“In spite of this laudableprogress, we must also ac-knowledge that there havebeen some difficulties and set-

“Unity is key to continental development”

We are a formidableforce as a continent ifwe are united, but ifwe are divided we are

weak. Nobody canignore us united.

Nobody can fail to seethe continent as a forcefor global change, if welook at ourselves as a

continent.

“

”

Chairperson of AU Commission Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma

Y E A R I N R E V I E W

2012A significant year for SADC SOUTHERN AFRICA continued to record ad-vances towards regional integration and stability,and gender equality, with the key indicators for2012 being the launch of the long-awaited regionalinfrastructure master plan and the strategic planon peace and security, among others. SADC took a major step forward in deepeningintegration when Heads of State and Governmentapproved the SADC Regional Infrastructure De-velopment Master Plan at their Summit in Mozam-bique in August. The Plan contains the vision forinfrastructure development in SADC between2012 and 2027. The Master Plan guides development in key in-frastructure such as road, rail and ports, and pro-vides a framework for coordination andcooperation with development partners and pri-vate sector. It will be implemented over three five-year intervals – short term (2012-2017), mediumterm (2017-2022) and long term (2022-2027). This is in line with the SADC Vision 2027, a 15-year implementation horizon for forecasting infra-structure requirements in the region that is alignedwith the African Union’s Programme for Infra-structure Development of Africa. The Plan consti-tutes a key input to the proposed tripartite FreeTrade Area made up of SADC, the Common Mar-ket for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA),and the East African Community (EAC). Another significant milestone for 2012 was theapproval to establish a Regional DevelopmentFund, a financial mechanism for mobilising re-sources from Member States, the private sector anddevelopment partners, for financing of SADC pro-grammes and projects. The strategic plan for sustainable peace and se-curity in the region, the Strategic Indicative Planfor the Organ (SIPO) on Politics, Defence and Se-curity Cooperation launched in November, coversfive sectors and provides the conditions for eco-nomic and social development (see facing page). On tourism development, the world’s largestTrans Frontier Conservation Area (TFCA) becamea reality in March when the Kavango-Zambezi(KAZA) TFCA was launched by five SADC mem-ber states – Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambiaand Zimbabwe. Situated in the Okavango and Zambezi riverbasins where the borders of the five countries con-verge, the KAZA TFCA covers an area of some444,000 square kilometres consisting of 36 nationalparks, game reserves, community conservancies andgame management areas, and boasts numerousother tourist attractions such as the Victoria Falls, aswell as the absorbing wildlife population in an areanow open to traditional migration routes. Elections held in Angola and Lesotho furtherstrengthened southern Africa’s profile as a stableinvestment destination and boosted economicprospects.

In Lesotho, there was a transfer of power fromthe former Prime Minister, Pakalitha Mosisili, whodespite winning the 26 May national poll by aslight margin, got only 48 seats in the 120-seat Na-tional Assembly, which was not enough to securean outright majority. He resigned to allow the opposition to form acoalition government led by the All-Basotho Con-vention (ABC) of Thomas Thabane. UnderLesotho law, the leader of the majority party in theNational Assembly automatically becomes primeminister. In parliamentary elections held in Angola inAugust, the Popular Movement for the Liberationof Angola (MPLA) led by President José Eduardodos Santos won another mandate for the next fiveyears. The leader of the party with a parliamen-tary majority automatically becomes president. Lesotho maintained its representation bywomen in the lower house at 31, about 25 percentof the total, and Angola with 76 women membersof parliament slipped slightly to 34.5 percent. The regional target is gender parity – 50:50 by2015. SADC women have been taking their place inleadership positions at home, on the continent andworldwide in 2012. The first woman President in the SADC regionis Her Excellency, Mrs. Joyce Banda, President ofMalawi, the former Vice President, who wassworn into office in April 2012 following the deathof her predecessor. The Vice President of Mauritius, Hon.Monique Ohsan Bellepeau was acting Presidentfrom 31 March – 21 July 2012, following resigna-tion of the President, until a successor was chosen. The new Chairperson of the African UnionCommission is the SADC candidate, Dr.Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, the former Minister ofHome Affairs of South Africa, who was sworn intooffice on 15 October (see page 5). The Commis-sion she heads has 50-50 representation of menand women by decision of the AU Summit ofAfrican Heads of State and Government. Asha Rose Migiro was released by the Tanzan-ian government to serve as Deputy Secretary-Gen-eral of the United Nations 2007-2012. She steppeddown this year but not off the world stage, as she isnow the Special Envoy for HIV and AIDS in Africa. A main challenge to regional development in2012, in addition to the uncertain global financialenvironment, was the conflict in eastern Demo-cratic Republic of Congo. Initiated by anti-govern-ment rebels, the conflict generated a massivehumanitarian crisis, with serious implications forregional integration and socio-economic develop-ment. This was addressed by the SADC Summitin August, and a Troika Summit in September, in-cluding a mission to Rwanda by the SADC Chair-person (see page 13).r


2012

Infrastructure Development Master Plan will guide the implementation in six priority sectors• energy • transport • tourism• information

technology• meteorology• water.

SADC Regional Development Fund.

New strategic plan for regional peace and security covering five sectors– political, defence, state security, publicsecurity, and police.

First Southern African, first woman to head African Union Commission

First woman President in SADC

Kavango Zambezi Trans FrontierConservation Areaestablished, the world’s largest

P E A C E & S E C U R I T Y

SADC HAS a new strategic plan for regionalpeace and security covering five sectors – polit-ical, defence, state security, public security andpolice.

The plan was launched on 20 November inArusha by the Tanzanian President, Jakaya Kik-wete, the current Chairperson of the SADCOrgan on Politics, Defence and Security Cooper-ation.

He urged Member States to make resourcesavailable for implementation of the RevisedStrategic Indicative Plan of the Organ (SIPO).

“Peace is an important aspect in regionalprosperity, hence there is a need for membercountries to chip in with enough resources tomake the bloc calm and stable,” Kikwete said.“Efforts towards making our region calm are inour hands. …

“It is time for member countries to start al-locating enough resources to address theemerging challenges… We shouldn’t wait forother people to act on our behalf.”

Kikwete also stressed that political will isneeded to move forward.

Speaking at the same occasion, the SADCExecutive Secretary, Dr Tomáz Augusto Sa-lomão, emphasised the need to preserve“peace, security, stability and democracy, as aprerequisite for regional integration and sus-tainable development”, in order to address thechallenges posed by the new political, eco-nomic and social context in the region.

Salomão traced the history of the Organ onPolitics, Defence and Security Cooperation es-tablished by SADC Heads of State and Govern-ment in 1996, and its achievements andchallenges, saying that it constitutes a “solidplatform for deepening the political coopera-tion and cohesion in the region”.

The legal instruments already adopted forimplementation include various SADC proto-cols, notably that on politics, defence and secu-rity cooperation signed in 2001.

Other protocols are against corruption; forcombating illicit drugs; the control of firearmsand ammunition; facilitation of the movementof persons; extradition; legal affairs, mutual as-sistance in criminal matters; and a mutual de-fence pact.

The first Strategic Indicative Plan for theOrgan (SIPO) identifying strategies and activi-ties was adopted in 2003 for implementationover five years. Discussions on revision of theplan began in 2007.

The Executive Secretary identified the keyachievements as the integration of the regionalpolice chiefs organization into the Inter-State

Defence and Security Committee; establish-ment of the Regional Early Warning Centre forconflict prevention and management; and theSADC Standby Force.

Salomão also cited establishment of civilianstructures such as the SADC Electoral AdvisoryCouncil, and the SADC Mediation, ConflictPrevention and Preventive Diplomacy struc-tures.

However, he added that, in addition tothese achievements, there are challenges result-ing from geopolitics and global dynamics, butalso from inadequate coordination mechanismsand a shortage of human and financial re-sources for appropriate implementation.

The SIPO is to be reviewed at five-year in-tervals to ensure adequate response to thechanging geopolitical environment, and rele-vance of objectives, strategies and activities invarious sectors, as well as to strengthen moni-toring mechanisms, human resources andstructures.

A main goal of the programme, Salomãosaid, is to publicise and disseminate the revisedSIPO to all stakeholders, to facilitate develop-ment of a comprehensive work plan to enable“relevant stakeholders to be true partners in theimplementation”.

In launching the new policy document, theTanzanian President said it is intended to ad-dress some of the new challenges facing the re-gion, Africa and the world, noting that SADCplays a “leading role in the unity and cohesionof the region and the continent, while signifi-cantly contributing to peace, security, humani-tarian assistance and development activities atregional and continental levels.”

Among the new challenges he cited arepiracy, climate change, human trafficking, ille-gal immigration and economic recession.

Specific challenges, in addition to poverty,are the deteriorating situation in the GreatLakes Region, notably the worsening conflict ineastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).He appealed again to the parties for a ceasefire,“taking into account that innocent civilians arethe ones who are most highly affected.”

The launch was witnessed by senior defence,police and correctional services officers from Tan-zania, and senior government officials and diplo-mats from SADC member states, as well asresearch and academic institutions attending asymposium on the new strategic plan.

SADC has 15 member states including DRC,but Madagascar is currently suspended follow-ing a non-constitutional change of governmentin 2009. sardc.net r

SADC launches new plan for regional peace and security

2012

The new strategic plan covers five

sectors – political, defence, state security,

public security, police.



and communities. Solar technologies use panels that attract energyfrom the sun to generate electricity through the photovoltaic process.

Other products include solar lamps, solar water heaters, solarstreetlights, solar phone chargers, solar radios, and solar torches thathave many practical uses in both rural and urban areas as they arerechargeable.

There are also solar-powered generators that provide hours ofsolar energy to keep households powered during electricity outages.However, with the exception of hydropower, there are no sustain-able incentives or subsidy schemes to encourage largescale, grid-connected electricity based on renewable energy systems.

According to the African Development Bank(AfDB), Africa could become a “goldmine” for renew-able energy due to the abundant hydro, solar and windresources that are now hugely sought after by interna-tional investors in their quest for a new clean-energyfrontier.

Most African countries receive more than 2,500hours of sunshine per year, and most of the continenthas sunshine all year round.

An assessment by the United Nations EnvironmentProgramme (UNEP) and the Global Environment Fa-cility also reveals that there is 4,000 MW of geothermalelectricity ready for harvesting along the Rift Valley.

ChallengesWith all their advantages, most renewable productsand technologies are not cheap to install. For example,a typical home solar system in the region costs any-where between US$500 and US$1,000, according to theAfDB.

A micro hydro system that converts the flow ofwater into electrical energy, or a wind turbine, is alsoexpensive to install and maintain. As a result, mostcountries in SADC tend to focus more on fossil fuelsbecause thermal stations are easier and cheaper to con-struct compared to hydro and wind plants.

RENEWABLE ENERGY technologies are expected to ease southernAfrica’s power shortages as the region seeks solutions to a decade-long problem that threatens to derail efforts to attain energy self-suf-ficiency and regional development.

Renewable energy is any energy that is naturally replenished, andincludes energy from natural resources such as hydro, methane, sun-light, wind and geothermal heat. Energy produced from the refiningof biomass is also classified as renewable.

Coal, oil and natural gas are fossil fuels and are classified as non-renewable energy.

Unlike fossil fuels, the renewable energy sources are generallyless polluting to the environment, hence the need for southern Africato increase the uptake of this type of energy.

The most common renewable energy in SADC is hydropower,which accounts for about 20 percent of SADC’s total energy gener-ation, while other renewables do not make any significant contribu-tion to the national or regional grids.

Non-renewable thermal power accounts for the largest propor-tion of the SADC energy mix, with about 74 percent of all powerproduced.

This is despite the fact that southern Africa is hugely endowedwith renewable energy resources.

In this regard, a rigorous programme to promote the widespreaduse of renewable energy products and technologies could help theSADC region reduce the burden of power shortages as well as theoverreliance on non-renewable fossil fuels.

Renewable products and technologiesThe use of renewable energy products and technologies is graduallyincreasing in southern Africa. The most common renewable energyproducts in SADC use hydropower.

However, the full potential of hydroas a source of renewable energy is yet tobe exploited, and a number of dams arelying idle instead of producing electric-ity for small towns or remote areas.

The Zambezi River, for example,drains water from eight SADC MemberStates and has an estimated hy-dropower generation capacity of about20,000 megawatts (MW), which is al-most enough to meet the region’s en-ergy needs if potential sites areexploited.

Only 23 percent of this potential isbeing harnessed, largely from twomain sites at the Kariba Dam betweenZambia and Zimbabwe, and the Ca-hora Bassa Dam in Mozambique.

Hydropower is also in abundancewith the Inga project on the CongoRiver in the Democratic Republic ofCongo having the potential to produceabout 40,000 MW of electricity.

Outside the national and regionalgrid, solar technology is commonlyused, providing electricity to families

Energy Policy Brief No.10, December 2012

Towards renewable energy Challenges and opportunitiestechnologies

Solar-powered generator

There are other significant barriersthat limit the development of renew-able energy unless special policymeasures are enacted to encour-age development.

These hurdles can begrouped into several cate-gories – commercializationbarriers, price distortions, andmarket barriers such as inad-equate information, lack of ac-cess to finance, and hightransaction costs for makingsmall purchases.

In order to compete againstfossil fuel and nuclear technologies,renewable energy solutions mustovercome two major barriers to commer-cialization – undeveloped infrastructure andlack of economies of scale.

Developing new renewable resources will require large initial in-vestments to build infrastructure. These investments increase thecost of providing electricity, especially during early years.

In some cases developers must find publicly acceptable siteswith good resources and with access to transmission lines. Potentialwind sites can require several years of monitoring to determinewhether they are suitable.

There are also costs related to marketing activities that should ac-company promotion of renewable energy products. Start-up com-panies must communicate the benefits of renewables to customersin order to persuade them to switch from traditional sources.

Public education will be a critical part of a fully functioning mar-ket if renewables are to succeed.

Opportunities SADC Member States are slowly turning to renewable energy toboost production and meet the ever-growing demand for electricity


in the region, and knowledge about renewable energy products andtechnology is extensive throughout the SADC region, although itsuse is still limited.

The countries that are leading efforts to harness renewable energyinclude Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and theUnited Republic of Tanzania. These countries have stepped up ef-forts to harness the huge renewable potential that lies untapped inthe region.

For example, Mozambique is aiming to boost production at theMphanda Nkuwa hydropower plant. The Mphanda Nkuwa powerplant has the capacity to add about 1500 MW of new electricity onthe regional power grid.

The DRC has also stepped up efforts to exploit the Inga Dam po-tential to generate income and facilitate energy efficiency.

With regard to solar energy, Botswana plans to build a 200 MWsolar plant that has capacity to provide a significant portion of thecountry’s energy needs as its national power consumption is about450 MW.

South Africa has approved largescale wind power projects, withtotal capacity to generate 562 MW as part of its Renewable En-

ergy Independent Power Producers Programme.South Africa also plans to commission at least 400

MW of wind power by independent producers withinthe next few years. Most of the plants will be located

along the West Coast that has the potential to gen-erate about 10,000 MW of electricity.

With respect to geothermal energy, Tanzaniaplans to use smallscale geothermal plants for ruralelectricity mini-grid systems. In Mozambique, atleast 38 thermal springs have been identified,mostly within the Rift Valley just north of Metan-gula.

In Malawi, 21 major hot springs are reported inthe Chitipa-Karonga area down to Chipudze in the

southern region.

ConclusionDevelopment of the renewable energy industry has been

made difficult by the lack of financial resources and poor infra-structure to tap the resource.

Madagascar provides a practical example of how southernAfrican countries can benefit from the utilization of the abundantrenewable energy resources.

To address some of these pertinent challenges, southern Africacan do it the Madagascan way so people can benefit from solarand wind resources. The island nation, which is the fourth largestisland in the world, embarked some years ago on a smallscale ex-ercise to harness its solar potential and provide power to the ruralpopulation, who are not connected to the national electricity grid.

Rural clinics and hospitals were equipped with solar technolo-gies such as small solar panels to produce their own electricityand in the process enabling them to cool vital vaccines and othermedicines.

Given the cost involved, experts are urging Africa to start withsmaller solar projects that are cheaper to ensure that power isavailable to the majority of its people while bigger projects can bedone in partnership with willing investors. r

s for using new

E N V I R O N M E N T

by Egline Tauya and Stalin Tazvitya

ENVIRONMENT MINIS-TERS from more than 40African countries have adopteda blueprint that outlines thecontinent’s agenda followingthe United Nations Conferenceon Sustainable Developmentheld in Brazil in June.

The Arusha Declaration onAfrica’s Post Rio+20 Strategyfor Sustainable Developmentwas adopted at the end of the14th session of the AfricanMinisterial Conference on theEnvironment (AMCEN).

The declaration outlines anumber of commitments, ac-tions and programmes to beundertaken to tackle environ-mental challenges facingAfrica such as land degrada-tion, climate change, defor-estation, low agricultureproductivity and poverty.

Flagship programmes to beinitiated under the ArushaDeclaration include introduc-tion of the:

• Ecosystem-Based Adapta-tion Programme for Africa;

• African Programme onSustainable Energy Devel-opment;

• Integrated Waste Manage-ment Programme forAfrica;

• Africa Integrated Environ-mental Assessment for Sus-tainable DevelopmentPlanning;

• African Programme onBiodiversity and Ecosys-tems;

• African Partnership for Ca-pacity Building, Technol-ogy Transfer and SkillsDevelopment; and,

• A sustainable land man-agement and desertifica-tion programme in Africa.Decisions made include en-

dorsing the African commonposition for the upcoming18th session of the Conferenceof Parties (COP 18) to the UNFramework Convention onClimate Change (UNFCCC)set for December in Doha,Qatar.

ciency while creating new jobopportunities and contribut-ing to poverty eradication.

It covers consumer infor-mation aimed at promotingenvironmental managementtools such as life cycle assess-ments, eco-labelling, and envi-ronmental audits.

Another outcome was theneed to use the UNEP AfricaEnvironment Outlook to reviewthe state of African environ-ment for decision-making atnational and regional levels.

This promotes the produc-tion of regional state of the en-vironment reports such as theSouthern Africa EnvironmentOutlook launched in 2009.

In view of strengtheningand upgrading UNEP, whichwas one of the key outcomesof Rio+20, the ministers urgedthe General Assembly to pro-gressively consolidate UNEPheadquarters functions inNairobi, as well as tostrengthen its regional pres-ence, in order to assist coun-tries, upon request, in theimplementation of their na-tional environmental policies.

The delegates also re-quested upgrading of UNEPregional offices, including es-tablishment of five sub-re-gional offices in Africa to beable to respond more effec-tively to environmental prior-ities at national andsub-national levels and to as-sist in building capacities toaddress emerging issues andnew development challenges.

AMCEN’s 14th ordinarysession was held in Arusha,Tanzania, in September 2012and was the first major confer-ence to discuss key issues onthe environment and sustain-able development after theUN Conference on SustainableDevelopment, known asRio+20, held in Rio de Janeiro,Brazil in June. r

Africa is expected to spear-head the adaptation agenda atthis conference.

The plan to initiate anAfrican green economy part-nership was another outcomeof the AMCEN meeting. Thiswould facilitate coordinatedsupport for member states toimplement the global partner-ship for action on green econ-omy as a vehicle for povertyeradication, job creation andsustainable development.

Vice President of theUnited Republic of Tanzania,Mohamed Gharib Bilal, calledfor renewed commitment totackling challenges whichthreaten the future of Africanpeople and urged the minis-ters to build a green economythat aims at reducing poverty.

The ministers agreed to re-view the African 10-YearFramework on SustainableConsumption and Productionwhich was approved in 2005.The framework supports re-gional and national initiatives,contributing to resource effi-

Highlights of Africa’s Post Rio Strategy

Africa adopts Arusha Declaration on sustainable development

Strengthening and upgrad-ing of the United NationsEnvironment Programme(UNEP) to ensure secure,stable, adequate and in-creased financial resourcesfrom the regular UN budget(to a level of two percent ofthe overall budget), to besupplemented by voluntarycontributions; and,Upgrading of the UNEP re-gional office and establish-ment of five sub-regionaloffices in Africa, as well ascreation of a universal mem-bership body known as theEnvironment Assembly,with a ministerial segmentcalled the Ministerial Con-ference on Environment. r

nated support to memberstates and serves to imple-ment the global partner-ship for action on greeneconomy as a vehicle forpoverty eradication, de-cent jobs creation and sus-tainable development.A request to Member Statesto use the African Environ-ment Outlook as a tool for re-viewing the state of theAfrican environment tosupport decision-making atnational and regional levels;A review of the African 10-Year Framework Pro-gramme on SustainableConsumption and Produc-tion to hasten the imple-mentation of programmes;

An agreement to streng-then and consolidate com-mitment to the promotionof sustainable developmentand effectively integrate theeconomic, environmentaland social dimensions inlocal, national and regionaldevelopment policies andstrategies.A reaffirmation of the needto speak for the continentin one voice and ensure theadequate representation ofAfrica in all committees es-tablished for the follow-upof the outcomes of theRio+20 conference.The initiation of an Africangreen economy partner-ship that facilitates coordi-



by Egline Tauya and Neto Nengomasha

SADC ENVIRONMENTministers have agreed to sup-port Africa’s common positionfor the 2012 climate change ne-gotiations.

The ministers, who metduring the Africa MinisterialConference on Environment(AMCEN) in September in theUnited Republic of Tanzania,noted that the African positionfor the 18th session of Confer-ence of Parties (COP18) to theUnited Nations FrameworkConvention on ClimateChange (UNFCCC) is in linewith the SADC position.

The position includes theneed for COP18 to come upwith an agreement for a sec-ond commitment period of theKyoto Protocol.

The ministers expressedconcern that there was no clar-ity after COP17 held in Durban,South Africa as to whether theextension period of the Protocolwould be five or eight years.

SADC as well as the rest ofAfrica prefers a commitmentperiod that avoids a gap in thelegally binding emissions re-duction provided for underthe Protocol.

Africa’s position is to urgedeveloped countries to com-mit themselves to far more ex-tensive emission reductionsthan in the first Kyoto periodending this year. This wouldensure global warming staysbelow 1.5°C.

Africa also wants an out-come that commits developedcountries to honour theirpledges under the Green Cli-mate Fund.

This would ensure the pro-vision of adequate and pre-dictable funding for adaptationand nationally appropriate mit-igation actions in developingcountries.

SADC and the rest of Africaexpects COP18 to come upwith a mechanism to ensurefair, transparent and unbiasedcriteria for access to resourcesrelating to the Green ClimateFund, the Climate TechnologyCentre and capacity-buildingefforts.

Concerns have been raisedover the slow disbursement offinancial resources pledged bythe high-polluting industrial-ized countries as start-up fi-nancing for the period 2010 -2012.

Africa is also concernedthat there is no agreed level offinancing for the period 2013 -2020.

The environment ministersnoted the need to ensure a fairand equitable representationof the region in all the institu-tions created under the UN-FCCC such as the ClimateTechnology Centre, the Green

Climate Fund board, and theAdaptation Committee, asagreed during COP16 held inCancun, Mexico in 2010.

One SADC Member State,Namibia, put in a strong bid tohost the secretariat of theGreen Climate Fund but lostto South Korea.

Africa will emphasise theneed for urgency in action onagreed outcomes since thewindow of opportunity toavoid dangerous climatechange impacts is closing.

Scientists are forecastingthat a maximum of five yearsis remaining to avoid irre-versible climate change.

Africa, therefore, notes thegrowing risk of catastrophicimpacts, particularly to thecontinent.

SADC and the rest of thecontinent call upon developedcountries to urgently increasesupport for the implementa-

tion of adaptation measuresand plans, and to support andexpedite work to understand,reduce and compensate forlosses and damage associatedwith adverse effects of climatechange, including impacts onagriculture.

They urged parties to theUNFCCC to rapidly increasetechnology developmenttransfer to Africa in support ofadaptation in all relevant sec-tors, including agriculture,water, health, forestry, energy,transport, industry and wastemanagement sectors.

The SADC meeting inArusha was in response to thedecision of the SADC Councilof Ministers held in August,which requested the region todevelop a common positionahead of COP18.

COP18 takes place from 26November to 7 December 2012in Doha, Qatar. r

A ZIMBABWEAN official,Margaret Mukahanana-San-garwe, has been elected as thefirst chair of the newly formedAdaptation Committee of theUnited Nations FrameworkConvention on ClimateChange (UNFCCC).

As part of the CancunAdaptation Framework,adopted during the 16th Con-ference of the Parties (COP16)held in Mexico in 2010, partiesto the UNFCCC established anAdaptation Committee to pro-mote the implementation of ac-tion on adaptation in a coherentmanner under the convention.

The committee’s functionsinclude provision of technicalsupport and guidance toUNFCCC parties; sharing ofinformation, knowledge, ex-periences and good practices;

and promoting synergies andstrengthening engagementwith national, regional and in-ternational organizations, cen-tres and networks.

The committee also aims toprovide information and rec-

ommendations for considera-tion by the COP when provid-ing guidance on incentives forthe implementation of adapta-tion actions, including finance,technology and capacity-building.

The first Adaptation Com-mittee meeting was held inBangkok in September, whereMukahanana-Sangarwe waselected.

The new committee will setout the guidelines for coun-tries to develop and imple-ment their NationalAdaptation Plans (NAPs).

In addition, it will also pro-mote technical and financialassistance for countries in im-plementing NAPs, althoughhow much funding will beavailable to assist developingcountries is still not clear. r

C L I M A T E C H A N G E

SADC embraces Africa’s common position for COP18

Zimbabwe to chair UNFCCC committee

Margaret Mukahanana-Sangarwe electedfirst Chair of new Adaptation Committeeof UNFCCC

continue to be among thepoorest in the world.

Thus, there is need for thecontinent to develop viablestrategies to ensure that the ex-traction of resources is benefi-cial to Africa, with significantvalue-addition on the conti-nent and increase local share-holding and ownership ofmining companies.

“When we extract the miner-als, we are extracting our capi-tal. Therefore, we need to usethem wisely,” Claude Kabe-mba, Director of the SouthernAfrica Resources Watch(SARW), told SADC journalistsin Windhoek, Namibia.

He said natural resourcesare a valuable asset for sustain-

SOUTH AFRICA has estab-lished the country's first insti-tute dedicated exclusively to themining industry in a moveaimed at halting the decline inhuman capital within its miningsector and to deepen mining re-search.

The Wits Mining ResearchInstitute (WMRI), launched inSeptember at the University ofWitwatersrand in Johannes-burg, will seek to advance min-

by Kizito Sikuka in Windhoek, Namibia

SADC's VAST and largely un-tapped hydrocarbon resourcesare attracting a more prominentprofile among the world’sbiggest oil producers.

Namibia is regarded as thenext big player in Africa’s oilindustry, expected to join conti-nental petroleum powerhousesAngola and Nigeria. Angola isthe second largest oil producerin Africa and the eighth largestin the world.

With an estimated 11 billionbarrels of oil reserves, Namibiahas marginally less than itsnorthern neighbour Angola.Mines and Energy Minister

R E G I O N A L I N T E G R A T I O N

Natural resources can propel southern Africa’s growth


Isak Katali says Namibia couldbecome a consequential oil pro-ducer by as early as 2015.

Recent discoveries by oil andgas firms from Italy and theUnited States have also sparkedtremendous interest from inter-national gas and oil companiesto start exploring offshoreMozambique.

SADC and other regions ofAfrica have vast natural re-sources that include timber,fishery, land, water and miner-als such as diamonds, goldand platinum, lithium, tita-nium and chrome, amongmany others.

Despite all the abundanceof natural resources on thecontinent, some parts of Africa

South Africa establishes mining research instituteing research as an importantcomponent of economicgrowth.

The institute also hopes toincrease the number of studentschoosing to study mining, byorganising high-level skillstraining in key areas, includingthe investigation of new meth-ods for mining and exploration;mining policy; health andsafety; environmental impacts;and community issues.

WMRI acting director, Nie-len van der Merwe, said theSouth African mining sectorwas being affected by lack ofhuman capacity and research,coupled with inadequate train-ing for the next generation ofresearchers.

“The institute will stimulatecollaboration between disci-plines, from law and manage-ment to migration, economicsand healthcare,” he said. r

SADC AND the European Union have signed agreementsworth 36 million Euros to support regional integration and de-velopment.

The agreement covers the strengthening of institutional ca-pacity for the SADC Secretariat and Member States, includingcivil society.

The component in support of regional political cooperationamounts to 18 million Euros to strengthen the capacity ofSADC to perform its mandate in the area of politics, gover-nance, peace and security.

The programme for institutional capacity development pro-vides 12 million Euros to strengthen capacity of the SADC Sec-retariat to promote equitable economic growth and sustainablesocio-economic development in SADC’s 15 Member States.

The third component is a technical cooperation facility ofsix million Euros to contribute to improving the coordina-

tion, harmonisation and development of na-tional-regional linkages.

The agreements signed by the SADC ExecutiveSecretary, Dr Tomáz Augusto Salomão, and Am-bassador Gerard McGovern, the Head of the European UnionDelegation to Botswana and SADC, mark an important mile-stone in the bilateral relations between SADC and the EU.

Noting that “one of the three agreements is the first contribu-tion agreement between SADC and the EU,” Salomão said themove “towards the contribution agreement modality shows adeeper commitment of the European Union to reinforce SADC’sownership, systems capacity development and aid effectiveness.”

“The EU has learned many lessons in its integration expe-rience,” Ambassador McGovern said, “and is happy to sharethese experiences with countries on the African continent andbeyond.” sadc.int. r

EU to support regional integration and development

ing growth, reducing povertyand achieving the MillenniumDevelopment Goals (MDGs),hence the continent must prop-erly manage its resources andseek value-addition.

“Africa needs to invest heav-ily in data collection and knowl-edge management about itsnatural resources,” Kabembasaid, adding that most of theavailable data is from investors.

He urged African govern-ments to consider re-negotiatingsome of the mineral extractiondeals signed many decades agoas most of them do not benefitthe continent.

Kabemba acknowledged thatthis poses its own technical andlegal challenges, but concludedthat it remains an important in-tervention if Africa is to takefull advantage of its resources.

For example, the DRC hasrenegotiated some of its miningdeals in recent years, and haspublished natural resource con-tracts in a move meant to im-prove transparency.

To fully benefit from its nat-ural resources, Africa shouldalso review its minerals lawsand royalty regime systems,Kabemba said. “It’s importantthat Africa sets good tax clausesin the contracts.” r


P E A C E & S E C U R I T Y

bers of the leadership, but noarms embargo.

In one of the strongest sig-nals to Rwanda, however,their major donor, the UnitedKingdom, announced it waswithholding almost US$34million in aid, following aconfusion in which aid wassuspended in July and rein-stated in September.

The international develop-ment secretary said the gov-ernment had “already set outits concerns over credible andcompelling reports of Rwan-dan involvement with M23 inDRC.”

Kabila has dismissed nego-tiations with M23, saying theDRC would only talk toRwanda.

Kabila and his Rwandanand Ugandan counterparts,Presidents Kagame and Mu-seveni, met in Uganda fortalks the day after the captureof Goma, the provincial capi-tal of North Kivu provinceclose to the Rwandan border.

Their joint statement on 21November said that, “in soli-darity with the Congolesepeople and their counterpart”,Museveni and Kagame hadcondemned both the expan-sion of the war and “the ideaof overthrowing the legitimategovernment of DRC or under-mining its authority.”

They said they would com-municate with the rebels tostop their offensive and pullout of Goma. Kabila made acommitment that DRC wouldlook into “the causes of dis-content and address them asbest it can.”

The three leaders agreedthat “a comprehensive andoperational plan geared to-wards lasting peace and stabil-ity will be drawn up as amatter of urgency.” r

THE CONFLICT in easternDemocratic Republic of Congois a setback to regional integra-tion and socio-economic devel-opment, and SADC stronglycondemned the deterioratingsecurity situation, including theinvasion and capture of Gomaon 20 November by anti-gov-ernment rebels.

SADC demanded the im-mediate withdrawal of therebels from Goma and the ces-sation of hostilities, and calledfor peaceful and durable reso-lution of the conflict, saying itcan be resolved through col-lective dialogue.

“SADC in collaborationwith the International Confer-ence for the Great Lakes Regionwill continue to make all effortsto find the way forward in ur-gently addressing this matter.”

The SADC Organ Troikamet in September in Dar esSalaam, following the visit toRwanda by the SADC Chair-person, President ArmandoGuebuza of Mozambique, whohad been mandated by theSADC Summit in August to en-gage the government ofRwanda, and did so immedi-ately.

The Troika welcomed hisswift action and his report,and endorsed his recommen-dations.

The Organ Troika Summitwas attended by the Presi-dents of Tanzania, Mozam-bique and Namibia, as well asDRC, the defence minister ofSouth Africa, and SADC Exec-utive Secretary.

They reaffirmed commit-ment to the decisions of the fullSADC Summit in August, andrequested the Executive Secre-tary to work with his counter-part at the InternationalConference for the Great LakesRegion (ICGLR).

At their Summit in Maputoin August, SADC leaders notedwith “great concern” the dete-rioration in the security situa-tion in the eastern DRC duringthe previous three months,causing displacement of peopleand loss of lives and property.

Summit noted that “this isbeing perpetrated by rebelgroups with assistance ofRwanda” and urged Rwandato cease immediately its inter-ference “that constitutes athreat to peace and stability, notonly of the DRC, but also of theSADC region.”

They agreed that this situa-tion called for renewed and ur-gent attention by Summitwhich had fielded an assess-ment mission to DRC, a mem-ber state, and they mandatedthe SADC Chairperson to en-gage the Government ofRwanda with the aim of urgingRwanda to stop military sup-port to the armed rebels in theDRC.

Summit urged memberstates and the internationalcommunity to provide human-itarian relief to the displacedpeople in the eastern DRC, anddirected the SADC Secretariatto collaborate with the ICGLRSecretariat in pursuit of peaceand security.

Leaders in the Great LakesRegion also directed the rebelsto withdraw from Goma andstop all war activities, and re-solved that a composite forcecomprising one neutral force,DRC military and national po-lice should be deployed toGoma.

Among those present at theICGLR summit was PresidentJakaya Kikwete of the UnitedRepublic of Tanzania, who cur-rent chairs the SADC Troika onPolitics, Defence and SecurityCooperation.

SADC member states whoare part of the ICGLR are An-gola, DRC, Malawi, Tanzaniaand Zambia. Other membersare Burundi, Republic ofCongo, Central African Re-public, Kenya, Sudan andUganda.

The summit expressedgratitude to South Africawhich offered to provide lo-gistical support to the NeutralInternational Force that wouldhelp to keep peace in easternDRC, and Tanzania which of-fered to provide a Force Com-mander for the NeutralInternational Force. Othercontributors to the force werenot announced at that time.

The rebels launched a re-bellion against DRC PresidentJoseph Kabila’s government inApril 2012, and recentlythreatened to march on Kin-shasa, the faraway capital ofthe vast, mineral-rich country.

They call themselves theMarch 23 (M23) movement asthat is the date on which theyhad agreed to lay down armsand be integrated into the na-tional army, before desertingand claiming their conditionshad not been met.

President Paul Kagamehas denied accusations by theDRC, SADC and otherAfrican leaders, and a UNpanel of experts, thatRwanda is providing militarysupport to the rebels. Ugandahas also denied supportingthe rebels.

The UN Security Councildemanded the withdrawal ofM23 rebels from Goma, andcondemned their humanrights abuses, including sum-mary executions, gender-based violence, and largescalerecruitment of child soldiers.UN Resolution 2076 imposedtargeted sanctions on mem-

Conflict in eastern DRC a setback to regional integration,development


C O M M U N I T Y

Speaking soon after thegroup draw was made in Dur-ban, South Africa in October,southern African representa-tives expressed satisfactionwith the draw and pledged todo their best to win the tour-nament.

“All the draws were toughand I think this is a fairly gooddraw for us,” South Africancoach Gordon Igesund said,adding that the hosts, BafanaBafana, are determined to goall the way to the finals.

His Zambian counterpart,Herve Renard, whose teamlifted the 2012 AFCON trophyagainst all odds, saidChipolopolo, as the Zambianteam is affectionately known,“will prove their mettle onceagain”.

“We are confident. We arehere to make history. We did itin 2012. No one was able tosay Zambia will win in 2012.We stayed a small team but wemanaged to go very far,” hesaid.

DR Congo coach Claude LeRoy said he will use his vast

The world cup is usuallyheld in June-July while theAFCON is held in January-Feb-ruary.

Angola, the Democratic Re-public of Congo, South Africaand defending championsZambia are the four SADCrepresentations.

Angola, DRC and Zambiabooked their places at nextyear’s finals as winners oftwo-legged clashes againstZimbabwe, Equatorial Guineaand Uganda respectively.South Africa is participating asthe host nation.

With the defending cham-pions Zambia and the hostSouth Africa from this region,expectations are high that oneof the SADC representativesmight win the trophy or atleast reach the finals.

Zambia has been placed inthe same group as BurkinaFaso, Ethiopia and Nigeria.South Africa is in a groupwith Angola, Cape Verdeand Morocco, while DRCis grouped with Ghana,Niger and Mali.

SADC ready to defend AFCON trophy

experience in participating atthe AFCON to steer DRC tovictory. Le Roy is making hisseventh appearance, with dif-ferent African teams.

“It is my seventh AfricaCup of Nations so I know Ihave the experience, but Imust admit that it will be dif-ficult,” the 1988 Nations Cupwinner said. The Angolan coach GustavoFerrin said hosting the 2010AFCON in Luanda hadhelped the country improveits preparation for such tour-naments. He said the SableAntelopes would “try to qual-ify for the finals”.

The AFCON finals will beheld from 19 January to 10February 2013. SADC is host-ing the event for only the thirdtime. South Africa hosted thefinals in 1994, the first to beheld in southern Africa. An-gola was the second SADCcountry to host the finals in2010. r

Southern African participants ready to repre-sent region at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations

FOUR SOUTHERN Africancountries will raise the re-gional profile at the 2013Africa Cup of Nations(AFCON) finals to be hostedby South Africa.

This is the first AFCON tobe held on an odd year. Africamade this change to ensurethat the tournament does notclash with the world cup.

The world cup is held afterevery four years, and on occa-sions that the global soccerevent was hosted in the sameyear as the AFCON, mostAfrican teams did not performat their best, with many at-tributing this to fatigue.

Events December 2012-February 2013December26 November – COP 18 on Climate Change7 December, The 18th Conference of the Parties (COP 18) to the UNQatar Framework Convention on Climate Change will be

held concurrently with the Eighth Meeting of the Partiesto the Kyoto Protocol (COP/MOP 8). COP 18 willassess progress in dealing with climate change issuesand deadlines.

1, Global World Aids DayOn 1 December each year SADC joins the rest of theworld in commemorating World Aids Day. The themefor the event until 2015 is “Getting to Zero”, signifyingcommitment to reduce the prevalence of HIV andAIDS to zero.

16-20, ANC 53rd National ConferenceSouth Africa The African National Congress of South Africa holds

an elective conference every five years to elect theparty leadership and review progress. The ANC’s nine provinces support candidates for the party’s top six po-sitions. The 2012 conference in Mangaung follows apolicy review conference in August.

January15-17, United 6th World Future Energy SummitArab Emirates The summit will concentrate on energy innovation in

policy implementation, technology development, fi-nance and investment approaches, and existing andupcoming projects.

19 Jan-10 Feb, African Cup of NationsSouth Africa A total of 16 countries from Africa will compete in the

bi-annual soccer tournament. Four teams from SADC– Angola, DRC, South Africa and Zambia – will raisethe regional profile at the finals.

28-29, Ethiopia 20th Ordinary Session of the African Union Heads of State and Government will gather for the20th Ordinary Session of the African Union, precededby the usual technical meetings and the Council ofMinisters. The theme of the summit is “Pan-Africanismand African Renaissance”.

February18-22, Kenya 27th Session of the Governing Council of the Global

Ministerial Environment ForumThe council convenes annually to review importantand emerging policy issues in the field of environment.It aims to promote international cooperation as well asprovide general policy guidance for the direction andcoordination of environmental programmes globally.

19-21, Africa Energy IndabaSouth Africa The annual conference aims to explore ways in which

Africa can harness its huge energy resources to achieveenergy self-sufficiency. It is a forum for professionalsfrom across the globe to debate and define solutionsto Africa's energy challenges.

TBA, SADC Council of MinistersMozambique Ministers from each Member State sit in Council, usu-

ally from the ministries of foreign affairs, economic de-velopment, planning or finance. Council is responsiblefor supervising and monitoring the functions and de-velopment of SADC, and ensuring that policies areproperly implemented, as well as making recommen-dations to Summit.

TBA, SADC Infrastructure Investment ConferenceSouth Africa The conference will seek to lure potential investors for

the SADC regional infrastructure development pro-gramme. It will be followed by road shows in Asia, Eu-rope and the United States for the same purpose.


E V E N T S

SADC TODAY Vol 15 No 1 December 2012

SOUTHERN AFRICA TODAYis produced as a reference source of

activities and opportunities in the Southern African Development Community, and a guide for

decision-makers at all levels of national and regional development.

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EDITORMunetsi Madakufamba

EDITORIAL COMMITTEEJoseph Ngwawi, Kizito Sikuka, Egline Tauya, Admire Ndhlovu,

Stalin Tazvitya, Phyllis Johnson, Patience Ziramba, Danai Majaha, Nobuhle Sithole.

EDITORIAL ADVISOR

SOUTHERN AFRICA TODAY is supported by the Norwegian Ministry of ForeignAffairs, in support of the SADC Energy Thematic Group of International CooperatingPartners, which is chaired by Norway.

© SADC, SARDC, 2012

SOUTHERN AFRICA TODAY welcomes contributions from individuals and or-ganizations within the SADC region in form of articles, photographs, news items andcomments, and also relevant articles from outside the region. The publishers reservethe right to select or reject items, and to edit to fit the space available. The contentsdo not necessarily reflect the official positions or opinions of SADC or SARDC.

SOUTHERN AFRICA TODAY is published in English, Portuguese and French, andis available electronically at www.sardc.net Knowledge for Development, linkedto www.sadc.int

DESIGN & LAYOUTTonely Ngwenya

PHOTOS AND ILLUSTRATIONSP1 T Ngwenya SARDC, lusakatimes.com, worldtourism.com, africasport.com,

guardian.co.uk, venturesafrica.com, emacopon.com, unocha.org; P3 T Ngwenya SARDC; P4 T Ngwenya SARDC (right and below), P Ziramba SARDC (left); P5

www.au.int, www.gov.za; P7 africanarguments.org; SADC; P8 solarpower.com; P9 world-tourism.com, isolara.com; P11 wclimate.com, unfcc.int; P12 europa.eu; P13 allcountries.org;topnews.int, sfbayview.com, icco.eu, vice.com, unocha.org; P14 safa.net, lusakatimes.com,

supersport.com, africasport.com; P16 F Dias, forum.globaltimes.cn

Subscribe todaySOUTHERN AFRICA TODAY is available through an annual subscription fee forsix issues a year: US$55 outside Africa, including postage; US$40 within Africa; andUS$30 in southern Africa. Your subscription will enable you to receive the newslet-ter by airmail or email. For more details, please contact the Editor.

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www.sardc.net <http://www.sardc.net>Knowledge for Development

A shared future within a regional community

8 December Immaculate Conception Seychelles9 December Independence Day Tanzania10 December International Human

Rights Day Namibia16 December Day of Reconciliation South Africa17 December Public Holiday South Africa22 December National Unity Day Zimbabwe25 December Christmas SADC

Family day Angola, Mozambique26 December Day of Goodwill South Africa

Family Day Namibia Boxing Day Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland,

Tanzania, Zimbabwe31 December Incwala Day

(date to be confirmed) Swaziland

1 January New Year’s Day SADC2 January Public Holiday Botswana, Mauritius4 January Martyrs Day DRC12 January Zanzibar Revolution Day Tanzania15 January John Chilembwe Day Malawi16 January Heroes Day (Laurent Kabila) DRC17 January Heroes Day (Patrice Lumumba) DRC24 January Maulid Day Tanzania27 January Thaipoosam Cavadee Mauritius

1 February Abolition of Slavery Day Mauritius3 February Heroes Day Mozambique 4 February Public Holiday Mozambique4 February National Liberation Day Angola10 February Chinese Spring Festival Mauritius 12 February Carnival Angola

PUBLIC HOLIDAYS IN SADCDecember 2012-February 2013

Mauritius celebrates Lunar New Year

THE CHINESE New Year or Spring Festival is themost important festival for Mauritians of Chineseorigin.The festival is celebrated every year in Janu-ary or February as the lunar new year, and in 2013the festival will be held on 10 February.

It is preceded by a thorough cleaning of the homeand is characterised by the traditional sharing ofwax cakes among relatives and friends. The domi-nant colour during the festival is red, which is thesymbol of happiness.

Special celebrations are held in Port Louis everyyear with Chinese dragon and lion dances. Noknives or scissors are used on this day and food of-ferings are made so that the following year will beone of plenty.

ZIMBABWE COMMEMORATESthe 25th anniversary of the UnityAgreement in 2012. On 22 December 1987, the twoliberation parties in Zimbabwe –the Zimbabwe African NationalUnion Patriotic Front (ZANU PF)and the Patriotic Front ZimbabweAfrican People’s Union (PF ZAPU)– signed the historic Unity Agree-ment to facilitate socio-economicdevelopment and political stability. The then Prime Minister andFirst Secretary of ZANU, RobertMugabe, and the President ofZAPU, Joshua Nkomo, signed theagreement that resulted in themerger of the two parties to form aunited ZANU PF, effectively stop-ping the political dissatisfactionand instability that had erupted inthe south-west of the country in theearly 1980s, and closing ranksagainst apartheid South Africa’smanipulation of the situation. Mugabe was elected First Secre-tary and President of the unifiedZANU PF and it was agreed thatthe party would have two secondsecretaries and vice presidents to beappointed by the first secretary andpresident of the party. Joshua Nkomo and SimonMuzenda were the two Vice Presi-dents appointed, and both played asignificant role in implementationof the agreement. The Unity Agreement was sig-nificant in that it showed that theleaders of the main political partieshad the capacity to resolve their dif-ferences for the nation and the re-gion in general. "Today is a great day. It is greatbecause we have seen the comingtogether in body, mind and spirit ofour two parties,” Mugabe said afterthe signing ceremony.

"What we are witnessing is atremendous blow to the forces ofnegation, the forces of division, theforces of destruction...let them belaid to rest for eternity." Nkomo added that the accordwas "the beginning of unity, forunity is not just the signing of doc-uments, unity is what follows." The two parties’ historical linksdate back to the Patriotic Front al-liance which was the effective in-strument for prosecuting thestruggle against white minorityrule and winning democracy andnational independence for Zim-babwe. The first united front wasachieved in 1896, during the FirstChimurenga War against the whiteminers and settlers when the Shonaand Ndebele leaders collaboratedto resist colonial domination. They also worked together dur-ing the Second Chimurenga Warwhen they formed the PatrioticFront in 1976 to provide a jointfront at the Geneva talks to discussZimbabwe’s the modalities for in-dependence. This followed the coming to-gether of the parties under the ban-ner of the African National Councilto give a resounding "No" to thePearce Commission on constitu-tional change in 1971. The signing of the Unity Agree-ment is commemorated each yearon 22 December, a public holidaycalled National Unity Day. Among the celebrations to markNational Unity Day are a numberof sporting events, including an in-ternational soccer match in whichthe winning team receives theUnity Cup, and a massive all-nightmusical gala in one of theprovinces. r

Zimbabwe Unity Accord22 December 1987

H I S T O R Y T O D A Y

25 years

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