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Compiled by the Government Communication and Information System Date: 18 Aug 2008 Title: Several agreements signed at the SADC Summit -------------------- By Luyanda Makapela Johannesburg - The Southern African Development Community (SADC) 28th Ordinary Summit officially closed on Sunday with seven legal documents on decisions taken at the summit signed by all Heads of State. The summit, which discussed issues ranging from regional economic integration, peace and security, among others, saw the signing of the Agreement Amending the Treaty, Protocol on Gender and Development, and Protocol on Science, Technology and Innovation. The Agreement Amending Article 20 of the Protocol on Trade, and Agreement Amending Article 6 of the Protocol on the Tribunal and the Rule of Procedure were also signed. Addressing the official closing of the summit, President Thabo Mbeki said the summit had reaffirmed the seriousness of the work done so far by SADC. "During this summit, we have taken important decisions and what is left now is for Troika of SADC to do everything in its power to implement these decisions," said Mr Mbeki, who took over as SADC Chairperson on Saturday. The President said the Organ of SADC on Politics, Defence, Peace and Security Co-ordination had been continuing with talks aimed at finding a solution to the Zimbabwe situation on the sidelines of the summit since Friday. "This shows seriousness and appreciation with which we take this issue further. The Organ will continue working in this matter and I believe that decisions taken should be of great benefit to the people and government of Zimbabwe." On the economic front, the summit had noted the positive economic performance recorded by SADC member states in 2007 and called for concerted efforts to sustain the progress. Against this background, the summit observed with concern the new challenges emerging as a result of energy and food prices which risk reversed the gains made by the region. The summit had called for the acceleration of interventions to further deepen the regional integration agenda through the development of programme of co-operation aimed at expanding regional production capacity. This would entail the provision and rehabilitation of regional infrastructure to facilitate efficient movement of goods and people in a more open regional economy. President Mbeki also welcomed the return of the Republic of Seychelles to SADC and the hosting of the next SADC Summit by Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in 2009. DRC President Joseph Kabila, who had been elected as SADC Deputy Chairperson, thanked the SADC for choosing DRC as its host for the next summit. "On behalf of our government, I would like to thank member states for showing their confidence in hosting the summit in DRC, we will do everything in our power to make sure that the summit becomes of high success," said President Kabila. He wished Mr Mbeki well on his tenure as SADC Chairperson. - BuaNews |
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