SADC 42nd Summit: What’s in it for Zimbabwe?

SADC 42nd Summit: What’s in it for Zimbabwe?

Hosia Mviringi

Yesterday President Emmerson Mnangagwa left the country for Kinshasa, DRC where the 42nd SADC Summit started today.
The SADC 42nd Summit is taking place in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) between August 17 and 18, 2022, amid calls for Zimbabwe to maximise dividends on its geographical and diplomatic positions to influence this Summit’s thematic deliberations.
In terms of sub-regional security and stability, the Summit, which runs under the theme, “Promoting Industrialisation through Agro processing, Mineral Beneficiation, and Regional value Chains for Inclusive and Resilient Economic Growth”, is set to receive a report from South African International Relations Minister Naledi Pandor concerning the Mozambican terrorist insurgency which has concertedly rocked the country’s Cabo Delgado Province since 2017.
“We are going to report on the progress that has been made with respect to the promised deployment as well as the provision of support to our personnel from various SADC countries as well as the bilateral partnership that Mozambique has with Rwanda- they have be2n working closely with our SADC forces,” said Minister Pandor who chairs the SADC Ministerial Committee meeting.
The terrorist insurgency, which has displaced thousands of people while killing hundreds others, poses real danger of cross border terrorist attacks for the region in general and Zimbabwe in particular.
As a result, Zimbabwe will need to keenly participate in thematic deliberations meant to bring to an end this scourge which directly threatens Zimbabwe’s political, social and economic stability, growth and national security.

Pandor admitted that the terror group continues to operate in Mozambique’s Northern Province despite the region’s deployment of the SADC Standby Force alongside the Rwandan Defence Forces bilateral deployment.
This, she said, demanded that the region to look at further strategic interventions to deal with the ever-evolving threat.
It is thus in Zimbabwe’s best interests to see to it that effective intervention mechanisms are adopted by the bloc to quell the insurgency.
Zimbabwe maintains strong economic interests in Mozambique as the country co-owns the Beira Port with the government of Mozambique, while it operates the all-important Beira-Msasa Oil Pipeline, on its own the energy lifeline for the country.
The theme for the Summit could have not been more apt for Zimbabwe as the country seeks to grow its economy through effective exploitation and beneficiation of its mineral resources.
Agro-processing industries and Mineral beneficiation is expected to create employment for the country while earning the country lucrative foreign exchange through export of value added mineral products.
Zimbabwe, by virtue of its central geographical location in the SADC region, coupled with its strong logistical infrastructure is expected to play a central role in the facilitation of trade through regional value chains which feed into the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The AfCFTA is a multi-trillion dollar concept which seeks to increase intra-Africa trade and commerce.
Zimbabwe is thus expected to play both facilitatory and participatory roles in the full implementation of these programs, thus the importance of the Zimbabwean participation in the thematic deliberations on regional trade.

Borrowing from the African Union’s Vision 2063, SADC is actively pushing for inclusive regional growth which puts Industrialisation at the core of this growth.
As such, Zimbabwe must be an active participant in the discussions to map strategies for sustainable industrialisation of the SADC regional economies to which the country prominently belongs.
Regional trade, integration and security are key for the Zimbabwean economy to grow towards desired modernisation thresholds. Industrialisation, agro-processing, and regional trade are key to employment creation, while mineral beneficiation is critical for the country draw maximum value for its finite resources.
Zimbabwe sits on hundreds of strategic minerals which if fully exploited and processed have the capacity to create employment and lead in contributions to government revenues and poverty reduction.
Therefore, the theme for the Summit is most appropriate for Zimbabwe as it aptly captures the country’s aspirations, dreams and hopes as well as its broader vision for economic development and growth.
Equally important is the need for Zimbabwe to go to the Summit with an open mind, ready to learn from, lead and educate the region on these pertinent issues.
Zimbabwe must be ready and willing to adopt and domesticate the theme of this Summit so that it puts in place monitoring and evaluation mechanisms to determine the effectiveness of its implementation at home.
Otherwise, the Summit risks turning into one of those resource gobbling talk shows which yield no benefit for the country.

The SADC Summit is an annual policy-making symposium which brings together key Ministers from member states as well as Heads of State and Government while regional and continental bodies and the Civic Society attend as observers.