President Motlanthe leaves for SADC, COMESA and EAC Summit in Uganda today

By Sasha Forbes
21 October 2008

South African President and Chairperson of SADC Kgalema Motlanthe, supported by the Minister of Trade and Industry Mandisi Mpahlwa, will be departing today for Uganda where he will participate in the tripartite meeting of SADC, COMESA and EAC which is scheduled for tomorrow in Kampala.

Ronnie Mamoepa says that the Summit is aimed at providing a platform for the three Regional Economic Communities. “It is to deliberate on their enhanced integration, which will provide strategic and policy direction relating to co-operation on trade and economic liberalisation including options for establishing a pan-regional Free Trade Area encompassing the three RECs and a joint programme for free movement of persons and infrastructure development.”

These three regional organiations aim to lessen poverty and to improve quality of life for the people of the Southern and Eastern African regions. As the three RECs move into deeper integration, agreement on these strategic and policy issues at the Tripartite Summit level will help ease challenges of multiple memberships being faced by some of the member states as well as pave the way for accelerated inter-regional economic integration.

“The RECs are building blocs to the African Economic Community which is recognised by the African Union Constitutive Act and the Abuja Treaty. As building blocs, the RECs are implementing regional integration programmes in trade and economic development covering establishment of Free Trade Areas, Customs Unions, Monetary Union and Common Markets as well as regional infrastructure development programmes in transport, information communications technology and energy as a first step and a contribution to the realisation of the continental integration leading to the establishment of the AEC.” says Mamoepa