The Southern African Development Community is an organization that aims to promote Southern African regional cooperation in economic development.

History

The Southern African Development Coordination Conference (SADCC), which was the forerunner of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), was formed in Lusaka, Zambia, on 1 April 1980, following the adoption of the Lusaka Declaration (entitled Southern Africa: Towards Economic Liberation) by the nine founding member states.

The Declaration and Treaty establishing the Community, which replaced the Coordination Conference, was signed at the Summit of Heads of State or Government on 17 August 1992, in Windhoek, Namibia.

Aims of the SADC

The main aims of the Southern African Development Community are:

• To harmonise the political and socio-economic policies and plans of the member states.
• To mobilise the people of the region and their institutions to take initiatives to develop economic, social and cultural ties across the region, and to participate fully in the implementation of the programmes and projects of the SADC.
• To create appropriate institutions and mechanisms for the mobilisation of requisite resources for the implementation of the programmes and the operations of the SADC and its institutions.
• To develop policies aimed at he progressive elimination of obstacles to free movement of capital and labour, goods and services, and of the peoples of the region generally among member states.
• To promote the development of human resources.
• To promote the development, transfer and mastery of technology.
• To improve economic management and performance through regional cooperation.
• To promote the coordination and harmonisation of the international relations of member states.
• To secure international understanding, cooperation and support, mobilise the inflow of public and private resources in the region.
• To develop such other activities as member states may decide in furtherance of the objectives of SADC.

Elections

The SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections, adopted in August 2004 by SADC countries, govern conduct of elections. There is concern that these principles are not being adhered to in Zimbabwe for the 2005 parliamentary elections. [1]

Member States

In 2004 the SADC had 14 member states, namely:

• Angola
• Botswana
• Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
• Lesotho
• Malawi
• Mauritius
• Mozambique
• Namibia
• Seychelles
• South Africa
• Swaziland
• Tanzania
• Zambia
• Zimbabwe

The headquarters of the SADC are situated in Gaborone, Botswana.

The working languages of the Community are English, French and Portuguese.