International Relations and Cooperation Minister Ronald Lamola highlighted progress in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) while calling for further regional integration during a ministerial meeting in Pretoria.
The SADC Council of Ministers held discussions over a second day in Pretoria, focusing on recommitting to boost intra-regional trade amid ongoing challenges. Minister Ronald Lamola noted that while progress has been achieved, there remains significant room for evolution in regional integration.
Lamola referenced the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP), stating, “This meeting also noted... what I raise as the RISDP... we have noted that there has been a very slight growth on regional integration from about 19% to 21%. It’s still not enough, it’s still little for this region that is organised, it’s cohesive, we share a lot of political views and so forth, but we can build more on regional integration.”
The ministers also addressed broader geopolitical concerns. Lamola announced plans for a special meeting of foreign ministers in May to tackle issues such as the intensifying conflict in the Middle East and global challenges. He emphasized regional unity, asking, “How do we move together as a region, build and protect our sovereignty? How do we deal with the issue that, as a region, we own almost some of the majority of the critical minerals that the world needs to power their energy, artificial intelligence? How, as a region, must we use these resources for the benefit of the region in terms of beneficiation, in terms of value addition?”
The meeting concluded with a gala dinner hosted by Lamola to honor the attending ministers and heads of delegation, underscoring regional solidarity. SADC has also called for an end to the conflict in the Middle East.