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Angola’s President João Lourenço took the mantle of Southern African Development Community (SADC) presidency, which is a rotating one among the heads of state in the region. While accepting the office, the new SADC chief said that he would work towards diversifying the sources of funding for projects and programmes at member states and regional level
Angola’s President João Lourenço took the mantle of Southern African Development Community (SADC) presidency, which is a rotating one among the heads of state in the region. While accepting the office, the new SADC chief said that he would work towards diversifying the sources of funding for projects and programmes at member states and regional levels. He vowed to reduce the level of dependence on international organizations for aid to trigger development projects. He also called on the member states to speed up the ratification of the operationalisation of the Development Fund that has to be committed to the regional industrialisation programme.
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João Lourenço stressed that there was a need for heavy investments in electrification, increasing the production of ethanol, and the production of food in the region to enable the region to meet the basic requirements. He also stressed the need for investing in human capital, to industrialise the member states and the region as a whole. There should also be a provision for sharing electricity produced in the region among the members, who are handicapped by power deficits by developing grids. Infrastructure development, roads, rail, and air, were the other planks that needed immediate attention for the industrialization of the region, he stressed.
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The Angolan president revealed that his country was making great strides to develop the infrastructure network. For instance, the Lobito corridor, which facilitates the interconnection and movement of people and goods between the Atlantic and Indian Ocean is taking place at a rapid pace, to enable the export of products on international markets under more advantageous conditions.
Among the challenges, João Lourenço emphasised the issue of security in the region. The situation in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where he has been developing joint efforts between the ICGLR [International Conference on the Great Lakes Region], CEAAC [Economic Community of Central African States], SADC and the African Union has to be brought under control to help pace up the development process of the region.
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The SADC region will hold elections in DR Congo, the Kingdom of Eswatini, Madagascar, and Zimbabwe, during the year which the regional organisation will monitor to guarantee peaceful, free, and fair elections in these states.
