COMMUNIQUÉ : 26TH PLENARY ASSEMBLY OF THE SADC PARLIAMENTARY FORUM, HELD AT ELEPHANT HILLS HOTEL, VICTORIA FALLS, ZIMBABWE

18TH – 28TH NOVEMBER 2009 

PREAMBLE

1.The 26th Plenary Assembly Session of the Southern Africa Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC PF) was held at Elephant Hills Hotel,

Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, under the theme: “Towards Benefiting SADC Citizens�. This was the 2nd time that the Plenary Assembly was hosted in Zimbabwe, with the last one having been in 2001 at the same venue.

2. Eight (8) Presiding Officers and thirty-three (33) Members of Parliament from eleven Member Parliaments attended the Session. The countries represented were as follows: Angola; Botswana; Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

3.The 26th Plenary Assembly was officially opened by His Excellency President Robert Mugabe of the Republic of Zimbabwe. In his keynote address, the President thanked SADC for the critical role it played in the realisation of the Global Political Agreement in Zimbabwe, and observed that the people of Zimbabwe and all political players were committed to the Agreement despite challenges in its implementation.

The President assured the Plenary Assembly that Zimbabwe fully supports the establishment of the SADC Parliament and indicated that he would want the issue to be brought up, debated and concluded at the next SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government in 2010. 

He also welcomed the theme of the 26th Plenary Assembly – Towards Benefiting SADC Citizens - noting that SADC has abundant natural resources that should be exploited in a sustainable manner. He called upon the Plenary to come up with landmark decisions for the benefit of SADC citizens. 

4.In the Plenary Assembly’s Deliberative Sessions, presentations were made on the role of Parliamentarians in ensuring that the extraction and utilisation of natural resources benefit SADC citizens, on how SADC citizens can benefit from regional telecommunications, and on the status of ratification and domestication of SADC Protocols. 

In its deliberations, The Plenary Assembly: 

Noted with Concern:

5.The challenges faced individually and collectively by the region in relation to the depleting natural resource base; unfair trade practices; information and communication technologies; poverty, hunger and vulnerability; gender and development; regional integration; and HIV and AIDS;

6.The weak capacity of Africa, as a whole and individual Governments in particular to negotiate for and ensure sustainable utilization of natural resources and emphasised the urgent need for Governments to build the capacity necessary to avoid further loss and mismanagement of natural resources;

7.The many challenges that Africa, the SADC Region and National Governments are facing in trying to improve access to ICTs including lack of a critical mass to champion innovations and investments in the sector;

8.The delay by SADC Member States in signing and ratifying various Protocols critical for achieving regional integration and accelerating national and regional development;

9.The continued hunger and the threat of worsening poverty levels in the region and an inability to meet most of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and in particular Goal number one which seeks to eliminate extreme poverty and hunger by the year 2015;

10.The ongoing Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) being negotiated by the African states and the European Union (EU) which are pro-trade rather than pro-development and their inbuilt nature to disintegrate Africa as a whole and the SADC Region in particular; and

11.The inherent danger of negotiating the EPAs as individual countries rather than as the SADC Region and as Africa and the resultant effect of undermining efforts towards regional and continental integration. 

Acknowledged and Recognised:

12.The need to fight corruption in the governance of natural resources and to work together to enhance regional efforts aimed at addressing the challenges associated with the governance of natural resources;

13.The critical role that information and communication technologies play in the development of national and regional economies;

14.The importance of ICTs in improving the quality of life of SADC citizens and in accelerating national development; and

15.The important role that Parliaments play in providing an enabling legal and regulatory environment for the development and utilization of ICTs. 

Called Upon:

16.Governments in Africa and the SADC Region to build the capacity necessary to ensure sustainable utilisation of natural resources and avoid further loss and mismanagement of natural resources.

17.Members to take an active role in ensuring that the political leadership of Parliaments is visible in the regional fight against the HIV and AIDS pandemic and to continuously develop their capacity to champion the issues of access to medicine, pricing by pharmaceuticals, orphans and vulnerable children, and human rights issues, among others; 

18.National Parliaments to provide continuous education on ICTs in order to enhance the capacity of Members to debate and meaningfully contribute to the development of the sector; 

19.Governments and development partners to make continuous improvements in policy and regulatory reforms and invest in infrastructure necessary to maximize the benefits of ICTs for the region’s citizens and economies; 

20.Member Parliaments to expedite the ratification of various SADC Protocols in order to realize their intended benefits and facilitate regional integration; 

21.SADC Parliamentarians to engage with their respective Executive Arms of Government and other stakeholders in trade negotiations to appraise them, as representatives of the people, on the dangers and benefits of signing or not signing the EPAs and their broader and profound implications to national and regional development efforts; and 

22.Further called upon Parliamentarians to sincerely and earnestly participate in poverty and social protection policy dialogues and promote the same in their countries. 

Committed to:

23.Playing a catalytic role in lobbying for negotiations with Europe from a regional rather than national perspective and, accordingly, endeavour to continuously appraise the Member Parliaments on the subject through dialogue and interaction with notable stakeholders, including the SADC Secretariat; Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA), East African Community (EAC) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). 

24.Putting in place monitoring mechanisms on the implementation of the Plenary Assembly Resolutions to facilitate implementation of its decisions. 

25.Pursuant to the Constitution of the SADC Parliamentary Forum, various Standing Committees of the 26th Plenary Assembly held elections with the results as follows: 

HIV and AIDS:

Chairperson - Hon. Thabitha Khumalo (Zimbabwe)

Vice-Chairperson - Hon. Johannes Ndlangamandla (Swaziland) 

Regional Women Parliamentary Caucus:

Chairperson- Hon. Regina Musokotwane (Zambia)

Vice Chairperson – Hon. Palesa Lebajoa (Lesotho)

Democratisation, Governance and Gender Equality:

Chairperson – Hon. Eng. Stella M. Manyanya (Tanzania)

Vice Chairperson – Hon. Mkhululi Dlamini (Swaziland)

Trade, Development and Integration:

Chairperson – Hon. David Matongo (Zambia)

Vice Chairperson – Hon. Grace Maseko (Malawi)

26.The Forum expressed its profound appreciation to the Government of the Republic of Zimbabwe, the Parliament of Zimbabwe and the people of Zimbabwe for the hospitality extended during the 26th Plenary Assembly.

27.The 27th Plenary Assembly will take place in Livingstone, Zambia, from either from 20th to 29th May or 27th May to 5th of June 2010.

Adopted at Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe on 27th November 2009                         

Communiqué,26th SADC Plenary Assembly, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

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Communiqué : 26th Plenary Assembly Of The SADC Parliamentary Forum, Held At Elephant Hills Hotel, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe