The SADC Executive Secretary, Her Excellency, Dr. Stergomena Lawrence Tax, and the German Ambassador to Botswana and SADC, His Excellency, Mr. Ralf Breth signed the Agreement on Technical Cooperation between SADC and the Federal Republic of Germany at the SADC Secretariat Head Office in Gaborone, Botswana on 12th November 2018.
Ambassador Breth indicated that the funds are earmarked to support priority focal areas and programmes for Regional Economic Integration in the areas covering Peace, Security and Good Governance, Transboundary Water Management, Transboundary Natural Resource Management and Resilience to Climate Change, and Strengthening National-Regional Linkages, as agreed during the Bilateral Negotiations on Development Cooperation between the SADC Secretariat and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany, that was held in Berlin in June 2017. Ambassador Breth highlighted that through the cooperation a lot has been achieved in supporting the SADC region’s regional integration agenda.
Dr. Tax thanked the Federal Republic of Germany for the continued cooperation and support to the SADC region. She acknowledged the relevance of the agreement, which focuses on technical and financial support in the priority focal areas, which are critical for the development of SADC. She emphasized that the agreement totaling 22 million Euro will further increase effectiveness, significance and visibility of SADC-Germany Cooperation, through support to the implementation of programmes that are aligned to SADC priorities outlined in the Revised RISDP 2015 – 2020; the SADC Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap (2015-2063); the Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan (RIDMP); the Regional Agriculture Policy (RAP) through the Regional Agricultural Investment Plan (RAIP) (2017 – 2022); and the Strategic Indicative Plan of the Organ (SIPO II).
The two Parties agreed to continue to cooperate and work together towards the advancement of the regional integration agenda and economic development to improve the lives of the SADC citizens.
