The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is convening a technical workshop on the Certificate of Origin (e-CoO) for implementing Member States, taking place in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 3rd to 7th March 2025. The SADC e-CoO serves as an electronic document confirming that goods comply with the Rules of Origin under the SADC Protocol on Trade, facilitating trade among SADC Member States that have already migrated from manual to electronic processing those include; Botswana, Eswatini, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. This initiative is supported by the European Union through the EU-SADC Trade Facilitation Programme and GIZ under the “Cooperation for the Enhancement of SADC Regional Economic Integration” (CESARE) Programme.
The workshop marks a significant advancement in enhancing intra-regional trade, following the e-CoO's launch in Blantyre, Malawi, in September 2022.
Mr. Alcides Monteiro, the Senior Programme Officer for Customs at the SADC Secretariat, emphasised the role of the workshop role in streamlining the SADC e-CoO implementation, supporting the consolidation of the Free Trade Area, and modernising systems by transitioning from manual to electronic processes to leverage digital technology.
He highlighted the benefits of digital transformation in alignment with the SADC Vision 2025. The SADC e-Certificate of Origin supports the SADC Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap (2015-2063) and embraces the 4thIndustrial Revolution, which necessitates strategies to harness digital technologies like artificial intelligence, big data, and the Internet of Things to foster economic growth, improve infrastructure, and enhance quality of people’s life across Member States.
Mr. Monteiro commended the efforts by Member States in the development of the e-CoO which is aimed at improving trade within the SADC region and beyond, particularly recognising the efforts by the Republic of Zimbabwe for its achievements in finalising the e-CoO module. He urged participants to enhance efficiency in streamlining e-CoO processes, procedures, and integration.
The e-CoO concept is a modern trade facilitation tool, aims to replace manual certificates, which currently pose challenges in trade facilitation. The digital certificate has streamlined processes, reduced costs, and shortened processing times. It features a QR Code as a security measure, ensuring authenticity and facilitating scanning. It also offers opportunities for increased productivity, enhanced e-commerce, fraud reduction, improved record management, precise data collection, and ease of doing business, ultimately boosting competitiveness.
The workshop also aims to facilitate the integration of e-CoO systems among participating Member States. Currently, five SADC Member States namely; Botswana, Eswatini, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, United Republic of Tanzania and Zambia are engaged in data exchange, while Zimbabwe has completed the e-CoO module development, marking a milestone in inter-regional trade.
By embracing digital transformation, SADC is poised to enhance regional economic integration, boosting trade efficiency and effectiveness, and paving the way for sustainable economic growth across the Southern Africa Region.
It is anticipated that all 13 SADC Member States participating in the Free Trade Area (FTA) will effectively implement the e-CoO within the next two years, in line with the SADC Regional Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) 2020-2030.
The workshop was attended by customs experts from SADC Member States, along with consultants in software development and IT specialists.
