The Charge d ‘Affairs of the Embassy of the United States of America in Botswana Ms. Kali C. Jones on 25th February 2019 paid a courtesy call on the Executive Secretary of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Her Excellency Dr Stergomena Lawrence Tax to discuss issues of cooperation and international relations, affecting the Government of the United States and SADC.
In her remarks, Ms. Kali C. Jones informed the SADC Executive Secretary that the new US Ambassador to Botswana and Special Representative to SADC, Ambassador Craig L. Cloud, a career diplomat who most recently served as Management Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, will arrive on 1st March, 2019 to assume his duties. The Charge d’ Affairs also notified the SADC Executive Secretary about the upcoming National Security Strategy Development (NSSD) Workshop for Central and Southern Africa, which will be held in Gaborone, Botswana from 8 to 12 April 2019. The workshop is facilitated by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies in coordination with the US Department of Defence of the United States of America.
On her part, H.E. Dr Tax, expressed SADC optimism for continued cooperation and relations through the new Ambassador, and hailed the partnership and collaboration between SADC and the United States Government. She said the SADC Secretariat looks forward to receiving the incoming US Ambassador and working with him in strengthening the existing cordial relations between SADC and United States.
H.E. Dr Tax reiterated SADC’s call for the international community to lift socio - economic sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe which, she said, continue to deny Zimbabwe access to finance from Multilateral Financial Institutions and Private Financed Institutions and Capital Markets to support the country’s development agenda. On this point, H.E. Dr Tax added that the economic sanctions have led to limited private sector investment into the country.
The SADC Executive Secretary was accompanied by the SADC Deputy Executive Secretary for Corporate Affairs, Ambassador Joseph Nourrice, Mr Habib Kambanga, Head of Regional Early Warning Centre (REWC), Representing the Director of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Affairs. The Charge d’ Affairs was accompanied by Ms. Elizabeth C. O’Rourke, Political Officer at the US Embassy in Botswana.
