Southern African Development Community Region Research Articles

A Socio-Historical Approach to Regional Organizational Relations?

The extant academic literature in the field of regional International Relations has paid little attention to non-state actors’ organizational relations in building region-ness. Yet, the region offers sets of organizational relations outside, alongside, and as part of the formal regional state structures to do with gender, which offer insights into non-state regional relations and thus help to fill the lacunae in the field and facilitate understanding of the regional dynamic of international relations. This article examines how organizational relations of non-state actors in gender security play out in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. It highlights the shortcomings of the inter-governmental approach to international relations pursued by various scholars. Drawing on interviews with representatives of NGOs, governments, the SADC, and annual reports, as well as the academic literature, it argues for a socio-historical approach to understanding regional organization and transnationalism, which considers African agency in building region-ness.

Enabling policy environment for water operator partnerships in the Southern African Development Community

AbstractWater service provision has typically been primarily regarded as a government endeavor, especially in developing countries. Various concepts of partnerships have been promoted over the past five decades in the sector, primarily to improve service provision. Among these partnerships, water operator partnerships (WOPs) have been distinguished as a leading concept that promotes easy access to water supply and sanitation. Several WOPs exist worldwide with varying partnership types and characteristics. For WOPs to thrive effectively globally, an enabling environment has to be provided. More so for developing countries that are more susceptible to socio‐economic and climate change factors that affect water service delivery. This paper evaluates the enabling policy environment for WOPs in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. Data used for the study include literature from the Global Water Operator Partnerships Alliance (GWOPA) WOPs database, as well as other online resources, enabling a detailed understanding of different case studies in the SADC region on a North–South and South–South basis. It must, however, be noted that data availability on the database is dependent on the utilities engaged in the WOP recording and uploading it, and this affected the scope of the study. The database provided three in‐depth case studies from Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe, and extensive literature review provided an additional in‐depth case study from Malawi. Strategies such as water reforms and multi‐stakeholder partnerships are highlighted in aiding the WOPs. Findings show that current policies in the region make provisions for partnerships but are not explicit or exhaustive on the different forms of partnerships. The lack of an intermediate third party in countries such as Malawi negatively affects the relationship between the utilities and, subsequently, the success of the WOP. Strategies such as capacity building and stakeholder participation can assist in creating a more enabling policy environment for WOPs.

Prevalence of alcohol use and associated factors since COVID-19 among school-going adolescents within the Southern African Development Community: a systematic review protocol

IntroductionThe COVID-19 pandemic has significantly shaped the global landscape and impacted various aspects of individuals’ lives, especially the behaviour of school-going adolescents regarding substance use. Among these substances, alcohol is...

The Southern African Development Community Treaty-Nexus; Integration in the Southern African Development Community Region

The Southern African Development Community Treaty-Nexus; Integration in the Southern African Development Community Region; Edts: K. Gombe Adar, D. Mpabanga, K. Lotshwao, T. Molokwane, N. Musekiwa. London: Lexington Book, 2023.

Land Transportation Infrastructure and Economic Growth: An Assessment of the SADC Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan

This Southern African Development Community (SADC), as a regional economic integration organization in Africa, has 16 member countries with rich natural resources and tourism resources, attracting the attention of global investors. Although the region's transport infrastructure is among the leading in Africa, it still lags far behind global standards. This study provides a comprehensive assessment of the current state of transport infrastructure in SADC, with a particular focus on road transport facilities within the region. Based on SADC's official "SADC Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan Transport Sector Plan, 2012", this paper evaluates the current situation of its road transport infrastructure and conducts an in-depth analysis of the future road development plan in the plan. This research aims to reveal the challenges faced by SADC at the infrastructure level, and provide a comprehensive and in-depth perspective for policy makers, investors and other relevant stakeholders. At the same time, this study can provide some new ideas for future research and provide new solutions to the problems of transportation infrastructure in the SADC region.

Outer packaging labelling of medicines in Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries: comparative analysis of requirements and transition terms for harmonisation

IntroductionThe COVID-19 pandemic highlighted an urgent need for harmonised requirements for the regulation of medicines. To fully implement harmonised medicines regulations across Africa, common technical standards of medicine regulations are needed. One such technical standard is the labelling of medicines on outer packaging. In this study, we compared outer packaging labelling requirements and transition terms for harmonization for countries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region.MethodsData on legislation and/or regulatory guidelines for medicine outer packaging labelling from National Medicines Regulatory Authorities (NMRAs) were obtained for countries in the SADC region (n = 16) by February 2023. A detailed comparative content analysis was conducted to determine alignment with the requirements of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) harmonised labelling guidelines to assess readiness levels of each country to transition to the SADC harmonised labelling guideline for outer packaging of medicines.ResultsContent analysis showed at least 11 out of 16 countries require national legal reform to transition to the SADC harmonised labelling guideline. In all cases where countries specified labelling requirements for outer packaging of medicines, these were stipulated in national medicines legislation.ConclusionEven though there is a high level of alignment across the countries in terms of national labelling requirements, most countries in the SADC region would still require national legislative reform to transition to regional harmonised labelling requirements and then ultimately to continental requirements of the African Medicines Agency (AMA).

Work-Related Stress Experienced by Male Academics in the SADC Region: A Scoping Review

Work-related stress exists in various organisations around the globe and academia is no exception. Even though academics have flexible hours, they often find themselves taking work home and trying to finish their outstanding work in the evenings or weekends at the expense of their family time. Thus, this paper was aimed at synthesising the existing literature on work-related stress experienced by male academics in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. The objectives of the study were (1) to identify the key sources of work-related stress among male academics within the SADC region; (2) to provide synthesised literature on the impact of work-related stress on the mental health of male academics; and (3) to map the existing literature on coping mechanisms used by male academics to deal with their work-related stress. A scoping review guided by PRISMA-ScR was used to report on the coverage of the literature. To identify the literature, international databases (PubMed, and ScienceDirect), local database (Sabinet African Journals Online) and hand-search through Google Scholar were used. The collected data was analysed thematically using the thematic analysis by Braun and Clarke. From the databases, it emerged that there is a paucity of studies addressing academic stress with a focus on male academics within the SADC region. The limited data revealed that stress predominantly arises from role ambiguity and gender factors. Whilst, grappling with work-related stress, some academics tend to attribute blame to themselves and turn to substances or drugs to cope with their stress. From the findings, it could be deduced that academics are not immune to work-related stress regardless of their flexible working hours. The study recommends awareness campaigns on mental health issues and stress management in academia. Keywords: Academia, Male Academics, Scoping Review, Work-Related Stress, SADC

Factors influencing the incorporation of web technologies by university libraries in Southern African Development Community

The role of web technologies into the service delivery in university libraries cannot be overemphasised. The purpose of this paper was to investigate the factors that influenced the incorporation of web technologies into the services of university libraries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. The study was underpinned by the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) and triangulated quantitative and qualitative research strategies in data collection and analysis. The population of this study comprised librarians from university libraries in the SADC region whose language of communication is English. A questionnaire, administered with the research electronic data capture (REDCap) software, was employed to collect quantitative data from 54 librarians, while an interview protocol was used to collect qualitative data from 6 librarians. Results showed that university libraries in the SADC region have incorporated web technologies in services. The results further revealed that the UTAUT constructs, namely, performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions played a part in decisions by the university libraries to incorporate web technologies into their services and that librarians were influenced by these factors to use such tools to provide web-based library services.

Climate Risks Resilience Development: A Bibliometric Analysis of Climate-Related Early Warning Systems in Southern Africa

Early warning systems (EWS) facilitate societies’ preparedness and effective response capabilities to climate risks. Climate risks embody hazards, exposure, and vulnerability associated with a particular geographical area. Building an effective EWS requires consideration of the factors above to help people with coping mechanisms. The objective of this paper is to propose an approach that can enhance EWSs and ensure an effective climate risk resilience development. The paper focuses on the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region and highlights the issues with EWS, identifying weaknesses and characteristics of EWS to help in climate risk adaptation strategies. The SADC region was chosen as the context because it is a climate variability and change hotspot with many vulnerable populations residing in rural communities. Trending themes on building climate risk resilience were uncovered through scientific mapping and network analysis of published articles from 2008 to 2022. This paper contributes to on-going research on building climate risks resilience through early warning systems to identify hidden trends and emerging technologies from articles in order to enhance the operationalization and design of EWS. This review provides insight into technological interventions for assessing climate risks to build preparedness and resilience. From the review analysis, it is determined that there exists a plethora of evidence to support the argument that involving communities in the co-designing of EWS would improve risk knowledge, anticipation, and preparedness. Additionally, Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies provide effective tools to address existing EWS’ weaknesses, such as lack of real-time data collection and automation. However, 4IR technology is still at a nascent stage in EWS applications in Africa. Furthermore, policy across societies, institutions, and technology industries ought to be coordinated and integrated to develop a strategy toward implementing climate resilient-based EWS to facilitate the operations of disaster risk managers. The Social, Institutional, and Technology model can potentially increase communities’ resilience; therefore, it is recommended to develop EWS.

Integration in The Southern African Development Community Region: People’s Agency, Popular Participation, and Democratization, edited by Korwa Gombe Adar, Dorothy Mpabanga, Kebapetse Lotshwao, Thekiso Molokwane, and Norbert Musekiwa

Integration in The Southern African Development Community Region: People’s Agency, Popular Participation, and Democratization, edited by Korwa Gombe Adar, Dorothy Mpabanga, Kebapetse Lotshwao, Thekiso Molokwane, and Norbert Musekiwa

Regional Mineral Beneficiation Policy Interventions in the SADC: Stakeholder Perspectives

The Importance of Mineral Beneficiation: Mining is a significant economic activity in most Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries, and mineral beneficiation has been identified and controversially discussed as one of the possibilities for industrialisation. The purpose of this article is to study mineral beneficiation policies and practices in the SADC countries with regard to the regional developmental agenda. Methodology and Interventions: With many member countries being economically too small to muster the human and financial resources, the recently adopted Regional Mining Vision (RMV) envisages interventions at a regional level. This study followed a qualitative approach with semi-structured interviews across the region mainly in English and seldom in French. Principal Results: Twenty-five semi-structured interviews were conducted with experts from SADC member countries during the 2019 Mining Indaba. Participants were divided on whether beneficiation should be carried out nationally or in the SADC region. While beneficiation could support value-keeping, key challenges named were infrastructure development (i.e. energy, water), scarce skills, access to technology and related cost, but also lack of free trade and movement. Conclusion: We submit that a more integrated beneficiation strategy for the SADC region, as was being developed through the RMV, would indeed be relevant in the future.

A Foreign Investment Destination Risk Framework: Evaluating the Southern African Development Community Member States

Potential investment risks need to be understood by an investor organisation, which implies that a host country’s environment plays a significant role in attracting foreign investment. This paper’s purpose was to propose a foreign investment risk conceptual framework to serve as a basis for evaluating the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Member States’ investment risk/attractiveness. Firstly, the most appropriate foreign investment risk indicators from the literature were identified to develop a foreign investment risk framework. Ten recent peer‑reviewed studies were used to identify the factors which drive investment risk in emerging markets. We developed a conceptual framework including 16 investment risk indicators grouped into four sections: (i) the business environment, (ii) related taxes on business operations, (iii) the economic environment, and (iv) the human and social environments. Secondly, a comparative analysis of the 16 SADC countries was performed, enabling the ranking of the countries in quadrants of investment risk/attractiveness. Data were downloaded from theGlobalEconomy.com (2022) website for six years, from 2015 to 2020. The literature suggests many investment risk indicators which are grouped differently by researchers to form a conceptual framework to evaluate investment risk. This study’s contribution is that the most popular/prevalent risk indicators were identified to develop the new proposed framework. Furthermore, evaluating the SADC region may also serve as an example of investment risk/attractiveness assessment of emerging markets or least‑developed countries. The practical implication of this paper is that the proposed framework enables transferability since potential investors may connect the fundamentals of this study with their own investigation.

Towards realization of nexus-doing at the grassroots level: Water-energy-food governance assessment in the Songwe River Basin (Tanzania and Malawi)

The intricate connections between water, land, food, energy, and climate change require a multicentric approach to evaluating the trade-offs and synergies needed to achieve sustainable development. For example, the amount of water required in irrigated agriculture, consumptive water uses, and hydro-power production can potentially lead to water pollution, and negatively affect hydrological regimes. However, Operationalizing Water Energy Food (WEF)-nexus thinking has evolved such that a division between researchers (e.g., academia), political actors (e.g., policymakers), and development partners (e.g., promoters) has formed. This lack of connection can lead to a situation where there is incoherent governance of WEF resources management. In the Southern African Development Community (SADC) context, the WEF nexus approach is at the core of regional sustainable development plans and strategies. This paper analyses the ambitions and the expected outcomes of the Songwe River Basin Development Programme (SRBDP) and reflects on how governance coherence of WEF resources rooted at the grassroots level contributes toward achieving “nexus-doing”. The SRBDP exhibits a multi-stakeholder connection of interests geared towards a common target (i.e. stabilisation of the River Songwe flow). The SRBDP creates a multi-centric action system within the water, energy, food, and climate change adaptation role-players to achieve this overarching goal. The connections espoused in this system form the basis for nexus-doing in the Songwe River Basin. The major findings are: (i) there is a significant infrastructural demand in the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), anchored in the development of water, land, food, and energy resources; (ii) governance coherence in the SADC context can be identified at both vertical and horizontal levels; (iii) the nature of trade-offs and synergies exhibited in SRBDP is valuable for making progress towards the operationalization of integrated WEF-nexus resource management; (iv) governance inconsistencies/ambiguities are better diagnosed and addressed in implementing nexus-doing initiatives such as SRBDP. Based on the findings, the following recommendations are proposed: (i) build upon small wins and support snow-balling successes to upscale promising initiatives-for instance the joint agreement by Tanzanian and Malawian governments to stabilize Songwe River flow by inaugurating the joint cooperation and equitable sharing of the Songwe watercourses (AFDB, 2019); (ii) invest in capacity building and human resources for the Songwe River Basin Commission and associated stakeholders to become more effective;-for posterity of sustainable developments in the Songwe River Basin; both the Tanzanian and Malawian governments in partnership with development partners need to upscale the investment in human capacity development and resource capacity development of the Songwe River Basin Commission (SRBC) as the joint development vehicle for the basin. and (iii) enrich policy assessment tools tailor-made for SADC. This tool will help in policy accounting to help minimize duplication, and ambiguities by fostering cooperation and policy mapping across the WEF-nexus sectors in the SADC region. This work can guide approaches to close the gap between nexus-thinking, and nexus-doing, something that is increasingly called for.

Güney Afrika Kalkınma Topluluğunda Sağlık Sektörüne Yönelik İş Sağlığı ve Güvenliği Mevzuatı: Botsvana ve Güney Afrika Örneği

Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) legislation, regulation, and enforcement for workers in all sectors worldwide still need to be improved and require a radical and systematic approach to foster development. However, the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic has shed light on the great need for OHS legislation in every sector, with health at the forefront. Some nations in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region need more organizational and legislative structures in OHS, particularly in the health sector. Literature on OHS in the Southern African region is scarce because it is still in its infancy and greatly underdeveloped. The purpose of this study is to conduct a traditional review of the structure of OHS legislation in the SADC region, specifically in Botswana and South Africa's health sector. In conclusion, Botswana and South Africa have reached different levels in developing legislation frameworks that govern workplace health and safety, with South Africa having a highly developed system compared to Botswana. Human resource shortage and a lack of OHS expertise are significant challenges in implementing and adhering to workplace health and safety programs in both countries. The development of occupational health, specifically in the health sector in both countries, the Southern African region and other developing countries, could be aided by a focus on developing specific policies and legislations and providing training and education in OHS.

SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS TAX PAYMENT: A SURVEY-BASED EVIDENCE FROM SADC COUNTRIES

Tax non-compliance and its consequences have become a subject of increasing interest in academic literature and economic forums worldwide. While most studies on this issue focus on developed countries, there is a growing trend to explore understudied developing countries. To fill this gap, we investigated tax evasion drivers in eight Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries, using the round 7 Afrobarometer survey data conducted in 2019-2020. The survey's comprehensive coverage of economic, political, and sociological questions made it one of the most extensive surveys on the continent. We used logistic regression and Empirical Bayesian estimation and found that political legitimacy significantly influences tax evasion behavior in the SADC region. Individuals residing within the SADC are more likely to engage in tax evasion activities when they perceive a lack of access to fundamental services provided by their governments or harbor doubts about the legitimacy of political institutions. Therefore, policymakers in SADC member states should prioritize reviewing and evaluating economic policies, the performance and efficiency of political institutions, and more inclusive governance. We suggest that a strong and legitimate political framework, coupled with effective service delivery, can contribute to reducing tax evasion rates and enhancing public welfare outcomes. Institutional reforms, increased transparency, accountability, and a more inclusive governance system are necessary for fostering a culture of compliance and trust, leading to improved revenue collection.

Compliance with the Nagoya protocol in the Southern African Development Community

The Nagoya Protocol (2010) provides an international framework for access and benefits sharing of genetic resources. In the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the means to deliver compliance with the principles of the Nagoya Protocol is through national-scale legislative and management frameworks. However, there may be differences between the policies and practices of individual countries within the SADC region that may limit the effectiveness of how the principles of the Nagoya Protocol are enacted. This study describes the legislative and management frameworks for enacting the principles of the Nagoya Protocol that are found in each of the sixteen SADC countries. Particular emphasis is placed on strategies for genetic and associated biological resource diversity and management, the role of stakeholders, local communities and traditional (indigenous) knowledge systems in each country. Results show that the legislative and management frameworks for managing the Nagoya Protocol are highly variable across the SADC region. There are also variable levels of engagement with the Access and Benefit-Sharing Clearing House (which relates to the implementation of the principles of the Nagoya Protocol), and with reporting to the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture which is a requirement of compliance. This study makes recommendations for the sharing of best practices for access and benefit sharing, and for developing protocols for engagement with local communities and other stakeholders on genetic and biological resource exploitation across the SADC region.

Regional Security Integration in the SADC Region

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is one of Africa’s most vivid examples of security integration. As the regional group aspires to promote political and economic independence, peace and security are considered indispensable for regional development, as instability in one member state could harm neighboring countries. Methods and materials. Relevant literature was critically analyzed, and the study adopted a secondary data collection method as an approach. Using the theory of security communities and theories of integration, this paper analyzed the historical security cooperation between the countries in the region as the first step towards regional integration in Southern Africa, that is, the restraining of the apartheid regime in South Africa. Analysis. The analysis further focused on establishing and evolving the Organ on Politics, Defense, and Security (OPDS) and its institutional relationship with the SADC Summit. Results. The findings showed that SADC faced more internal challenges than external ones, which led to regional integration. Leading factors in the lack of peace and security were armed conflict, legacy of violence, and poor governance, among others. SADC envisioned peace and security through the adopted Strategic Indicative Plan for the Organ (SIPO). The author concludes that the SADC Summit and the OPDS are the leading platforms for managing security issues in the SADC region.

The Role of the South African Government in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Region since 1994: The Public Left Behind

The Role of the South African Government in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Region since 1994: The Public Left Behind

A Critical Analysis of the Role of Civil Societies in Fostering Regional Integration within the SADC Region

There is a corpus of knowledge on the challenges of regional integration (RI) in Africa, and Southern Africa in particular. What emerges from this body of knowledge is that the key issues pertaining to RI are not uniformly addressed, and they are largely framed from state-centric thinking, which is mostly rooted within a Westernised worldview. This paper argues that civil society has a significant role to play in the realisation of the full potential of RI in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. The authors concede that there are numerous challenges to the envisaged role of civil society. As such, they use the findings of the research for this paper to propose solutions for consideration by policymakers.

A qualitative study exploring sexual and reproductive health needs among a sample of foreign migrants living in six locations in Southern Africa

Migrants in Southern Africa often lack access to adequate sexual and reproductive healthcare (SRH), which deepens their vulnerability to poor health outcomes. This paper highlights results from a rapid assessment undertaken in six countries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region to inform the implementation of the “SRHR-HIV Knows No Borders” project. In-depth interviews were conducted with 16 adult foreign migrants residing in 10 high migration communities where the project was implemented. Data were analysed thematically using an inductive approach. Respondents were found to have good knowledge about HIV, STIs, and male condoms, although they lacked awareness about other contraceptive methods. Many respondents reported barriers to accessing SRH services, mostly as a result of a lack of legal documentation and due to discrimination from healthcare workers. SRH interventions among foreign migrant populations in the Southern African region should focus on developing awareness about contraceptives and ensuring inclusivity within the healthcare system.