Recommendations for new SADC Executive Secretary
At the 33rd Summit of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) held in Malawi in August Dr Stergomena Lawrence Tax of Tanzania was appointed as the new Executive Secretary. SAIIA would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Dr Tax on her new role in the region. Dr Tax inherits an organisation with a chequered past and a challenging future.
The Kimberley Process after South Africa: into uncharted territory
Contrary to the urgent calls for the reform of the Kimberley Process (KP), its year-end plenary took place in Johannesburg from 19 to 22 November 2013 without a breakthrough on the pressing reform questions. The outgoing chair, South Africa, will now handover to China in early 2014, with Angola in line to take the helm in 2015. Neither successor is likely to push hard on the reform front, underlying the extent to which South Africa’s own tenure had been a missed opportunity.
Policy Reform of SA’s Small-Scale Fisheries Sector: an Upstream Battle
World Fisheries Day, celebrated each year on 21 November 2013, comes at a time when the South African Parliament is considering legislation that many feel will finally give small-scale fisheries a rightful stake in the country’s marine resources.
China–South Sudan: Governance in Emerging Relations
Away from news headlines about oil, conflict and political instability, China has been developing a more involved engagement with the government of South Sudan and its ruling party, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM).
The Green Economy in the G-20, Post-Mexico: Implications for Brazil
The preparations for the 2012 G-20 Leaders’ Summit in Los Cabos, Mexico, coincided with negotiations around the UN Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro (Rio+20), co-ordinated by Brazil.
The Green Economy in the G-20, Post-Mexico: Implications for China
Greening economic development has become the consensus in China, although nobody is satisfied with the current situation.
The G-20 and Financial Regulation in Africa
In light of the recent global financial and economic crisis, financial stability is an overarching goal for the world economy.
Brazil’s Maritime Strategy in the South Atlantic: The Nexus Between Security and Resources
The recent discovery of significant deposits of oil and gas in the pre-salt layers off the Brazilian coast has triggered new interests and concerns within the South Atlantic geopolitical space.
SADC should take a proactive stance on elections in Madagascar
After successive postponements and delays since a coup d’état in 2009, 33 candidates contested the presidential elections in Madagascar on 25 October 2013. Counting of the votes has not been completed and results are trickling in, with both the Malagasy and the international community waiting for a result that could potentially restore democratic governance in that archipelago.
Mozambique’s Foreign Policy: Pragmatic Non-Alignment as a Tool for Development
In October 2012 Mozambicans celebrated the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Rome General Peace Accord (GPA), which brought an end to the 15-year civil war that broke out two years after the country gained independence from Portugal in 1975.