Will the Ramaphosa dawn ripple across SADC?

The paper argues that SADC's integration efforts have been hindered by weak leadership, a lack of enforcement powers in its Secretariat, and a reluctance by member states to cede sovereignty. It suggests that President Ramaphosa's background in mining could drive a future-oriented regional mining strategy, particularly regarding minerals for renewable energy batteries, and that strengthening the SADC Parliament is necessary to ensure regional policies are domesticated into national laws.

• SADC has struggled to achieve its regional integration goals, failing to establish a customs union by its 2010 target and maintaining low intra-regional trade, which accounts for only 15% to 17% of member states' trade portfolios.
• The SADC Tribunal was collapsed through the coordinated efforts of former presidents Robert Mugabe and Jacob Zuma following court rulings that the Zimbabwean government's seizure of land was racist and unlawful.
• The region possesses significant global mineral resources, including approximately half of the world's platinum, diamonds, and vanadium, as well as 36% of gold and 20% of cobalt.
• Namibia's recent discovery of large cobalt deposits could position the country as a critical global supplier for the renewable energy battery sector.
• SADC institutions are currently ineffective because the SADC Secretariat lacks enforcement powers and the SADC Parliamentary Forum is restricted to observer roles and capacity building.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2018). Will the Ramaphosa dawn ripple across SADC? https://saiia.org.za/research/will-the-ramaphosa-dawn-ripple-across-sadc/

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. Will the Ramaphosa dawn ripple across SADC? 2018. https://saiia.org.za/research/will-the-ramaphosa-dawn-ripple-across-sadc/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=Will the Ramaphosa dawn ripple across SADC? |date=19 March 2018 |url=https://saiia.org.za/research/will-the-ramaphosa-dawn-ripple-across-sadc/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2018will, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{Will the Ramaphosa dawn ripple across SADC?}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2018}, month = mar, url = {https://saiia.org.za/research/will-the-ramaphosa-dawn-ripple-across-sadc/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }