SADC integration will increase intra-SADC trade to 80%

AS THE integration of the Southern African Development Community moves ahead, intra-SADC growth is expected to increase from the current 20% to more than 80%, acting chief director of the SADC, Remmy Makumbe, told delegates at the recent Intermodal Africa conference in Durban. The SADC will migrate to a free trade area in 2008, a Customs Union in 2010 and Common Market by 2015, and transport strategy needs to be embraced as a matter of urgency to facilitate this growth, he said. The scaling up of regional infrastructure development to support the enhanced trade volumes among member states is critical, and resources for infrastructure financing is a key challenge, he added. The shift in funding models from governments through internal and external loans to Public Private Partnership needs SADC motivation and facilitation. “But in order for PPPs and private sector funding to be sustainable, there is a need to put into place a deliberate ‘user pays principle’ based on a total cost recovery framework for users of infrastructure,” he added. “The toll roads in South Africa and Mozambique are living examples of this phenomenon.”