from ODIRILE TOTENG in Gaborone, Botswana
GABORONE, (CAJ News) – THE Southern African Development Community (SADC) has hailed the collaborations and partnerships with the United Nations (UN).
These are in a number of areas at both national and regional levels, as guided by SADC priorities.
Dr Stergomena Lawrence Tax, the SADC Executive Secretary, welcomed the cordial relations during a recent virtual courtesy call with UN envoy, Nicholas Haysom.
He is the Under Secretary-General and Special Advisor to the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres.
Among UN agencies SADC has cooperated with are the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and World Food Programme (WFP).
There are also partnerships under the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), and UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Tax assured the UN envoy of SADC’s commitment to the cordial partnerships.
She called for a more robust and coordinated programme that brings together all UN agencies together to address economic and social issues in the region in a coordinated and collaborative manner.
Tax reiterated Africa’s call to have representation in the UN Security Council.
Haysom underscored that the UN remained committed to enhancing cooperation with SADC.
He said the UN was engaging the SADC Secretariat and member states to discuss ways of offering more support and further expand existing collaboration.
Haysom raised concern at the potential threats in the areas of cross-border crime, human trafficking and cross-border terrorism within the region.
The two parties are exploring other potential areas of cooperation, particularly in mitigating the negative impacts of COVID-19.
SADC member states are Angola, Botswana, Comoros, DRC, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
– CAJ News