Famine in southern Africa will top the agenda of a ministerial meeting of the 14-nation Southern African Development Community (SADC) to be held in Gaborone on Friday and Saturday, SADC’s executive secretary said.
”Southern Africa is facing an unprecedented humanitarian crisis as a result of the food shortages,” Prega Ramsamy told journalists.
”The council will have to come up with a decision on how to make coordinated appeals to the international community to alleviate the impending catastrophe facing Southern Africa and save the lives of millions of people facing starvation,” he said.
The UN World Food Programme appealed on Tuesday for 1,3-million tons of emergency food to help up to 13-million people in six southern African countries avoid famine.
South African foreign ministry representative Ronnie Mamoepa said in a statement that progress on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development — the focus of a World Economic Forum on Africa meeting in the South African port of Durban last week — would be reported at the SADC meeting.
The ministers’ meeting will prepare a document on the role of developed countries in assisting African countries to present to a G8 summit in Canada on June 26-27, Ramsamy said.
The ministers will also review preparations for the inaugural summit of the African Union, replacing the Organisation of African Unity, which will be held in Durban, South Africa, in July.
SADC is also in the process of restructuring and the council needs to find a formula to finance the restructuring, Ramsamy said. ”We cannot expect all members to contribute equal sums to the exercise. The formula will be based on each member’s ability to pay.”
Two memoranda of understanding on ”Macroeconomic convergence” and on ”Cooperation in taxation and related matters” will also come under review, Mamoepa said. – Sapa-AFP