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Intra-SADC Trade Performance |
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Page 1 of 2 The Southern African Development Community (SADC) has been implementing the trade protocol for
more than seven years. The aim is to liberalise trade flows between members and eventually lead to
deeper integration in the region. As member states are preparing to enter another layer of integration in
the form of a free trade area, it is also an appropriate moment to evaluate the performance of the
implementation of the trade protocol. In this paper, an assessment of intra-SADC trade performance is
done by focusing on intra-SADC export share, comparing intra-SADC share with other regional blocs
and intra-country trade share. Trade between countries also reveals that more than two thirds of total
trade is with South Africa. Potential causes for this outcome include exports of raw materials and
intermediate goods, failure to meet tariff reduction requirements, increasing commodity prices, existence
of other forms of barriers as well as the challenges relating to weak manufacturing capacity, poor
physical infrastructure and unresponsive supply side bottlenecks. As SADC enters another level of
integration, it should make sure that the necessary mechanisms to address these challenges are in place
so that the region can realise the associated benefits.
http://www.tips.org.za/publication/implementation-sadc-trade-protocol-and
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Last Updated ( Feb 05, 2009 at 11:11 AM )
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