Mugabe urges SA to help develop Africa

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe has told South Africa to stop regarding Africa as a market for its products only and help in the industrialisation of the continent.

President Mugabe was reacting to South Africa and Namibia’s refusal to sign a Southern African Development Community (SADC) trade protocol at the regional block’s just ended summit in Zimbabwe’s Victoria Falls.

The veteran ruler is SADC’s new chairperson after taking over from Malawi’s Peter Mutharika at the summit that ended on Monday.

He has indicated that during his term he would push for deeper regional integration and economic independence for the region, an agenda that could be stymied by South Africa and Namibia’s refusal to endorse the Protocol on Trade-in Services.

The protocol sets out general obligations for SADC countries with regard to the treatment of services and suppliers from other countries.  

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It provides for negotiations for removal of barriers to free movement of services in the region. Other SADC countries signed the protocol in August 2012
President Mugabe appeared to be taking a dig at South Africa’s approach to regional trade when he addressed journalists after the summit’s closing ceremony where the two countries balked from signing the protocol.

“We appealed to South Africa which is highly industrialised to lead us in this (industrialisation) and work with us, and cooperate with us and not just regard the whole continent as an open market for products from South Africa,” he said.

“We want a reciprocal relationship where we sell to each other and not just receiving products from one source.”

President Mugabe said he would need cooperation from fellow regional leaders for his term to succeed.

“During my tenure as your chairman, I pledge to represent the interests of our various for a so that the SADC voice, programmes and projects are ever present,” he said in his closing remarks. “This is a task that cannot be accomplished by the chair alone to steer the agenda of SADC in order to achieve effective implantation of our programmes. I have no doubt that together we will succeed.”

He said the region would court China to finance infrastructure programmes after urging SADC to stop relying on donors to finance its programmes in his inaugural speech as regional chairperson. “We will discuss with China on infrastructural projects on adding value to our products,” President Mugabe said. “We will discuss with them to increase their investments in our region”

The 90 year-old leader would be deputised by Botswana’s Ian Khama.