By More Matshediso
Pretoria – Regional leaders will trash out matters pertaining to politics, defence and security when they gather at the SADC Ministerial Committee of the Organ (MCO) meeting in Swakopmund, Namibia.
South Africa will be represented by International Relations and Cooperation Deputy Minister Nomaindia Mfeketo and other senior government officials at the two-day meeting, which gets underway today.
The 16th MCO will be a chance for SADC to evaluate politics, defence and security cooperation, as well as consider the status of decisions and on-going programmes in the region.
The ministerial meeting, which will be preceded by the senior officials’ meeting, will consider reports, elections from the previous meeting and upcoming elections.
The meeting will also discuss political and security situation in the region, the UNIVISA (a single visa system for SADC), the SADC Electoral Advisory Council (SEAC), mediation structures and building the capacity of the SADC Secretariat.
The MCO meeting agenda includes:
- Reports of the Inter-State Politics and Diplomacy Committee (ISPDC), the Defence and Security Committee (ISDSC) and the Public Security Sub Committee (PSSC).
- Elections that have been held in the reporting period, which are Madagascar, South Africa and Malawi. SADC Election Observer Missions (SEOMs) were deployed to the three countries.
- The upcoming elections in Mozambique on 15 October, Botswana on 31 October and Namibia in November.
- SADC’s mediation, conflict prevention and preventative diplomacy structures, which were approved in 2010. Provision is made under these structures for the establishment of a Panel of Elders, a Mediation Reference Group and a Mediation Support Unit.
– SAnews.gov.za
