South Africa is scheduled to hand over the chairmanship of the SADC Council of Ministers to the Republic of Namibia.
International Relations and Cooperation Minister Lindiwe Sisulu is today travelling to the southwest African country to hand over the role.
“The SADC [Southern African Development Community] Council of Ministers meeting is one of the meetings which precede the 38th Ordinary SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government, which will be hosted by Namibia from 17 to 18 August 2018,” said the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco).
The Council of Ministers, which consist of Ministers from each of the 16 Member States, oversees the functioning of and development of SADC and ensures that policies and decisions are implemented.
The Council of Ministers is usually made up Ministers of Foreign Affairs, International Relations and Economic Planning or Finance.
The two-day meeting of the Council of Ministers is scheduled to get underway on Monday and will be followed by the SADC Organ Troika Summit on Thursday.
The 38th SADC Summit is expected to discuss key regional issues, which include the status of Member States contributions, overview of the socio-economic situation and state of peace and security.
The SADC Summit will be held under the theme ‘Promoting Infrastructure Development and Youth Empowerment for Sustainable Development.
Pretoria hosted the 37th Ordinary Summit of the Heads of State and Government of SADC in August 2017. – SAnews.gov.za
