The subject of international trade is as old as the human race. Countries have always needed goods they were unable to produce either because of lack of resources, lack of skills or just cost related constraints. On the other hand, countries have at one time or the other been able to produce more goods and services than they can consume. This situation led to people buying goods and services across national boundaries. As long as people have inhabited the earth, they have been engaging in some form of trading. As the world evolved through civilisation, countries continued to exchange goods and services across borders. Goods and services can be exchanged for a price between two countries, a few countries in a region, countries in a continent and even all countries in the world. The world multilateral trading system celebrated 60 years in operation in 2006. By this time over 55% of world trade was happening through Regional Trade Agreements with the European Union leading the way. Over 70% of trade in the European Union happens within the region. In the meanwhile, the South African Development Community (SADC) only conducts about 9% of its total trade within the region. Against this background, SADC agreed to a Trade Protocol in 2000 with the objective of deepening regional economic integration. Amongst the objectives of the SADC Trade Protocol was to increase levels of exports and imports within SADC. This study looks at the impact of these regional economic integration efforts on intra-SADC trade. The study examines if the SADC intra-regional trade behaves in a consistent manner with economic theory, global trade trends and other regional formations of economic integration. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

The study addresses the issues related to climate change, energy production (traditional biomass and fossil fuels) as well as the potential of exploring renewable energy sources. The area of focus is the SADC region; this paper evaluates the implementation of the SADC Energy Access Strategy and Action Plan. It is an energy policy that was widely accepted and ratified by SADC member states in March 2010. The study is narrowed down to focus on the implementation of this policy in three SADC countries with different levels of energy consumption. These countries are South Africa with 80% of national energy consumption, Lesotho with 18% of national energy consumption and Mauritius which has 99.9% of national energy consumption. This study argues that the SADC Energy Access Strategy and Action Plan has implications for peace, security and development in the region. This is evident in climate change being an issue of emergency, more emphasis has been put on the use of renewable energy as opposed to fossil fuels and traditional biomass, which affects the climate and contributes to global warming. Renewable energy reduces carbon dioxide emissions and global warming.SADC leaders had to come up with ways to adapt to climate change and its effects; this gave birth to the SADC Energy Access Strategy and Action Plan in March 2010. The Action Plan came in as a solution to the energy crisis and as a strategy to realign the SADC energy sector to that of the world. The study further argues that Africa, and in particular SADC region has abundant renewable energy resources (solar energy, wind energy, hydro energy.etc), much of which are still untapped, yet have the capacity to supply the region with renewable energy for decades. The findings of the study confirm that SADC Energy Access Strategy and Action Plan indeed has implications for Peace, Security and Development in the region. The lack of proper planning, commitment and funds, as well as investments into the energy sector hinder the development of the regional energy sector and energy access projects. The SADC region has the potential to meet the energy demands and to venture into the use of renewable energy. / Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.(International Relations) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2013

This study aims to investigate variables that impact on life insurance consumption in 15 Southern African Development Community member states, using panel data for the period 1995 to 2013. The macroeconomic and demographic variables employed in the research are income, inflation, financial development, urbanisation, education, health expenditure, age dependency, life expectancy, institutional quality (independent variables), and life insurance penetration (dependent variable) in Southern African Development Community member states. The study employed the fixed effects and system general methods of moments techniques to estimate the panel data. From the findings, it is concluded that the demand for life insurance varies for each model. Generally, fixed effects estimations reveal different outcomes for each model; variables such as inflation, health expenditure, age dependency, and voice accountability, are significant in explaining life insurance consumption in the Southern African Development Community region. The system general methods of moments estimator results uncover different outcomes: variables such as lag of life insurance penetration, health expenditure, age dependency, corruption control, and regulatory quality, are significant in explaining life insurance consumption. In general, the study concludes that there are positive/negative and significant/non-significant relationships amongst variables for demand of life insurance. The study then makes policy recommendations, that Southern African Development Community countries should advance the variables that influence the demand for life insurance, and that policies for the protection of life insurance growth should be developed to grow a healthy insurance sector.

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Arts in fulfillment of the Degree of Master of Arts (Development Studies) in the Department of Anthropology and Development Studies at the University of Zululand, 2017 / The role and importance of the so-called BRICS and the integration of South Africa into the grouping has been debated in the parlance of international relations. Many accounts have been made on this topic focusing mainly on the question of why South Africa sought BRICS membership and why it was granted the membership. These accounts do not only ignore the questions around the benefits and constraints for South Africa, but also bypasses the critical question of the impact of the grouping on the international monetary system and international financial institutions. This study therefore has been motivated by the desire to explore the prospects and the pros and cons that befall South Africa for being a member of the BRICS grouping. The study is also driven by the need to assess (to a lesser extent) the implications of the rise of the grouping to the international financial institutions. In order to fulfil these aims, a qualitative research method has been chosen. The study is strictly based on secondary sources such as textbooks, official documents from the Department of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa, articles, magazines and newspapers, as well as internet resources. The analysis has been made possible through the employment of two theoretical frameworks: constructivism approach and theory of regional integration, both of which underpinned the study. Through extensive engagement with the literature reviewed and the historical analysis, the study found there are more prospects than constraints for the rainbow nation. The study also argues that the BRICS grouping would not make any substantial change to the nature of the international financial system at this stage, but would only make an additional balance of payment available to the countries requiring it. Therefore as recommendation, South Africa must think outside the framework of these groupings, and rely less on them for its advancements.

University libraries exist to support the strategic objectives of their parent universities by providing access to quality and relevant scholarly and scientific information in support of the curricula and research programmes. In fulfilling their core functions, university libraries are increasingly adopting an array of web technologies to deliver quality services to their user community. The aim of this study was to investigate the incorporation of web technologies into the services of university libraries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region in order to develop a user-centred model for the deployment of web technologies in university libraries. To achieve this aim, the study was underpinned by the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). The proliferation of information in the electronic environment, along with increased user preference to access digital information, has made the incorporation of web technologies in university libraries a necessity, not an option. These transformative developments are accompanied by increased user demands for user-centred services. These advances justify the significance of this study, as well as the user-centred model developed for the incorporation of web technologies in university libraries which constitutes the original contribution of the research to scientific knowledge. This study falls within a pragmatic paradigm and followed a mixed method research approach, combining both quantitative and qualitative research strategies in data collection and analysis. The population of this study comprised university libraries in the SADC member states whose language of communication is English. Since this population was fairly small in size, quantitative data were collected from the entire population using a questionnaire. Microsoft Excel 2016 was used to analyse the quantitative data. Qualitative data were also collected from librarians via interviews with purposive sampling being used to select the participants. Another set of the population involved undergraduate and postgraduate students from selected universities from whom qualitative data were collected by means of focus group discussions. Purposive sampling was used to select participants in the focus group discussions. Qualitative data were analysed following the thematic qualitative analytical approach. The findings of this study showed that the majority of university libraries in the SADC region have incorporated numerous web technologies for information discovery, for information sharing and promoting library services, for interactive library services, and for content management. The findings also revealed that the UTAUT constructs, namely, performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions have had a major influence on the incorporation of web technologies by university libraries, and on librarians' and students' use of these tools. A few university libraries were found to be ill-equipped with information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure and equipment to facilitate the use of web technologies. This study further established that the UTAUT constructs and the Library 2.0 construct of user-centredness can inform the development of a user-centred model for the incorporation of web technologies by university libraries. The study revealed that the majority of students consider web technologies to be vital tools, enabling them to access study and research information, and to share and publish information with their fellow students, their lecturers and librarians. The study culminated in the design of a user-centred model for the incorporation of web technologies into university libraries services.

Regional integration is to progress to an advanced and critical stage in SADC. With the launch of the SADC free trade area having taken place successfully in 2008 the next step according to the SADC RISDP is the customs union stage. This stage involves deeper integration as well as more cooperation amongst Member countries and to some extent will involve ceding of sovereignty to a supranational body that will be tasked with the administration of the customs union. With the lack of cooperation that was showed by some SADC countries during the implementation of the SADC FTA one doubts whether SADC countries will indeed cooperate during the customs union phase. Different levels of development, divergent trade policies and overlapping membership into other RECs pose a significant challenge into the formation of a SADC customs union. Looking at the challenges confronting the formation of the SADC customs union it would seem as if it is all gloom and doom. However one lesson picked up in all regional integration initiatives in all regions of the world is that significant challenges will always exist; what is important is that Member countries need to show full commitment and focus on the bigger goal they seek to achieve as the region. SACU the world’s oldest customs union is constituted by SADC Member countries. With the problem of overlapping membership SACU is both an obstacle and a solution for SADC depending on which view one holds. SACU can be seen as an obstacle because if SACU was not there perhaps the problem of overlapping membership would not be the way it is. Currently only one SADC country is not affected by the problem of overlapping into various other RECs. If SACU was not there the number of countries not overlapping would be perhaps six countries. On the other hand one can choose to look at SACU as a solution to the establishment of the SADC customs union under the circumstances that currently prevail in SADC. SACU can be used as a basis for a SADC customs union by having all other SADC Member that are ready to join the customs union accede into SACU and whilst others that are not ready still work on their policies and join latter when they are ready to do so. This is referred to as ‘variable-geometry’; a principle that has been successfully implemented in the EU over the years. However taking a close look at SACU one realises that there is still lot of work to be done within SACU to have SACU ready for expansion. / Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Centre for Human Rights / unrestricted

No description available.

Unemployment among youth within the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region is one of the major factors that has contributed to migratory movements. Today many youths are leaving their home countries within the region, in search of employment opportunities in stronger economies like that of South Africa. However, the local unemployment rates hinder their chances of employment. This qualitative study explored the livelihood strategies of unemployed black female migrant youth living in Cape Town, South Africa. The study interviewed twenty unemployed black female migrant youth between the ages of 25 and 34 to understand their experiences and perceptions of a) factors or conditions that forced them to immigrate to Cape Town, b) challenges they encountered in trying to secure employment, and vulnerabilities experienced, and c) the livelihood strategies they employed and available social service support. The findings reveal that unemployed black female migrant youth have immigrated to Cape Town for various reasons including political instability, social influences, poor economic conditions, and social factors such as marriage and poverty in their home countries. When they arrive in Cape Town, they face many obstacles in securing employment because of either their nationality or documentation status. They are also vulnerable due to lack of basic needs, living in overcrowded homes, and being in informal settlements where they build temporary shelters. To overcome the challenges they face, they engage in different livelihood strategies such as accessing free government clinics or hospitals for their healthcare. They are dependent on their spouses for support and engage in part-time employment. Besides, they have had limited information about any government or non-governmental organisations that provide support for unemployed black female migrant youth. The need for well-established social networks for unemployed black female migrants, where they can be received and assisted in integrating into society through legitimate channels, is relevant. There need to be centres that offer free English-language training for migrants who are not conversant in English. Established non-governmental organisations or government agencies need to provide facilities that could assist undocumented immigrants who have prolonged their stay in Cape Town. There is also a need to establish support centres that specifically target unemployed black female immigrants. The South African government should enforce sensitization and educate the public and stakeholders about the legitimacy of asylum-seeker permits issued to immigrants. If implemented in conjunction with policy measures, this could increase black female immigrant youth's ability to secure employment. The enforcement of the development of entrepreneurial skills programmes, which specifically vi target unemployed black female youth migrants in Cape Town, is another potentially beneficial strategy.

Magister Legum - LLM / This research paper, therefore, will focus on (i) the challenges and opportunities presented by hard infrastructure and (ii) the potential scope of public-private partnerships in alleviating such challenges and responding to the opportunities. This research paper, as a secondary objective, cautions against missing an opportunity to advocate for the deployment of capital in a manner that benefits the region and gives sufficient returns to investors. Simply put, such a failure has the potential to derail the regional integration project in Southern Africa. This would translate to consumers and market participants being subjected to a finite market, less competition, higher prices and less innovation. In responding to the above analyses, this research paper undertakes a thorough study of the current legal framework and practices in SADC which allow for participation of the private sector in public-private partnerships. In this regard, this research paper will consider which between institutionalisation or the ad hoc participation of the private sector in public-private partnerships is a viable policy goal.

Sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures are measures aimed at the protection of human, animal and plant life and health within specified territories from the risks associated with the introduction and spread of pests and diseases through trade. The World Trade Organisation (WTO) developed an agreement on the application of SPS measures. South Africa is a member of both the WTO and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). In SADC, SPS measures are provided for in the SADC Sanitary and Phytosanitary Annexure to the Protocol on Trade of 1996. International Standard Setting Bodies (ISSBs) facilitate the effective application of the main elements of the relevant SPS agreements, especially harmonization and equivalence by establishing scientifically justified standards on which members may base their SPS measures. The relevant ISSB’s in terms of SPS measures are the OIE, IPPC and Codex Alimentarius. SPS measures have the potential to become or be used as non-tariff barriers to trade (NTBs). The SADC Protocol on Trade 1996 stipulates that policies and measures are to be implemented by members to eliminate existing forms of NTBs. Additionally members may not enforce new NTBs affecting or related to intra-SADC trade. The most relevant South African legislation in the context of SPS measures and this study is as follows: Agricultural Pests Act 36 of 1983, the Agricultural Products Act 119 of 1990; the Fertilizers, Farm Feeds, Agricultural Remedies and Stock Remedies Act 36 of 1947, the Liquor Products Act 60 of 1989, Meat Safety Act 40 of 2000, Foodstuffs, Cosmetics and Disinfectants Act 54 of 1972, Medicines and Related Substances Act 101 of 1965 and National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications Act 5 of 2008. The purpose of this study is to establish to what extent the South African legal framework complies with its obligations in terms of the SADC SPS Annexure to the Protocol on Trade / LLM (Import and Export Law), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015