RCSA
The Development Challenge: : The Southern Africa regional program covers 12 of the 14 countries that are members of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC). The country mix ranges from very poor (Angola, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe) to middle income (Botswana, Mauritius, Namibia, South Africa, and Swaziland). The region is anchored by the modern and dominant economy of South Africa, although many of the countries in southern Africa continue to be predominantly agricultural. Although agriculture accounts for 70-80% of employment, it contributes only about 20% of regional GDP. Average regional GDP growth in 2003 was 3.1%, which is better than the 2.4% of 2002, but only half of the estimated 6.2% the region needs to meet its poverty alleviation goals. Challenged by poverty, hard hit by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and continually beset by droughts and food insecurity, the region has seen its average life expectancy drop from 57 to only 33 years. The continuing political crisis in Zimbabwe illustrates the fragility of democratic institutions in the region.
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Against this bleak picture is the more positive one of a region with relatively well-developed infrastructure, diverse natural resources, nascent democratic governments, generally better education and, apart from HIV/AIDS, better health than the rest of sub-Saharan Africa. The region remains relatively peaceful compared with other African sub-regions, which makes possible its move toward regional integration. In the past five years, under the leadership of SADC, regional agreements ("Protocols") concerning trade, transport, communications, energy, shared watercourses, and corruption have been signed by SADC member states.
The United States has three main interests in southern Africa: increasing trade and strengthening economic ties with the SADC region; mitigating the region's HIV/AIDS crisis and recurrent food insecurity; and strengthening democracy to improve the climate for trade and reduce the risk of conflict in the region.
The USAID Program: USAID is requesting FY 2004 and FY 2005 funding for the four objectives covered in the following data sheets. These objectives focus on increased competitiveness, improved rural livelihoods, increased electoral competition, and improved river basin management in the southern African region. A new southern Africa regional strategy begins in FY 2004. All of the objectives are new and thus were not notified in the FY 2004 Congressional Budget Justification.
USAID will provide a regional platform for several presidential and agency initiatives: the TRADE Initiative, the Initiative to End Hunger in Africa (IEHA), the Anti-Corruption Initiative and the Conflict and Peace Building Fund. These initiatives, in concert with the southern Africa regional program, will finance activities to promote economic growth through trade and enhanced competitiveness, as well as increase opportunities for rural livelihoods via technical support for emerging commercial farmers and policy support to facilitate market access.
More limited funds will be used to fund democracy activities that address electoral frameworks and participation in the eight upcoming national elections scheduled for 2004 and 2005. Funding for the fourth area of activity, river basin management, will be used to support institutional and community work in the Okavango River Basin.
Other Program Elements: USAID's South Africa mission manages a regional HIV/AIDS program that focuses on preventing transmission at border crossings and checkpoints. In addition, USAID's Africa Bureau supports the drought preparedness activities of the Famine Early Warning System Network across the five countries in southern Africa that are most affected by drought. Recognizing the importance of conflict resolution and management skills in sub-Saharan Africa, USAID's Africa Bureau supports the South Africa-based African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes to expand its capacity, programming, and geographic coverage.
Other Donors: According to a recent donor survey, the European Union (EU), USAID, and the United Kingdom (UK) have the largest regional programs in economic growth and infrastructure. Similarly, the UK and Denmark have the largest regional democracy and governance programs; the EU and Norway have the largest regional environment and natural resource management programs; and the EU, USAID, and UK have the largest regional agriculture programs. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) works on anti-corruption initiatives and the UK's Department for International Development (DFID) is involved in electoral norms and standards. The World Bank is financing an expansion of the regional energy grid to Malawi and Tanzania, which should lead to further growth of the short-term electricity market that USAID helped establish. Germany and the World Bank's Global Environmental Facility support community enterprise activities and policy development in the Greater Limpopo management area. The economic growth areas in which USAID is working receive support from a number of donors, namely the EU, DFID, and Germany (regional trade); the EU, World Bank and IMF (economic and financial sector reforms); and the World Bank, EU, and DFID (customs reform and administration).
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