On the occasion of the official launch of the 2007 SADC secondary schools essay competition

SEPTEMBER 27, 2006
GABORONE, BOTSWANA

In our efforts to promote the participation, in the regional Integration Agenda, by the youth of secondary school going age, we introduced an annual secondary school essay competition some eight years (8) ago.
The competition has enjoyed great support from Member States with entries improving every year both in quality and quantity. The 2006 competition saw participation of twelve Member States, namely, Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
This response is proof of immense interest and commitment in regional integration issues by our youth. The quality of their work is indeed the showcasing the commitment of their teachers, mentors and other sources of their knowledge and information.
Over the years, both the adjudicators and the Secretariat have recognised some excellent ideas brought out by the youth in these essays. Council has thus tasked the Secretariat with the responsibility to extract those excellent ideas for further development into policy, programmes and actions that would translate them into reality.
Thus, to the competitors, I wish to let them know that, when researching and preparing their essays, please know that they are not working for a prize, but they are indeed initiating policy and in my opinion, that should challenge you even more because they are the leaders of tomorrow for this region. The earlier they start getting involved in its policies the better for them as individuals and for the region as a whole!
Let me also encourage the educational authorities, schools and families in all our Member States to see to it that their schools have participated in the competition.
The Competition started as a SADC affair with prizes fully financed by the SADC Secretariat budget at regional level while the top ten national winners receive a certificate co-signed by the Minister responsible for education in their respective country and the SADC Executive Secretary.

This morning however, we are witnessing the dawn of a new day in the life of the SADC Secondary School Essay Competition because for the first time since its inception, we have been joined by the Southern Africa Trust in encouraging the participation of our school going youth in this regional integration activity.
This is indeed a groundbreaking initiative by this civil society non profit making institution, the Southern Africa Trust that has decided to partner SADC in sponsoring the three regional prizes and pay for the travel and subsistence allowance for the three regional winners for the 2007 and 2008 SADC Secondary Schools Essay Competition.
The Southern Africa Trust offered to be the official sponsor of the 2007 and 2008 competition in furtherance of a common agenda it shares with SADC – that of poverty eradication. Thus, the topic for Secondary Schools Essay Competition for 2007 is: “What do you think are the causes of poverty in the SADC Region, and what steps should be taken by SADC Member States and non-State actors to eliminate poverty?”
The Southern Africa Trust has moved in the true spirit of regional integration because the mammoth task of integrating SADC calls for cooperation, not only with our International Partners (ICPs), but with all the regional stakeholders including the private, quasi public sector and civil society of the region.
It is in recognition of this that, when approving the partnership, the SADC Council of Ministers at its meeting of August 2006 in Maseru, Kingdom of Lesotho has commended the Southern Africa Trust for initiating the partnership and collaborating with the Secretariat in the 2007 and 2008 Essay Competitions. Council also urged the Secretariat to encourage institutions of like mind to join SADC in similar community building activities.
The decision of the Southern Africa Trust will, I am sure, motivate and encourage other stakeholders in our region to join this initiative which has a long way to go in promoting skills at national and regional level to strengthen our capacity as a region to face the development challenges before us.
Well done and congratulations Southern Africa Trust – welcome on board.

I thank you

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