Ethekwini: South Africa will place infrastructure development at the centre of its year-long Chairship of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), with SADC Chairperson, President Cyril Ramaphosa, calling for faster implementation of regional corridors, railways, ports, roads, energy, and water projects.
According to South African Government News Agency, President Ramaphosa emphasized the critical role of infrastructure in transforming the region's industrialisation ambitions into factories, jobs, trade, and economic opportunities. Closing the 46th Ordinary SADC Summit in eThekwini, President Ramaphosa highlighted the inseparable nature of industrialisation from the infrastructure needed to move goods, people, energy, and resources across borders.
The announcement underscores South Africa's Chairship priorities, positioning infrastructure as the connective tissue between industrialisation, regional trade, and economic development. The Summit adopted a theme focused on accelerating industrialisation, building on previous commitments to agricultural transformation, energy transition, and greater productive capacity in the region.
A major focus of South Africa's Chairship will be the development and efficient functioning of regional corridors. President Ramaphosa described these corridors as "arteries of regional integration," essential for connecting production centers to markets, linking landlocked countries to ports, and facilitating the efficient movement of goods, services, and people. The emphasis on corridors builds on SADC's regional infrastructure agenda, including the Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan (RIDMP).
President Ramaphosa also addressed the need to revitalise railway networks, expand and modernise ports, and improve road and logistics systems, recognizing the importance for landlocked SADC countries whose economies depend on efficient transport corridors. This development aims to support regional industrialisation and the establishment of regional value chains.
Additionally, energy infrastructure will be prioritized, with a goal to increase access to electricity across the region to at least 85 percent by 2030. President Ramaphosa highlighted the need for reliable and affordable electricity, emphasizing the importance of regional electricity interconnection and investment in generation and transmission infrastructure.
Water and sanitation infrastructure will also receive attention, with President Ramaphosa framing such investment as crucial for human dignity, economic opportunity, and the region's future productive capacity. Financing these ambitious infrastructure agendas will involve mobilizing domestic, regional, and international resources, including the operationalisation of the SADC Regional Development Fund.
President Ramaphosa concluded by stressing the importance of implementation, urging that progress should be measured by tangible outcomes such as rehabilitated railways, generated electricity, reduced border-crossing times, and increased intra-regional trade and job creation. South Africa aims to use its Chairship to drive infrastructure projects, financing mechanisms, and reforms that translate regional commitments into tangible benefits for citizens.