Communiqué of the Second COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite Summit, Vision: Towards a Single Market, Theme: Deepening COMESA-EAC-SADC Integration, 12 June 2011, Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa

1. The Heads of State and Government of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Tripartite met on 12 June 2011 and:

(i) LAUNCHED negotiations for the establishment of an integrated market of 26 Countries with a combined population of nearly 600 million people and a total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) approximately US$1.0 trillion;

(ii) NOTED that the region makes up half of the African Union (AU) in terms of membership and just over 58% in terms of contribution to GDP and 57% of the total population of the African Union. The establishment of a Tripartite Free Trade Area will bolster intra-regional trade by creating a wider market, increase investment flows, enhance competitiveness and develop cross-regional infrastructure;

(iii) ADOPTED a developmental approach to the Tripartite Integration process that will be anchored on three (3) pillars namely: Market integration based on the Tripartite Free Trade Area (FTA); Infrastructure Development to enhance connectivity and reduce costs of doing business as well as Industrial development to address the productive capacity constraints; and

(iv) AGREED that the Tripartite initiative is a decisive step to achieve the African vision of establishing the African Economic Community envisioned in the Lagos Plan of Action and the Final Act of Lagos of 1980, Abuja Treaty of 1991 as well as the resolution of the African Union Summit held in Banjul the Gambia in 2006 that directed the African Union Commission and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) to harmonize and coordinate policies and programmes of RECs as important strategies for rationalization; and put in place mechanisms to facilitate the process of harmonization and coordination within and among the RECs.

2. The Tripartite Summit:

(i) SIGNED the Declaration Launching the negotiations for the establishment of the COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite FTA;

(ii) ADOPTED the Roadmap for Establishing the Tripartite FTA;

(iii) ADOPTED the Tripartite FTA Negotiating Principles, Processes and Institutional Framework; and

(iv) DIRECTED that a programme of work and roadmap be developed on the industrialization pillar.

3. The Tripartite Summit was attended by the following Heads of State and Government:

1. His Excellency Pierre Nkurunziza, President of the Republic of Burundi

2. His Excellency Essam Abdel-Aziz Sharaf, Prime Minister of the Arab Republic of Egypt
3. His Excellency Mwai Kibaki, President of the Republic Kenya

4. The Rt. Honourable Pakalitha Mosisili, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Lesotho.

5. His Excellency Bingu wa Mutharika, President of the Republic of Malawi.

6. His Excellency Hifikepunye Pohamba, President of the Republic of Namibia

7. Right Honourable Bernard Makuza, Prime Minister of the Republic of Rwanda

8. His Excellency Jacob Zuma, President of the Republic of South Africa

9. His Majesty King Mswati III, of the Kingdom of Swaziland

10. His Excellency Jakaya Kikwete, President of the United Republic of Tanzania

11. His Excellency Yoweri Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda

12. His Excellency Robert Mugabe, President of the Republic of Zimbabwe.

4. The following Plenipotentiaries represented the Heads of State and Government of the following countries:

1. His Honour Lt General Mompati S.Merafhe, Vice President of the Republic of Botswana

2. His Excellency Danny Faure, Vice President of the Republic of Seychelles

3. His Honour George Kunda, Vice President and Minister of Justice of the Republic of Zambia

4. Hounarable Georges Rebelo Chikoti, Minister of External Affairs of the Republic of Angola

5. Honourable Raymond Tshibanda, Minister of Coopration, Democratic Republic of Congo

6. Honourable Abdi IImi Achkir, Minister of Commerce, Republic of Djibouti

7. Honourable Stifanos Habte Ghebremariam, Minister of Trade and Industry, State of Eritrea

8. Honourable Ahmed Shide, State Minister for Finance and Economic Development, Federal Democratic, Republic of Ethiopia

9. Honourable Dr Arvin Boolelli, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, Republic of Mauritius

10. Honourable Paulo Francisco Zucula, Minister of Transport and Communications, Republic of Mozambique

11. Honourable Dr Mustafa Osman Ismail, Advisor to the President, Republic of Sudan

12. His Excellency Khalifa Omar Swiexi, Ambassador and Plenipotentiary of the Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya accredited to Zambia

13. Mr Djamal Djanffar Charge d’ Affaires and Plenipotentiary of the Union of the Comoros in South Africa

5. The following Organizations attended the Tripartite Summit as observers: the African Union Commission, African Development for International Development of the United Kingdom and the South African Customs Union.

6. His Excellency Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma President of South Africa, in his official opening remarks, welcomed all the Heads of State and Government, all dignitaries and delegates to the Second Tripartite Summit.

7. The Secretary General of COMESA, on behalf of the COMESA, EAC and SADC Tripartite Tusk Force, in his opening remarks provided the progress made in the Implementation of the Decisions of the First Tripartite Summit.

8. His Majesty, King Mswati III of the Kingdom of Swaziland, His Excellency Pierre Nkurunziza, President of the Republic of Burundi and His Excellency Hifikepunye Pohamba, President of the Republic of Namibia, the Chairperson of COMESA, EAC and SADC Summits of Heads of State and Government respectively, addressed the Tripartite Summit reiterating the commitment of the three Regional Economic Communities to the Tripartite cooperation and integration process.

9. His Excellency Erastus Mwencha, Deputy Chairperson of African Union Commission also made opening remarks appreciating and giving support to the COMESA EAC SADC Tripartite cooperation within the framework of establishing the African Community and the overall African Union Vision and Strategy.

10. The Tripartite Summit was opened and chaired by the Chairperson of the Summit of the Southern African Development Community assisted by the Chairpersons of the Summits of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa and the East African Community and the Tripartite Task Force of the three Secretariats was the Rapporteur.

11. The Tripartite Summit REVIEWED the progress made in the implementation of the decisions of the First Tripartite Summit held in Kampala, Uganda on the 22nd October 2008, regarding programmes in trade, customs and economic integration, free movement of business persons and infrastructure amongst three RECs.

12. In the area of infrastructure Development, the Tripartite Summit:

(i) NOTED the progress made in the implementation of the tripartite infrastructure programmes;

(ii) COMMENDED the international cooperating partners and the donor community for the support that was pledged to the North South Corridor at High Level Conference held in Lusaka , Zambia in April 2009; and

(iii) INVITED the cooperating partners and the donor community to Support the Aid for Trade Programmes being developed for the other major corridors and in particular the Tripartite and Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Infrastructure Investment Conference to be held in Nairobi, Kenya on 29 and 30 September 2011 at which priority projects for these corridors will be presented as well as the maritime corridors.

13. With regard to the Legal and Institutional Framework, the Tripartite Summit NOTED with appreciation that the Chairpersons of COMESA, EAC and that the Chairpersons of COMESA, EAC, and SADC, these being His Excellency Hifikepunye Pohamba respectively, signed the Memorandum of Understanding on the Inter-Regional Cooperation and Integration among COMESA, EAC and SADC and that the Tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) came into force on 19 January 2011.

14. The Tripartite Summit EXPRESSED its appreciation to the COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite Task Force for the preparatory work undertaken in preparation for 2nd Tripartite Summit.

15. The Tripartite Summit WELCOMED His Excellency Abdel-Aziz Sharaf, Prime Minister of the Arab Republic of Egypt.

16. The Tripartite Summit NOTED the offer by the Arab Republic of Egypt to host the Third Tripartite Summit.

17. The Tripartite Summit, in a vote of thanks moved by His Excellency Essam Abdel-Aziz Sharaf, Prime Minister of the Arab Republic of Egypt, EXPRESSED appreciation to His Excellency Jacob Zuma, President of the Republic of South Africa, for the warm and fraternal hospitality extended to all the delegations.

18. His Excellency, Jacob Zuma, President of the Republic of South Africa, in his closing statement CONGRAGULATED all his colleagues for the historic Tripartite Summit which launched the Tripartite FTA negotiations which is a key milestone in the integration of Africa. He thanked them for their attendance and looked forward to the continuation of the rationalization and deepening of the integration process in Africa.

19. The Tripartite Summit ADOPTED its Communiqué as read by Ambassador Dr Richard Sezibera, Secretary General of EAC.

DONE at Johannesburg in the Republic of South Africa on 12 June 2011, in the English, French and Portuguese languages, all texts being equally authentic.