“We Are Making Ourselves Easy Targets for Exploiters”: President Mnangagwa Blasts SADC’s Lack of Economic Unity in Fiery Farewell Speech
In a fiery farewell as SADC Chairperson, President Emmerson Mnangagwa tore into the regional bloc, accusing it of dragging its feet on economic integration.
He warned that its disunity is leaving Southern Africa vulnerable to global exploitation.
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“We Are Easy Targets for Exploiters”
Addressing fellow leaders at the 45th Ordinary Summit in Antananarivo on Sunday, President Mnangagwa lamented SADC’s “very low level of economic cooperation.”
According to ZiFM Stereo News, he argued that this lack of cooperation continues to cripple the region’s potential.
“Our exports continue to be driven by primary products, and intra-regional trade remains far less than our business with other regions. We are doing ourselves a disservice and making ourselves easy targets for exploiters who will seize these loopholes,” he said.
Political Inertia Under Fire
President Mnangagwa blasted years of disorganization, poor funding, and delays in ratifying protocols, singling out the dormant SADC Regional Development Fund — meant to finance infrastructure projects — as a wasted opportunity.
“The full potential of our regional bloc has regrettably been largely inhibited by budgetary constraints,” he noted, urging leaders to embrace private sector partnerships, tap into diaspora capital, and fast-track internal processes that have stalled progress.
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Warning Against Irrelevance
With the global order shifting rapidly, the Zimbabwean leader warned that SADC risks being sidelined if it does not urgently strengthen its economic ties.
“Our bloc is better off as a united force than as an alliance that is disorganized and unstable. Failure to act decisively will continue to weaken us,” he said.
