By Linda Kwanjana
President Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera has flown to Luanda, the Republic of Angola to attend the all important Southern African Development Community (SADC) annual summit.
Speaking at Kamuzu International Airport before his departure, President Chakwera said this year’s SADC summit will review the progress of last year’s resolutions particularly in the area of security as one way of ensuring that there is peace in the region.
He said: “As an intergral part of the SADC region, this annual summit is crucial because we discuss issues to consolidate our integration and make sure our democracy is intact all over the region, and make sure there is peace in the region.”
The theme of this year’s SADC summit is “Human and Financial Capital: The Key Driver for sustainable industrialisation of the SADC region”.
As the immediate past Chaiperson of SADC, President Chakwera’s presence is crucial as he will be an integral part of shaping the future of the 16 member body.
After attending the two-day summit to run from Thursday 17th to 18th August, the Malawi Head of State will proceed to Johannesberg, South Africa to attend the BRICS summit from 22nd-24th month.To be held under the theme “BRICS and Africa: Partnership for mutually accelerated Growth, Sustainable Development and inclusive multilateralism” the summit seeks to consolidate the economc strength of BRICS member states and create a robust single market for mutual growth.
According to a Press Release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, President Chakwera will take advantage of the two Summits to hold bilateral discussions with world leaders with an aim of securing support for Malawi’s economic recovery.