HARARE, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) -- A senior Zimbabwean official on Thursday pledged his country's commitment to cooperating with the Southern African Development Community (SADC) member states to promote regional integration and development.
Albert Chimbindi, the new chairperson of the SADC Standing Committee of Senior Officials and permanent secretary of the Zimbabwean Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, made the remarks at the official opening of the committee's meeting in Mount Hampden on the outskirts of Harare, the Zimbabwean capital.
Chimbindi has replaced Angola's Nazare Jose Salvador after Zimbabwe took over chairing the SADC Standing Committee of Senior Officials.
The new chairperson said while the regional bloc has registered progress in its integration agenda, a lot still needs to be done.
"As chair, Zimbabwe stands ready to collaborate with all member states and our cooperating partners as we intensify our efforts toward implementing our shared aspirations enshrined in our regional blueprint," Chimbindi said, referring to the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan 2020-2030 approved in 2020.
The SADC Standing Committee of Senior Officials meeting precedes the meeting of the SADC Council of Ministers and the 44th Ordinary Summit of SADC Heads of State and Government to be held on Aug. 13-14 and Aug. 17, respectively.
The SADC is a 16-member Southern African regional bloc, whose member states include Angola, Botswana, Comoros, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. ■