THE Southern African Development Community (Sadc) should adopt a regional parliament model similar to that of the European Union (EU) to drive its industrialisation and deepen integration efforts.

This comes as President Emmerson Mnangagwa assumed the chairmanship of the 16-member bloc during the 44th Sadc Summit held last week. 

The regional bloc is currently focused on initiatives aimed at enhancing trade, integration, and strengthening its industrial base.

The European Parliament, a key legislative body within the EU, plays a significant role in shaping policies across member states. 

It shares legislative authority with other EU institutions, influences national laws, and ensures that regulations are uniformly applied across the union.

The parliament is directly elected by EU citizens.

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While it cannot propose legislation, something only the European Commission can do, it can amend and reject proposals, influencing the outcome of EU policies.

In terms of impact on individual EU countries, the parliament’s decisions often shape national laws and policies, especially in areas like trade, environmental regulation, consumer protection, and human rights.

However, the extent of its influence varies depending on the policy area.

Zimbabwe’s Foreign Affairs and International Trade minister, Frederick Shava, says  a regional parliament, like the one in the EU, is essential for Sadc’s industrialisation agenda and long-term integration goals. 

“The question that you ask about this integration with Sadc, and you compare that with the EU,” Shava told delegates during the bloc's industrialisation week.

 “I think the first thing is the comparison you are given of the EU. The European Union has one parliament. They make laws and these laws must be observed by their citizens, and they also remove tariffs between borders.

“For example, a consignment shipped from Italy to Scotland is inspected only once at the port of departure and then travels without further inspection across multiple borders due to the robust legal framework.” 

Shava highlighted that for Sadc to achieve a similar level of integration, member states must harmonise their tariff regimes — something that is currently lacking. 

According to Sadc, low intra-regional trade is largely due to non-tariff barriers, underlining the need for collective efforts to reduce these barriers and enhance cooperation.

Sadc’s combined gross domestic product (GDP) was approximately US$753,63 billion in 2023, according to the World Bank, representing a significant market for regional trade, particularly for smaller economies like Zimbabwe.

“At present, we are far from achieving this level of integration. Border officials still insist on inspecting goods at every checkpoint,” Shava said. 

“For example, we have had incidents where fuel trucks declared for the Democratic Republic of Congo offload their cargo in Zimbabwe and continue their journey with water instead of fuel. Such practices highlight the challenges we face in achieving true regional integration.”

He stressed that a Sadc parliament would introduce uniform laws to address these issues and facilitate smoother trade across the region. 

Currently, some Sadc countries have agreed to the idea of a regional parliament, but others have yet to commit.

“When that happens, we will have a unified legal framework within Sadc to govern issues like tariffs and the movement of goods and services. While this is still a distant goal, we hope it will materialise soon,” Shava said. 

“The Sadc parliament would not make laws for individual countries but would establish guidelines that member states would follow when creating their own laws.

“They will guide Zimbabwe, for example, as it makes its laws or any country in Sadc as they make their laws.”

The EU’s experience shows how a supranational parliament can balance regional governance with national sovereignty, influencing everything from trade policies to environmental regulations across the bloc. 

However, some stakeholders believe that Sadc should focus on improving existing structures rather than creating new ones.

South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Mthokozisi Xulu stressed the importance of collaboration between business and government to achieve industrialisation. 

He said Sadc citizens should leverage the region’s competitive advantages to remain globally competitive.

“There needs to be holistic work between business and government to turn the corner in that regard and it shows how structured an organised business can work and I think we need to do that to have a drive for industrialisation,” Xulu said.

“Obviously, not taking away the fact that we have to be globally competitive. Just the fact that we are Sadc citizens doesn’t make us entitled to anything. 

“We need to understand that we may have certain things that the world needs, and we need to make sure we leverage on our competitive advantage so that we can also place our positions on the global stage.”

On the other hand, former Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce president Danny Meyer argued that what the region needs is not another parliament but better coordination and efficiency, among businesses.

“We do not need another parliament; we just need efficiency. We need small government, and we need civil servants who are not ‘civil serpents’. And that message needs to come out loud and clear,” he said.

“When you interact with individuals when you go to workshops, we must find private sector led solutions. 

“We know the problems, we know the challenges, we now need to get the private sector. So, business must become organised, we cannot continue like this, fragmented and so on.”

As Sadc continues to explore ways to enhance regional integration, the debate over whether a regional parliament is the right approach will likely persist. 

What remains clear is that for Sadc to achieve its industrialisation goals, it will need to find innovative ways to deepen cooperation and reduce trade barriers across its member states.