Deputy Director-General for the African Branch at the Department of International Relations and Co-operation, Tebogo Seokolo, has urged senior officials from across the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to confront uncomfortable realities surrounding trade, food security and geopolitics.

SADC officials gathered in Pretoria for the opening session of the Standing Committee of Senior Officials.

“As a country, in our national capacity, we are looking at what we can do more to advance regional integration. We have an obligation as a member of this community to ensure that the comments that are made and reached at the regional level are implemented nationally as well as regionally. We are also looking at aligning our national plans, not only South Africa but all 16 countries, aligning their national development plan to the regional development plan and the continental African Union vision,” says Seokolo.

–SABC–