The creation of a Southern African Development Community (SADC) customs union would not be realised by the envisaged 2010 deadline, and at a SADC Ministerial task force meeting, held in Johannesburg last week, Ministers noted that work on laying the basis for the customs union had fallen significantly behind.

"The Ministers considered that moving to the customs union was perhaps not the best way to enhance regional integration in Southern Africa," explained Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) international trade and economic development deputy director-general Xavier Carim at the Institute for Global Dialogue's Southern African Forum on Trade on Monday.

Carim said that the resolution that emerged, was that work should continue on consolidating the Free Trade Area (FTA) on the one hand, and, that work should focus on building regional economic cluster (REC)-to-REC FTAs, on the other. For example, pursuing the FTAs in the tripartite - Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa); SADC and East African Community (EAC) - agenda.

"Clearly, this is much more manageable. It is not easy, but it is a much more manageable and practical agenda. And certainly it is more achievable," emphasised Carim.

Ministers at the meeting also agreed that in deepening regional integration needed to take into account existing arrangements, and build on those.

It was felt that outlining REC-to-REC FTAs was more achievable than achieving a customs union in SADC.

"We see it as critical for integration, and it could ensure that for members that are a part of this FTA, it would ensure that they do not trade on worse terms than extra-regional partners, outside of the continent. So we see this as an important development, and certainly from the South African perspective we see that we need to work on this over the next period," said Carim.

Carim noted that studies were being done, which, in some ways provide a basis for some of the critical issues that needed to be addressed. The study was expected to be ready in the fourth quarter of 2009, and Ministers and officials would meet at the beginning of next year, with the agenda on how to take forward these issues.

"Gradually we are getting there," Trade Policy adviser to the SADC Secretariat Paul Kalenga told participants of the forum on Monday.

He noted that in setting timelines for regional integration, and moving from an FTA to a customs union, to a monetary union - realistic timeframes would need to be set.

He stressed that the aim was to reduce the cost of doing business in the region, by lowering trade costs and facilitating trade. In this regard, it was felt that progress was being made - the North-South corridor was said to be happening, and discussions on non-tariff barriers were being conducted.

"Implementation is a challenge," he said, noting the problem of compliance following the decisions being made.

Kalenga also affirmed that research capacity in the region was lacking, and should be increased, so as to assist regional integration processes.

"Regional integration is still a top down approach, and we need to be serious about generating research to inform discussion," he stated.