The road less travelled: Exploring the untapped potential of intra-regional trade in the SADC

Abstract

Regional trade and integration present significant opportunities for fostering networking interactions, expanding intra-regional trade, and accessing new markets. However, the historical progress of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in this area has been constrained by significant structural and policy challenges that remain to be addressed.

This chapter aims to bridge the implementation gap in the SADC's policies related to intra-regional trade and integration by identifying untapped opportunities for intra-African trade. Specifically, the research identifies untapped intra-regional trade opportunities at an importer-product-exporter level within the SADC region. These untapped opportunities represent instances where, despite consistent and growing import demand for products that could be met with competitive export supply within the region, no actual trade occurred during the five-year investigation period.

The study reveals just over 4,000 untapped matched opportunities between the 16 SADC countries from 2017 to 2021. Notably, these opportunities are mutually beneficial for all SADC countries, showcasing untapped trade potential among multiple countries in the region. Realising this potential could serve as an initial step towards reaping the benefits of regional trade integration.