Today and tomorrow, Mauritius will be hosting the Southern African Development Community?s (SADC) Council of ministers. SADC?s budget, its relation with its international cooperation partners and the implementation of several plans of action, such as the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan, amongst others, will be discussed. Although these subjects seem unlikely to affect our lives any day soon, a brief look at the brightest example of regional integration, the European Union (EU), shows that the socio-economic potential of SADC should not be underestimated.

In April 1951, France, Germany, Holland, Belgium, Italy and Luxembourg signed the treaty that created the Economic Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). Last Sunday, the people of Spain ratified the common declaration about the new European constitution through a referendum. Over the next two years, the declaration, drafted late last year, will be submitted to the remaining 24 EU countries for ratification. The road ahead will be bumpy because not many countries share the Iberian peninsula?s blind enthusiasm for the EU. Governments will have a tough time demonstrating to their citizens the benefits that a common constitution will yield.

Nonetheless, the fact that the EU has attained such a level of integration, only 50 years after the creation of the ECSC, is a marvel to behold. After some teething problems, the euro is on its way to usurping the dollar as the world?s choice currency. Turkey is a sticking point; yet the fact that accession talks will soon be held demonstrates the EU?s confidence in its potential. Regional integration, it can be said, is the way to hold one?s own in an increasingly global world.

For a region where 75% of the population live on less than $2 a day, integration is an absolute must. The regional economy grew by a respectable 3.5% last year, but the SADC Secretariat estimates that the figure will need to be around 7% if poverty is to be significantly dented. Current growth is attributed to a recovery of agro-industries and increased access to the US market through AGOA, which can hardly be described as promising sectors. Diversification is imperative if the 3.5% ceiling is to broken.

Despite this and other seemingly insurmountable obstacles, SADC seems, in the year of its silver jubilee, on the right track. Seven members have already paid last year?s dues and all thirteen will be represented at the Council of ministers. This, along with some other encouraging signs, gives reason to believe that the region?s governments are putting all their political weight behind the organization. Citizens, sadly, have not latched onto the significance of SADC.

Government deserves credit for its staunch support and involvement in the consolidation of SADC. Although the Secretariat?s objective of creating a Free Trade Area by 2008, a Customs Union by 2010 and a Common Market by 2010 may seem objective, Mauritius can only benefit from such arrangements. Our diminutive size, lack of resources and a motivated workforce can all be resolved through integration into the mineral and labour-rich region.

A recent survey of technology in Taiwan in ?The Economist? highlighted just how far Mauritius is from its goal of becoming a cyber-island. A few towers housing call centers do not justify claims that we are undergoing an IT revolution. The country will have to harness the potential of the SADC region if it is to replace the three stumbling pillars of the economy. For once, a holistic approach should be adopted. This year, SADC is celebrating its silver jubilee. Mauritius will have to make sure that the sacrosanct 7% growth has been achieved by the time the golden jubilee comes around.