Intra- SADC Trade Flows are Predominantly with South Africa

Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) are influenced by the share of trade with partner countries as well as the composition of trade and production linkages.  Intra-regional trade in the SADC region is influenced by both the 2008 SADC Trade Protocol and bilateral trade agreements, which Member States negotiated prior to entry into force of the Trade Protocol. It should be noted that  the SADC Trade Protocol provides for the continuation of existing bilateral arrangements as long as they do not contradict the Protocol.

Despite the several bilateral agreements among SADC Members and the SADC FTA, a high proportion of intra-SADC trade is bilateral trade flows with South Africa.  South Africa is the largest importer and exporter in SADC as shown in the figure above (World Bank Data).  

Furthermore the bulk of trade flows is among the 5 Members of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and hence trade flows between 15 SADC Members outside of SACU is very low (less than 10% of total trade) with possible exception for Zambia.  The predominant role of South Africa is in part a reflection of its role as a logistical hub for the region’s trade with the rest of the world.  This may explain why the highest trade dependence is displayed by countries that are logistically connected to South Africa, possibly landlocked and are able to take advantage of her larger market, infrastructure and connectedness with world markets. 

Despite this high percentage of SADC trade with South Africa, overall the SADC region trades predominantly with the rest of world as shown in a previous post here.  This trend applies for both  exports and imports and implies that Africa's future trade expansion may lie in the fastest growing export market which is East Asia and in particular China.