SADC Parliamentary Forum, Oxfam sign Memorandum of Understanding

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 

Friday 6th June 2025: 

Oxfam and the Southern Africa Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC PF) have partnered to work together in areas of Economic Justice and reduction of inequality, Humanitarian Action, Gender Justice, Climate Justice and Accountable Governance. The signing ceremony takes place on Saturday, 07th June 2025 in Victoria Falls Town, Zimbabwe.  

Established in September 1997, the SADC PF is a regional inter-parliamentary body composed of fifteen (15) parliaments representing over 3500 parliamentarians in the SADC region. Its main aim is to provide a platform for parliaments and parliamentarians to promote and improve regional integration in the SADC region, through parliamentary involvement.  Oxfam works to find practical, innovative ways for people to lift themselves out of poverty and thrive. Oxfam saves lives, helps rebuild livelihoods when crisis strikes and campaigns so that the voices of the poor influence the local and global decisions that affect them.

Speaking ahead of the official signing of the Memorandum of the Understanding (MOU), Her Excellence Boemo Sekgoma, SADC PF Secretary-General, says “the SADC PF is committed to strengthening inter-institutional collaboration that enhances democratic governance, parliamentary effectiveness, and citizen responsiveness across the SADC region. To this end, the SADC PF has cultivated strategic relationships with organisations whose mandate complement its parliamentary mission”.

Machinda Marongwe, the Oxfam in Southern Africa Programme Director, says the region is faced complex interconnected development challenges; persistent poverty an inequality, climate-induced disasters, public health security threats, persistent inequality, gender injustice, and chronic food insecurity. The challenges affecting SADC member states will require collaboration, cross learning and strategic partnerships across the development sector especially in the face of the changing development landscape. As a region we need to collectively harness local solutions if we are resolve these development challenges.

“Partnership with Parliamentarians are critical in establishing lasting solutions that benefit communities in the region. Parliaments in the region play a critical role in shaping the legislative framework, which together with institutional and policy instruments are central in tackling inequality and poverty in the region”, says Marongwe. “We believe therefore that by working together, Oxfam can leverage on its global, regional, national and grassroots networks experience in combating systematic drivers of poverty and exclusion”.

In the period Oxfam has worked with SADC PF prior to this MOU, Oxfam has advocated for the domestication of the SADC Gender Based Violence Model Law, the Model Law on Eradicating Early Child Marriage, the Public Financial Management Model Law by Member States in Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Oxfam has also conducted training on Just Energy Transition, among other capacity building initiatives.

“This MOU therefore will enable Oxfam to deepen partnerships with the SADC PF and other Civil Society Organisations and movements in many SADC member states.” says Marongwe.