HUB Happenings Articles

On February 16, the Southern Africa National Seed Organization (SANSOR) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with SATH to advance current and future regional food security challenges through the use of the seed system as a tool to achieve growth and capacity in selected value chains.

As part of SATH efforts to promote integrated border management at selected border posts in the region, SATH facilitated a meeting of the Mwanza Joint Border Committee (JBC) in March to elaborate an action plan to address delays and administrative bottlenecks. The original action plan was agreed during the establishment of the JBC in September 2011, but specific tasks and responsibilities had not yet been allocated. The aim was also to identify activities for which additional resources may be required, and determine whether there is a role for SATH in lobbying other government departments or donors for the necessary support.

‘Sourcing at Magic’ is North America’s largest, most comprehensive garment/fashion sourcing event, featuring more than 800 apparel, accessories and footwear firms. SATH supported Formosa Textiles, a Lesotho denim and textile garment manufacturer, to exhibit at the Sourcing element of Magic, which exposed the company to hundreds of sourcing executives, designers, merchandising managers and private label buyers.

From March 12-13, SATH presented on the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and Rules of Origin (ROO) during a workshop organized by the Swaziland Investment Promotion Authority (SIPA). The first day, focusing on AGOA, drew 26 companies and 14 officials from the United States Government (USG), SIPA, Swaziland Government departments and the media.

The World Customs Organization (WCO) for the East and Southern Africa (ESA) Region organized its first dialogue between customs administrations and international cooperating partners from March 15-16 in Port Louis, Mauritius. Sixteen of the 22 ESA customs administrations were in attendance alongside representatives of the World Bank, African Development Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Finland, Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Southern Africa Trade Hub.

In cooperation with the Lesotho National Development Corporation (LNDC), SATH launched the Lesotho Investor Roadmap with a stakeholder validation workshop to discuss the findings and recommendations.

From March 5-9, SATH and the World Institute for Soy in Human Health (WISHH), a SATH grantee, facilitated the training of ten regional companies on animal feed manufacturing techniques, processes and trends at the International Grains Program (IGP) at Kansas State University (KSU). This is the first time feed manufacturers from the region have trained in the US.