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The Rwandese bid failed because of the omissions of “certain procedures”, Ramsamy said. “There are procedures to be followed. As a result, we have returned Rwandan application,” said Ramsamy, who will handover to his successor Tomas Salmao of Mozambique. “More groundwork has to be done,” he said. Information reaching Mmegi indicates that during the last summit in Mauritius, Rwanda was requested to satisfy certain procedures to join SADC.
Ramsamy told Mmegi that Madagascar was yesterday welcomed to SADC in a move that demonstrates the deepening of regional integration. “It shows that the bloc is improving its economic strength. Madagascar is coming with a huge market potential. The advantages are enormous,” he said. Madagascar has a population of over 17 million and is a renown coffee exporter.
Meanwhile, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Serwalo Tumelo said it is a welcome development for SADC to increase the number of its member states. “We want to have a wide development community, “ he said. Currently, SADC has 14 member states with the coming of Madagascar after the departure of Seychelles last year.
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