The Southern African Customs Union (SACU) - the world's oldest, comprising Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and Swaziland - applies a common set of tariffs and disproportionately distributes the revenue to member states, providing a lifeline that ensures the economic survival of Swaziland and Lesotho. Mzukisi Qobo, head of the Emerging Powers Programme and Global Challenges at the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA), a think-tank, noted in a recent SAIIA presentation at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg that according to "rough estimates", Swaziland relied on customs revenue for 75 percent of its budget. Lesotho derived 65 percent of government spending from SACU, while in Botswana and Namibia the distributions accounted for about 30 percent of government revenue. SACU's complex framework ensures that Lesotho and Swaziland, and to a lesser extent Namibia and Botswana, share disproportionately in the union's proceeds.
Most of the customs revenue is produced by South Africa, the continent's largest economy, and about 90 percent of the SACU region's GDP is generated by South Africa.
