South Africa in SADC: 30 Years of Unity, Diversity and Cooperation

The highly anticipated documentary, South Africa in SADC: 30 Years of Unity, Diversity and Cooperation premiered at the SADC Summit Media Centre in Durban on 15 August 2026, completing its two-stage launch during the 46th Ordinary SADC Summit programme.

Produced with support from the Government of Germany through the German-SADC Cooperation Strengthening National-Regional Linkages in SADC (SNRL) Programme, which is implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. The documentary commemorates South Africa’s 30-year membership milestone and the country’s contribution to regional integration.

The premier came at a strategically important moment. The documentary’s focus on connectivity, trade, infrastructure, energy, water, peace and security, and shared prosperity provided a human and historical context for the issues being considered by SADC leaders at the summit. It connected regional priorities with the cooperation already shaping lives across Southern Africa.

Speaking at the launch, Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Thandi Moraka stressed that the documentary tells a much wider story. “It is not simply a story about South Africa’s contribution to SADC,” she said, noting that it also recognises the solidarity extended to South Africa by other Member States. “Our prosperity remains linked to the prosperity of the SADC region as a whole.”

Moraka placed public understanding at the centre of the documentary’s purpose. “Communication is not an accessory to regional integration. It is an essential part of our regional integration,” Moraka said. “Citizens cannot support institutions that they do not understand. Communities cannot take ownership of initiatives they know nothing about.”

The launch also highlighted the collaboration that made the documentary possible. Through German-SADC Cooperation Programme SNRL and DIRCO worked together to preserve institutional memory, gather perspectives on South Africa’s SADC journey and communicate the value of regional cooperation to a wider audience.

“This partnership must be sustained and it must be supported,” Moraka said, acknowledging the contribution of German Development Cooperation to the initiative.

Implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH in partnership with the SADC Secretariat, the SNRL Programme supports SADC and its Member States in advancing regional integration. It is funded by the German Government and co-funded by the European Union and Austrian Development Cooperation.

Zama Mkosi, Deputy Chairperson of Brand South Africa’s Board of Trustees, turned attention towards what should follow the Summit.

“The one critical word is implementation. Our leaders have reinforced the importance of moving from commitments and plans to measurable outcomes,” she said. “The people of the region rightly expect to see the benefits of regional integration in their daily lives.”

Mkosi noted that SADC countries are already connected through trade, investment, migration, infrastructure, culture and family ties. Their prosperity is therefore interconnected, making a peaceful, integrated and prosperous region a shared interest rather than an abstract diplomatic goal.

While the premiere marked the documentary’s successful launch, its message extends far beyond the screen. By bringing SADC’s story closer to citizens, it supports a better-informed conversation about the region’s shared future and the action needed to build it.