SADC Sustainable Development Needs A Pumped-Up Education Sector

> Thandisizwe Mgudlwa

The SADC education space suffers from a lack consistent and informative reflections. 

Although education has previously been identified as a pillar for human progress and for the development of an economically marginalized Southern African region, little seems to be reported on the processes employed in bettering the regions's education sector.

Take, the SADC Regional Environmental Education Programme (SADC REEP) for an example.

In existence for more than 20 years now, was represented at the UNESCO World Conference on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), Japan in November 2014.  

The Conference marked the end of the UN Decade on Education for Sustainable Development (UNDESD), 2005-2014. And the launch of a new Global Action Programme for Education for Sustainable Development whose overall goal is “to generate and scale-up action in all levels and areas of education and learning in order to accelerate progress towards sustainable development”.  

Moreover, the programme is one of five official exhibitions for Africa at the World Conference on Education for Sustainable Development.  

And then, representatives put together a workshop on ESD Policy, and were involved in the Global Regional Centres of Expertise Pre-Conference, which a number of SADC Regional Centres of Expertise (RCEs) participated in.  

SADC REEP also participated in the Post-Conference on ESD and Teacher Education, where the SADC ESD Teacher Education Network's activities were showcased. As evidence of its contribution to ESD over the years and to the UN Decade on Education for Sustainable Development.

In 1993, the SADC Environment and Land Management Sector (ELMS) created a programme to support environmental education processes in the region.

It is also important to note that the initial phase of this programme entailed a series of workshops for environmental education practitioners in the region.

These workshops were to build capacity for environmental education. They also sought to establish the form of environmental education needs for the SADC sub-region. 

And the first workshop was held in Windhoek, Namibia in 1994.  With the second one held in 1996 in Howick, South Africa.

These workshops were complemented by other research processes which were designed to assess the state of environmental education in the region.

Based on information gathered during this initial phase. A formal programme document was developed and submitted to the SADC Council of Ministers for approval.

The Council of Ministers which had ratified the proposal, agreed that the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (WESSA) should be an implementing agency of the programme. 

The SADC Regional Environmental Education Programme is a project of the SADC Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources (FANR) Directorate.

And since 2013, the SADC REEP have collaborated with the German Federal Enterprise for International Cooperation (GIZ) to develop an innovative capacity building programme on 'Climate Change Adaptation in Trans-frontier Conservation Areas in Southern Africa'. 

Meanwhile, South Africa has experienced an increased demand by African countries for technical assistance support in the field of agriculture. 

According to the SA Department Of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, "A technical assistance programme (TAP) called the African Agricultural Development Programme (AADP) was established as a contribution towards regional stability and the sustainable development of the economies of African countries."

The TAP has been identified as vital vehicle for Southern African Development Countries’ (SADC) regional development with potential long-term benefits for the whole region.

According to SADC REEP, the main component of this programme is a course on climate change adaptation that is specifically designed for southern African trans-frontier conservation areas (TFCAs). 

"The course is designed for a range of stakeholders who seek to strengthen climate change adaptation and mitigation practices in conservation contexts. The course is geared for reflexive engagement with own practice, is interactive, based on practical pedagogical approaches, and is designed to actively facilitate workplace-based and community-based action and change in practice towards sustainability and adaptation.

Further, "The course is constituted of four on-course modules and a workplace based assignment. Part of the course entails developing a deeper understanding of climate concepts and issues through interpreting climate data and using these to assess climate risk and vulnerability, plan and implement climate change adaptation strategies, use adaptive management approaches as well as enhance understanding and use of participation strategies in climate change adaptation."

Pragmatically, the course has involved 39 practitioners from 18 TFCAs across 15 SADC countries working on 18 change projects on adaptation to climate change on the TFCAs. 

"Each change projects spans across the countries involved in the TFCA and the members are involved in parts of the change project. To this end, the change project is enhancing collaboration at TFCA level that is contributing to transnational collaboration, an outcome of the SADC Agenda."