Southern Africa: SADC Ministers to Meet in Zimbabwe Over Food Security, Blue Economy

20 May 2026
New Zimbabwe (London)

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) will hold a joint meeting of Ministers responsible for agriculture, food security, fisheries and aquaculture on May 29, 2026, in Victoria Falls, aimed at strengthening food security and the blue economy across the region.

The meeting will be chaired by Minister of Agriculture of South Africa, John Steenhuisen in his role as Chairperson of the SADC Joint Committee of Ministers for Agriculture, Food Security, Fisheries and Aquaculture.

Senior government officials from SADC member states will first meet on May 27 and 28 ahead of the ministerial session.

Regional leaders are expected to review progress on previous SADC decisions and discuss measures to speed up food systems transformation, improve climate resilience and unlock opportunities in the blue economy.

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Key issues on the agenda include regional food and nutrition security, rainfall performance, crop production forecasts for the 2025/26 season and outlooks for 2026/27.

Ministers will also discuss youth participation in agribusiness, the SADC Rice Development Strategy, fertiliser and seed regulations, as well as regional phytosanitary measures.

Another major topic will be the regional response to outbreaks of Foot-and-mouth disease, with member states expected to discuss stronger cross-border surveillance, coordinated vaccination campaigns and information sharing to protect livestock farming and food security.

The meeting will also review developments in fisheries and aquaculture, including progress under the PROFISHBLUE programme and updates to SADC's regional aquaculture strategy.

Outcomes from the meeting will be submitted to the SADC Council of Ministers and are expected to support the bloc's Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan and long-term Vision 2050 goals.

Read the original article on New Zimbabwe.

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