08 September 2010

SACU Secretariat

Directorates

Currently the SACU Secretariat has six Directorates, the Executive Secretary's Office; the Trade Facilitation and Revenue Management Directorate; the Policy Development and Research Directorate; the Legal Services Directorate; the Corporate Services Directorate; and the Internal Audit Directorate.

Executive Secretary's Office

The Executive Secretary is Ms. Tswelopele Moremi. She can be contacted at ExecSec@sacu.int.

The role of the Executive Secretary’s office is to facilitate and ensure the implementations of all decisions of the SACU Council of Ministers and the SACU Commission. The Executive Secretary’s Office provides strategic direction to the Secretariat and facilitates communication initiatives which will assist to position and promote SACU and enhance its image.

Trade Facilitation and Revenue Management Directorate

The Director Trade Facilitation and Revenue Management (TFRM) is Mr. Dumisani Mahlinza. He can be contacted at Dumisani.Mahlinza@sacu.int.

The TF RM Directorate is responsible for managing and coordinating the trade facilitation and revenue management function of the Secretariat. The key responsibilities of the Directorate include:

• To oversee the design and implementation of the key customs initiatives;
• To provide professional and technical support for the Revenue Management function in the Customs Union;
• To assist in the simplification and harmonization of customs policies and procedures; and
• To maintain a database on key economic indicators pertaining to SACU Member States.

Policy Development and Research Directorate

The Director Policy Development and Research (PDR) is Mr. Anton Faul. He can be contacted at Anton. Faul@sacu.int.

The PDR Directorate is specifically responsible for the following two areas:

• Policy development and harmonization
• Multilateral and bilateral trade negotiations

Policy Development and Harmonization: The PDR Directorate supports SACU in its policy development and harmonization initiatives as envisaged in Article 10.4; through assisting in the harmonization of national policies and strategies of SACU Member States as far as they relate to SACU.

Multilateral and Bilateral Trade Negotiations: The PDR Trade Negotiations Unit in the Policy Development and Research Directorate provides support through coordination and assistance in the negotiation of trade agreements with third parties as envisaged in Article 10.8. The obligations of SACU Members under the Multilateral and Bilateral Trade Negotiations function are contained in Part 5 of the SACU Agreement, dealing with Trade Liberalization, and specifically in Article 31 on Trade Relations with Third Parties.

Corporate Services Directorate

The Director Corporate Services (CS) is Mr. Ivan Sunderparsad. He can be contacted at Ivan.Sundarparsad@sacu.int

The Corporate Services Directorate comprises the sub-directorates of;

• Finance
• Human Resources
• Administration and Procurement
• Information Technology
• Records keeping
• Documentation and Conferencing Services

Legal Services Directorate

The Secretariat’s Legal Advisor is Advocate Thabang Phatela. He can be contacted at Thabang.Phatela@sacu.int.

The Legal Services Directorate is tasked with providing the following principal services:

• Research and drafting of legal opinions on the implementation of the SACU Agreement to ensure that the agreement is upheld.
• Administer and manage the implementation of the SACU Agreement by regional trade partners to ensure that implementation does not deviate from the Agreement.
• Administer and manage trade agreements with international trade partners to ensure that agreements are complied with.
• Research and drafting legal proposals on responsibilities of Member States to ensure that Member States comply with international trade obligations.
• Administer and manage the certification of legal instruments by regional and international trade partners to ensure that legal aspects are correctly managed.
• Provide legal advice on trade negotiations with regional and international trading partners and implementation of subsequent legal agreements to ensure that legal issues have been considered and effectively dealt with by the parties involved.
• Monitor developments on national trade legislation of member states and provide recommendations, support and assistance for harmonization with SACU Agreement.
• Coordinate and service SACU Tribunals and SACU Secretariat litigation to ensure that SACU’s legal responsibilities, obligations and mandates are effectively protected represented and upheld.

Internal Audit Directorate

Internal Audit provides oversight on corporate governance, compliance with international accounting standards, internal control and risk management. It is also responsible for evaluating internal policies and procedures.