This book adds to an already strong resource base for policy-makers, planners, business leaders and scholars. It’s a smooth and easy read. Enjoy!’ – Simba Makoni, First Executive Secretary of the SADC

‘This timely and well-researched volume enriches the existing body of literature on regionalism in southern Africa with commendable no-nonsense clarity. It is carefully nuanced, engages the debate at more than one register, and ought to become a primer on this subject to academicians and practitioners alike.’ –  André du Pisani, The University of Namibia

‘This is likely to be one of the most important books of this decade on region-building in southern Africa. I highly recommend it.’ – Margaret C. Lee, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

‘This volume is unique: it takes a broadly Pan-African approach, draws together reputable analysts, offers fresh perspectives on topical issues, and provides the basis for deeper research of key dynamics that could propel regional integration forward.’ – Siphamandla Zondi, Institute for Global Dialogue, Tshwane

‘There has been an urgent need for an up-to-date volume on southern Africa as a region, and for the expansive range of the region’s concerns to be fully and sympathetically addressed. This book will be indispensable to all who wish to understand southern Africa and its regional dynamics.’ – Stephen Chan, The School of Oriental and African Studies, London

How successful have southern African states been in dealing with the major issues that have faced the region in recent years? What can be done to produce more cohesive and effective region-building in southern Africa?

This original and wide-ranging volume, which draws on an interdisciplinary team of African and African-based specialists, addresses the key political, socio-economic and security challenges facing southern Africa today. These include HIV/AIDS, migration and xenophobia, land grabbing and climate change, and the role of the UN, the EU, the USA, China and other external actors in the region. It also looks at the Southern African Customs Union, development finance institutions, and issues of gender and peacebuilding.

In doing so, the book goes to the heart of analyzing the effectiveness of SADC and other regional organizations, suggesting how region-building in southern Africa may be compared with similar attempts elsewhere in Africa and other parts of the world.

Gwinyayi A. Dzinesa is Senior Researcher at the Centre for Conflict Resolution in Cape Town

Chris Saunders is Emeritus Professor in the Historical Studies at the Unviersity of Cape Town, and a research associate at the Centre for Conflict Resolution in Cape Town

Dawn Nagar Researcher at the Centre for Conflict Resolution in Cape Town