The Role of the South African Government in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Region since 1994: The Public Left Behind

The post-democratic South African government entered the international space with energetic international ambitions. As depicted by the Map of Africa particularly in the Southern African region, despite being of the youngest democracy in Africa, the country is known to be at the tip of the continent and a holding anchor of the continent. Being an anchor was surely demonstrated by its achievement of independence as the last free black African country on the continent. While foreign governments rejoiced with South Africans for such achievement, probably for favour of possible new trades and diplomatic relations, little did they notice that such joy is between them (foreign governments) and politicians (ruling party agents in South Africa, especially the African National Congress-led government). This paper argued that the role of the South African government in the regional integration of SADC is a matter between the state and foreign governments, which exclude the interests of the South African public, and that such limitation imposed by public policies is a major source of conflict between foreign nationals and the public in South Africa. This public policy limitation may not necessarily be a South African problem, but may also be of practice in other governments of foreign descent. This paper is conceptual in approach and is based on secondary data (which will utilise document analysis as a qualitative research method) obtained from various forms of literature to argue on the weaknesses of the South African government and its role in the SADC regional integration affairs without consideration of its own public in the whole affair. The paper recommended that the government of South Africa needs to introduce mechanisms of public participation in regional matters to keep the South African public informed and educated about their role in regional affairs.