SADC gathering kicks-off

Ministers of the fourteen-nation Southern African Development Community, SADC, have begun arriving in the Namibian capital, Windhoek, to prepare for the heads-of-state summit later this week.

The highlight of the conference is expected to be the agreement of regional free trade area aimed at phasing out tariffs affecting some two-hundred million people.

The Aids epidemic, regional defence, and the outcome of the G-8 meeting of industrialised powers in Japan last month will also figure highly.

The former South African president, Nelson Mandela, will also receive an award for his efforts to establish peace in the region.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service