Southern African Customs Union

The Southern African Customs Union (SACU) is the world's oldest customs union, established in 1910. It comprises five member states: South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho and Namibia. The union's mandate is to maintain a common external tariff and a shared revenue pool for customs, excise and additional duties collected on imports into the common customs area. SACU facilitates the free movement of goods between member states by eliminating internal tariffs and trade barriers. The organisation is governed by a Council of Ministers, supported by a Customs Union Commission, a Secretariat based in Windhoek, Namibia, and several technical committees. Revenue collected is distributed among members according to a formula that takes into account each country's share of intra-SACU trade, GDP and customs duties. South Africa, as the largest economy, generates the majority of customs revenue but the redistribution mechanism provides significant fiscal transfers to the smaller member states. SACU plays an important role in regional economic integration and serves as a platform for negotiating trade agreements with external partners. The union has faced challenges in recent years, including debates over the revenue-sharing formula, trade policy coordination and the balance between South Africa's dominant economic position and the development needs of smaller members. SACU's significance extends beyond tariffs, as it underpins broader Southern African Development Community integration efforts and shapes the region's engagement with global trade partners including China, the European Union and the United States.