Financial markets in the Southern African development community: the harmonisation and approximation of commercial laws

Abstract

The free flow of capital has been identified as a critical factor in the process of reducing poverty in the SADC region, along with the lowering of trade barriers. While the trade protocols have been adopted and much has been made of the harmonisation of stock exchange listing requirements and central banking regulation, it is an effort at harmonising corporate law that is noticeably absent. This article focuses on the harmonisation of business law including the supporting financial markets and the process of corporate law reform in South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe.