SADC Polic y for Strategy Development, Planning, M onitoring and Evaluation 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1. The SADC Treaty (Article 14) defines the SADC Secretariat as the principal executive institution of SADC whose core functions are to provide leadership in fulfilling the core functions of “strategic planning and management of programmes of SADC, monitoring and evaluation of implementation of regional policies and programmes” amongst others. The framework within which those functions are exercised is underpinned by policy and procedural provisions incorporated in : i) The SADC Treaty; ii) The RISDP and the SIPO; and iii) The Financial Regulations and Procedures. 2. The centralization of responsibilities at the Secretariat, including planning, the implementation of Summit and Council decisions, overall strategic planning, monitoring and evaluation, and resource mobilisation, has been a key feature of the reform process in SADC which started in 2001. The restructuring of SADC Institutions led, among other things, to a clustering of areas of regional cooperation and integration and to a centralization of operations at the SADC Secretariat as opposed to the decentralised approach followed at the inception of the Organization in 1980. This process was accompanied by a reprioritization of the Cooperation and Integration Agenda as well as by a review of policies and strategies which was translated into the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) and Strategic Plan of the Organ (SIPO) adopted in 2003. 3. This policy seeks to strengthen the framework within which the Secretariat shall perform its mandate with regard to the development of strategic options to facilitate decision making on SADC priorities, the establishment of appropriate plans to enable sound allocation of resources, conduct monitoring and evaluation. It applies a results based management approach to obtain the necessary synergies in order to strengthen SADC capacity in achieving its strategic objectives. 5