Agenda 74 Organisation
About Mission for COMESA
Care to Change the World
This is Where It Began
Every lasting initiative begins with a moment of convergence. For the Social Development and Empowerment Programme (SDEP), that moment came when vision met opportunity — and need met readiness.
It was during the early dialogues with the African Development Bank that the core of the idea took shape. As we presented our Charity as a Business model and long-term equity frameworks, the Bank responded not just with interest, but with direction. They saw a fit — not just in theory, but in geography. They introduced us to COMESA.
More than a matchmaker, the Bank became a bridge. Through their strategic channels, we entered into dialogue with ACTESA, COMESA’s specialized agency for agriculture and trade. What followed was not just an invitation — it was a challenge: to turn models into missions, and theory into implementation.
SDEP was born not as a pilot, but as a promise. A promise to deliver measurable, lasting, and accountable change — across land, skills, systems, and sovereignty.
And it began here — in COMESA.
The Mission Begins: COMESA as Anchor
In a world increasingly defined by fragmentation, Mission 4 begins with a different ambition — unity through action. The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) is not just a trading bloc. It is a gateway. A platform where multilateral aspirations meet practical mechanisms for change.
Here, Mission 4 takes root — through ACTESA, COMESA’s specialized agency for agriculture and trade. But the vision is broader than food systems or market integration. This is the front line of a 50-year transformation, and COMESA is the first region to host it.
What is the Mission?
Mission 4 is the structured launch of the Social Development and Empowerment Programme (SDEP) — a comprehensive initiative designed to unlock potential across human capital, local economies, governance, and climate resilience.
Over a 24-month initial horizon, the mission will establish national chapters in selected COMESA countries, open operational offices in both Sweden and Africa, deploy critical tools like FlexSus and ECHO, and begin the layered work of system-building — from food security to vocational training, from compliance to communication.
What is the Mission?
Mission 4 is the structured launch of the Social Development and Empowerment Programme (SDEP) — a comprehensive initiative designed to unlock potential across human capital, local economies, governance, and climate resilience.
Over a 24-month initial horizon, the mission will establish national chapters in selected COMESA countries, open operational offices in both Sweden and Africa, deploy critical tools like FlexSus and ECHO, and begin the layered work of system-building — from food security to vocational training, from compliance to communication.
A Vision Rooted in Equity
The long arc of the mission traces back to the Agenda for Social Equity 2074 — the foundational framework behind all our operations. It is a bold, 50-year agenda shaped by principles of dignity, opportunity, and structural justice.
In COMESA, the first chapters of this agenda will be written not in policy briefs, but in tangible actions: school programs, land-use solutions, sustainable agriculture, and trade infrastructure that empowers communities rather than extracts from them.
Shared Ownership, Mutual Responsibility
This mission is neither imposed nor outsourced. It is co-owned — between governments, communities, partners, and the A74 platform. ACTESA plays the regional role, but implementation occurs locally, through trusted partners and national task forces created under the Quadrilateral Council.
Every decision — from procurement to progress tracking — is guided by compliance frameworks, public accountability, and transparent financing. Mission 4 will not just work in COMESA countries, but with them, and — ultimately — for them.
Why COMESA, Why Now?
COMESA represents a unique intersection of opportunity and readiness. The region has already developed shared protocols, economic corridors, and cross-border cooperation. What it has not had — until now — is a unifying social equity engine, capable of converting market integration into inclusion.
By starting here, we create a replicable model — a mission that can scale to other regions not by duplication, but by adaptation.
What Success Looks Like
Success in Mission 4 is not measured by spending alone. It is measured by lives changed, institutions strengthened, youth trained, and the infrastructure for equity embedded into national development plans.
It is measured by the integrity of our monitoring tools. By the speed at which local trust is earned. And by the sustainability of the systems we leave behind.
