For nearly half a century, the Southern African Development Community has spoken of building a shared industrial future — and now, under a new theme of resilient and inclusive industrialisation, it is attempting to finally act on that promise. The region's collective wealth of minerals and agricultural output, long exported raw for others to refine and profit from, holds the potential to anchor integrated value chains that keep prosperity within its borders. From Zimbabwe's lithium to Zambia's cobalt to Malawi's rice, the pieces of a self-sustaining regional economy exist — what has been missi