Madagascar Land Reform: Madagascar’s High Constitutional Court has reportedly approved transferring colonial-era land still registered under foreign names to the state, a move aimed at land decolonization and stronger national control over strategic territory that could unlock agriculture, infrastructure and investment. SADC Industrialisation Push: At the 46th SADC summit in Durban, South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa took over the chair and urged faster regional integration, including stopping the export of critical minerals in raw form and scaling value addition, manufacturing and jobs. Trade Bottlenecks: Ramaphosa called for accelerated One-Stop Border Posts so trucks don’t “spend days waiting” at crossings, targeting slower intra-SADC trade that remains around one-fifth of the bloc’s total. Regional Financing: Leaders backed the SADC Tourism UNIVISA and the operationalisation of the SADC Regional Development Fund to finance infrastructure, energy and water projects. Security & Shipping: A Djibouti Code of Conduct task force is set to tackle a resurgence of piracy in the Western Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden, coordinating intelligence-sharing and naval/coast guard response. Telecom Connectivity Leap: Airtel Africa and Starlink launched a direct-to-phone satellite service in the DRC, extending mobile coverage without dishes—an example of how connectivity tech can support remote industry and logistics. Madagascar Mining Update: Total Graphite reported encouraging near-surface graphite mineralisation from initial drilling at the Tarandava Block in its Vatomina licence, supporting near-term mine planning and potential resource expansion.