AFRICA’S GOVERNANCE RESPONSE TO COVID-19 | PRELIMINARY REPORT 2020 d. Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) 13 Following the Virtual Extraordinary Summit of Heads of States, the ministers of health and the ministers of finance of the group held their virtual meetings on 8th and 9th April 2020. This meeting took several decisions, the most important of which included availing funding from domestic resources for increasing disease surveillance and strengthening the institutional set up; and endorsing social protection and jobs programs in response to the pandemic through social assistance programs, social insurance, cash transfer and supply-side labour market interventions. IGAD has also called for support to suspension of sanctions on Sudan, South Sudan and Somalia to enable them access concessional and grant funding from International Financial Institutions (IFIs). On the 6th of April 2020, the Council of Ministers of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) convened an emergency virtual meeting. Among other things, the ministers adopted the regional guidelines for the harmonisation and facilitation of movement of critical goods and services across SADC during the COVID-19 pandemic. The guidelines are aimed at, among other things, limiting the spread of COVID 19 through transport across borders; facilitating the implementation of transport-related national COVID19 measures in cross-border transportation; and facilitating flow of essential goods such as fuel, food and medicines. c. East Africa Community 12 Response to COVID-19 The EAC governance response is coordinated within the Legal and Institutional Framework for Co-operation in Science, Technology and Innovation contained in the Governance of Science, Technology and Innovation of the Community, developed in 2012. On 25th March 2020, the EAC, Ministers Responsible for Health and EAC Affairs met to share knowledge and information on the COVID-19 outbreak, deliberate on the COVID-19 pandemic, map containment strategies to stem any further spread of the disease in the region, and develop a clear plan to mitigate against impacts caused by COVID -19 pandemic in the region. Furthermore, the guidelines call for the simplification and automation of trade and transport facilitation processes and documents, information sharing and provision of guidance on the services to be provided by governments, transport operators and transport operators associations during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the guidelines adopted by the Council of Ministers, the SADC Secretariat has developed a booklet containing recommendations to member states around, among other things, scaling up COVID-19 testing, and maintaining essential health services during COVID-19 outbreak. Under the Mobile Laboratory Project, on 15th April 2020, the Community deployed nine mobile laboratories and Coronavirus test kits to all EAC Partner States in a bid to detect and respond to highly infectious diseases such as COVID-19. The SADC Secretariat has put in place a Regional COVID 19 Trade and Transport Facilitation Cell (RTTFC) in order to assist member states with the coordination of cooperation in implementing trade and transport related measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. Members states have also been encouraged to set up a national transport facilitation cell (NTTFC). 55