Effect of the Southern Africa Development Community (Excluding Southern African Customs Union) Agreement on South African Exports and Imports of Wood and Wood Products

The aim of the study was to analyse the effect of the Southern Africa Development Community agreement (SADC) (excluding Southern African Customs Union (SACU)) on South African wood and the wood products trade, using the gravity model. The study used panel data from 1996 to 2016. The results showed that the SADC (excluding SACU) agreement positively impacts the exports of wood and wood products. However, on imports, there is insufficient evidence to indicate that the SADC (excluding SACU) agreement has a statistically significant positive effect on South African wood and wood products. The SADC (excluding SACU) is an important market for South African wood exports and wood products exports. Therefore, maintaining or improving trade facilitation measures could further benefit South Africa’s exports of wood and wood products.