Director General, National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies, Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman, yesterday, charged parliaments in Africa to mainstream climate change action in proposed laws and national budgets.
Sulaiman also challenged parliamentarians to use the opportunity of budget defense to ask Ministries, Agencies and Departments (MDAs) how they are working towards achieving net zero emission in their countries and addressing climate change impact.
He spoke at the West Africa parliament conference on climate change, organised by African Group of Negotiators Expert Support (AGNES), in collaboration with National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) Abuja and the National Council on Climate Change, in Lagos.
Countries represented at the forum include Burkina Faso, Benin, Cote D’Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Nigeria, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.
He said the objective of the forum was to set the stage for issues to be discussed around legislature and climate change governance, and that it is best to situate these issues in the context of the structure of parliaments and committee systems.
He said climate change legislation plays a key role in mitigating environmental issues, noting that participation in the Conference of Party meetings, organised by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), is very crucial.
He lamented that most West African countries are yet to have a climate change legislation.
Sulaiman said, to address the challenge of global climate change, countries require local actions that would complement global efforts.
“The Global Climate Fund (GCF) provides an opportunity for developed countries to support developing countries in national climate actions on adaptation, mitigation and disaster risk reduction. However, the funding arrangement requires these countries to mobilise domestic resources as well. As legislators, therefore, you are to use the opportunity you have through the budget defence to ask MDAs to respond to questions on how they are contributing to attaining net zero in the sectors they oversight, he said.”
Sulaiman noted that NILDS will continue to work with partners and the legislature in Africa to ensure the continent achieves sustainable development.
He added: “The most important tool of the legislature to achieve this is lawmaking, representation and oversight. Through lawmaking, legislators can ensure global agreements are domesticated through passage of domestic laws. Through oversight, you can ensure that public and private sector enterprises comply with net zero emission targets.
“Blaming historic polluters might offer Africa the opportunity to benefit from climate funds. However, we must act together to ensure that choices in resource allocation reward sustainable consumption and production. We are seven years away from the Sustainable Development Goals 2030. Unless we take deliberate measures to pursue green growth and sustainable development, the positive results we have recorded in other sectors would be rolled back by the adverse impact of climate change through flooding, increased warming, desertification and deforestation.”
