WINDHOEK July 4th (XINHUA) – The Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC-PF), a regional inter-parliamentary body, last week called on the parliaments of its member countries to promote legislative, budgetary and monitoring initiatives to prevent global warming.
The forum wishes to join the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) campaign to promote parliamentary action on the climate emergency, SADC-PF Secretary General Boemo Mmandu Sekgoma said in a statement.
The IPU, a global organization of national parliaments, launched a campaign called “Parliaments for the Planet” earlier this year to mobilize parliaments and parliamentarians to take action on the climate emergency.
According to the IPU campaign, environmental protection, disaster preparedness and post-disaster recovery are the main areas requiring reforms of parliaments in line with governments’ programs and strategies, according to Mrs. Sekgoma.
“In particular, the voices of women and those most vulnerable to climate-related disasters must be included through a participatory process so that parliamentary action is geared towards protecting those most in need,” she added.
Mrs. Sekgoma also noted that, in the coming years, SADC-PF would continue to support parliamentary activities involving environmental protection and mainstreaming gender in climate action.
The SADC-PF is made up of 15 parliaments totaling over 3,500 parliamentarians from the SADC region, where climate change has affected the lives of millions of people.
xinhua/abp JULY 23