BUJUMBURA, October 3rd (ABP) – The Cabinet members met on Wednesday September 28, 2023 in Bujumbura, under the chairmanship of the Head of State, Evariste Ndayishimiye.
According to the secretary general and spokesperson of the government, Prosper Ntahorwamiye, among the files analyzed was the draft decree revising decree No. 100/22 of October 7, 2016, implementing measures for the environmental code in relation to the environmental and social impact study procedure presented by the Minister of Environment, Agriculture and Livestock, Dr. Sanctus Niragira.
Mr. Ntahorwamiye indicated that the environmental code in force was enacted in 2021 after the amendment of that which had been enacted in 2000. As for him, the decree establishing measures for implementing the environmental code in relation to the environmental impact study procedure dates back to 2010.
The Cabinet members deemed it necessary to review that decree to bring it into line with the environmental code currently in force for various reasons. The title and body of that 2010 decree concerns environmental assessment only, completely ignoring the social aspect, even though it is important in the entire environmental impact study process. Furthermore, certain concepts/definitions are missing in the 2010 decree even though they are important for a good understanding, especially since it is a scientific field. The other gap is that the 2010 decree does not show how people who may be affected by a development project are taken into account even though this is a legal requirement. It is silent on the risk management plan, the emergency plans, the health, safety and environment plan as well as the action plan for the resettlement of affected people and the aspects of climate change. Also, the 2010 decree does not indicate the coverage of management costs for the environmental and social impact study process and royalties.
It is to fill all those gaps that this draft decree is proposed.
After analysis and debate, the bill was adopted with the observations and some recommendations that were made.
In the miscellaneous items, President Ndayishimiye spoke about the rumors which are currently being spread where he pointed out that it is a phenomenon which appears every time the elections draw near to create a psychosis within the population and to distract authorities. He recommended to the people of Burundi to be offensive against that phenomenon, through positive communication.
In the same context, he asked members of the government to prepare to answer the questions and concerns of the people in the next public broadcast scheduled for October 6, 2023.
The Head of State also informed the ministers that the month of December 2023 will be mainly devoted to field trips.