Members of Parliament from Zimbabwe are in Uganda to pick lessons on aspects of the climate change legislation.
The leader of their delegation who is also the Chairperson of the Climate Committee at the Zimbabwe Parliament, Hon Dr Tapiwa Mashakada, said their country is experiencing extreme weather patterns which requires a quick solution.
“We have seen a rise in aridity in parts of the country and also seen a spike in weather related natural disasters like cyclones that have ravaged communities,” he said.
The Zimbabwean MPs made these remarks while meeting their Ugandan counterparts on the Parliamentary Committee of Climate Change on Thursday, 24 February 2021 at Protea Hotel in Kampala.
Mashakada said as a country, they are moving away from fossils to renewable energy sources to help curb on their carbon footprint. Mashakada added that they are e here to learn from Uganda that has managed to formulate a law on climate change.
“Currently, we have a bill that is being considered by the cabinet before it is presented to Parliament,” he said.
Hon Lawrence Biyiika Songa, Chairperson of the Climate Change Committee said that the ultimate goal of the committee is to domesticate the Kyoto Protocol of 1997, Paris Agreement of 2015 and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change which are all geared towards fighting climate change.
“One of the key roles of the committee is to scrutinise Bills that come to Parliament and to make sure that they are in compliance with the climate change international frameworks. We therefore, had to set up a legal framework to form a national basis for climate change initiatives,” he said.
Songa said that the committee plans to introduce regulation calling for instituting a certificate of climate change compliance. This would require all ministries, while submitting their Budget Framework Papers, to include a budget dedicated towards climate change activities.
Collins Oloya, Acting Director, Environment Affairs who represented the Minister of Water and Environment said the government acknowledges the importance of addressing issues of climate change and supporting sustainable socio-economic development.
He said that the new Climate Change Act gives the force of law to the various climate change international protocols and agreements as well as their implementation.