By Dele Ogbodo
The Chair of the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change (AGN), Mr. Ephraim Shitima has called on African countries to put in place measures to encourage active participation of legislators in climate action.
Shitima, is the Director, Department of Green Economy and Climate Change in Zambia’s Green Economy and Environment while doubling as that country’s National Focal Point under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
The Chair acknowledged the important oversight role that parliaments play in policy making and implementation through their legislative and oversight mandates such as approval and monitoring of national budgets.
“Under the Paris Agreement, Parties have made commitments through Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC).
“These national commitments require resources and our parliamentarians are critical as they not only approve national budgets but also provide the oversight role of monitoring budget performance and implementation.” He said.
According to him, AGN, believe that our law makers across the continent must actively be involved in climate processes.
We are grateful to partners such as AGNES for their initiative to engage our parliamentarians, and welcome efforts from other partners to get law makers involved,” Shitima, said.
According to the African Group of Negotiators Experts Support (AGNES), despite their critical role, parliaments in Africa are least prepared to effectively participate and play their oversight role on implementation of climate response actions.
#UNEP #AGN #agngenderagenda #UNFCCC #undp_botswana #COP28UAE.
