Moses Magadza
A public hearing convened by the SADC Parliamentary Forum’s Standing Committee on Food, Agriculture, Natural Resources and Climate Action (FANRCA) on 18 October received presentations from different organisations within the SADC region and beyond.
Namibian lawmaker Phillipus Katamelo chaired the meeting, which was held virtually, under the theme: “Leveraging the Role of SADC Parliamentary Forum in Facilitating Citizen Participation in SADC Regional Integration for Enhanced Accountability and Inclusive Socio-Economic Development and Cohesion.”
Rachel Mundilo manages the Food, Agriculture, Natural Resources and Climate Action (FANRCA) Program at SADC PF and serves as secretary for its Standing Committee.
She said last week’s public hearing attracted 11 submissions from representatives of organisations within and without the SADC region, up from nine submissions made to the committee when it convened another public hearing on 18 October 2023.
Eric Chipeta, the Commonwealth national climate finance adviser for Namibia, provided a global overview on climate change finance and severe droughts with increased frequency and intensity, and extreme floods in some instances.
To mitigate these, he said the Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub (CCFAH) was helping small and other vulnerable states secure funding for climate change issues.
As of July 2024, the Hub had assisted countries with access to US$363,55 million in climate finance, he said.
Projects financed include climate-smart agriculture, solar-powered irrigation and processing technologies, early warning systems, use of technology and ICT and access to sustainable water resources.
Nciko wa Nciko of Amnesty International also made a submission and told the committee that his organisation had been closely monitoring the effects of climate change on human rights in Southern Africa.
“The SADC region is one of the hardest hit by climate change and extreme weather events, including severe droughts in southern Angola and Madagascar, intense rainfall in South Africa and frequent cyclones affecting Madagascar and Mozambique, which also impacted inland areas like Botswana, Malawi, South Africa, and Zimbabwe,” he said.
He said this resulted in the internal displacement of people, leading to numerous human rights violations, including lack of access to healthcare, adequate food, and freedom of movement.
John Oldfield of Accelerate Global, LLC also made a submission, saying water availability challenges in southern Africa were getting serious because of changing climates, growing economies and lifestyles, and population growth and movement.
He, however, said solutions could be found through correct political decisions, as legislators and water experts need to work together.
“In each country, national parliaments, state houses, city councils and technical experts must launch parliamentary water caucuses, networks, or groups,” he suggested.
Oldfield said the caucuses can help pass stronger laws, increase budgets for water in urban and rural settings, and tighten regulatory environments, working together with civil society in each country.
He said Parliamentary Water Caucuses had been established in Zambia and South Sudan, Uganda and Liberia.
Kudakwashe Ndhlukula, of the SADC Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (SACREEE), highlighted the link between climate change and renewable energy.
He said despite efforts towards renewable energy such as solar and wind, coal and hydro still dominate the SADC electricity mix, accounting for 59% and 24% of generation, respectively.
“This heavy reliance on coal presents a challenge for decarbonisation while hydro is susceptible to climate-induced droughts,” he said.
He called for harmonising policies across SADC to reduce regulatory inconsistencies and developing de-risking frameworks to attract private investment.
Glen Tyler-Davies of Fair Finance Coalition Southern Africa said there is a need for parliamentary oversight of public finance institutions (PFIs) to ensure transparency and climate justice.
He said Africa needs approximately US$280 billion annually in climate finance but only gets less than US$50 billion, and SADC gets less than US$10 billion a year.
yler-Davies recommended that SADC Parliaments watch public finance institutions and ask questions insisting on transparency in PFI work and policies.
Ester Sharara of Actionaid stressed the crucial need to address vulnerabilities that certain groups—women, children, persons with disabilities, and the elderly—face.
“Early warning and early action are one of the best and cost-effective methods for reducing disaster deaths and losses, yet very few people are protected by them. In Africa alone, 60% of people have no access to early warning information,” she said.
Sharara said parliamentarians must champion policies and mechanisms that enhance early warning systems for early action ahead of disasters.
Sarah Ahmed from the Planet Vulnerable Forum said heavy rainfall and cyclones reduce crop yields by 58%, putting the vulnerable under food security risk and called for a deliberate policy to ensure food affordability and availability.
She said that given that southern Africa is a net importer of food, the food insecurity in the region translates to pressure on inflation and interest rates.
She suggested national and regional institutions should ensure that credit finance and development assistance are used for the intended purpose, like capacity building, risk management, early warning systems and having liquidity.
Mundilo said the inputs from the Standing Committee’s public hearing session highlighted the critical importance of continuously engaging citizens of the region to enhance accountability and ensure inclusivity in socio-economic development.
The FANRCA committee will move to submit their recommendations to the 56th SADC PF Plenary Assembly scheduled for December in Zambia.
