2. It is now widely accepted that climate change means the change (mainly increase) in worldwide temperature which has massive and permanent ramifications across the globe. Scientifically, climate change is triggered through the unnatural warming of the earth due to the trap created by greenhouse gases in the earth's atmosphere, a phenomenon otherwise referred to as global warming. It is undeniable that most SADC Member States have by now felt the destructive power of climate change. The rising of sea levels on coastal regions causing loss of wildlife and tourism, heatwaves leading to hyperthermia, acidification of oceans causing death of marine species, or disruptions in the water cycle leading to protracted droughts are all symptoms of climate change which have been witnessed by the SADC region.

3. More recently, the heavy casualty toll caused by cyclone Idai in Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi, in March 2019 and the devastation of cyclone Kenneth later in April 2019, have left an insipid taste on the lips of the SADC citizenry which is still in mourning and recovering from loss. Whilst the SADC region emits less greenhouse gases (mainly carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide) than other regions of the world, it is yet equally vulnerable to the whims of climate change.

4. Standing as the flag-bearer of democratisation and socio-economic development for the region, the SADC Parliamentary Forum has immediately grasped the nettle and reacted swiftly to the emerging challenge of climate change, in line with its Strategic Plan (2019-2023). Earlier, during the Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly held in April 2019,the Forum has assisted in uniting the SADC Group of countries to vote for the emergency item concerning the request for international assistance in the wake of the devastation spawned by cyclone Idai and it was thus befitting to dedicate the 45^th Plenary Assembly of the Forum to climate change mitigation and adaptation of Member States, and the role of Parliaments in respect thereto.

II. RAISING AWARENESS OF NATIONAL PARLIAMENTS ON CLIMATE CHANGE

5. It is significant to note that climate change is closely connected to the human rights to life, health and physical integrity, as those rights are infringed on a large scale through climate change phenomena, and the Forum has always acted staunchly to protect the human rights framework of SADC Member States from a parliamentary perspective, in line with standards enunciated in the African Charter of Human and Peoples' Rights, the Maputo Protocol and other authoritative international human rights instruments ratified by SADC Member States. Indeed, it is well known through human rights discourse that the right to a safe and healthy environment is interconnected with the enjoyment of all other human rights.

6. While the Forum has vowed to address the issue of domestication of treaties seriously, climate change is yet another theme where domestication lags behind, thus bringing to the fore the intrinsic role of SADC national Parliaments as promoters of legislation and overseers of administrative action to implement the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) which led to global initiatives such as the Kyoto Protocol and more recently, the Paris Agreement (2015) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. At the 24^th Conference of the Parties to the UNCCC held in Katowice, Poland, in December 2018, the rules in relation to the implementation of the Paris Agreement were agreed upon, which in a gist means that countries which have ratified the Agreement have worked towards developing a standardised way to measure and report on their emission-cutting efforts . Both national Parliaments and Governments thus need to collaborate closely to ensure that commitments taken by their respective countries are adhered to and that the SADC region remains steadfastly proactive to climate change.

7. It is also opportune to note that the SADC has consistently laid emphasis on the protection of the environment through the development of key protocols and instruments such as the Protocol on Forestry (2002) and the Protocol on Wildlife Conservation and Law Enforcement (1999), to cite a few. Moreover, numerous SADC Member States are parties to the Multiple Environmental Agreements (MEAs) including the UNFCCC, which have established the need for a common framework for countries to participate and report on environmental standards such as greenhouse gas emissions, movement of hazardous wastes (Bamako Convention), or persistent organic pollutants (Stockholm Convention). While preserving the environment of the SADC region remains of paramount importance, the Forum will continue to work towards promoting inter-parliamentary cooperation on environmental concerns, and in so doing assist Member States in pursuing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular SDG 13 on climate action.

8. The 45^th Plenary Assembly of the SADC-PF will thus focus on climate change and the role of parliaments in addressing its implications which include mitigation and adaptation through progressive measures such as the following:

a) giving incentives for use of renewable energy sources such as solar, wind or hydroelectric energy, and moving away from greenhouse gas emitting fossil fuels;

b) modernising industries to reduce the carbon footprint;

c) ensuring smooth migration of labour from emitting to non-emitting industries to prevent sudden unemployment;

d) promoting the use of hybrid motor vehicles and electrical appliances which have low carbon dioxide emissions, and reduce taxes and customs tariffs in relation thereto;

e) preserving forests as the natural lungs of countries in reducing carbon content in the atmosphere;

f) preventing extinction of marine species due to climate change and preserving the marine ecosystem;

g) relocating inhabitants from flood prone regions to safe areas which allow for sustainable living;

h) ensuring clean water supply reserves and transportation thereof to assist drought struck areas;

i) increasing annual public budgets to fund environmentally safe policies and raise awareness through sensitisation campaigns;

j) providing for a climate/disaster relief fund which can be used for national and regional contingencies;

k) promoting regional/international cooperation to ensure that there is a convergence of initiatives on climate change.

III. OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES OF THE 45^TH PLENARY ASSEMBLY

9. The objectives of the 45^th Plenary Assembly are:

a) to promote a deeper understanding of environmental issues and to highlight the need to act collectively rather than by individual action of each Member State;

b) to raise awareness on the representative, legislative, budgetary and oversight parliamentary interventions in the SADC region that can mitigate the effects of climate change and turnaround the increase in global temperature;

c) to ensure that parliamentary interventions promote the implementation of the Paris Agreement in a timeous manner in view of strengthening the international response to keep a global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees celsius above pre-industrial levels, and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees celsius;

d) to promote a parliamentary culture of exercising oversight initiatives on government action concerning the environment;

e) to ensure that MPs develop interest in interrogating government initiatives concerning the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) of each Member State with regards to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions under the Paris Agreement.

10. Accordingly, the expected outcomes of the 45^th Plenary Assembly are:

a) that SADC-PF Members are sensitized on environmental concerns that occasion climate change and promote parliamentary interventions at domestic level which can reduce the carbon footprint and promote carbon neutrality;

b) that there is a sharing of knowledge on development of parliamentary mechanisms at national level to address climate change concerns;

c) that national parliaments, through SADC-PF MPs, are capacitated to scrutinise government action relating to climate change initiatives, and address climate change from a human rights perspective;

d) that MPs take the lead in developing international cooperation to promote climate change coalitions that seek to facilitate the implementation of the Paris Agreement in the context of the UNFCCC.

V. VENUE

11. The 45^th Plenary Assembly of the SADC-PF will be held in Maputo, Mozambique, from the 20^th to 25^th July 2019.

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Concept Note - 45th Plenary Assembly - Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation - HOT

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