REPUBLIC OF KENYA

THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

 

ELEVENTH PARLIAMENT (FOURTH SESSION)

 

PUBLIC PETITION

 

BY EMONYO YEFWE INTERNATIONAL REGARDING COMING INTO FORCE OF THE COP21 PARIS AGREEMENT AND ITS IMPLEMENTATION LOCALLY.

 

I, the undersigned, Luke Wanjala Kapchanga, ID/ NO 9996278 of Maraka Ward, Webuye Constituency , Bungoma county, Director of Emonyo Yefwe International a civil society dealing with policy advocacy on climate change,

DRAW the attention of the House to the following:-

That, the Paris agreement on climate change  has entered into force , marking the first time that governments have agreed legally binding limits to global temperature rises, under the existing UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) regime.

That, the Agreement was to enter into force 30 days after at least 55 Parties accounting for at least 55 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions ratify (or accept, approve or accede to) the Agreement. These thresholds were passed on 5 October so the Agreement entered into force on 4 November 2016.

 

That, once an agreement enters into force, all countries that have ratified it will become parties to it and will be legally bound by its provisions,in any case, ratification, approval, acceptance or accession have essentially the same legal effect.

 

That, the primary goals of the Paris Agreement are to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below two-degrees Celsius, and achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions in the second half of this century.

That , to achieve these goals, governments and the private sector must act boldly and quickly on a range of fronts, including ratcheting down investment in fossil fuels and mobilizing an additional $1 trillion per year in clean energy from now through 2050.

 That, Kenya as  a developing country  is highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.

That, the Agreement will need to be implemented at the national level through a range of domestic actions and its effectiveness will therefore depend to a large extent on whether each country meets its international commitments.

That,Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) allow each Party to decide what it is able and willing to do under the Agreement, subject to general transparency and  accounting rules agreed at the international level.

That,  most direct obligation stemming from the Agreement relates to implementing measures outlined in Nationally Determine Contributions.

That,Kenya’s estimated climate-smart investment potential in selected sectors is $81 billion from 2016–2030.

That,Kenya’s NDC pledges to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by 30 percent from business-as-usual levels by 2030,  detailing mitigation and adaptation activities, including priorities for increased use of renewables, options for clean transportation, and achieving 10 percent tree cover.

That, Parliamentarians must make full use of their powers to legislate, allocate budgets, influence policy and exercise oversight if the Agreement is to be effective,  have a key role to play in addressing climate change based on their position as representatives of their respective populations, and as primary decision makers and overseers of accountability within government.

That, they have broad legislative powers to establish governance structures and to allocate funding, shape policy, mobilise domestic actors, provide oversight functions to monitor progress, and ensure transparency and accountability.

That, Parliamentarians are  well-positioned to harmonise climate efforts with other development priorities, for example with respect to action on gender equality and the UN sustainable development goals (SDGs).

 That, Goal 13 of the SDGs is specifically about taking urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts. Issues related to climate change are also implicitly linked to many of the other SDGs.

That, they  need to develop and implement national strategies, policies, action plans and legislation to galvanise action and harness private sector finance and innovation.

That, the effectiveness of the oversight exercised by parliamentarians  is  critical in ensuring government deliver on their contributions.

 That, Kenya is a beneficiary  of ,The Capacity-building Initiative for Transparency (CBIT) trust fund, hosted by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) , the CBIT aims to help developing countries in their efforts to build institutional and technical capacity for enhanced transparency.

That, Increasing transparency and enhancing countries’ capacity for monitoring and evaluation are lynchpins for the Paris Agreement.

That, Kenyans ,regardless of  their  status and position ,want clean air and clean water for their families and children. They want to protect their health from  extreme weather events. They want to enjoy nature and Earth’s natural resources.

THEREFORE your humble petitioner pray that the National Assembly, through the Departmental Committee on Environment  and Natural resources to initiate a process to identify gaps in existing policy and legislative frameworks and any barriers to implementing the Paris Agreement by:-

1.  Develop initial recommendations on appropriate policy, strategy and legislative

responses needed to implement contributions under the Paris Agreement

2.  Identify linkages between action on climate change and socio-economic development

priorities, in particular synergies with action on the SDGs

3.  Consider how to integrate climate issues and responses as underlying contexts and bases of policy and strategy across government.

 

And your PETITIONER will ever pray.

Luke  Kapchanga  ID/NO. 9996278