Rwanda to host headquarters of Central Africa environmental legal experts’ network

Rwanda is set to host the headquarters of Network of Environmental Legal Experts of Central Africa with the aim to produce negotiators for international climate agreements according to Minister of Environment, Jeanne d'Arc Mujawamariya. ALSO READ: Govt calls on legal experts to support global treaty on plastic waste Mujawamariya said this following a week-long assembly of the network for environmental lawyers from Central African countries, under Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), to discuss their contribution to multilateral climate agreements and their domestication which closed on Friday May 3 in Kigali. The ECCAS is made up of 11 countries including; Angola, Burundi, Cameroon; Central African Republic, Republic of Congo; Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe; Democratic Republic of Congo; Gabonese Republic, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Rwanda; and the Republic of Chad. The international agreements discussed by legal experts from these countries include the Paris Agreement, aimed at limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol for reducing hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). ALSO READ: Rwanda welcomes global deal to save species from extinction The network aims to produce local legal experts to help countries during international negotiations for multilateral climate agreements and reduce importation of experts from outside Africa. One of the international agreements being prepared is the treaty to end plastic waste by 2040 which was initiated by Rwanda and Peru. Rwanda is part of the Central Africa region which has invaluable potential in terms of natural resources necessitating high demand for biodiversity protection. ALSO READ: Rwanda rallies countries to ratify the Kigali climate deal The region has Africa's largest hydrographic network, significant offshore and onshore oil deposits and significant mineral reserves including coltan, which constitutes 85 per cent of the world's reserves. The forest ecosystems of the Congo Basin, covering an area of nearly 300 million hectares, represent the second largest tropical humid forest in the world, after the Amazon. The forests of Central Africa absorb more carbon than those of the Amazon and Southeast Asia combined, making them the largest tropical carbon sink to date according to the network’s statement. ALSO READ: Rwanda launches national plan for Paris Agreement According to Mujawamariya, negotiating and domesticating international agreements to protect these resources requires knowledgeable legal experts instead of importing expertise. “We all know, the Economic Community of Central African States member states and the whole of Africa in general have experienced long-term challenges due mainly to the gaps that exist in our negotiators' composition where the participation of lawyers was very limited in climate debates or negotiations,” she stated. These gaps, she explained, have really cost African countries a lot due to difficulties in understanding languages used in environmental legal instruments under negotiations saying that this complicated the process for implementation of the countries' commitments contained in these international legal instruments. “Now, it is time for our countries to benefit from the Network of Environmental Legal Experts of Central Africa and its members by building comprehensive teams of negotiators for our countries to substantially contribute but also benefit from environmental legal instruments,” Mujawamariya said. The role Network of Experts of Central Environmental Legal Africa, she said, will not be limited to negotiating and implementing multilateral agreements, but also look for various areas of supporting the countries and other relevant organizations with the aim to raise the knowledge of concerned communities, as well as supporting public and private organisations working for the preservation of environment and climate resilience. She said the government of Rwanda, will facilitate the required registration process for Network of Experts of Central Environmental Legal Africa to become fully operational. Generadi Segikwiye, Rwandan lawyer, said: “Many lawyers have not specialised in the environment sector. There are great opportunities in specialization for lawyers. Therefore the network will increase the capacity of lawyers to deal with climate issues. International climate agreements require enhanced knowledge.” Honoré Tabuna, the Commissioner in Charge of the Environment, Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Rural Development Department of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), emphasised the need for environmental lawyers to play a more active role in developing and implementing environmental laws.

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Rwanda to host headquarters of Central Africa environmental legal experts’ network