Speaker of Parliament Advocate Jacob Mudenda has called for decisive and inclusive strategies to tackle climate change and safeguard the environment for future generations.
Addressing delegates at a recent regional workshop on “Fostering Sustainable Futures: Integrating Climate Resilience in Southern Africa” in Namibia highlighted the urgency of the subject. “The subject compels humanity to come up with sound strategies that address climate action in an attempt to conserve the environment for the present and future generations,” Mudenda said
He underscored the pivotal role of Members of Parliament in driving these strategies. “In that context, it is acknowledged that the key drivers of such parliamentary processes are the Members of Parliament themselves who must be fully capacitated for them to comprehend the ecosystem of the conservation of the environment,” he said.
Advocate Mudenda further highlighted the necessity for parliamentarians to actively engage with local communities. “It is also imperative that parliamentarians, as legislators and privileged policymakers, should engage communities on the ground so that these communities can sustainably become apostolic stakeholders and stockholders of the environment,” Mudenda noted
The Speaker stressed the importance of inclusivity in climate action efforts, declaring, “No one should be left behind in vigorously championing climate action imperatives.” Mudenda also pointed to the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in climate resilience efforts.
“The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in these efforts is an imperative to provide predictive analytics for climate patterns, optimise resource management and facilitate real time monitoring of environmental changes and impacts, which enables swift decision making in our climate action strategies,” he said.
He added “By prioritising the integration of climate resilience, preservation of the environmental ecosystems and securing the necessary resources and legal frameworks, we can unlock our region’s potential to thrive in the face of the exigencies of climate change impacts.
“Let us confront this challenge head on and work together to create a sustainable future for Southern Africa where our environmental ecosystems must thrive, green economies grow and communities prosper.”
The event, organized by the Sadc Parliamentary Forum in collaboration with the International Conservation Caucus Foundation and the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, gathered around 50 delegates, including Members of Parliament, to discuss critical climate resilience measures.
