Uganda hosts its inaugural Environment Parliament

Parliament of Uganda has hosted the inaugural Environment Parliament presided over by Mr. Robert Turyakira, the Deputy Executive Director of the Environment Shields.

Under the theme: To enhance national conversations on climate change, climate justice, and citizen led climate actions by mainstreaming Uganda’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), Environment Parliament gathered several voices and experts on matters green, climate finance, waste management, disaster risk reduction, renewable energy transition, environmental and climate and sundry.

During the plenary, Turyakira said the savage attack on nature is simply not sustainable; we can’t win this reckless war against nature. We either symbiotically live with nature or nature will fight back in even a more aggressive way. There is no time, we must take action now. The Environment Parliament is timely and a resourceful platform for all of us.

Uganda has some elaborate environment legal and policy framework including the 1995 Uganda Constitution, National Environment Act, 2019, and the National Climate Change Act, 2021 and the National Climate Change Policy of 2015, but more climate action is needed to hit the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), green growth Strategy, climate adaptation and reversing biodiversity loss. The Updated Uganda’s NDCs set an ambitious target of reducing the Country’s GreenHouse Gas Emissions (GHGEs) up from 22% to 24.7%.

Placing people and the planet above profit to confront the fossil fuels fired triple planetary crisis of the climate hell, biodiversity loss and pollution is the greatest challenge of our generation. Embracing and democratizing clean energy, massive environmental education and strong political will for nature are some of the prerequisites for a habitable future.

It is very good to engage all stakeholders including CSOs, Government MDAs, Private Sector/business community and all citizens to find solutions towards a Comprehensive Climate related Disaster Risk Management Strategy.

Thomas Lesaffre, a green fellow and a researcher said there was “great enthusiasm in the room, and a large presence of women and young people.”

He appreciated the fact that most MPs that addressed the floor were well aware of how climate change is impacting their constituencies. He regretted that big corporations that directly impact our national environment such as Coca- Cola Company and Total Energy were not present to discuss and exchange with the room on their challenges and green policy.

 Brendah Aturihiihi said the major problems in the world result from conflict between how nature works and the way people think. We are living on this planet as if we have another one to go to. To damage the earth is to damage your children. I speak for nature, trees, biodiversity and climate because they have no human tongues.

Eron Kiiza, the CEO of Environment Shields, said events like the Environment Parliament should remind us that fossil fuels are the primary drivers of the climate crisis and continued investments in fossil fuel projects like EACOP is disastrous to our climate, biodiversity, health, human rights and nature. We must speedily embrace and invest more in renewables.