Date: 24 October 2023
Time: 12.30 to 14.00 Hrs
Venue: Palace of the National Assembly
Luanda, Angola
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CVF Global Parliamentary Group (CVF GPG) Convenes Second Annual Dialogue at the 147th IPU General Assembly
Luanda, 24 October 2023: The CVF Global Parliamentary Group (CVF GPG) convened its second Annual Dialogue, on the sidelines of the 147th Annual General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) held in Luanda, Angola. This Annual Dialogue provided a vital platform for legislative discussions and collaborative actions focused on climate change and precedes the forthcoming Accountability Summit of the CVF GPG, scheduled to take place at the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28).
The event was moderated by Hon Emmanuel Marfo, Member of Parliament of Ghana and Chair of the CVF GPG. Hon Dr. Md. Abdus Shahid, Hon’ble Chairman, Committee on Estimates, Parliament of Bangladesh opened the session and highlighted the pivotal role of parliaments in climate action in shaping policies and holding the governments accountable for the commitments and progress made on the climate agenda. He also added that accountability is important for tracking progress for our global commitments and welcomed the efforts of CVF GPG to convene the Parliamentary Accountability Summit at COP28 aimed at providing mechanisms to monitor progress, assess the effectiveness of our policies and to drive continuous improvement.
The keynote address was delivered by Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, Speaker of Parliament, Ghana and Her Excellency Deputy President Arlette Chimbinda of the Angola Parliament. Rt Hon Bagbin, stated that we are currently standing at the intersection of influence and responsibility with optimism as our compass. He also added that legislative powers will guide ways to forge policies and frameworks, and that sustainable practices should be promoted.
Hon Deputy President Chimbinda welcomed participants to Luanda, and highlighted the vulnerabilities of African countries causing various socio-ecological and economic pressures for the communities causing poverty, migration, and other impacts. She called for a strategic development model and practical actions by developed countries for enhancing diplomatic actions to tackle the crisis. She added that innocent families have been suffering from the consequences of global emitters. Continuous and unpredictable sea level rise, and extreme weather conditions are leading to unsolvable challenges and irreversible changes for the continent. She also stated that the climate crisis transcends beyond borders and global funds addressed to climate change should be spent to address these problems at a much faster rate.
The meeting also included interventions by Hon. Sofia Carvajal, Member of Parliament from Mexico and newly elected President of GRULAC. She called for coherent lines of action to ensure that regional efforts can be made to tackle the climate crisis. She also referred to making joint efforts to tackle common problems that are faced by vulnerable countries including the reduction of methane emissions and urged for continued advocacy and stronger voices by global leaders. Mr Mohamed Sultan, Regional Lead for Africa for the Global Methane Pledge highlighted the importance of legislation, public policy, public dialogue and accountability for keeping methane emissions to a tolerable level. He also shared updates of their current work with the Latin America and Caribbean region where they are working on methane gas emission reductions by working with various groups across the landscape of justice and fairness.
Following these discussions, Hon Marfo highlighted key elements of the parliamentary statement which contains the key messaging of the CVF GPG priorities at COP28 and opened the floor for comments and statements by CVF member states and observers.
The Speakers of Parliament from Fiji, Tuvalu and Tonga echoed the sentiment that greater efforts ought to be made to advocate for the broadening of the refugee definition to encompass the unique and pressing category of climate refugees. In doing so, we must fervently champion the cause of those who are forcibly displaced from their homes and homelands due to the adverse effects of environmental and climatic factors, a challenge that demands our immediate attention and concerted efforts. They emphasised the importance of paying greater attention to small island states, particularly in the face of rising sea levels. The Speakers highlighted the vulnerability of people living in these islands and suggested the need for a more comprehensive refugee definition that aligns with the challenges posed by post-migration and displacement.
The meeting concluded with the adoption of the outcome statement, moved by Fiji and seconded by Tuvalu.
ENDS
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Click here to download the Outcome Statement of the CVF GPG Annual Dialogue II.
2023 PARLIAMENTARY STATEMENT
