Dodoma, the Capital City of Tanzania and the current seat of the National Assembly, will soon be getting yet another Pan-African Parliament Building.
Except this time the proposed big, modern building will host National Assemblies from all over the African Continent.
This was previously a dream of former Ghanaian President, Kwame Nkurumah who envisaged to erect such property in Accra way back in the 60s.
But now Tanzania will host the building in Dodoma as was revealed during the closing session of the 53rd Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Africa Regional Conference which has just been concluded in Arusha.
Speaking shortly after endorsing the conference resolutions, the Tanzanian Member of the Parliament Salome Wycliffe Makamba, who was part of the committee, said the African Chapter of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association is set to construct the CPA continental headquarters in Dodoma.
“We have resolved to build a state-of-the-art, African Regional Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Headquarters in Tanzania at the cost of USD 30 Million,” revealed MP Makamba adding the structure will serve as CPA permanent seat.
Since 2003, Tanzania has been hosting the seat of the African Chapter for Commonwealth Parliamentary Association after Zimbabwe fell out of the fold.
Other than hosting the CPA Africa Regional Secretariat, the new Pan-African Parliamentary building will also feature continental assembly halls in which some of the meetings and sessions will be held in future.
Other than the new CPA Headquarters, the 53rd CPA Africa Region Conference has come up with a list of other resolutions, derived from various agendas of the meetings that took place at the Gran Melia Hotel in Arusha.
The Committee drafting the resolution consisted of its Chairperson Nontembeko Nothemba Boyce, a Member of Parliament from KwaZulu Natal in South Africa.
There were three members including, Salome Wycliffe Makamba, from Tanzania) Ilyas Younos Karim, from Malawi and Abdul Sulaiman Marray-Conteh, of Sierra Leone.
Others were members of the Secretariat including Thomas Shawa, Emmanuel Mpanda, Hanifa Masaninga, Mkuta Masoli and Ludovick Ringia.
Regarding Climate
Among the resolutions, delegates noted the commitment made by African countries in the Paris Agreement and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and enhance resilience to climate impacts.
They further noted the African Union Agenda 2063 calls for united efforts, self-reliance, Africa financing its own climate smart, all-inclusive, people-driven development and Africa speaking with one voice in global fora.
The CPA Meeting recognized the urgent need for African countries to enhance their preparedness to cope with the effects of climate change, and acknowledged the diverse impacts climate change has on various sectors including agriculture, water resources, public health, infrastructure, and food security.
The Conference affirmed the importance of collaborative efforts among African nations to share knowledge, resources, and best practices in addressing climate change challenges.
Members also acknowledged the increasing frequency and severity of climate related events such as droughts, floods, and cyclones across the African continent, which have significant socio-economic impacts.
They affirmed that addressing climate change requires a multi-faceted approach involving government agencies, private sector stakeholders, civil society organizations, and local communities.
CPA Africa reaffirmed the commitment of African nations to work collaboratively towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) while addressing climate challenges through resilient infrastructure, sustainable agriculture practices, and renewable energy solutions.
Renewable energy
Their resolutions expressed concern that fossil fuels, including oil, natural gas, and coal account for the substantial portion of energy sources in Africa, which sources are not environmental friendly, cost ineffective and unsustainable and recognized the vast potential of renewable energy sources in Africa including solar, wind, hydro, and geothermal energy and the critical role that renewable energy can play in driving sustainable industrialization and economic growth across the continent.
The meeting considered the environmental benefits of transitioning to renewable energy sources, including reduced greenhouse gas emissions and improved air quality and noted that increased investment in renewable energy infrastructure can drive economic development, create jobs, and improve energy security.
Aware of the challenges posed by inadequate financing, technical expertise, and regulatory frameworks in scaling up renewable energy projects and recalled the commitments made under the Nairobi Declaration to increase Africa’s renewable capacity from 56b GW to at least 300 GW by 2030.
The 53rd Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (Africa Region) Annual General Conference, in Tanzania from 29th September to 7th October, 2024, ran under the Theme of “African Parliaments at the forefront of addressing existential global challenges: Food insecurity, climate change and youth employment.”
The meeting was attended by Parliamentarians from National and Sub-National branches, committed to the ideals of the African Union and the Commonwealth.
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