The over 300 delegates representing Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, eSwatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe present at the official opening ceremony of the 58thPlenary Session of SADC PF in Durban were optimistic about the potential outcomes of the five-day programme, which centres on “The Impact of Climate Change on Women and Youth; and the role that SADC Parliamentarians must play in mitigation and adaptation”.
South Africa is the host of the event and proceedings kicked off with an optimistic opening address from the Speaker of the National Assembly, Ms Thoko Didiza, and remarks from the Deputy President and current Acting President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr Paul Mashatile.
Ms Didiza informed the delegates that the legislative branch is not just an observer in the climate crisis but a decisive actor. Parliamentarians’ roles must extend beyond simply approving budgets to embrace active, intentional and transformative climate change interventions.
On mitigation efforts, she said parliaments must ensure that national legislation aligns with international and regional commitments such as the COP outcomes, the Paris Agreement and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) climate change strategy. “This means enacting laws that incentivises cleaner and renewable energy. Mandating sustainable land use and water management practices. Crucially, we must introduce and monitor climate change acts that have established clear national targets, institutional responsibilities and accountable mechanisms,” Ms Didiza added.
She also expressed the hope that this symposium will enable regional law makers to find better ways to put into action measures to mitigate the impact of climate change.
Mr Mashatile then spoke about the steps South Africa is exploring to mitigate the impact of climate change. Addressing delegates through a virtual platform, he mentioned the serious attention world leaders continue to give to the climate change crisis. He remarked that climate change was a central topic of the G20 summit, with discussions on it culminating in specific commitments that formed part of the world leaders’ declaration.
He also acknowledged that SADC is highly vulnerable to climate impacts, adding that climate change disproportionately affects women and young people in terms of work burden, exposure to gender-based violence, exploitation and health risks.
Advising on how SADC PF should address climate change mitigation and adaptation, Mr Mashatile remarked that SADC parliaments hold a vital mandate and play a multifaceted role in promoting effective and equitable climate action through their functions related to legislation, oversight and representation.
“Immediately, we must enact laws and strengthen our policies to align with regional agreements on climate change. We must also promote gender sensitive policies by introducing legislation that ensures a just and equitable approach; and mandates the mainstreaming of gender consideration in all climate policies,” said Mr Mashatile.
These reforms call for strengthened oversight accountability, whereby parliaments would hold governments accountable for their performance in implementing domestic climate laws, regional commitments and international obligations, Mr Mashatile noted.
He did not leave out the importance of allocating sufficient resources to climate change mitigation and adaptation programmes, in particular those focusing on vulnerable groups.
Temba Gubula
1 December 2025
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