Deputy Speaker, realising environmental rights in our Constitution requires greater focus going forward.
Our sustainability as a country underpins the majority of the Millennium Development Goals, the MDGs. A population that lives in a healthy environment is more likely to be productive, healthy and make use of opportunities. But, according to a report of Statistics SA, it is very likely that the Millennium Development Goal with regard to environmental sustainability will not be met on time.
Environmental challenges are not unique to South Africa, but, as South African legislators, this is where we have the ability to intervene. We need to take stock of the World Wildlife Fund's latest living planet report released this month, which reveals that the world's ecological footprint exceeds the earth's biocapacity by 50%. That means it will take one and a half years for the earth to produce the resources humanity consumes in a single year.
The question of what has become of South Africa's National Framework for Sustainable Development needs to be asked, the framework being an outcome of the 2002 World Summit in Johannesburg. Which department is driving this?
Owing to the nature of environmental protection and sustainability, it cannot just be the work of the Environmental Affairs department. It concerns practically all departments, and I trust therefore that it is getting the attention of the National Planning Commission. [Applause.]