Mr Speaker, I rise on behalf of the ANC, hopefully and happily on behalf of the whole Portfolio Committee on Water and Environmental Affairs, to recommend to this House the adoption of the report of the portfolio committee on the African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources of 2003, in terms of Section 231(2) of the Constitution 1996; and also recommends that the House rectifies the Algiers Convention.
The African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources was introduced and referred to the Portfolio Committee on Water and Environmental Affairs on 27 August 2012. The convention, which was originally known as the Algiers Convention, was initially formulated in 1968 and was revised and adopted by the AU in Maputo in July 2003. The convention has, however, yet to come into force.
The purpose of the convention is to take into account more modern international developments and approaches to the management of biological diversity and natural resources, such as the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the UN Convention to Combat Desertification.
The main objective of the convention is to encourage individuals into joint action for the conservation, utilisation and development of soil, water, flora and fauna for the present and future welfare of humankind. The portfolio committee processed the introduced convention by receiving a briefing from the Department of Water and Environmental Affairs on 4 September 2012. The convention provides details on its strategic focus, implementation and implications. The status of the convention currently is that it is not yet in force and requires 50 countries to ratify it so that it can come into force.
In engaging the substance of the convention, members raised a number of concerns on a number of issues such as financial implications, duplications and obligations, amongst others. Of particular importance to the committee was article 28 of the convention, which provides as follows:
The parties shall as soon as possible adopt rules and procedures concerning liability and compensation of damages related to matters covered by the convention.
The committee also heard that similar clauses exist in the Basel Convention, the Cartagena Protocol in article 17 of the Stockholm Convention, and in article 18 of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, which may create similar obligations for our country.
The portfolio committee requested legal advice from the Department of International Relations and Co-operation on 7 November 2012 in relation to concerns raised in respect of the possible implications of article 18 of the convention regarding possible liability and payment of compensation by our country. The portfolio committee considered the Department of International Relations and Co-operation's opinion that at this stage it is not possible to predict the actual implications of this article for South Africa.
It further understood, the in relation to issues of liability and compensation of damages, that once the convention enters into force the state parties to the convention will meet to negotiate the rules and procedures to determine and negotiate these issues. However, it is of vital importance that the contents of the rules and procedures, which will be negotiated in future to set the parameters and prescripts of the liability and possible payment for damages, to establish the assessment of risks that South Africa may face as the convention falls within the scope of section 231(2) of our Constitution and consequently it requires parliamentary approval.
In principle, the committee recommends that the House ratifies the convention but also draws the attention of the House to article 18 as this may become a challenge in the future. It is possible that there might be constitutional, legal, political and monetary consequences.
In light of the above possibilities, the committee therefore recommends that the Department of Water and Environmental Affairs and the Department of International Relations and Co-operation brief the portfolio committee on the following: the South African negotiation mandate before the negotiation commences as well as before the adoption of the final rules and procedures pertaining to the liability and compensation of damages clause of the African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources as well as article 12 of the Basel Convention and article 27 of the Cartagena Protocol and on the South African negotiating mandate before the adoption takes place on the procedures and institutional mechanisms for determining noncompliance with the convention.
The portfolio committee recommends that the House ratifies the convention and furthermore recommends that the report be adopted. Thank you, Chairperson. [Applause.]
There was no debate.
Chairperson, on behalf on the Chief Whip of the Majority Party, I move:
That the report be adopted.
I thank you.
Motion agreed to.
Report accordingly adopted.
African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (Algiers Convention - 2003) approved.