Over 160 representatives of Africa’s judiciary and law enforcement authorities agreed on 16 October 2015 to ensure the enforcement and practical implementation of environmental law, which they described as a precondition to achieving inclusive, sustainable development in the region.

The agreement was made at the 1^st Africa Colloquium on Environmental Rule of Law in Nairobi, organized by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Office of the Chief Justice of Kenya, the Konrad Adenauer Foundation and the Judiciary Training Institute of Kenya (JTI).

Ibrahim Thiaw, Deputy Executive Director of UNEP said, “The success in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and the ‘Africa We Want’ agenda hinges on our ability to harness Africa’s bountiful natural resources to power peaceful, inclusive and sustainable development.

“Guaranteeing citizens’ participation, access to justice and information in environmental matters, combating the illegal trade in wildlife and other forms of environmental crimes, and harmonizing legal frameworks between countries will create equal opportunities for all, help to eliminate poverty and ensure sound management of Africa’s ecosystems.”

The Chief Justice of Kenya, Hon. Willy Mutunga, in his welcoming remarks, invited participants to come up with recommendations on areas and priorities for action and formulate mechanisms for implementation. He expressed his delight that his office is partnering with UNEP and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in this inaugural colloquium.

Delegates also called for the development of a roadmap that would lead to the full regional implementation of Principle 10 of the Rio de Janeiro Declaration and UNEP’s ‘Bali Guidelines’, which – with their pillars of access to information, access to justice and public participation – are essential to promoting peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development.

“A lot of progress has been made in both legislative reforms and judicial interventions in Africa. The way forward is to develop a roadmap for regional instruments on the implementation of Rio +10 and the Bali guidelines,” said Prof Muhammed Twafiq Ladan, from Zaria University, Nigeria.

The colloquium offered an opportunity to exchange information and share good practices in advancing environmental rule of law in Africa. These success stories highlighted the crucial role that the judiciary, prosecutors, auditors, government representatives, civil society and the private sector and other related enforcement officials play – individually and collectively – in advancing environmental rule of law in the region.

The colloquium concluded with The Nairobi Statement, which called upon African countries to integrate mechanisms to ensure adequate access to information, public participation and justice in environmental matters through a regional process and framework. The Statement further called for integration of environmental law into the curricula of judicial and other training institutes. It also emphasized the need for the establishment of a regional network on environmental rule of law to facilitate regular and continuous exchange of information, knowledge and experiences in the region.

The colloquium recognized the critical role of mutual legal assistance and urged all countries in the African region to enhance transboundary cooperation to combat the illegal wildlife trade and other environmental crimes.

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Background

The importance of promoting the rule of law related to sustainable development and environmental sustainability has gained recognition in recent years, following the outcomes of the Rio+20 Conference and the UNEP World Congress on Advancing Justice, Governance and Law for Environmental Sustainability in 2012. In February 2013, UNEP’s Governing Council adopted the first internationally negotiated document to establish the term ‘environmental rule of law’ which was reinforced by Resolutions on illegal wildlife trade and access to justice in environmental matters at the first ever United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) in June 2014.

Promoting the rule of law requires measures to ensure adherence to the principles of supremacy of the law, equality before the law, accountability to the law, fairness in the application of the law, separation of powers, public participation in decision-making, access to information, access to justice, legal certainty, avoidance of arbitrariness, and procedural and legal transparency. The 1st Africa Colloquium on Environmental Rule of Law is organized to define and promote such measures in the field of the environment – including the application of Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration from 1992 – as well as to enhance the capacity of the legal and auditing communities to develop and implement environmental rule of law.

The Colloquium which is organized by UNEP in partnership with the Office of the Chief Justice of Kenya, Konrad Adenauer Foundation and the Judiciary Training Institute of Kenya (JTI) brings together judges, prosecutors, auditors, government representatives and other related authorities of the environmental, legal and enforcement community and the institutions they represent and representatives of Non-Governmental Organisations to this inaugural Colloquium to help develop and implement environmental rule of law and to define a new future for environmental justice, governance and law in the African Region and beyond.

Outcome of the Colloquium will be recommendations on areas and priorities for action to promote the development and implementation of environmental rule of law in the African Region and the establishment of a course of action for the implementation of these recommendations. This outcome may also include concrete proposals on how to go about implementing Principle 10 in Africa, including through regional and/or sub regional legal instruments as already developed in other regions of the world. The Colloquium will also lay the foundation for the design and development of guidance/knowledge tools to facilitate the development and implementation of environmental rule of law at the global and other levels.