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Preface Annex 1
RESPONSES: POLICY AND INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS
Environmental law has been strengthened across Africa since UNCED. Environmental rights approaches have been developed in many African countries, including Benin, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, the Seychelles and Uganda. Such approaches create a sound basis for dealing with the problems posed by chemicals, protecting human health and a safe environment, while promoting sustainable development.
The development of national legal instruments to implement a comprehensive approach to chemicals, however, has lagged behind. This is exacerbated by shortages of resource allocation for enforcement, monitoring, and training. Effective legislation will require the monitoring as well as the establishment of proper management and disposal systems. Establishing such systems and obtaining the requisite equipment is expensive. Opportunities to bring chemical producers in as part of a solution may be difficult. While it is important for legislation to create proper liability and cost-recovery measures, through, for example, the incorporation of the polluter pays principle, it is also important to look at possible incentives. Public knowledge and information about chemicals and their impacts, underlies the choices of consumers and, should be promoted. Consumer and shareholder values, interests and concerns can be an important shaper of corporate policy.
Technology and capacity issues will also need to be addressed in the implementation of legislation. For example, the development of environmentally acceptable disposal facilities requires a delicate balance between technology complexity and applicability. The requirement of the Stockholm Convention, that the parties develop NIPs, provides unique opportunities for countries to reassess their strengths and weakness in the area of chemical management at national level with global support.
INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE SOUND MANAGEMENT OF CHEMICALS
Institutional arrangements for the sound management of chemicals in African vary from one country to another. In many countries responsibility lies with several agencies. For example, Zimbabwe has four different ministries that administer chemical-related environmental laws, Botswana also has four ministries, while in South Africa responsibility is shared among departments for environment and tourism, agriculture and the provincial governments.
During the 1990s, most African countries established a wide variety of new institutional arrangements for environmental management, protection and restoration. For example, many countries in Northern and Southern Africa created new environment ministries while most Eastern African countries favoured separate environmental protection agencies, as in Uganda and Kenya. Western and Central Africa have a mixture of both. However, the absence of coordination seriously undermines the formulation of a strategic approach and the translation of treaties related to chemical management into country programmes. When sectoral approaches dominate, the mechanisms for cooperation and coordination among different agencies are often ineffective.
Most countries face problems of access to adequate financial resources. Environmental ministries often have smaller budgets and weaker political voices than, for example, those that directly manage productive natural resources such as agriculture or determine economic policy. The result has been uncertainty and a reduced ability to plan and carry out core activities. Effective budgets for agencies have also shrunk. Competing for scarce funds and political commitment, existing institutions are frequently torn between competing priorities. The provision of budgets that cover the operations of institutions will remove some of the bottlenecks experienced. However, there is a need to identify new and additional sources for financial assistance. New financial resources are needed to undertake the programmes related to:
In order to promote the sound management of chemicals in Africa, it is essential that appropriate institutional, policy, legal and administrative arrangements are in place in all countries in the region. Although institutional arrangements for chemical management will vary from country to country due to different socioeconomic conditions, there are some essential elements for the sound management of chemicals that should be included.
An effective legal and policy framework for the management and control of chemicals should be multisectoral with the ability to promote a coherent and coordinated approach. This requires:
This could be supported through: