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SENATE HANSARD 14 MARCH 2018 27-29

PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE

Wednesday, 14^th March, 2018

The Senate met at Half­past Two o’clock p. m.

PRAYERS

(THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in the Chair)

ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF

THE SENATE

INVITATION TO A MULTI­STAKEHOLDER CONVERSATION

THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I wish

to advise the Senate  that the Centre for Peace Initiatives in Africa and Zimbabwe Institute are inviting all Committee Chairpersons and the Chairperson of the Women’s Caucus to a multi­stakeholder conversation with the Minister of Finance and Economic Development. The objective of the dialogue is to enhance national consensus on essential factors conducive for promoting investment and economic development in Zimbabwe.  The dialogue session will be held at Rainbow Towers on 22^nd March, 2018, from 0830 hours to 1300 hours.  All Chairpersons must attend.

SUBMISSION OF CDF RETURNS

THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE:

Following the announcement on the 7^th of March 2018, on the requirement of Hon. Members to comply with Article 5.2.4 of the Accounting Officers’ Instructions which provides for submission of returns for CBF, Hon. Eng. Mudzuri and Hon. Matangira raised two point of orders in relation to the employment of an accounting officer to manage the fund and the scrapping of the requirement for the submission of job cards.  The objective of the fund is to allocate monies equitably to constituencies for purposes of constituency development and poverty eradication.  The Constitution does not provide for the employment of staff to manage the fund or the payment of allowances for committee members, hence the requirement in Article 9 (3) of the CDF Constitution as read together with Article 5.1 of the Accounting Officer’s Manual.  In terms of these provisions the Constituency Development Fund

Committee shall consist of any other three members co­opted by the Committee and must, within the Committee, establish a sub­committee on Finance and Procurement which consists of three members with one member having an administration or accounting background.  The duties of the sub­committee are listed in Article 5.2 and Article 5.2.3 which states one of the duties as maintaining cash book and other relevant records.  The Committee shall delegate the responsibility to one of members with an accounting or administration background.

Let me also remind you Hon. Members that the Member of Parliament who is the Chairperson is the accounting officer of the funds allocated for his constituency and must, for purposes of accountability, comply with the requirements of submission of returns as stipulated in the Accounting Officers’ Manual for tabling to the CSRO annually by the Clerk of Parliament.

The requirement for submission of job cards is a requirement of the CDF Constitution and must be complied with even for small jobs as referred by the Hon. Members. The purpose is for accounting for the allocated funds.  The CDF Fund must also be audited by the AuditorGeneral at the end of each financial year.  The job cards may be purchased from Printflow (former Government Printers) and charged to the fund.

Members who have not submitted the documents are advised to do so by close of business on the 31^st of March 2018.  This is to allow for all administrative processes to be completed before the end of the Eighth Parliament and for all Hon. Members to account for monies allocated for their constituencies before the dissolution of Parliament.  No Member will be allowed to claim for fuel allowances for the purposes of submission of documents if they choose to submit during the period when Parliament is adjourned. The names of Members who have not submitted any documentation or projects or claimed their allocation will be submitted to Chief Whips or named after the cutoff date.  Be advised accordingly.

MOTION

RATIFICATION OF THE MARRAKESH TREATY ON ACCESS TO

PUBLISHED WORKS FOR BLIND, VISUALLY IMPAIRED OR

PRINT DISABLED PERSONS

THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE

(HON. KAGONYE): Mr. President, I move the motion standing in my name:

THAT WHEREAS Section 327 (2) (a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that any Convention, Treaty or Agreement acceded to, concluded or executed by or under the authority of the President with one or more foreign states of governments or International

Organisations shall be subject to approval by Parliament;

WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe is desirous of becoming party to the Marrakesh Treaty to facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise print disabled;

WHEREAS the Marrakesh Treaty recognises that Governmental and Non – Governmental Organisations play an important role in providing persons with print disabilities with access to alternative format materials;

WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe is desirous of ratifying the

Marrakesh Treaty;

WHEREAS the entry into force of the aforesaid Treaty shall be conditional upon its ratification by the Member States in accordance with their Constitutional Procedures;

NOW THEREFORE, in terms of Section 327 (2) (a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, this House resolves that the aforesaid Treaty be and is hereby approved for ratification.

The Marrakech Treaty seeks to facilitate access to published works by visually impaired persons and persons with print disabilities.  This was adopted in Morocco on 28^th June 2013.  Zimbabwe joined other member States of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and/or members of the Berne Union for the protection of literary and artistic works in concluding the treaty which allows for copyright exceptions to facilitate the creation of accessible versions of books and other copyrighted works for visually impaired persons.  The treaty sets a norm for countries ratifying the treaty to have a domestic copyright exception covering these activities and allowing for the import and export of such materials.

The Marrakech Treaty seeks to facilitate access to published works by visually impaired persons and persons with print disabilities.  This was adopted in Morocco on 28^th June 2013.  Zimbabwe joined other member States of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and/or members of the Berne Union for the protection of literary and artistic works in concluding the treaty, which allows for copyright exceptions to facilitate the creation of accessible versions of books and other copyrighted works for visually impaired persons.  The treaty sets a norm for countries ratifying the treaty to have a domestic copyright exception covering these activities and allowing for the import and export of such materials.

In principle, the Marrakech Treaty falls under the purview of the rights of persons with disabilities and visual impairment.  Currently, the Disabled Persons Act is undergoing rigorous reforms in the purview of the alignment of laws to the Constitution exercise and incorporating the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.  Increasing access is not primarily a legal question but requires cultural change of mainstreaming access for visually impaired persons by all actors in the information chain.  Once domesticated, it will enhance the right to education, information and participation among others by visually impaired persons at every level who are otherwise finding it difficult to advance to post­secondary education due to limited learning materials and appropriate technology to access works.

The treaty widens the scope of limitations and exceptions to copyright at the international level.  It follows that the Zimbabwe copyright system now falls short of the international regime in so far as access to published works by the visually impaired persons and those with print disabilities is concerned.  Zimbabwe therefore needs to revise and amend the copyright legislation, particularly the provisions on limitations and exceptions and align it with the Marrakech Treaty. An enabling legal framework would empower, rather than threaten the ability of rights holders to serve the market of visually impaired persons. It would improve cooperation and public private partnership, and would also support markets instead of only assisting such access. Thank you.

HON. SEN. MASHAVAKURE:  Thank you Mr. President.  I

would like to thank the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare for the move that she has taken together with the Ministry to have this Marrakesh Treaty ratified because it is going to benefit a large chunk of the disability constituents which has been experiencing a lot of difficulties from primary to tertiary education in terms of accessing published works including prescribed text for the various levels of education.  I think now this is going to solve the whole problem and it will also, I believe encourage local publishers to make sure that whenever a new book comes into play or when an old book is reprinted, they can also come up with, for instance, an electronic version of that same published work which is easily accessible to persons with visual impairment and those who are not able to read, who are print disabled.

An e­version is good in the sense that it will not go to the reader for free because it will be sold just like the print version.  I think this is a very good move, but my worry is that in the past, we have ratified the United Nations Convention here and five years down the line, it still has not been domesticated.  My query to the Minister would be, are we getting into the same instant, into the same territory whereby we ratify it today and then again we have to wait for a date and a day on which the Marrakesh Treaty will be domesticated. Thank you Mr. President.

HON. SEN. SHIRI:  Thank you Mr. President.  I would like also to add my voice and thank the Hon. Minister for this positive move as we move to promote inclusive education and also just to remind the Hon. Minister that the domestication of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities I think needs more attention as we are in the aligning of the laws.  Also, we are very grateful Hon. Minister, that at last we received the letters that the belated IDD is going to be there on 26^th March and His Excellency will be there as our guest of honour.  Thank you.

HON. SEN. TIMVEOS:  Thank you Mr. President.  I just want to also add my voice to this treaty.  I want to thank the Hon. Minister for bringing this treaty to the Senate.  This treaty is very important and its ratification is really critical.

Hon. Minister, like you heard Hon. Sen. Mashavakure talking about domestication, most of the times we sign all these treaties and we ratify, but we never domesticate.  I think this is a very important treaty whereby you really have to rush and domesticate it because we have been going around with HIV and Aids Thematic Committee around the country and a lot of our fellow citizens that are visually impaired are really crying for braille.

They are crying to say, we cannot even read.  The condoms that you give us, we cannot read.  A lot of things that could otherwise happen, they cannot and also when they go to hospital, some of the things they are meant to learn, they cannot read them because braille is just not available.  So, all sectors, every Ministry actually, should have this other.  So, I am quite happy with this treaty that you have got and its ratification.  I thank you.

THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE

(HON. KAGONYE):  Thank you Mr. President and thank you Hon. Senators for your contributions.  From what I heard, they are all supporting and the main concern is the domestication of the treaty.  All I can do right now is to confirm and also to make a pledge that we are going to do what we can as soon as possible so that the treaty is also domesticated.  Thank you.

Motion put and agreed to.

MOTION

RATIFICATION OF THE SADC PROTOCOL ON

EMPLOYMENT AND LABOUR

THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE

(HON. KAGONYE):  I move the motion standing in my name:

THAT WHEREAS Section 327 (2) (a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that any convention, treaty or agreement acceded to, concluded or executed by or under the authority of the President with one or more foreign states of governments or International Organisations shall be subject to approval by Parliament;

WHEREAS Zimbabwe is committed to promote and protect the social and economic rights of its people and guarantee International

Organisations and regional best practices in the labour market;

AND WHEREAS Zimbabwe approved of the SADC policies on

Child Labour, Social Security, Use of Chemicals, HIV and HIV and Decent work it remains desirous to       realize the aspirations of regional cooperation and integration in the employment and Labour sector;

AND WHEREAS, His Excellency, the President of the republic of

Zimbabwe, Cde. Robert Gabriel Mugabe on the 18th of August 2014 at

Victoria Falls signed SADC Protocol and Employment and Labour;

NOW THEREFORE, in terms of Section 327 (2) (a) of the

Constitution of Zimbabwe, this House resolves that the aforesaid Ratification of the SADC Protocol on Employment and Labour be and is hereby approved for acceptance.

Thank you Mr. President.  I would like to move for the approval of acceptance for the ratification of the SADC Protocol on employment and labour.

Employment and labour are vital components of economic development.  A vibrant labour market attracts foreign direct investment and improves living standards for people throughout the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region.

The former Head of State and Government, Cde Robert Gabriel

Mugabe on the 18^th of August, 2014 in Victoria Falls joined with other

Heads of States to sign the SADC Protocol on Employment and Labour. They were driven by the commitment to promote and to protect the economic and social rights of the people of Africa and guarantee special protection to the marginalised sections of the societies and also giving effect to the Internationals Labour Organisarion core conventions. These core conventions include the Declaration on Fundamental

Principles and Rights at work of 1998, the ILO Employment Policy

Conventions, the Social Security (minimum standards) Convention of 1952 and other core international instruments concerning labour and social security.

At present, employment and labour productivity in SADC member

States remains low, with a considerable number of people currently engaged in subsistence rather than formal employment.  Furthermore, structural changes from the implementation of the SADC free trade area have affected businesses that were protected by tariffs and lack of competition, which can negatively affect local employment.  In addition, the introduction of efficient technologies can reduce the demand for employment in productive sectors such as oil, gas and mining, thereby increasing the skill requirements necessary for those jobs that remain available.  Extractive industries are also capital­intensive, which creates a barrier to entry for potential local business owners.  In response to these issues, the labour force has turned to informal systems of employment, which are characterised by lower incomes, insecurity and under­employment.

Following from the assertion that inadequate labour standards and regulations are responsible for low employment rates, SADC began implementing standards developed by the International Labour Organisation in 1997.  The International Labour Organisation is also providing half of the funding for a long­term programme intended to increase employment in the region.  The programme is already yielding positive results: from 2010 to 2011; 200 000 jobs were created in South

Africa alone, 60% of which were for women.

In terms of Section 327 (2) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, international treaties require approval by Parliament tor domestication. With respect to the present protocol on employment and labour, the primary objective of SADC is to increase opportunities for employment in the region.  To meet this objective, labour productivity needs to improve, member states will enjoin in terms of Article 21 to co­operate in all areas necessary to foster regional development and integration on the basis of balance, equity and mutual benefit.  It is agreed that the protocol through employment and labour sector areas of co­operation will guide employment creation, poverty eradication facilation of labour migration and harmonisation of labour and social security legislation.

Thank you.

HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA:  I thank the Minister for coming to

this House to get ratification for this treaty and I think that it is the right move. When the Minister started presenting her paper, she stated that employment and labour are critical for a vibrant economy.  I would like the Government related companies and other employers to be aware of that statement because we cannot have the labour we need and we cannot have the vibrancy that we need for the economy when people employed in Government related companies are going on for years without payment.  So, we ratify this with the full understanding that you will gear up as Minister of Labour and Social Welfare and ensure that people get a fair return for their labour.  I thank you Mr. President.

HON. SEN. CHIMHINI: Thank you Mr. President and thank you Minister for bringing the motion for ratification.  I hope that as we accept the motion in this House, you are also looking at the economic zones which we are now talking about in the country because it appears that it is not very clear whether those people are properly covered in terms of the works.  Normally, we get very conflicting statements that the employees may not be covered under the labour laws.  At one time we understand that the former President indicated that that was an anomaly but I am not too sure practically on the ground whether what we are rarifying here or accepting as Parliament would then accommodate those employees in those economic zones.

Secondly, I want to find out whether our ratification is also looking at the tripartite arrangement because these are critical if we have to have a smooth running in this country once we talk about employment, employers and so on.  We want to find out whether it will also cover the public servants because they are workers/employees and currently we have the junior doctors on strike and one cannot talk about a vibrant society when we have doctors who go on strike because the labour laws in this country may not categorically cover public servants, yet they are also employees like any other person.  So I would wish the Minister to also look at those aspects so that it is not just a ratification and at the end we still continue having people who complain that they are workers but they are not properly catered for.  I thank you Mr. President.

HON. SEN. SHOKO:  Thank you Mr. President. I want to thank the Minister for bringing this SADC Protocol on Employment and Labour to this House.  This is a very important protocol because it is going to allow our people to have a choice of jobs because then it means to say that SADC is now open to our people.  As you know our people have got skills and as you know, we have a lot of colleges that are producing graduates every year and our unemployment is very high. Therefore, I think that will help our people to get employment in SADC countries and they would not be going there illegally.  They will be going there with the necessary documentations.  This will help this country in this way Mr. President.  We will be able to have pensions being remitted to this country from SADC countries.

Presently, that is not possible because we had not signed this protocol.  We will also be able to be getting remittances if we want, where we can make arrangements with SADC Governments so that those who were born around the 1960s or 1970s, you know something called Wenera.  In Wenera the Government would get a particular percentage for their taxes.  So, having signed this protocol, and also ratifying it in Parliament, it would help Government’s economic drive, and certainly you would get that economic drive.  However, the problem that we have is that it is ratified in Parliament, and then it is not put in an Act.  It becomes a bit difficult for the stakeholders to then be able to move forward using that particular protocol, because a protocol can be signed but if it is not enabled by a local Act, it becomes a bit of a problem.  That is so because when you use it, you have to use the Constitution to say there is a protocol that you signed, it is not covered by an Act, therefore, I am using the Constitution. So, I am kindly requesting that the Hon. Minister goes back and to have this brought into the Acts.  I know that this may not be covered by the Labour Act because this is a regional protocol and there must be an Act that covers this one, so that when the workers want to emigrate or make applications and recruitment – they understand how they are recruiting.

Presently you will find that our workers are being exploited

because we do not have these protocols that are signed with SADC.  Our workers are being harassed all the time when they go to South Africa or Botswana.  Some of our workers when they get to Botswana and secure work for a month, at the end of the month the employer calls the police and they are deported.  With this protocol, we are no longer going to have that because all the employees are going to have the requisite permits to go, live and work in Botswana and return to their country of origin.  So Hon. Minister, I urge you to quickly look into this issue.  We are happy that you brought it here for ratification and we congratulate you for doing that.  I thank you.

HON. SEN. KHUMALO:  I would also like to applaud the Hon. Minister for bringing this protocol to the Senate so that we can discuss about it and the fact that we are now going to ask for the alignment so that we can easily implement what is written in this document.  What is good about it is the fact that while we are very happy that it is covering the SADC region, we now have to look at the children and women.  Once this protocol is ratified, in future, the women and children will be protected from abuse because we find that women are really abused due to poor labour practices and that is why we find women on the streets.

Now that the SADC countries have agreed that they want to have a system that covers them all and we have heard that there will be agreements that people can go and work.  I visited a country that I am not going to name.  We were really embarrassed that we had our own women in that country who were saying, ‘now we want to go back home but it is difficult for us to do so because when we came here, were promised work’.  There was no system of making the workers to work in that country, they were in real trouble.  We appreciate that this protocol on labour will allow women to work freely and have their remittances sent to their relatives in Zimbabwe as they will be protected.  I think the labour laws will also reduce the number of night workers ­ as you can see, because there is no work.   We find night workers working there because that is making it unsafe to work for an individual.  They do not look after them, they then prefer to stand along the streets and work at night.

I hope that with this SADC labour law, that we as a country will also appreciate and use it and that it is  going to make our Zimbabwean women work with protection so that they are not afraid to work or end up on the streets working at night.  In that manner and appreciation, I would like to thank the Hon. Minister.  I thank you.

*THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE (HON.  SEN. CHIEF CHARUMBIRA):  Who are the night workers? – [Laughter.] –

HON. SEN. MUMVURI:  Thank you Mr. President, allow me to thank the Hon. Minister for coming to this House and complete this range of protocols.  They have been sitting for quite some time, since last year and at one time there was no Minister to respond to that.  I thank her for bringing this.

Since it is the SADC protocol on employment and labour, it is going to be a regional document or issue that affects labour in all our regional countries.  My questions are: is this protocol going to recognise remuneration of certain fields like engineers and electricians?  Is it going to stipulate average remuneration within the region or each country is going to peg its own salaries?

Secondly, does this protocol cover our workers who are in the sporting fields like soccer players who migrate to South Africa, Botswana and those who come here?  Are their conditions of service going to be regulated?  I thank you.

THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE (HON. KAGONYE):  Thank you Mr. President.  I

would like to thank Hon. Senators for their contributions.  I would like to highlight that the SADC protocol seeks to realise the aspirations of regional cooperation and integration on employment and labour.  It seeks to bring best practices within the SADC countries when it comes to issues of labour and employment.

In terms of Hon. Sen. Chimhini’s contribution about special economic zones, the TNF and Public Service – it is not covered under this protocol.  We have a separate TNF Bill that has since passed Cabinet Committee on Legislation and awaits being presented in Cabinet.  So it will be coming to Parliament soon.  Also the special economic zones regulations are also incorporated in the Labour Act and it will be coming.  The public service is part of labour so the ILO and its regulations apply to all forms of labour.

To Hon. Sen. Sibanda, the return for labour, I take note of that one but it is also not covered under this protocol.

Hon. Sen. Shoko, those were quite supportive comments to what we are talking about and the domestication of the protocol is what we are concerned about.  I take note.

The other contributions, I think, maybe it about understanding how the protocol operates, but the protocol just seeks to regularise what happens within SADC countries.  So in terms of stipulating the amounts of salaries that are paid for specific skills, well it depends with the countries, otherwise I noted your contributions and would like to thank you.

Motion put and agreed to.

THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I want

to make a comment Minister; I congratulate you that your motion has gone through.  I also want to compliment you for speaking fluent English.

MOTION

RATIFICATION OF THE ILO PROTOCOL TO THE FORCED

LABOUR CONVENTION P029

THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE

(HON. KAGONYE): Thank you Mr. President for the compliment.

Mr. President, I move the motion standing in my name;

THAT WHEREAS, Section 327 (2) (a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that any Convention, Treaty or Agreement acceded to, concluded or executed by or under the authority of the President with one or more foreign states or governments or International Organisations shall be subject to approval by Parliament;

WHEREAS Zimbabwe is a member State of the International

Labour Organisation and seeks to eradicate forced labour in all its forms;

AND WHEREAS Cabinet approved of the Ratification of the ILO

Protocol to the Forced Labour Convention P029 on the 1^st of June, 2017:

NOW, THEREFORE, in terms of Section 327 (2) (a) of the

Constitution of Zimbabwe, this House resolves that the aforesaid

Protocol be, and is hereby, approved for acceptance.

Forced labour is defined as, “all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered themselves voluntarily”.  The indicators of forced labour are, abuse of vulnerability, deception, restriction of movement, isolation, physical and sexual violence, intimidation and threats, retention of identity documents, withholding of wages, debt bondage, abusive working and living conditions and excessive overtime.  The prohibition of forced or compulsory labour forms part of the body of fundamental rights, and affords dignity of women, men and children.

Forced labour contributes to the perpetuation of poverty and stands in the way of the achievement of decent work for all.  Protocol number 29 of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention recognises that the context and forms of forced or compulsory labour have changed and now takes on board trafficking in persons for the purposes of forced or compulsory labour.  In most cases, it involves sexual exploitation which has become the subject of growing international concern and requires urgent action for its effective elimination.  There is indeed an increased number of workers who are in forced or compulsory labour in the private economy, and certain sectors of the economy are particularly vulnerable, certain groups of workers have a higher risk of becoming victims of forced or compulsory labour, especially migrants.

Anyone can become a victim of forced labour.  However, people who lack knowledge of the local language or laws have few livelihood options, these belong to a minority religious or ethnic group, have a disability or have other characteristics that set them apart from the majority population and are especially vulnerable to abuse and more often found in forced labour.  In Zimbabwe, forced labour saw these indicators in situations where females were trafficked to places such as

Kuwait for various unspecified violations against their person.

Forced labourers, their family members and close associates may be subjected to actual physical or sexual violence.  Violence can include forcing workers to take drugs or alcohol so as to have greater control over them.  Violence can also be used to force a worker to undertake tasks that were not part of the initial agreement, such as to have sex with the employer or family member or, less extreme, to undertake obligatory domestic work in addition to their “normal” tasks.  Physical abduction or kidnapping is an extreme form of violence which can be used to take a person captive and then force them to work.  Violence is not acceptable as a disciplinary measure under any circumstances; it is a very strong indicator or forced labour.

The Constitution of Zimbabwe under Section 327 encouraged the

Ratification of International Conventions, Agreements and Instruments.

Out of 26 International Labour Organisations Conventions ratified by Zimbabwe, 25 are in force including the Forced Labour Protocol ratified on the 27^th of August, 1998.  The benefits of ratifying this Protocol will see the elimination of forced labour in all its forms through domestication.  It will curb the discrimination against vulnerable groups of society including women, minority groups and persons with disabilities.  International and regional member states to the protocol shall cooperate for the purposes of mitigating forced labour at their borders and in their jurisdictions.

HON. SEN. SHOKO: Thank you Mr. President and Hon. Minister.  Let me congratulate the Minister for bringing this Protocol into this Senate.  You can see that this Protocol was there in 1930 and from 1930 up to today, it had not been ratified by any governments that have been there in this country.  The reason was very simple, it was because the governments that were there wanted to use cheap labour and therefore, could not ratify this. It is unfortunate that in 1998, we ratified it with the ILO but we did not bring it for domestication into Parliament which we should have done then as quickly as possible.  We thought that by that time it was a black Government and there was no forced labour.

I want to thank the Minister for bringing it because our women have been trafficked to Kuwait, those that read papers; you have seen a lot of women taken to Kuwait.  There are promised good jobs there like airhostess, nurses, et cetera.  When you get there, you are then sold like a slave and you are not paid anything. You are kept in the house and you sleep outside like a dog. So, the ratification of this one will then eliminate the forced labour situation. Yes, certainly in this country, we have some nationals that come and try to do forced labour.  I am encouraged that the Minister talked about Kuwait and I will also talk about these nationals that come and start to do forced labour, the Chinese people.  They are the ones that are culprits to this issue of forced labour.  We are urging the Minister that she has got labour officers that go around, they must check on that because that is very important.

We will not want our people to be abused; we were abused enough 100 years ago, remember the Europeans came into this country in 1890 and we only got our independence in 1980, that is 100 years  ­ [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – in 1890 and got our independence in 1990, I can be mixing the dates but certainly I am right, we were colonized for 100 years.  I also stayed under colonialism, some of the guys here might not have stayed under colonialism because 1980, we became independent and 1981, they were born and there was freedom.

I certainly support the ratification of this one and also urge that it be put it in an Act as quickly as possible because the problem that we have got is we have got a lot of procrastination of things.  We do not do things as quickly as possible.  Let me thank the Minister for bringing this up and let us have an enactment of this Protocol. I thank you Mr.

President.

HON. SEN. MAKORE:  Thank you Hon. President for giving me this opportunity to say a few words.  I also want to thank our Minister for bringing this forced labour convention.  Generally, what we are discussing is very common.  You see a lot of such exploitation going on. Forced labour is very common – the youth, women or everyone is sexually abused.  I have stood to thank you because of the fact that you have brought this up.  We believe it will take us a mile stone in addressing the current issues which we have been in practice for years. If this can be eliminated in terms of the focus that you have given this august House, that this Convention is going to eliminate that, it will be a very welcome development to this society.  I do believe that such laws are long overdue.  This was mentioned in this House by the previous speaker that this was common in a colonial state whereby people were forced during the early days when people wanted to force in order to achieve their maximum production.

They intended to force people even to do excess work or overtime as a result of wanting to achieve their goals but because of this independence, it appears surprising.  It is coming on track where everybody is expected to be free and make a choice and work within reasonable conditions.  With these few additions, I thank you Mr.

President.

HON. SEN. MOHADI:  Thank you Mr. President.  I would also want to add my voice on this motion.

This is a welcome development.  We have been waiting for this motion for quite a long time.  You will find that the people who are mostly affected by forced labour are women.  It is not only Kuwait which is doing that – even our neighbouring countries are fond of doing that.  You find that Zimbabwean women are taken to neighbouring countries being promised jobs.  When they get there, alas, they do not even get those jobs.  Even before they get to their destination, they are abused on the way, especially those who will be crossing to South Africa.  As I have often seen as someone who stays near the border, you find that these women and children between the ages of 12­13 years wanting to go and seek for employment in South Africa; they have a mammoth task to do because they will not be having passports or money for transport. They have to jump the borders.  It is not easy to do so because there are people manning borders even at undesignated points and for them to cross those rivers, there have to be abused in a way or another because there is someone who will be manning the border.  He would want some favours before the women cross that river.

As you approach the gates of South Africa, you will find someone again waiting for some favours for you to get to South Africa.  When you get to South Africa, you know no­one.  You want employment and you are taken for a ride.  They will say we will give you work but at the end of the day, you are not even given that work but you are abused.  It is not only the Kuwait Government that was doing that.  It is happening all over the show.  We need to work hard.  Even though it is ratified, I do not think it is never too late, we have to work very hard in order to assist our people who are suffering – the women and the girl child because instead of these girls going to school, they are taken for granted. They will be given work somewhere and at the end of the day, they are not given money.

For those that are said to be employed ­ I visited some place sometime ago and I found that there was a place in the communal areas which was called Zimbabwe in a foreign country, whereby most of our girls were staying near a dam.  For them to survive, they were molding bricks.  The men would go up the mountains to collect firewood to burn those bricks. They were not getting anything.  They had to be kept there without being disturbed by that Government whilst they worked for it.  It was a very painful situation.

If this treaty or protocol is made authentic, I think it will minimise some of these problems that I am highlighting.  With these few words, I fully support this motion.  I thank you.

HON. SEN. MAKONE:  Thank you Mr. President Sir.  I just want to add a few words to what my colleagues have already mentioned. I also want to thank the Minister sincerely for bringing this motion to this House.

As she said, this protocol was probably acceded to by the

Zimbabwean Government a long time ago.  I do not know why we take so long to finally bring to the House something that is of benefit to our people.  I can only conclude that we are participants to the abuse of labour ourselves.  I am not even going to talk about foreign countries. I know what happens in foreign countries. It has been stated by the speakers who spoke before me.

I want to talk about what we are doing here ourselves.  When all this is done and complete, I would want to know what kind of punishment should be meted out to ourselves when we do this to each other.  We do have people who work on our farms that are not being paid salaries. They are given a small patch of land on which to grow food for themselves and that is their salary.  It is happening right now. That is now what we consider forced labour. In the old days, they were not being paid a lot of money but at least they knew that come monthend, my salary is five dollars and I get a bag of beans and a bar of soap.

At least there was a salary.

It is very sad that even as I speak now, there are people who look and feel aggrieved.  You should not do this because we now want to change things.  It is a new era, as the President said.  Let us call a spade a spade so that change comes from within before we take it outside the country.  This rule applies more to us than it does to other people.  They see how we treat ourselves.  For instance, those young men who are digging for gold, there are people with teams of people that go and dig that gold.  They risk their lives. Some of them get buried underneath but they get a fraction of the amount of money that comes out of the gold, not even enough to sustain themselves, but the people, the real barons of this gold are millionaires.  So, really let us start first by correcting inside ourselves.

Minister, I want to thank you very much and we are going to support you, but when all this is said and done, I would like you to bring another Bill which talks to what we do with people who continue to flout the law that we are going to pass in this House.  Thank you Mr.

President.

HON. SEN. MUMVURI:  Thank you Mr. President.  I also rise to support the protocol, especially so after the last speaker who has brought the problems at home where we flout these rules.

From the definition given by the Minister that forced labour includes among others, but not limited to ­ it is going beyond the stipulated duty which somebody has been employed to do.  If for example, Hon. Sen. Makone has talked about the farms.  I totally agree with that, but we also have domestic workers who when they are employed, they are given the basics of what they are expected to do then as time goes on, our wives and mothers pile more duties on the domestic workers.  For example, the domestic worker is asleep and she is forced to wake up and cook when her stipulated hour of working is beyond that time.

There are also others you might think are trivial.  They do chores to look after us the husbands instead of the wives looking after us and then they go beyond that.  They wash what is not washable.  I think it is part of forced labour.  Yes, it is a warning to us.  Please, let them do what they have been employed to do.  They are not employed to look after us the husbands but they are employed to do the chores, look after the children and so forth.  The bedroom is not their baby – [Laughter.] ­ It is forced labour from the definition that fits into the forced labour.

Then the question is, I want to know the breach of these protocols, the three of them.  The first one, I was not there. I came in when she was reading the second one.  In the absence of a regional Parliament when these labour laws, protocols are breached, who enforces the law so that the culprits are punished because the national laws we have at the Parliament here ­ South Africa, they have and Botswana they have, but the regional Parliament does not exist in SADC especially.  In European countries, they have a European parliament.

Apart from that, I want to welcome this move.  What we are discussing here is very progressive.  It is for the regional cooperation and we must fully subscribe to it.  Minister, thank you again for bringing them here.  I want to thank you very much Mr. President.

THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE

(HON. KAGONYE):  Thank you Mr. President and I would like to thank the Hon. Senators for their contributions.  Of particular note, I think is a contribution that the Chinese nationals are actually also engaged in forced labour.  I would like to implore the Hon. Senator and other Hon. Senators in here, where you meet such situations, may you kindly inform our office also so that we can send our inspectors so that action is done, but also with evidence to what we would be talking about.

Otherwise for the other comments, I am quite happy the Hon. Senators are aware of what they and others are doing.  I think it is up to us to own up and stop forced labour.  We have got NECs that are in place, we have got various organisations that represent workers that are in place and we have got the Ministry.  As Government, we are only the referee between the employers and the employees and we are there to ensure that we enforce what is agreed and where it is not being met.  I am sure if you let us know, we will also assist in making sure our workers are protected.  Otherwise, I would also want to thank Hon. Senators for all their contributions.

For the last question ­ who is supposed to implement the SADC protocols where they are breached?   I think that question is best answered by the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs. So, when he is here maybe, he can be directed to respond to that question.  Thank you.

Motion put and agreed to.

COMMITTEE STAGE

PUBLIC ENTITIES CORPORATE GOVERNANCE BILL [H. B 5A,

2017]

Fourth Order read:  Committee Stage: Public Entities Corporate

Governance Bill [H. B. 5A, 2017]

House in Committee.

Clauses 1 to 46 put and agreed to.

First, Second and Third Schedules put and agreed to.

House resumed.

Bill reported without amendments.

Third Reading: With leave, forthwith.

THIRD READING

PUBLIC ENTITIES CORPORATE GOVERNANCE BILL [H. B. 5A,

2017].

THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. MUKUPE):  Mr. President, I now move

that the Bill be read the third time.

Motion put and agreed to.

Bill read the third time.

MOTION

BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

HON. SEN. TAWENGWA:  Mr. President, I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 5 and 6 be stood over until the rest of the Orders of the Day have been disposed of.

HON. SEN. MOHADI:  I second.

Motion put and agreed to.

MOTION

REPORT OF THE DELEGATION TO THE WORLD

PARLIAMENTARY FORUM ON SUSTAINABLE

DEVELOPMENT

HON. SEN. CHIEF MTSHANE:  Mr. President, I move the motion standing in my name that this House takes note of the Report of the delegation to the World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable

Development held in Bali, Indonesia from 6^th to 7^th September, 2017.

HON. SEN. S. NCUBE:  I second.

HON. SEN. CHIEF MTSHANE:

INTRODUCTION

1.1            Hon. Advocate Jacob Francis Mudenda, Speaker of the National

Assembly, led a Parliamentary delegation to attend the World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development which was held in Bali, Indonesia, from 6 to 7 September 2017. The Forum was attended by 49 countries and several civil society organisations.

The theme of the forum was, “Achieving the 2030 Agenda through Inclusive Development.” The Speaker was accompanied by the following Members of Parliament and Officers of Parliament:­

Hon. Monica Mutsvangwa, Member of Parliament;

Hon. Thokozani Khupe, Member of Parliament;

Hon. Chief M. Khumalo, Member of Parliament

Mr. Frank Mike Nyamahowa, Director in the Speaker’s Office;

Mr. Robert Sibanda, Security – Aide to the Speaker; and

Mrs. Chiwoneso Mataruka, Committee Clerk and Secretary to the delegation.

2.0 OPENING REMARKS BY THE CHAIRPERSON FOR

INTER­PARLIAMENTARY COOPERATION

2.1    The Chairperson of the Committee for Inter­Parliamentary Cooperation, Dr. Nurhayati Ali Assegaf welcomed delegates to the first ever Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development which ran under the theme, “Achieving the 2030 Agenda through Inclusive Development.” She stressed the role of Parliament as follows:

2.1.1 Promoting sustainable development and climate action as well as consideration of its adverse impacts through support and implementation of the 2030 Agenda Programmes;

2.1.2 Ending violence and sustaining peace around the world;

2.1.3 That Parliaments corroborate with international organisations such as UNDP, International NGO Forum and European Union in order to achieve sustainable development through resource mobilisation.

2.2             KEY NOTE ADDRESS BY H.E. MR. SETYA

NOVANTO, SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF

REPRESENTATIVES OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA

2.2.1 His Excellency Novanto stressed the importance for Parliaments’ obligation and responsibility in spearheading the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development.

2.2.2   The Honourable Speaker observed that poverty was the major challenge in the attainment of SDGs as more than 700 million people of the world population are living below the poverty datum line.

2.2.3   He also stressed that conflict and violence contributed immensely to poverty of any nation because without peace there is no development.

2.2.4 He affirmed that Parliaments must strive for a healthy society for all, gender equality and the empowering of women and girls.

3.0             PLENARY SESSION ON SDGs AND CLIMATE

ACTION

3.1    The session was chaired by H.E. Mr Fahri Hamzah, Vice Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives, and the following issues were discussed:

3.1.1 That climate change is the greatest challenge humanity faces in the 21^st century. The Paris Climate Conference held in 2015 had already set a global plan of action which needs implementation by public and private sectors.

3.1.2 The Paris Agreement on Climate Change needs a legal framework for policy implementation.

3.1.3 Approximately $100 billion is required annually by developing countries in order to combat climate change effects.

3.1.4 That education and awareness on the effects of climate change must be embraced by all stakeholders including civil society.

4.0   PLENARY SESSION ON ENDING VIOLENCE AND

SUSTAINING PEACE

4.1    The session was chaired by H.E. Mr Fadli Zon, Vice Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives, and the following issues were discussed as measures to “End Violence and Sustain Peace.”

4.1.1 Accordingly, Parliaments were urged to pursue the following issues:

4.1.2 That there is equitable allocation of financial resources for women’s participation in politics, elections and societal issues;

4.1.3 To align national legislation with Security Council Resolutions on gender violence in order to promote zero tolerance to violence;

4.1.4 To foster a more tolerant and inclusive society in conformity with SDG 16, “which promotes peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, providing access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels;

4.1.5 Ensure that the national justice systems are robust anywhere in the world so as to promote democratic processes and principles which respect human rights;

4.1.6 That Parliaments should promote indigenous knowledge and cultures in order to promote social inclusivity and ethics in the implementation of SDGs.

5.0  PLENARY ON PROMOTING INCLUSIVE AND

EQUITABLE DEVELOPMENT

5.1    Dr. Nurhayati Ali Assegaf, Chairperson of the Committee on InterParliamentary Cooperation, chaired the session and the following issues were raised:

5.1.1 That economic growth should be the main thrust of sustainable development.

5.1.2 That health and global food security are key in the implementation of SDGs.

5.1.3 That the Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) are key drivers in implementing SDGs.

5.1.4   Zimbabwe presented Zimbabwe’s current status in plenary as follows:

5.1.5 That the Zimbabwe government has anchored its implementation of SDGs on ZIMASSET supported by ZUNDAF under the guidance of the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) working together with Parliament.

5.1.6 That non state actors in civil society should form effective partnerships that will make SDGs a reality.

5.1.7 That Parliaments must demonstrate political will in the effective implementation of national policies that promote SDGs.

6.0   CONCLUSION

6.1   Arising from the declaration, our national Parliament is supposed to

come up  with a clear policy on how to implement SDGs within a given time frame.

The World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development concluded its

deliberations by making a Bali Declaration which reads as follows:

BALI DECLARATION

Achieving the 2030 Agenda through inclusive Development

World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development

Bali, 6­7 September 2017

We, Parliamentarians from 49 countries gathered in Bali, Indonesia on the occasion of the World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development (WPSD), under the initiative of the House of

Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia on 6­7 September 2017, hereby affirm as follows:

Recalling that the international community, through the United

Nations General Assembly, has adopted the Declaration on

“Transforming Our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable

Development” on 25 September 2015, which contains 17 Goals and 169 targets of Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs);

Reaffirming that national efforts to achieve progress and sustainable development is deeply rooted in the national needs and priorities supported by and in conformity with the national agenda, policies and legislation;

Emphasizing that the continued active involvement of

Parliamentarians can help to ensure effective implementation and timely realization of the SDGs, through, inter alia, enactment of relevant legislation, adoption of enabling budgets, and discussions from all segments of society, and are equally beneficial to all;

Acknowledging that the IPU at its 136^th Assembly held in Dhaka, 5 April 2017 has highlighted that effective implementation of SDGs requires inclusive and broad­based developmental processes, which allow wider participation and discussions from all segments of society, and are equally beneficial to all;

Underlining that eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimension, including extreme poverty, is the greatest global challenge and an indispensable requirement for sustainable development, recognizing gender discrimination while reiterating its commitment to achieving sustainable development in its three dimensions in a balanced and integrated manner;

Reaffirming that there can be no sustainable development without peace and no peace without sustainable development, and therefore, underscoring the importance of inclusive societies which are free from fear and violence, and in this regard, expressing deep concern on the ongoing violence in Rakhine State of Myanmar;

Further reaffirming that freedom, peace and security, respect for a;; human rights, the rule of law, gender equality and women’s empowerment as well as the overall commitment to fair, just and democratic societies for development, are among the main prerequisites in ensuring the full timely achievement of the SDGs;

Mindful also of the United Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement adopted under the Convention, and reiterating the determination to address decisively the threat posed by climate change and environmental degradation recognizing that the global nature of climate change calls for the widest possible international and regional cooperation and partnerships aimed at accelerating the reduction of global greenhouse gas emissions and addressing adaptation to the adverse impacts of climate change;

Having deliberated, during the Parliamentary Forum, the issues of promoting inclusive and equitable development (leaving no one behind), ending violence and sustain peace, and enhancing climate actions:

1. Commit to step up efforts, at all levels and in partnership with all stakeholders, including Parliamentarians, Governments, civil society, businesses and philanthropies, mass media, think tanks and academia, to ensure effective implementation of the Sustainable

Development Goals (SDGs).

2. Resolve to promote legislation and budget formulation that supports the implementation of SDGs, facilitate inclusive development and advance the principle of leaving no one behind;
3. Undertake to enhance the role of Parliamentarians in strengthening democracy with respect to human rights regardless of race, ethnicity and religion, good governance and the rule of law, as well

as promote an enabling environment at the national, regional and international levels, and to equip them with access to relevant research and data to the SDGs;

On Leaving No One Behind:

4. Ensure that people of all groups, including those who are vulnerable and marginalised are not left behind, and therefore encourage countries to take into account all peoples perspectives, irrespective of gender, age, race or ethnicity, and persons with disabilities, migrants, indigenous people and local communities, children and youth in the development of and assessment of sustainable development policies, strategies and programmes and facilitate their engagement with the political processes well as their access to elected offices;
5. Commit to strengthen national ownership of the goals, including through mainstreaming and implementing the SDGs into enforceable National Development Plan that respond to country ­ specific development priorities, promoting its awareness to the constituency by ensuring that all legal frameworks and budgetary requirements sufficiently support the national policy on SDGs through effective regular oversight mechanism regarding

Government’s accountability to the people for national progress on the SDGs;

6. Work towards further empowerment of the poor and the most vulnerable by promoting and facilitating policies that advance social and financial inclusion, gender equity, connectivity, and thereby reducing development gaps;
7. Urge Governments to work closely with the Parliaments in the development of global accountability and promote parliamentary perspectives in global dialogues and meetings on SDGs, in particular the UN High Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development and parliamentary involvement on relevant national reports;

On Ending Violence and Sustaining Peace:

8. Acknowledge the importance of sustain peace as an underlining principle in addressing potential conflicts and post – conflicts through peaceful means, preventive diplomacy and dialogue, including confidence building measures, and pledge to pursue peace through the promotion of inclusive dialogue, including through Inter­Parliamentary dialogues;
9. Work towards the realization of peaceful, just and inclusive societies which are free from fear and violence and in which the needs of the most vulnerable are met through Parliamentary means, including, inter alia, enacting enabling legislations and through oversight mechanisms:
10. Express deep concern of ongoing violence of Rakhine State of Myanmar, amongst others, and call on all parties to contribute to the restoration of stability and security, exercise maximum selfrestrain from using violent means, respect the human rights of all people in Rakhine State, regardless of their faith and ethnicity, as well as facilitate and guarantee safe access for humanitarian assistance;
11. Promote and facilitate equal access to justice, respect for human rights, effective rule of law and good governance, as well as inclusive, transparent, effective and accountable institutions at all levels;
12. Determined to work closely with the government and all stakeholders in ensuring effective law enforcement to combat all forms of violence, paying special attention to the needs of women and children and those in vulnerable situations;

On Enhancing Climate Actions:

13. Commit to scale up actions to combat climate change and environmental degradation and their impacts through

Parliamentary means; inter alia enactment of climate change and environmentally sound legislation, adoption of budget to programmes to reduce emissions and strengthen adaptation, ensuring that accountability for the effective implementation of the national commitments, including in conducting regular oversight on the implementation of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and other related commitments under the Paris Agreement framework;

14. Urge developed countries to provide means of implementation including financial resources to assist developing countries with respect to both mitigation and adaptation actions and with a view to strengthen access of developing countries to climate financing and environmentally sound technology in line with the Paris

Agreement;

15. Work with all stakeholders at national, regional and global levels in promoting and raising the awareness of and building campaign on combating climate change and environmental degradations;

THE WAY FORWARD:

16. Invite all stakeholders including Governments, international development partners, international organizations, civil society, businesses, philanthropies, mass media, think­tanks and academia to continue working closely with the Parliaments to support effective, coherent and accountable implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and in this regard, extend appreciation for their active participation in the WPSD;
17. Decide to continue regular holdings of WPSD as a global parliamentary dialogue on sustainable development with the aim to bring to more parliamentary discourse on the SDGs.

HON. SEN. TAWENGWA:  I move that the debate do now adjourn.

HON. SEN. MAKORE:  I second.

Motion put and agreed to.

Debate to resume: Wednesday, 14^th March, 2018.

MOTION

BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

HON. SEN. TAWENGWA:  I move that Orders of the Day Numbers 8 to 14 be stood over until Orders of the Day Numbers 15 and

16 have been disposed of.

HON. SEN. MOHADI:  I second.

Motion put and agreed to.

MOTION

REPORT OF THE ZIMBABWE DELEGATION TO THE

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON PROMOTING

STAKEHOLDER AND PARLIAMENTARY DIALOGUE ON THE

ARMS TRADE TREATY (ATT)

Fifteenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the Zimbabwe delegation to the International Conference on Promoting

Stakeholder and Parliamentary Dialogue on Arms Trade Treaty.

Question again proposed.

HON. SEN. TIMVEOS:  Thank you Mr. President for affording me this opportunity.  I just want to thank all the Hon. Members that contributed to this motion.  I know it was a very difficult motion to debate because of the arms trade treaty.

I think as the mover of the motion, because Zimbabwe signed this treaty, maybe if we could have had a workshop, maybe it was going to help so that Hon. Members understand what the Arms Trade Treaty is all about.  They were going to debate from a well informed position but I want to thank every Hon. Member who contributed to the motion.

Zimbabwe is committed to the global efforts to prevent and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons which is why we signed this.  What we are left with is to ratify and domesticate.  I really want to urge the Executive to please ratify the Arms Trade Treaty with speed, domesticate it and also appeal to the Committees on Peace and Security and Home Affairs to study the Arms Trade Treaty and work hand in hand with the Minister to actually push the Executive to ratify.

We have signed like I said but we are lagging behind.  So many countries have signed and they have ratified and domesticated in Africa. I am so happy that about two weeks ago, I was in South Africa and our Hon. President of the Chiefs Council was there.  We were talking about this particular treaty and he understands it better. I also saw other Hon. Members like Hon. Dr. Mashakada.  Quite a few now know what this treaty is all about.  I am really pushing that as a country,  we must ratify and domesticate this treaty.

Hon. Members, I thank you so much for debating this motion.  I now kindly ask that this House takes note of the Report of the Zimbabwe delegation to the International Conference on Promoting Stakeholder and Parliamentary Dialogue on the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) held at

Pullman Teranga Hotel in Dakar, Senegal from 13th to 14th June, 2017.

Motion put and agreed to.

MOTION

REPORT OF THE 7^TH RETREAT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF

SENATES, SHOORA AND EQUIVALENT COUNCILS IN AFRICA

AND THE ARAB WORLD (ASSECAA)

Sixteenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the 7^th Retreat of the Association of Senates, Shoora and equivalent

Councils in Africa and the Arab World (ASSECAA).

Question again proposed.

HON. SEN. MAKORE:  Thank you Hon. President. I want to thank all Hon. Members who contributed to this motion.  This motion was in relation to climate change and you echoed exactly what was within the report and made recommendations that at least there must be some education for people to understand that climate is gradually changing with excessive heat, floods, desertification, hunger and starvation.  It was also noted Mr. President that for reparations, we have Africa contributing only 8%  of green house gas whereas the developed countries are contributing about 92%, of which $100 billion has to be poured into the reparation of the climate change in terms of expected reparations.

I now move that this House takes note of the Report of the 7^th

Retreat of the Association of Senates, Shoora and equivalent Councils in

Africa and the Arab World (ASSECAA), held form the 26^th to 27^th

November 2016 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Motion put and agreed to.

On the motion of HON. SEN. TAWENGWA, seconded by HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA, the Senate adjourned at Twenty Minutes past Four o’clock p.m.