About PADELIA

PADELIA is a 10-year old Programme, successor to UNEP/UNDP/Dutch Joint Project on Environmental Law and Institutions in Africa . PADELIA is implemented systematically in thirteen African countries, in three sub-regions ( SAHEL , SADC, and EAC) and as far as possible with non-project countries (Project-wide activities). The vision is to nurture and enhance sound and sustainable environmental management practices in Africa though the development and implementation of environmental laws.

PADELIA's objectives are:

• To enhance understanding of the province and function of modern environmental law among the stakeholders in Africa and how access to environmental justice can be promoted effectively.
• To create a sound and sustained environmental management in Africa , where environmental law and associated institutions guard the threshold of sustainable use of natural resources.
• To promote, in Africa, the establishment of legal and institutional frameworks at national, regional or sub-regional level through development and/or strengthening and harmonization of laws and institutions including implementation of MEAs.

In doing this PADELIA seeks to assist African governments in building capacities for the development, strengthening, implementation and harmonization of environmental legislation as well as related institutions for sustainable development and povery reduction.

Background

In 1993 The Royal Netherlands Government donated an amount of five million U.S. dollars to UNEP, urging her to work with UNDP to support the development of environmental law and institutions as a pilot project in selected African countries in what came to be known as UNEP/UNDP/Dutch Joint Project on Environmental Law and Institutions in Africa and was in effect from 1994 to 2000. The initiative was in line with the long-standing interest of The Dutch Government in promoting the development of environmental law at both national and international levels. It was also in line with that government's commitment to support the building or strengthening the capacity of institutions in developing countries through formal and informal education. The latter initiative started in mid 1980s and has become intensified in their Meerjaren Programma Hoger Onderwijs (MHO) administered by The Netherlands University Federation for International Cooperation in Higher Education (NUFFIC). Under this initiative The Dutch Government now supports six universities in Africa, two in Latin America and three in Asia. Some of these involve the development of curricula and advanced degree programmes in environmental studies including environmental law.

At the time when this initiative commenced, the modern province and function of environmental law where a framework law, provides the structure and process of implementation of environmental law in a country, was rather scanty in the continent. Out of 53 African countries only eight had adopted some kind of framework law before 1990, and these were at different levels of sophistication. Tanzania, the only one country which was to later be involved in this project, had in 1983 adopted a framework environmental law which was so incomplete that its implementation created more problems than solutions. The country will have to start afresh. On the other hand, all the countries were familiar with the traditional sectoral statutes, each of which worked independently to pursue command and control in pursuit of production and its regulation. Familiar laws were focused on, inter alia, anti-pollution measures, land planning and zoning, forestry and wildlife protection, especially through protected areas, and public health regulation.

At the urging of the Dutch Government, the present project brought together, within a Steering Committee, different agencies to pool experience to spearhead an innovative project, which is country-driven, to ensure that it responds to the unique needs of Africa. UNDP has the experience in organization of technical assistance at national level; FAO has long experience in legislation for sustainable utilization; IUCN has established experience in conservation laws; The World Bank has been active in evolution of environmental laws, based on their work on national environmental action plans; and UNEP has the U.N. and global mandate in assisting in the development of national and international environmental law.