The Open Society Initiative of Southern Africa (OSISA) - through its Economic Justice Programme and the Southern Africa Resource Watch (SARW)- is undertaking a three-year project on “Promoting Social and Environmental Accountability in the Southern Africa Mining Sector.”
The project will combine research, advocacy, capacity building and networking.
Although it will focus primarily on 7 countries (Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Mozambique, South Africa and Angola), it will cover the entire SADC region along the way.
The objective of the project is to provide a clear understanding of the potential biodiversity risks associated with mining development in the SADC region - and will also address the role that mining is playing in driving land grabs in southern Africa. The project will help SARW and key partners in region to identify biodiversity areas and heritage sites that are at risk from mining activities. It will assist SARW in raising the awareness of CSO, citizens, governments, financiers and the mining companies about the potentially negative impacts of extractive industries on land grab and biodiversity (particularly from a human rights and development perspective).
The project will also develop CSO knowledge based advocacy so as to enable them to work with key stakeholders in the extractive industries (communities, companies and government) to increase social and environmental accountability. It is expected that at the end of the project a strong movement of civil society actors working in the realm of economic justice, corporate social responsibility and environment will be created to effectively monitor social and environmental accountability in extractive industries.
OSISA’s partners in this initiative include UNDP through its Global Environmental Facility (GEF) funded project on Civil Society Organisations Capacity Building for Sustainable Land Management (SLM) in sub-Saharan Africa, which will start during the third quarter of 2011.
The areas of collaboration between the OSISA and UNDP projects will primarily be in relation to:
(i) the developing of technical capacities of CSOs in Sustainable Land Management and knowledge based advocacy;
(ii) coordination of African CSOs improved to enhance partnerships for effective coordination and knowledge transfer; and,
(iii) CSO capacity development for community mobilization around sustainable land management issues.
This initiative is envisaged to compliment the work of SARW, ENDA and the Equator initiative on sustainable land management. For the Commission on Environmental Economics and Social Policy (CEESP) this initiative is quite strategic as it will provide a basis for drawing lessons and messages out of Africa as well as strengthening its membership base.
SARW and the Economic Justice Programme of OSISA launched the social and environmental accountability programme by holding its project inception meeting from 19-20 August 2011 in Johannesburg. The meeting was attended by project implementing partners from 6 of the 7 project sites.
For further information this initiative please contact Claude Kabemba at SARW or Masego Madzwamuse at OSISA masegom@osisa.org.
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