Report

The parliamentary delegation of the Canadian Branch that participated in the 27^th United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP27) in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, on November 10 and 11, 2022, is pleased to present its report.

The delegation of the Canadian Branch of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie was composed of Francis Drouin, Member of Parliament, Chair of the Canadian Branch and President of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF).

CONSULTATION MEETING FOR FRANCOPHONE PARLIAMENTS AT THE UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON CLIMATE CHANGE

The theme of this high-level meeting, which took place at the Francophone Pavilion, was “synergies between parliaments and governments for accelerated climate action for French-speaking countries.” It was hosted jointly by the APF and the Institut de la Francophonie pour le développement durable (IFDD). The side event took advantage of the opportunity presented by the Conference to share information and raise awareness among francophone parliamentarians and to enable them to effectively play their role as policy makers and establish a common vision for francophone nations.

The workshop brought together a number of ministers and speakers of legislative assemblies, as well as about 60 francophone participants. Its purpose was to share information and raise awareness about the objectives of the Conference so that participants could help fast-track the ratification of the Paris Agreement and enshrine it in legislation in their home countries. The workshop also gave parliamentarians and other participants the opportunity to share about the progress their own countries have already made toward this goal.

The session was opened by Mr. Francis Drouin, President of the APF; Ms. Angélique Ngoma, Chair of the APF’s Cooperation and Development Committee; and Mr. Geoffroi Montpetit, Administrator of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF).

The major points of the Paris Agreement were presented during the first part of the workshop, and participants had the opportunity to discuss the key issues of the COP27 negotiations during the second part. The discussion touched on the urgency of climate change in light of the natural disasters occurring in participants’ countries, as well as on climate finance, technology transfer and solidarity with the francophone countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change.

The side event concluded with a speech by Mr. Bruno Fuchs, Acting Parliamentary Secretary General of the APF. He spoke about the APF’s legislative corpus project on the theme of climate change. This project was developed in collaboration with the IFDD, and is intended to be used as a reference by APF member parliaments seeking to introduce climate legislation so they can draw inspiration from legislation already introduced in other French-speaking nations.

Respectfully submitted,

Francis Drouin, M.P.

President of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie
Chair of the Canadian Branch of the
Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie