The Conseil pour la défense environnementale par la légalité et la traçabilité (CODELT) has just published two works on environmental legislation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The recently published books will help strengthen the protection of biodiversity in this Central African country, which is plagued by poaching and illegal timber exports, among other problems.
The first 658-page book, entitled “Les Codes verts, tome II”, is a compilation of 112 national and international legal and regulatory texts on biodiversity ratified by the DRC. The second 579-page book, “Droit pénal congolais de la conservation de la nature” by André Kashikisha, analyses nature conservation offences and recommends an appropriate legal approach to preserving the environment.
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“We are in a sector where texts are not accessible. These are disciplines that are not taught specifically in our law faculties. So making them more widely available to all the professionals who have made environmental and conservation law their subject of work is a first step towards implementing the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”, explains Augustin Mpoyi, Codelt’s senior technical adviser. The main focus is on SDG15, which aims to protect terrestrial biodiversity.
Safeguarding ecosystems
In this area, the international community has its eyes riveted on the Congo Basin, which should in time be the planet’s leading green lung, ahead of the Amazon. However, this forest massif, which accounts for almost 70% of Africa’s total forest cover, is affected by deforestation. This phenomenon is exacerbated by agriculture, infrastructure construction, mining activities and even urbanisation, according to the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) based in Bogor, Indonesia.
Against this backdrop, Codelt’s two new publications should help to raise collective awareness and improve the regulatory approach. This will be achieved thanks to the financial support of the German Agency for International Development Cooperation (GIZ), which is implementing the Programme for the Maintenance of Biodiversity and Sustainable Forest Management (BGF) in the DRC.
Benoit-Ivan Wansi