Maputo, 5 Dec (AIM) – Mozambican Civil Society Organizations intend to set up a debate platform aimed at ensuring respect for human rights in especially in regions where extractive industries operate.
According to the executive director of ActionAid Mozambique, Gaspar Sitefane, speaking on Monday, in Maputo, on the sidelines of the workshop on improving rights and development responsibility in Portuguese speaking African countries, “we need to find ways for our communities to benefit from our country’s resources.”
“The objective is to create a platform to improve respect and guarantees for human rights, especially for those people who are directly or indirectly victims of development and investment projects here in the country”, he explained.
According to Sitefane, ActionAid will continue to create debates, to influence positive thinking and alternatives so that the benefits reach communities.
He pointed out that one of the challenges is to ensure that communities benefit from the various investments resulting from mining before the ores are exported.
For his part, a representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Arsénio Paulo, said that the platform will symbolize the organization’s commitment to contributing to sustainable development and the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations (UN).
“The basis for achieving the UN’s 2030 Agenda centers on the observance of human rights, a fact that emphasizes the importance we attach to holding this seminar and the follow-up actions”, he said.
“Human rights are interconnected and interdependent, which is why their realization is essential for achieving sustainable development. We hope that this debate can contribute to creating an environment where citizens have a safe life, and where human rights and the dignity of citizens are placed at the center of attention”, he added.
The two-day seminar, organized by Action Aid, aims to highlight the importance of human rights as a basis for sustainable development in Portuguese speaking African countries, encouraging awareness and the adoption of practices that promote equality, justice and dignity for all.
(AIM)
SNN/Ad/pf (33
