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{
    "id": 1194470,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1194470/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 24,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kikuyu, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Kimani Ichung’wah",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "rights abuses, to guide businesses on the measures they should take to meet their responsibility, to respect human rights in their operations, to promote human rights due diligence by businesses and to offer a road map of strengthening access to State-based judicial and non- judicial remedies. Hon. Speaker, from these key objectives, this National Action Plan seeks to protect both individuals and communities. That is why I was giving clear examples of how we displace people during road construction or even a factory being built in a neighbourhood without due regard to the pollution that it will bring and putting people’s lives at risk. This National Action Plan will ensure that policies are there to protect people. The second objective is to guide businesses on the measures they should take to meet their responsibility to respect human rights in their operations. This is just to make sure that businesses are aware of what measures they should take to ensure that they adhere to the protection of human rights. It also obligates the Government to ensure that it has a responsibility and a duty of care that it owes to the people either individually or communally. The National Action Plan is divided into four chapters. The first chapter covers background information, the formulation process and the objective and National Action Plan. The development of the National Action Plan was spearheaded by a multiagency steering committee which had membership from the Government, trade unions, the private sector, national human rights institutions and civil society organisations. After four years of extensive stakeholder consultations, the National Action Plan was drafted in 2019 and received Cabinet approval in February 2021 before it was tabled in this House in September 2021. The second chapter, which is the National Action Plan, addresses the situational analysis and focuses on five key things namely; access to land, environmental protection, labour rights, revenue transparency and access to remedy. These things highlight the key business and human rights concerns identified from the stakeholder consultation. The chapter also highlights policy concerns under these themes. Members will agree with me that these five key things include access to land which is an emotive issue. Hon. Speaker, a good example is that where dams are being built, access to land becomes a problem and people end up being displaced. On environmental protection, you have seen cases where some investors want to construct dams in forests thereby degrading our environment. That environment has a bearing on our rights as communities and as individuals who live around those areas. Therefore, some of these issues including labour rights, bear with me, there are certain nationalities who have heavily invested in our country... I am avoiding mentioning names of friendly nations where we have seen countries of certain nationalities abuse our people in terms of their labour rights and made to work for long hours without due compensation for overtime. This is some work under very degrading environments and Members will bear witness that we have seen contractors doing roads in dusty conditions but something as simple as a face mask or goggles are not issued to these workers. This action plan seeks to protect these people so that we help the Government and our nation in reducing the cost of healthcare. Hon. Speaker, respiratory diseases in this country are a big problem and some of those diseases emanate from the activities of our investors who disregard all manner of human rights, hence subject out workers to inhumane working conditions where workers work without masks. They work in factories where they mix chemicals without a respiratory safety gear to protect their respiratory systems and they end up contacting diseases. Members also remember the many cancer cases around our flower farms in Naivasha and other places where people are subjected to green houses with a lot of chemical emissions and yet having no safety precaution at all. This action plan and the themes around it seek to protect these people even as we protect businesses. It also ensures that people have remedies both judicial and non-judicial remedies. If investors, Government agencies, State owned corporations or a private corporation harm The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}