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{
    "id": 836243,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/836243/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 129,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Nambale, ANC",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Sakwa Bunyasi",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 2511,
        "legal_name": "John Sakwa Bunyasi",
        "slug": "john-sakwa-bunyasi"
    },
    "content": "There have been some earlier initiatives that required that certain allocations be put in certain sectors because those are the structures that elicit growth, ensure food security and so on. For example, there was a general agreement to put certain proportions of GDP into agricultural research. I think it was 3 or 5 per cent then. These are really important factors that Pan-African Parliament, as they deliberate what they do, should look at. If we do not invest in research and development, and we only wait for grants from friendly nations or international agencies, we will always be subjected to the whims of their budgetary allocations. We need to take the lead with whatever limited resources. It is like savings. You cannot say, “I will begin to save only if I make Kshs100,000”. You should save when you make Kshs10 million or Kshs1 million. We must commit our resources to help us understand our own issues in ways that only we can do. I think we have been too dependent on others. It will be good if we begin in those regional blocs. The European Union is already doing that. Even in Pan-African Parliament, they can begin to sensitise the powers that be so that the allocation of resources begin moving in directions that will give us the opportunity in the long run. When we say we do not want to be dependent on others, we must be doing something. We must be providing the resources. It is a big shame that many times bilateral supporters come to our countries only to find those in the political class leading luxurious lifestyles while some citizens go without a meal for four or five days. That is not our agenda or policy. It is important that we address such issues in our discussions, as regional organs, particularly in this era when cross-border migrations have become a major source of irritation. The leadership of countries in the South Africa region seem to be greatly irritated by movement of people from the northern part of the continent, including people from our countries. In other regions like Europe, they almost want to define Africa by what is happening in the Mediterranean Sea. These things happen for various reasons. One of the reasons why they happen is that the home base has failed to provide jobs that would guarantee people decent incomes in order to keep them close to their families and have some resources to develop their economies. So, efforts like that of Pan-African Parliament and other organs have a great opportunity to address the real development challenges facing the continent. There are areas where there are risks involved. We find some good initiatives. For example, we were very quick to sign the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA). We might have been among the first countries to sign the CFTA. I know we were among the first countries to push for the ratification of this protocol. We were about the first people to sign it in Kigali. Some countries stayed out. Nigeria and the Republic of South Africa did. I am citing this example because these are the kinds of issues that regional parliaments deal with. Of course, risks and opportunities must be explored. I am concerned about this because a big component of it is agricultural. We are amongst the major agricultural countries in Africa. We want to ask ourselves whether it helps us. Does it help the farmer in Nambale? Does it help the farmer in Bomet? Does it help the farmer in Coast? Does it help the flower grower or somebody else in Kiambu or Murang’a? If it does not, even if it seems to be a generally attractive idea, we should be careful enough to make sure that those risks are addressed. I was not happy that we were the very first country to ratify the agreement. Countries that rely on agriculture, like South Africa, and other countries that are trying to go back to agriculture, like Nigeria, were reluctant to sign the agreement. It is because it would not suit their agricultural economy primarily. We did not give ourselves a chance to review the matter properly. I was also disappointed that Parliament passed it as if it was a routine. That is not the case. Whereas there are good things that come out of such agreements, it would be very The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposes only. Acertified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}