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54

there is a need to enable communities to meet the

challenges of climate change and the interactions with

other people outside the mountains. To address such

transboundary issues concerning shared mountain

populations and ecosystems, efforts should be made

to understand the linkages and develop laws and

policies that foster productive interactions.

Transnational

policies

and

institutional

arrangements

At the transnational level, a significant number of

policies and institutional frameworks exist and are in

operation. In East Africa, these arrangements can be

used to pursue the agenda for sustainable mountain

development. These include, among others,

the IGAD, the EAC, the SADC and COMESA.

Under these political and economic subregional

arrangements, there are institutional frameworks

that address a wide range of issues that are relevant

to mountain areas. These institutions have a variety

of administrative levels particularly the commissions

and secretariats, and through these it is possible to

address pertinent mountain issues as well as develop

and implement programmes of activities to address

the challenges facing mountain ecosystems in a

changing climate.

At the political level, the EAC operates under a ‘Treaty

of Cooperation’. The EAC Secretariat is the technical

body that carries out Community operations. A

number of protocols and policies at the Heads of State

level have been put in place to facilitate the operation

of these institutions. These include the East African

Community Protocol on Environment and Natural

Resources Management, the East African Climate

Change Policy, and the East African Community

Transboundary EcosystemManagement Act of 2010.

The East African Climate Change Policy adopted

on April 2011 contains activities and provisions for

addressing climate change adaptation. Steps have

been taken to implement the policy, but significant

challenges and gaps remain. An East African

Community Climate Change Strategy was developed

to guide and enhance strategic implementation of

the policy. The EAC Secretariat in Arusha has also

put in place lower level institutional arrangements.

The Lake Victoria Basin Commission, for instance,

has a number of programmes and projects relevant to

natural resourcemanagement including formountain

ecosystems and communities. Similar initiatives

have been finalized or are under way and should be

encouraged in the subregion. A Memorandum of

Understanding was endorsed between Rwanda and

Burundi in 2012 for the joint management of natural

resources. Another Memorandum of Understanding

was signed under the auspices of the EAC for

improving the management of wildlife conservation

in the Mara-Serengeti region. However, there are

still other transboundary mountains in the region

(such as the Pare Hills between Kenya and Tanzania)

where collaboration is lacking. In general, there is

still lack of vision on how the EAC could manage and

coordinate efforts on mountains within the region.

The Intergovernmental Authority on Development

(IGAD), as amended in 1996, is an intergovernmental

institution for the East Africa region that addresses

development issues, some of which are relevant to

transboundary natural resources and ecosystems.

The IGAD, which has its Secretariat in Djibouti, has

clear policies and guidelines that govern its various

entities. Over the years, the organization, through

its Secretariat, has developed and implemented a

number of strategies and programmes which address

climate change and community livelihoods. While

there is no explicit focus onmountain ecosystems and

communities, there are strategies and programmes

that offer other avenues for addressing mountains

issues. For instance, the IGAD (2003) Strategy focuses

SADC

Southern African

Development Community

Tanzania

EAC

East African Community

Burundi

Kenya

Rwanda

Tanzania

Uganda

South Sudan

COMESA

Common Market for

Eastern and Southern Africa

Burundi

Kenya

Rwanda

Uganda

IGAD

Intergovernamental

Authority on Development

Kenya

Tanzania

Regional institutional

arrangements

Source: R. Blein et al, 2013,“African agriculture,

transformation and outlook”, New Patnership for African

Development (NEPAD).

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