KATHMANDU, Dec 19: The South Asian Regional Parliamentary Forum (SARPF) has been formally announced to collectively push the agenda of climate change, climate justice and energy cooperation.
The first meeting of the parliamentary forum, established at the regional level after years of preparations, was held in New Delhi on Wednesday. Dr Sanjay Jaishwal, president of the Indian Climate Parliament, has been elected as the founding president of the SARPF.
A member of the House of Representatives (HoR), Madhav Sapkota, who participated in the meeting, stated that the initiative taken by Nepal and Bangladesh to form this forum has been fruitful. The forum currently includes Nepal, Sri Lanka, India and Bhutan.
Highlighting Bangladesh’s significant contribution to the formation of the SARPF, Sapkota explained that Bangladesh could not join due to the lack of a functioning parliament at present. He noted that the SARPF aims to collectively achieve environmental and climate goals for the region, including energy security and regional energy cooperation, in South Asia—a region highly vulnerable to the climate crisis.
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Sapkota emphasized that the formation of this regional forum will pave the way for energy exports from Nepal.
Another HoR Member Thakur Gaire, who attended the meeting, described the establishment of the SARPF as a significant achievement. He noted that while there were previously ministerial-level and secretary-level joint forums in South Asia, there had been no equivalent forum for parliamentarians.
The Delhi meeting also formulated the working procedures for the forum. Arrangements were made to have a chairman and a co-chairman for the time being, Gaire informed Republica from New Delhi. It was agreed that the forum’s leadership would rotate annually.
A meeting of the forum's standing committee, to be held soon, will determine the effectiveness of the SARPF. The Delhi meeting also decided that the chairman of the parliamentary committee, which includes representatives from the energy ministries of the concerned countries, will be an ex-officio member of the standing committee.
"The South Asian region is at high risk of the crises caused by climate change. Regional cooperation is essential to address these challenges. The forum will prioritize issues such as climate change, climate justice, and energy trade," said Gaire.
Gaire added that preparations are underway to establish a climate parliament in Nepal, which will be formalized soon. "Nepal is at greater risk of climate change caused by excessive carbon emissions from countries like India, China and the US. When our mountains melt, all countries in the region will be affected," he said.
Gaire noted that the SARPF will address issues such as compensation for climate-related losses, climate justice, and regional energy development. "In the future, efforts will be made to include the entire SAARC region, China, and the broader Asia-Pacific region in this network," he added.
Deepak Bahadur Singh, chairman of the Infrastructure Development Committee of Nepal’s parliament, along with lawmakers Pratima Gautam, Thakur Gaire, Madhav Sapkota, Deepak Bahadur Singh and Nisha Dagi, traveled to New Delhi from Nepal to participate in the forum’s first general meeting.
Meanwhile, the newly-appointed president of the forum, Dr Jaiswal, held separate discussions with the representatives from the participating countries on Thursday to strategize on making the forum effective.
