Giving effect to the human right to a clean environment in Botswana.

Madebwe, Tinashe; Chitsove, Emma; Pfumorodze, Jimcall

Abstract

Environmental deterioration remains a concern in Botswana. Despite efforts being made to address this issue by the state, more needs to be done in this regard. This is particularly interesting in the light of reports that the country is looking to draft a new constitution. Against this backdrop, this article considers whether including environmental rights in Botswana's constitution would advance environmental protection efforts. To this end, the article relies on experiences with rights drawn from different jurisdictions across the world, as well as commentary on these experiences, to build a tool for measuring the extent to which the turn to environmental rights holds value in a given jurisdiction. Using this tool, and drawing from experiences in looking to establish environmental rights in Botswana, the article measures the extent to which including the right in the constitution would hold value in advancing Botswana’s pursuit of environmental protection objectives.

Citation

MADEBWE, T., CHITSOVE, E. and PFUMORODOZ, J. 2021. Giving effect to the human right to a clean environment in Botswana. Environmental law review [online], 23(1), pages 23-39. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1177/1461452921995152

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Mar 30, 2021
• Online Publication Date: Mar 30, 2021
• Publication Date: Mar 31, 2021
• Deposit Date: Oct 7, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 17, 2023
• Journal: Environmental Law Review
• Print ISSN: 1461-4529
• Electronic ISSN: 1740-5564
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 23
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 23-39
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1461452921995152
• Keywords: Botswana; Constitution; Constitutionalism; Environmental protection; Environmental rights
• Public URL: https://rgu-repository.worktribe.com/output/1716916