MORE ZAMBIANS SHOWING SERIOUSNESS ON ISSUES OF CLIMATE CHANGE – MBINJI

Mumbwa, Monday 25th December, 2023 –

National Adaption Programme (NAP) Project Manager Joseph Mbinji says more Zambians are showing seriousness on issues to do with climate change.

Speaking after touring Community Markets for Conservation (COMACO) and Resources Efficiency (AWARE) project beneficiaries, Mr. Mbinji said people in the past used to think climate change is a hoax.

“Now Zambians are witnessing increasing frequency and intensity of climate change events such as high tempetures, floods and droughts affecting their livelihoods,” he said.

Officials from the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment, Ministry of Water Development and Sanitation, officials from the Provincial Administration Office and the private sector met in Mumbwa for an awareness creation and information sharing event.

During the site visit to Molodoni Community Demonstration Site and Kapepe Project site, it was noted that there was community participation and ownership of the project by the beneficiaries.

The beneficiaries were trained once and they are now implementing what they were taught. They are also able to grow crops all year round because of water harvesting.

It was noted that there was an unconventional way of knowledge transfer of skills development and capacity building as an ingredient for sustainability.

It was also noted that there was more appreciation for the forests and people are able to engage in bee hive projects and grow more tree species

“The projects we visited demonstrate some efforts different orgnisations working with communities are doing to address climate change. The projects demonstrate high levels of participation and ownership by beneficiaries, which is critical for achieving success and sustainability,” said Mr. Mbinji.

“We would like to see more done in integrating climate change adaptation in local Integrated Development Plans including in Constituency Development Fund (CDF) in order to build resilience to climate change. We also want to see more coordination among different players to enhance cross learning in addressing climate change and also to avoid duplication of efforts.”