By Jeff Kapembwa
Zambia’s quest to remedy climate change effects through mitigation and adaptation has inched closer to realisation after its initiated legislations to transition into a low-carbon, resource efficient, resilient and socially inclusive economy by 2030.
Zambia is one of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) afflicted with climate change, in turn devastating energy, water sectors and the environment.
The climate-induced-disaster has ultimately reversed the country’s growth trajectory through a projected 5-7 percent Gross Domestic Products (GDP) until 2030-a clarion call for the country to seek cooperating partners’ interventions, technical and financial.
Minister of Green Economy and the environment-Mike Mposha stressed Zambia’s unwavering desire to revitalise the climate-afflicted economy through various interventions as part of the country’s support towards supporting the global developmental agenda in view of their bearing on livelihoods and natural resources with support from cooperating partners.
Minister Mposha said during a meeting with world bank and European union-the two key financiers on climate-related projects under various agreements, said Hakainde prioritises climate change fight because of their greater bearing on livelihood and the natural resources, an innovation driven by president Hakainde Hichilema as a quest to mitigate the impact through various interventions, spurred by the climate act of 2018.
Zambia’s ambitious fight against climate change has been amplified through among other initiatives in addition to the enactment of the climate change Act 18 of 2024 which is due for operationalization after statutory instruments.
The national green growth strategy in April last year under the World Bank, arguably to lead Zambia’s transition to low carbon, resource efficient, and socially inclusive economy by 2030 are other initiatives, in which tourism will be showcased, to actualize Zambia’s zeal to be climate resilient using home growth initiatives with support from the donor community in collaboration with the ministry.
“The ministry actively participated in the preparation of the Green Resilient and Transformational Tourism Development Project (GREAT-TDP) market framework for Zambia under article 6 of the Paris agreement.” Minister Mposha stated.
Zambia has stepped up the actualization of the Carbon Market framework under Paris Club Article 6.
The guidelines for the submission and evaluation of mitigation activities have been approved and these will help the country to unlock opportunities for green investment.
He commended World Bank for its support towards supporting the Zambia Integrated Forest Landscape Project (ZIFLP) which has built capacity around monitoring reporting and verification.
The donor efforts were amplified through the succesor Eastern Province Jurisdictional Landscape Program launched in February 2024, among other projects that are underway or has been completed and operationalised to help generate payments for payments for measured, reported and verified emissions reductions starting this year.
Zambia is desirous to futher seek support towards the upscaling of the emissions reductions programme to other provinces. Minister Mposha commended Britain for its uwnaveriing support towards modernising the Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA) received.