By Jeff Kapembwa
The Kafue Plains in Zambia, Southern Africa region’s most endowed hydrology, is faced with serious threats of extinction spurred by consequences of climate change, threatening the ecosystem relied upon by various communities for their livelihoods.
The recurring climate crisis and inadequate action to mitigate and adapt by climate campaigners and other relevant agencies has heightened the toll on the Kafue Flats evidenced by rising temperatures, altered rainfall patterns, and more frequent and severe droughts and floods.
These, among other effects, severe charcoal burning, overfishing and illegal methods of the species, reduced rainfall patterns, uncontrolled bush fires, reduction in available water has intensified competition among different users, including smallholder farmers, large-scale irrigators, and hydropower plants, among other factors-threaten its survival.
There is increased overgrazing, land degradation, combined with increasing livestock populations, climate change-induced droughts, reducing to a significant reduction in grazing land per animal.
There are cases of ‘inherent dependence by bloated inhabitants on the ecosystem for water, fish, grazing land, and agriculture. The changing climate has put these livelihoods at risk.
The altered flooding patterns and more frequent droughts are changing the Kafue Flats wetland ecosystem. This directly impacts the floodplains, which are critical habitats for many species.
With repeated reports of resources becoming scarce due to climate change, communities are now exploiting the wildlife and natural resources, driving further biodiversity loss.
Climate change, according to experts, has greatly contributed to the falling conditions of the Kafue flats that now favor invasive alien species, pose a threat to the ecosystem and fish reproduction, a call by traditional leaders to seek interventions and save the ecosystem.
“The key chiefdoms of Mwezwa, Shakumbila, Hamusonde, among others, depending on the ecosystem, have raised eyebrows and are concerned at the fast rate of ecosystem depreciation, driven by the climate crisis.
The traditional leadership feared that unless unwavering commitment was made to mitigate the rate of depreciation and reverse the damage of the ecosystem and habitat, the call for reverse to the damage was ‘a matter of life and death’, and that action be done now.
“We are at the verge of seeing our ecosystem being ruined by climate change and other actions associated with it, including human driven actions,” Senior Chief Shakumbila said, adding: “We need to join hands and conserve the ecosystem for our future sustainability,”
He was speaking when he officiated at the second phase of the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) Sustainable Animal and Aquatic Foods (SAFF) Science Programme-Lower Kafue Basin Multi Stakeholder Platform (MSP) meeting dubbed: “Mapping Sustainability Pathways for the MSP”.
Senior Chief Shakumbila and leader of the Mbeza Royal Establishment of the Ila people in Southern Zambia, describes as alarming, the situation and calls for urgent mitigations through climate action from state and non state actors to avert extinction.
The traditional leaders are deeply concerned at the rate of deterioration of the ecosystem.
They call on all relevant agencies to join in the fight to save the plain from wanton destruction by wildfires, and the declining water levels.
Many local inhabitants are now considering settling beyond Southern Zambia, the former national food basket region for new farming areas and pastures for animal grazing.
“Many local people are now relocating to northern and other provinces where rainfall is supportive of their agriculture and grazing activities, because we are traditionally, cattle rarer”
Speaking at the same occasion, World Fish representative, Netsayi Noris Mudege, called for collective action in resolving the after effects of climate change, when, where and which ecosystem it strikes using intelligence, resources and skills for amicable solutions.
Kafue Basin, World Fish, recognizes it very important to Zambia where 50% of of the population stay in the basin, also a source of hydro power generation and source of a variety of fish species a call for preservation.
“If the basin is not well managed we will lose all the important resources and services that we get from the basin. It is therefore in the best interest of all Zambians that the basin is managed well”.