The Impact Assessment Association of Zambia (IAAZ) has called for focused leadership in environmental assessments in the country.
IAAZ president Gillan Simfukwe said the current natural resources were unsustainable and posed a severe threat to the future of humanity.
Mr. Simfukwe said this at the IAAZ annual general meeting in Lusaka today.
He said there was a profound and far reaching environmental predicament that will need a bold and professional leadership in environmental assessments.
He added that IAAZ was recognized by Zambia Environment Management Agency (ZEMA) as a body that can supplement its efforts to promote environmental integrity through well-organized professionals.
Meanwhile, IAAZ Patron Francis Yamba said the association has made tremendous progress since its formation in 2009.
Professor Yamba said the association hoped to see professionals endeavour to practice in accordance with the principles of sustainable development.
He said professionals should further help protect the environment by promoting activities that lead to good quality impact assessments and information sharing.
He also asked members of the public to join the association in order to help shape the future of Zambia through good use of individual and corporate knowledge.
ZEMA is a Joke in Zambia. Why do I say so? The institution has no leadership and secondly it is full of inexperienced people. Take for example the review of EIAs. How can a guy with no experience or very little experience in industry become a reviewer of EIAs done buy more experienced consultants? Its only at ZEMA and IT EXPLAINS WHEN YOU SEE THE QUALITY AND QUANTITY OF THEIR COMMENTS. If ZEMA can not manage to hire experienced people, why not consider part time experienced reviewers? Lets be serious in this country for once and not just do things to fullfill fixtures. I urge the leadership at ZEMA to relook at the practices of tge institution. Let them also consult all stakeholders before implementing anything like we have seen in the recent past.
The gross incompetence, ignorance and ineptitude of ZEMA is a major stumbling block to the development of the Nation.
Zambia is being held back by people with no idea what they are doing.
Vision and innovative thinking that is appropriate to Zambia is what is needed, but unfortunately ZEMA only have personnel that have learned by rote failed strategies from elsewhere. They are simply not up to the task.
To ensure sustainable and environmentally acceptable development for future generations we need an overhaul of the whole system.
Am afraid but agree with you. EVEN A FEW PEOPLE WHO ARE THERE AT ZEMA with “some” experience, its highly questionable. Most of the people at Zema know nothing yo say the least. I would be one of the happiest people if zema was to be disbanded. Am not saying we dont need zema but in its current form, its just a very useless institution doing academic work not adding any value to our country. ZEMA needs real professionals not what we see today. In today’s zema professionalism has no boundary. One can this moment be a forester and the next moment a mining engineer or geologist. This is unacceptable. Please if the minister, directors in the relevant ministry or even the presidents representative are reading this take action before its overly too late with this institution.
But we also need to have a serious re-look at the environmental policy that informs the law under which ZEMA operates. Currently, our law makes ZEMA a very useless organisation – like a snake without poison!