Government says it intends to raise US$400 million in the next three years to combat climate change effects in the country through implementation of adaptation and mitigation interventions.
National Designated Authority (NDA) National Coordinator Mainga Luwabelwa whose department is domiciled in the Ministry of National Development Planning said government is developing strategies and proposals to address the increasing frequency and intensity of climate induced hazards in the country.
ZANIS reports that Mr Luwabelwa said there is need for the private sector to get involved in the climate change agenda because the effects of weather cut across various sectors of the economy.
He said government has provided incentives for anyone especially the private sector to establish renewable energy plants that can supply electricity to citizens.
Mr Luwabelwa said Zambia is dependent on hydro power generation and that the recent power deficit experienced in the country provided lessons for diversification of energy resources.
Recently, Government accessed over US$84 million grants from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) to finance the two projects in agriculture and energy that will help 1,000,000 smallholder farmers improve and sustain their livelihoods and increase access to electricity for over 300,000 people respectively.
And the Ministry’s Director for Planning Maketo Mulele pointed out that climate change has become a socio-economic pressing issue in the country that requires people especially farmers to adapt to climate resilient farming practices.
Mr Mulele said people in flood prone areas need to start growing crops such as rice that do well in flooded areas while people in drought stricken areas need to start growing drought resistant crops such as sorghum.
Very good move by government. The country needs to tackle climate change seriously. But the I have very important observations which need to be taken seriously if we have to achieve something in this country. The current SCRIKA PROJECT is a flop because the process is cumbersome. From 2013 to 2018 which is the last year very few districts can show real adaptive projects. Additionally, the Ministry of National Development and Planning should reconsider removing the councils from running this projects. The councils have actually contributed to the poor performance of the project. The national team at PPCR secretariat must be retired for lukewarm response to complaints about the behaviour of the councils. Yes the truth pains, but we need it.