15/12/2025
CEJ CALLS FOR DECISIVE ACTION TO ADDRESS ENVIRONMENTAL CRISES, PROTECT COMMUNITY RIGHTS
The Centre for Environment Justice (CEJ) has called for urgent, coordinated action to address Zambia’s escalating environmental challenges.
CEJ Executive Director Maggie Mapalo Mwape warned that failure to act decisively will endanger public health, livelihoods, and the country’s ecological future.
She said the gathering was not just a meeting, but a defining moment to reaffirm collective responsibility and ignite action for a cleaner, safer, and more just Zambia.
This came to light during a dialogue on environmental rights organised by the Centre for Environment Justice (CEJ), with support from Norwegian Church Aid and Danish Church Aid through their Joint Country Programme.
The high-level engagement on environmental rights advocacy attracted Members of Parliament, government officials, traditional leaders, civil society partners, private sector representatives, and community environmental monitors.
Ms Mwape highlighted that environmental challenges in Zambia are no longer distant threats but lived realities that affect families daily.
She cited the fact that nearly two-thirds of Zambians lack access to clean and safe drinking water, a crisis that disproportionately affects rural communities, women, and youth.
Ms Mwape also raised alarm over the country’s deforestation rate—between 250,000 and 300,000 hectares lost annually due to agricultural expansion, logging, mining, and unsustainable land use.
She said this erodes biodiversity, undermines food security, and accelerates climate change, leaving future generations with an uncertain legacy.
Ms. Mwape recalled the February 2025 tailings dam collapse, which released 50 million litres of toxic mining waste into the Kafue River on the Copperbelt.
She stated that the incident contaminated water sources, devastated aquatic life, and led to the shutdown of water supplies in Kafue town, affecting thousands of residents and downstream communities.
Ms Mwape also referenced prolonged droughts, flash floods in Eastern Zambia, outbreaks of waterborne diseases, rising air pollution, and unmanaged solid waste.
She said these, have compounded public health risks and strained already fragile social systems.
“These crises are not abstract,” she said. “They translate into empty plates at dinner tables, children missing school due to illness, and families losing income as agriculture and fisheries collapse.”
Ms Mwape stressed that environmental protection is not only about conserving nature but about safeguarding human dignity, health, and economic stability.
She called for the full implementation of the Environmental Management Act of 2011, which affirms every Zambian’s right to a clean, safe, and healthy environment.
Ms Mwape urged stakeholders to transform lived experiences into policy solutions that expand access to clean water and sanitation, improve waste management, and protect forests and rivers.
She also called for greater transparency, stronger enforcement, and inclusive decision-making that empowers communities to hold duty-bearers accountable.
“This engagement is your platform, my platform, everybody’s platform,” she said. "Together, we can shape policies that deliver real change.”
Ms Mwape described environmental protection as a moral and spiritual duty, rooted in the belief that safeguarding natural resources is a divine mandate.
She expressed hope that the engagement would inspire courage, creativity, and collective action toward a healthier, more resilient, and equitable Zambia.
At the same function, Itezhi Tezhi Member of Parliament, who is also Parliamentary Caucus on Environment and Climate Change Co-Chair, Mutinta Twaambo, said the caucus continues to collaborate with like-minded stakeholders to advance environmental and climate justice.
He emphasised that Members of Parliament rely on civil society and community actors who work closely with affected populations and government institutions at the grassroots level.
Mr Twaambo noted that such engagements are valuable because they bring out real voices from the ground, helping lawmakers understand what is happening on the frontlines of environmental challenges.
He highlighted the importance of involving both Members of Parliament and local councillors, stressing that local legislators are often the first point of contact during environmental disasters.
He reaffirmed the caucus’s commitment to maintaining an open-door policy and encouraged stakeholders to work closely with Parliament to identify key issues and push for policy implementation.
Earlier, Bangweulu Constituency Member of Parliament Anthony Kasandwe, who is also co-chair of the Parliamentary Caucus on Environment and Climate Change, said the caucus adopted a structured voting system to ensure balanced political representation and avoid diluting its purpose.
He highlighted the urgent need to address environmental degradation in Bangweulu, citing population growth and poor fishing practices as major contributors to the depletion of fish stocks and pressure on natural resources.
Mr Kasandwe also called for better coordination and resourcing of local disaster and extension officers, stressing that without proper tools and training, they cannot effectively respond to environmental and community challenges.
Centre for Environment Justice (CEJ) is implementing the LIFT Zambia Project in Luapula and Central provinces, specifically in Milenge, Chifunabuli, and Mumbwa districts.
Under the LIFT Zambia project, CEJ aims to empower communities with knowledge and practical tools to create measurable outcomes, such as increased access to public finances, fighting inequality and injustices including early child marriages, and protecting our environment.
The LIFT-Zambia Programme, a five-year development partnership led by Norwegian Church Aid (NCA) and Danish Church Aid (DCA), with support from NORAD and DANIDA.
The programme—Lives Saved, Inequality Addressed, and Fostering Resilience for Transformation in Zambia—is being implemented under the Joint Country Programme of NCA and DCA, with funding and technical support from their partners.
The programme is anchored on the belief that lasting social change is possible when civil society is strengthened and communities are empowered to drive their own development.
Through LIFT Zambia, they aim to address priorities like saving lives and building resilience by enhancing community preparedness for climate change impacts, strengthening sustainable agriculture, and improving access to social protection.
The project is also addressing inequality by ensuring that women, youth, and marginalised groups have equal opportunities to participate in governance and development.
It is fostering sustainable transformation by promoting community-led solutions that generate economic, social, and environmental benefits.
