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Environmental
information on the Zambezi River Basin cuts across borders of Riparian
States
IUCN
- The World Conservation Union - Regional Office for Southern Africa
(ROSA)
May 04, 2003
By Hastings
Chikoko
Most of the
natural resources in the Zambezi River Basin are shared and achieving
sound natural resource management requires a common understanding
of the natural resource base. In his foreword to the book, State
of the Environment Zambezi Basin 2000, President Chissano of Mozambique
observes that Zambezi basin "as a transboundary resource, which
is subject to management and use by various sectoral and national
interests, may be overexploited for immediate and unsustainable
gain rather than for long-term and sustainable development. Chissano
also observes that "information is key to transformation, and
that people need knowledge in order to act. Without this popular
participation, environmental issues will be solely the domain of
government institutions and international donor agencies.
A prominent
IUCN member organisation, the Southern Africa Research and Documentation
Centre (SARDC) under its Musokotwane Environment Resource Centre
for Southern Africa (named after the first IUCN Regional Director
in southern Africa, India Musokotwane), championed the State of
the Environment project for the Zambezi Basin to raise awareness
about environmental status of the basin by highlighting the ecological
and economic importance of the Zambezi river in southern Africa
through the production of various information materials.
Closing the
recent workshop of project's partners and the national collaboration
centers in Livingstone - Zambia, Hastings Chikoko from the IUCN
ROSA's Information and Marketing Unit emphasized that the project
should distinguish itself by the impact its information products
are making in the Zambezi Basin.
"There
are several initiatives going on in the region and we need to constantly
review the difference we are making in the Basin," he remarked.
Looking into the future, he advised that the project should, on
the basis of its strengths, continue to focus on the information
gaps that are evident in the region and not just duplicate already
existing initiatives. He said the spirit of cooperation at different
levels will ensure integration of activities in the basin and multi-stakeholder
cooperation will go a long way to empower people at all levels of
environmental decision-making in the southern African region.
It was evident
from the reports presented during the workshop that information
on the Zambezi is now reaching such varied stakeholders as decision
and policy makers at all levels, legislators, media, environmental
organizations, schools, universities and the public at large. The
project is providing a well-functioning information distribution
channel for the promotion of sustainable natural resource management
at different levels in the Zambezi Basin.
During a field visit to Mukuni village in Zambia, a local theatre
group was seen performing a play whose script was generated from
the information disseminated by the project.
"The project
goes a long way in improving access to information that is required
for sustainable development of our country, " remarks an official
from the Zambia's Ministry of Tourism , Environment and Natural
Resources.
In his feedback,
the speaker of the Malawi National Assembly , Honourable Sam Mpasu
observes that the information is undoubtedly of help to his country's
Parliamentary Committee on Environment.
As an example
of the kind of decisions the national assembly makes, the Honourable
speaker noted that "the National assembly has full representation
in the SADC Parliamentary Forum under whose auspices regional environmental
projects such as the Zambezi are being undertaken."
The Head of
Crop Science Department in the University of Malawi explains that
the information "will be used by students" and through
it " people will know about the activities in the Zambezi River
Basin.
The information
has potential to inform decision-making in other basins of the world
is expressed by the Chief Engineer in the Department of Water Resources
In India who had an opportunity of seeing the information products:
"I am confident that work done in Africa would be helpful in
providing a deep insight into issues that must be taken care of
for sustainable development. "
Funded by the
Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) the SOE Zambezi
project is implemented as part of the Communicating the Environment
Programme (CEP), a partnership of the SADC Environmental and Land
Management Sector (ELMS), SADC Water Sector, IUCN - The World Conservation
Union, Regional Office for Southern Africa (ROSA), Zambezi River
Authority (ZRA), and the key implementing agency; SARDC - IMERCSA·
National Collaborating Centres in the Zambezi Basin countries include:
Development Workshop - Angola, Forum For Sustainable Agriculture
(FONSAG) - Botswana, Coordination Unit for the Rehabilitation of
the Environment (CURE) -Malawi, Gabinete do Plano de Desenvolvimento
da Região do Zambeze/Zambezi Valley Development Authority
(GPZ) - Mozambique, Integrated Rural Development and Nature Conservation
(IRDNCC) - Namibia, Tanzania Gender Networking Programme (TGNP)
- Tanzania, Environment Council of Zambia (ECZ) - Zambia and the
Campfire Association in Zimbabwe.
For more information
and copies of information materials please contact: SARDC IMERCSA,
Project Manager - SoE Zambezi, 15 Downie Avenue, Belgravia, Harare.
Tel: +263 4 791141, Fax: +263 4 791271,
Email: cmutambirwa@sardc.net
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