Disaster management and Mitigation Unit- DMMU National Coordinator Chanda Kabwe says the country has continued to steadily recover from the shocks of the 2019-2020 rainfall season.
Speaking during a virtual National Disaster Management Consultative Forum (NDMCF), Mr Kabwe said the effects of the floods and droughts in the various parts of the country was too immense hence taking considerable time to get back to normal.
Mr Kabwe attributed the steady recovery process to the multi-sectoral approach taken by government in handling the effects of climate change.
He further hailed the collaborative spirit and approach by Cooperating Partners among others in Disaster risk reduction and response.
Mr Kabwe said Zambia witnessed the worst drought during the 2018-2019 season in the southern and western parts of the country while the Northen and Eastern parts experienced above normal rains leading to floods.
He said owing to this, a total of 2.3 million people were affected across the country and since then government has been providing for them.
Mr Kabwe further said, the participation of the Cooperating Partners came in handy, making the work of government lighter.
He said for the period 2019-2020, the country further witnessed similar incidences that affected a number of sectors such as agriculture, threatening the country’s food security.
Mr said other sectors like the livestock, nutrition, sanitation and education were also heavily affected.
He said the office of the Vice President and DMMU in particular will continue playing an active role in mitigating and preventing all forms of shocks that pose a danger to the lives of Zambians.
And United Nations Resident Coordinator Coumba Mar Gadio said the government of Zambia has shown proactiveness and timely response to Disaster risks ranging from droughts, floods and now COVID-19.
She said in the last seven months, Zambia has recorded 60, 177 cases with 15,445 recoveries and 348 deaths.
She said the recovery rates are as a result of good response strategies put in place by the Ministry of Health and the the coordination of the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit-DMMU under the office of the Vice President.
Dr. Mar Gadio said the UN Emergency appeal which was launched in May this year has also helped the government of Zambia in reaching some of its targets in its recovery plan.
She said the UN family has so far secured over 50 million dollars towards the COVID-19 emergency response among others.
She congratulated Zambia for being one of the first countries to conduct a comprehensive interim action review of the COVID-19 response a move that need to be emulated by other countries if the pandemic is to be fought in totality.
She called on the Zambian government to continue adopting good Disaster risk reduction and Management practices as always.
She said the UN will always be there to complement its efforts whenever need arises in order to better the lives of all Zambians.
