Environment

Climate change should take centre stage

By DOREEN NAWA IN THE face of climate change, the fate of the remaining natural resources in Zambia largely depends on how the land around it is managed. Indeed, it is no exaggeration to say that the economic, social and environmental future of this country depends on the wise use of its land resources. In view of this, stakeholders from various organisations including government ministries recently met in Chisamba to find a way forward in mitigating climate change through land use. It is generally agreed that land resources such as water, forests and land itself can be a powerful agent of change and as such climate change will have strong effects if the issues of land use are not addressed. During the meeting, it was resolved that it is possible to make choices with land resources that will mitigate what seems likely to be the effects of climate change. In Zambia, land resource management has become a critical issue because of the role it plays in contributing to the well-being of many whose lives are dependant on land and forests. It is with this background that community participation in local land use and management becomes paramount to any long-term success of mitigating the effects of climate change. “The issues of climate change threaten Government’s efforts in achieving development objectives including the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals and poverty reduction, But Government alone cannot succeed without community participation,” Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Natural Resources permanent secretary Peter Mumba said at the Chisamba meeting. The need to engage forest dependent communities in addressing issues of climate change and land resources management is vital because the livelihood of most communities in Zambia is inextricably tied to land and forests. Mr Mumba said in efforts to reduce gas emissions, initiatives that tend to give a solution to the issues of gas emissions and climate change should not ignore the plight of the local communities. He said the land resource sector is a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions both globally and countrywide. “It is estimated that land use accounts for up to 30 percent of the global greenhouse gas emissions and in the case of Zambia emissions from the land use sector area much larger fraction due to deforestation, now estimated to be between 250,000 to 300,000 hectares per annum,” Mr Mumba said. A prevailing notion is that community-based approaches to planning tend to be more effective because they incorporate the relevant knowledge and experience of those affected by land resource decisions. In this way, participation can help to mitigate potential and existing conflicts and empower communities to take a more active role in exploring management issues and initiating possible responses. Community empowerment in land resources is both desirable and critical to the adaption and mitigation of climate change. According to Climate Change Facilitation Unit technical co-ordinator in the Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Natural Resources, Professor Prem Jain, community participation serves several purposes including increasing economic and technical efficiency because resource users have more clearly defined responsibilities for their actions. Of late, climate change has become a serious challenge to sustainable development and if no action is taken to mitigate it, the effects of climate change will become unbearable. Prof Jain said land resource management is a key factor in the mitigation of climate change adding that Zambia contributes more that 38million tonnes of green houses gases due to poor land resource management. “The effects of land resource management have also contributed to reduced yields annually because of poor land. That is how crucial it is and therefore we need to address this challenge now,” Prof Jain said. Sustainable development and benefits to the protected area and surrounding communities are possible only to the extent that local people are involved. Community participation in land resource management is seen as an important enforcement check and balance mechanism to control natural-resource depletion. Notably, community bargaining power is generally less than that of the management agency, the education and training offered to communities is often biased toward the perceptions and goals of the management agency rather than the needs of the community. According to Zambia Land Alliance, one of the participating organisations to the meeting, a partnership must be created in which rights, aspirations, knowledge, and skills are respected and enhanced, and the importance of human-nature relationships is recognised and valued. “In addition to traditional natural-resource questions, relevant social issues raised by the community may include traditional land-use patterns or methods, territorial rights, or the right to self-determination,” the Zambia Land Alliance said in their presentation at the meeting. Besides these social aspects of environmental management, the economic side of integrated development planning is also important, and experience has shown that it may be particularly important in tourism planning where cultures and environmental quality are central concerns. Not all communities, however, are equipped to participate fully at the co-management level; they may need additional education to build experience and to strengthen confidence that problems can be confronted and solved locally. Effective participation by communities may require improving technical knowledge within the community and improving communications between the community and other institutions with an aim towards collaboration and institutional strengthening. Through these different modes of education, communities may be empowered to participate in management as partners with established management agencies. However, it is not only the community that needs additional training and education. Government agencies, non-governmental organisations, and assistance agencies also may need training and education to foster collaboration and co-management. Clearly, how such training is planned and implemented will determine its chances for success. Land resource planning is a centrally important government function, directly affecting the lives of all people. It is therefore particularly important that it is characterised by fairness and transparency and that people are afforded a meaningful right to participate in decisions. When public authorities formulate new plans, they must be put in place. Also, where land development projects are initiated by the private and non-governmental sectors, there must be procedures that ensure that interested parties have an opportunity to express their views or to object. Although the idea of co-management may appear basic to land resource planning, achieving it in a real-world setting is often more complex. Real-life limitations of politics, history, economic forces, and cultural traditions determine to a large extent not only what is needed but the range of possibilities.