FAO donates GIS equipment worth K2bn

By DOREEN NAWA

May 2, 2012 | Filed under: Local News | Posted by: web editor

THE Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has donated Geographical Information System (GIS) equipment to the Ministry of Lands worth over K2 billion.
Besides the equipment, FAO has also donated seven Land Cruisers to the ministry. Two Land Cruisers have come from the United Nations Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (UN-REED) and the five vehicles were from the Integrated Land use Assessment (ILUA).
Currently, Zambia is implementing a programme called UN-REED projects, whose main objective is to protect forests.
The equipment includes 11 desktop computers, 11 printers, 10 scanners, 10 map plotters, one projector and two laptops worth over US$500,000 (over  K2.6 billion).
The equipment will be distributed to the 10 provinces under the forestry department.
Receiving the donation in Lusaka on Monday, Minister of Lands, Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Wylbur Simuusa said Government recognises the need to address the challenges that the forestry sector faces in protecting the resource.
Mr Simuusa said the GIS equipment will enable the multi-sectoral teams at provincial level to generate information and maps for planning purposes.
“You cannot do anything tangible without planning. The drivers of deforestation can only be effectively addressed with appropriate information for planning,” Mr Simuusa said.
According to the minister, trained forestry officers in all the  provinces will use the equipment and ensure that the right information is documented on forestry countrywide.
Commenting on the UN-REED programme, Mr Simuusa said the programme will help to enhance sustainable forest management by addressing the drivers of deforestation and putting in place effective forest management and monitoring systems.
The UN-REED is supporting Zambia to develop a national strategy to reduce deforestation.
And speaking earlier, FAO country representative Ad Spijkers said forestry management is vital to national development.
Mr Spijkers said all the natural resources wholly depend on good forest management.
“Zambia is very rich in terms of natural resources like water and land but the lifespan of these important resources depends on how well the forest is managed,” Mr Spijkers said.
Mr Spijkers pledged his organisation’s support to reducing deforestation in Zambia.