By REBECCA MUSHOTA in Songdo
MORE than one million people are earmarked to benefit from the US$84.5 million funding that the Green Climate Fund (GCF) approved for two Zambian projects yesterday in the energy and agriculture sectors.
The $84 million is additional funding to the almost $200 million that has been mobilised by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the African Development Bank (AfDB) and Government for the two projects worth $281.269 million.
The co-financing method used for the two projects aims to move away from traditional budget funding for projects as planned for the implementation of the Seventh National Development Programme (7NDP).
The $84 million funding approved at the 19th GCF board meeting in Songdo yesterday resulted in Zambia getting about 63 per cent of Africa’s allocation.
GCF director for mitigation and adaptation division German Velasquez said the $32 million grant the GCF pumped in the agricultural project would strengthen climate change resilience of agricultural livelihoods in 16 districts in Zambia.
Dr Velasquez said the project co funded by Government and the UNDP would enable 946, 153 farmers strengthen their resilience to increased changing rainfall pattern in Zambia.
He said the programme would run for seven years as part of the Government run Farmers Input Support Programme’s drive to diversify crops grown by Zambian farmers to help them adapt to climate change.
GCF board member Omar El Arini said the project was a trend setter for GCF as he foresaw many other countries presenting such projects with value chain benefits.
“We have to learn from this project funding because it is the kind that promotes value chain and many developing countries are taking this route,” Dr El Arini said.
A representative of the civil society at the GCF meeting Liane Schalatek said the project was good to fund because it exhibited sufficient country ownership.
The Zambia renewable energy investment framework project that was also approved yesterday is co-financed by the AfDB and is set to benefit over 300,000 people in rural areas access electricity.
The project is part of the Government and Germany Development Bank powered GetFIT project designed to implement Zambia’s first renewable energy feed-in tariff to increase the percentage of people in rural areas with access to electricity from the current four per cent and improve private sector participation in the energy sector.
National Development Planning Permanent Secretary Chola Chabala said the two projects would contribute to diversification of the economy, help reduce poverty and trigger job creation in line with the 7NDP.
Mr Chabala said co-financing methods such as the GCF enabled Government fill in funding gaps for already existing projects.
Ministry of Energy Permanent Secretary Emelda Chola said the renewable energy project result in production of 80 mega watts of renewable power.
General Chola said the approval of the funding proposal by the GCF was proof that Zambia’s energy reforms like the migration to cost reflective tariffs were bearing fruit such as increasing opportunities for the private sector and subsequently boost job creation.
The GCF approved 19 projects yesterday worth about $1 billion.
The GCF was established in 2010 by the United Nations Convention on Climate Change in 2010 to help developing countries address effects of climate change and it is represented in Zambia by the National Designated Authority (NDA) for the Green Climate Fund which is under the ministry of National Development Planning.