By BRIAN HATYOKA –

THE Zambian Government is planning to set up a permanent multi-stakeholder institution to be called National Climate Change Council to coordinate climate change programmes and projects in the country.
Interim Climate Change Secretariat acting national coordinator Doreen Bwalya said work was in progress to establish a permanent multi-stakeholder institution to be called National Climate Change Council.
Ms Bwalya said the Government had recognised the serious effects of climate change on the lives of the people and had instituted measures, together with its partners, to mitigate the vice.
She was speaking in Livingstone at Protea Hotel yesterday when she officially opened a three-day international workshop on resilience and sustainable development aimed at reducing vulnerability to climate change and natural disasters.
The objectives of the workshop, which has been organised by the Zambian Government through the Interim Climate Change Secretariat in collaboration with the World Bank, is to have practitioners share their experiences in managing the effects of climate change on livelihoods, ecosystem services and economic assets so that it can be replicated to other parts of the world.
Ms Bwalya also said a national policy on climate change was being developed to ensure that every sector was an active player as well as build confidence in development partners and to affirm the Government’s political will to commit resources towards matters of climate change.
“Climate change has been identified as one of the most challenging issues that pose a clear threat to the lives and livelihood in Zambia as well as across the entire globe.
“The African continent, Zambia and local communities are affected and vulnerable to climate change-related disasters such as water scarcity, crop failures, destruction of infrastructure, loss of lives and energy deficit just to mention a few,” Ms Bwalya said.
She said the Government was also implementing a programme to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that resulted from emissions.
Ms Bwalya said the Government was also implementing a pilot programme for Climate Resilience (PPCR) in the Barotse and Kafue sub-basins to build adaptive capacities of communities and resilience of infrastructure such as roads and canals.
The Government, through the Interim Climate Change Secretariat, has further engaged 10 civil society organisations that are supporting local and ward level communities in selecting projects and designing various proposals for consideration.