Protecting forests, planting trees, reducing food waste and changing diets critical to cool, liveable planet; the US, the EU, China and Brazil among countries that can lead on efforts to slash land sector emissions A new report published in Nature Climate Change today unveils a land sector roadmap laying out critical actions on forests, farming and food systems the…
Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has launched emergency assessments in the east and north-east of South Sudan where severe flooding has left thousands of people stranded in inaccessible areas, threatening to make worse an already catastrophic humanitarian crisis. MSF is urging all actors to mobilize resources to mitigate the impact of rising flood levels in affected…
The United Nations Team in Zimbabwe has oiled the machinery to galvanise climate action in the country as espoused at the just ended 74th Session of the UN General Assembly that spotlighted climate action to boost ambition and accelerate actions to implement the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. These were the remarks of the UN…
Conference of the Covenant of Mayors in Sub-Saharan Africa (CoM SSA) Accra International Conference Centre, Ghana Accra, under the theme, “Towards the institutionalisation of Local Climate Action and Access to Finance,” begins today as part of the Climate Chance Summit, Africa 2019. The conference will be opened by the Hon. Hajia Alima Mahama, Minister of Local Government and…
By Africa Geographic Editorial “Elephant damage!” is now a common phrase in reaction to the sight of fallen trees, and landscapes bereft of trees. The apparent loss of large savanna trees such as marula and knobthorn in Africa’s protected areas is often blamed on elephants, and this perceived direct link between elephants and treefall drives…
By Joyce Mukucha and Anyway Yotamu Driven by the commitment to play a pivotal role in the revival of the nation in the agriculture industry, the country’s largest manufacturer and supplier of fertilisers and agricultural chemicals, Zimbabwe Fertiliser Company(ZFC) Limited has invested in a new fertiliser blending plant . The plant valued at US$500 000…
Mentoring scheme supports innovators working on novel solutions to build resilience in the Horn of Africa, the Sahel, South Asia and Southeast Asia The Global Resilience Partnership (GRP) has announced the 16 winners of their Innovation Challenge, focused on surfacing resilience solutions across Africa and Asia. Challenge winners receive three months of technical advice, mentoring and…
By Sujatha Byravan Powerful lobbies with vested interests see agro-ecology as a threat to their influence on farming systems Agro-ecology is recognised worldwide as a system that enhances fertile landscapes, increases yields, restores soil health and biodiversity, promotes climate resilience and improves farmers’ well-being. Its practices are supported by many agricultural scientists, the Food and…
States, businesses and civil society gear up for decisive decade for Agenda 2030 Four years after the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and with efforts off track for meeting its objectives, world leaders today called for a decade of ambitious action to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 and announced…
By Joyce Mukucha The United States(US) Government through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has provided an additional of US$ 41, 9 million to respond to the critical food security situation in Zimbabwe. The fund is meant to ensure that more than one million rural vulnerable Zimbabweans in sixteen districts have access to…
By Joyce Mukucha According to surveys and researches, it is estimated that 70 percent of the Zimbabwean population reside in rural areas and approximately, 80 percent of the rural population’s livelihoods are dependent on rain fed agriculture making them highly vulnerable to climate change induced weather extremes, variability and climate impacts. Due to the fact…
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is leading the process to design and formulate a project document under the Global Environment Facility 7; “The Dryland Sustainable Landscape Impact Program”. On 18 October 2018, the GEF Secretariat selected FAO as GEF lead agency for this Sustainable Forest Management Impact Programme (Dryland…
By Abigail Mzimbawakhe (Midlands Correspondent) Wards in Shurugwi are facing a critical shortage of water as they are sharing water from the few boreholes with livestock. Farmers in most wards in Shurugwi are resorting to giving their domestic animals water from the borehole which is affecting most of the boreholes in those areas. Most of…
By Abigail Mzimbawakhe (Midlands Correspondent) Gardening schemes that have been assisting Shurugwi residents with food and vegetables have been affected by drought. A group of 29 villagers established a garden project called “Tirivamwe” to avoid serious food shortages in their area. The gardening project, established to cater for orphans, vulnerable people and local widows most…
By Sue Edmonds For most of the 18 years I’ve been writing about farming issues the buzzword has been ‘sustainability’. Of late it seems to have morphed into ‘regenerative farming’, which aims to do a lot more than sustain, including rebuilding eroded soil and reintroducing the necessary soil life to create the nutritive food the…
By Joyce Mukucha The Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement Rtd. Gen. Hon Perrance Shiri said Climate change was a cross-cutting issue affecting all socio-economic development sectors and urged line ministries to integrate climate change into their policy planning and budgeting frameworks as a way of mitigating the consequences. He was…
By Byron Mutingwende The Green enterPRIZE Innovation Challenge has been hailed for creating employment for the youths and supporting sustainable enterprise development. The Acting Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, Mr. Ziyambi Ziyambiat made the remarks at the official launch of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) 2019 Northern Region Green enterPRIZE…
By Joyce Mukucha The African Development Bank (AFDB) in partnership with the World Bank launched a Zimbabwe Idai Recovery Project (ZIRP) and the Idai Emergency Recovery and Resilience Project (IERRP) in an effort to bring profound relief in the affected areas. The World Bank provided a $72 million grant for the ZIRP which will provide…
Cyclone idai painted a worrying picture about Zimbabwe’s disaster preparedness and risk management framework, Miriam Chikukwa, the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Local Government, Public Works and National Housing has said. This emerged at a Cyclone Idai stakeholder discussant dialogue meeting organised by Oxfam in Zimbabwe to commemorate the World Humanitarian Day –…
By Tendai Guvamombe Zimbabwe is working round the clock to implement the Low Emissions Development Strategy (LEDS) document which will certainly become an absolute guideline framework as its Nationally Determined Contributions in ratifying the Paris Agreement on Climate Change which compels member states to achieve a global target on low carbon emissions reduction. Zimbabwe is…
The Southern African People’s Solidarity Network (SAPSN) has refuted media claims that it is plotting to embark on a smear campaign to tarnish the image of Zimbabwe at the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Summit. The SAPSN Regional Coordinating Committee comprises the Foundation for Social and Economic Justice (Swaziland), Malawi Economic Justice Network, Alternative Information…
By Tatenda Mujeyi Zimbabwe is working towards Implementing its Nationally Determined Contributions with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Russia. The Climate Change Management Department in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement held a validation workshop for the Low Emission Development Strategy (LEDS) and the attendant Measurement, Reporting…
Seed Co Limited, the leading certified seed company authorised to market seed varieties developed by itself, government and other associated seed breeders in over fifteen (15) African countries has provided an overview of winter cereals for this season. Seed Co Group Chief Executive Mr. Morgan Nzwere revealed at the recent Annual General Meeting that the…
By Joyce Mukucha Following a United Nations appeal concerning Zimbabwe which is facing a chronic food crisis, the International Development Secretary Alok Sharma has announced a £49 million UKAID Fund which is meant to support and help malnourished children, families and communities. Without support more than 5, 5 million people will not have access to…
By Tendai Guvamombe The Global Summit on Climate Change is just around the corner and member states under submission to the Paris Agreement on Climate are without any exception expected to reveal status’, checks and balances with regards to their commitment on the reduction of carbon emissions. This coming September is the month and New…
With new evidence of increasing vulnerabilities in Zimbabwe as a result of climate and economic shocks, the Government, the United Nations and the humanitarian partners felt the urgency to revise the appeal to cover the multi-sectoral humanitarian needs of the most vulnerable communities up to April 2020. UN Resident Coordinator, Ambassador Bishow Parajuli made the…
Celebrate World Elephant Day with National Geographic Wild (channel 182)on DStv this August. They are smart. They are family-oriented. They remember forever. They have complex emotions and they look after each other. On 12 August 2019, National Geographic Wild has lined up a jumbo content block dedicated to these iconic tusked giants. Not only are they the…
By Nevson Mpofu Washington Zhakata, the Director in the Department of Climate Change of the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement commented the launch of Annah Brazier’s book on climate change. The book titled Frequently Asked Questions about Climate Change has been taken to rural communities to educate folks there because it…
The EU has announced that it is providing an additional €10 million in funding (about USD 11.15 million) to help address growing humanitarian needs in Zimbabwe A combination of climatic shocks, exacerbated by the economic crisis, led to critical food shortages. The situation is not expected to improve until April 2020, when the next harvest…
By Joyce Mukucha There are fears that the Kariba hydro power station which is the Zimbabwe’s massive power plant might shut down next month as the water inflows continue to decrease. Worries are that power constraints will continue in the country until there is reliable, sustainable and universal energy to the Zimbabwean populace. Contentions between…
THE World Food Programme (WFP)—the biggest buyer of relief food in the country for its operations in the East African region has urged agri-preneurs to step up production of sorghum as there is waiting market. The WFP Country Representative Michael Dunford said here on Tuesday that there huge opportunity for farmers and agri-businesses in the…
By Joyce Mukucha The Ministry of Tourism, Hospitality and Industry in conjunction with the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) and other stakeholders urged Hurungwe residents to desist from causing veld fires. It has been observed that in Zimbabwe, the Hurungwe area has the highest rate of triggering veld fires. According to statistics, 122 people in this…
Financing from the government, private sector and development partners is an imperative to climate change mitigation, delegates at the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMES) workshop in Harare were told. The Workshop is a follow-up to another one that focused on issues related to climate change that was meant to facilitate knowledge generation…
By Byron Mutingwende The Zimbabwe United Nations Development Assistance Framework (ZUNDAF) has recorded significant progress regardless of the current economic challenges, which have been exacerbated by climate change effects, Dr. Misheck Sibanda, the Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet has said. In a speech read on his behalf at the High Level…
By Tatenda Mujeyi The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) country representatives are converged for a training workshop on country tracking compliance on the Paris Agreement by 2020. The workshop is aimed at creating locally designed solutions to the climate change issues as called for by the Paris agreement of 2015. “The Nationally…
By Nevson Mpofu Retailing giant OK Zimbabwe says it is feeling the heat of business difficulties the country is facing, Chief Executive Officer Mr Alex Siyavora said at the OK Annual General Meeting held in Harare. Economic challenges, among them inflation characterised by deterioration in exchange rate, were some of the reasons causing the difficulties….
By Jeff Gelski WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S. — The global food system needs to change to make sure people have enough food to eat in 2050 without destroying the planet, according to “Creating a Sustainable Food Future,” a World Resources Report released July 17. Reducing food waste, eating more plant-based food instead of animal-based food, and…
By Byron Mutingwende The Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) Chief Executive Officer Dr Andrew Matibiri has provided statistics that paint a gloomy future for the crop that has sustained most farmers in the past. Dr Matibiri revealed the information while giving oral evidence to the Parliamentary Committee on Lands, Agriculture, Climate, Water…
By Anna Wiber To increase the quality of corn used in foods such as tortillas and chips, scientists from University of Minnesota, PepsiCo and Corteva Agriscience are calling for more research on the ingredient’s production. In the Crop Science journal article “Food-Grade Maize Composition, Evaluation, and Genetics for Masa-Based Products,” authors state that an insufficient understanding of…
United Nations Environment Programme Half of the world’s population is directly engaged in agriculture and nearly 40 per cent of land is devoted to agriculture and livestock. Food production sustains us all, but it also comes at a cost: water sources are being depleted and contaminated by food production, and unhealthy diets are burdening our…
By Jonny Bairstow Researchers predict hotter temperatures and the presence of more greenhouse gases in the air will diminish agricultural productivity Over the next three decades, climate change and increasing carbon dioxide concentrations could significantly reduce the availability of vital nutrients in food crops. That’s the forecast made in new research published by the Lancet Planetary Health…
By Tatenda Mujeyi The Ministry of Lands has hosted a deforestation and land degradation workshop to curb the effects of degradation and deforestation in line with the Paris Agreement in Harare this week. The workshop was aimed at understanding the drivers of deforestation as well as proffers the correct definition of forestry in the…
The European Union has launched three projects under the EU 11th EDF Cross-Regional Wildlife Conservation programme in Eastern and Southern Africa and the Indian Ocean to protect and promote the country’s marvellous biodiversity endowment. Speaking at the launch, Ambassador Timo Olkkonen, the Head of EU Delegation to Zimbabwe said this country’s natural riches are not…
By Charles Dhewa Besides focusing on pleasing foreign investors, the easy of doing business hype https://tradingeconomics.com/zimbabwe/ease-of-doing-business gives an impression that business is easy. If doing business was easy everybody would be a business person. Farmers and entrepreneurs who wait for conditions to become favourable in order to get into business will stop forever. Most organisations…
According to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) 2019 Synthesis Report on the State of Food and Nutrition Security and Vulnerability in Southern Africa, 41.2 million people in 13 countries are estimated to be food insecure in the 2019/20 year. Comparing the 11 Member States that provided data last year, food insecurity has increased by 28 percent and…
