The Sunday Mail
Online Reporter
STAKEHOLDERS from Government, academia, civil society organisations and United Nations (UN) agencies are set to meet in Harare between July 6 and July 7 to discuss climate change and disaster management issues.
The workshop, which is organised by ActionAid Zimbabwe, will serve as a platform to interrogate and discuss the current disaster management legislation and policy framework in Zimbabwe.
Government is in the process of putting together a Disaster Risk Management and Civil Protection Bill, whose principles were approved by Cabinet on June 7, 2022.
The Bill is expected to address several legislative and policy shortcomings in the country’s disaster management system.
Said ActionAid Zimbabwe: “The national dialogue, therefore, brings together various stakeholders from Government, academia, civil society organisations and UN agencies to share ideas and, where need be, come up with recommendations to Government and other relevant stakeholders.”
In recent years, Zimbabwe and the whole of Southern Africa has been grappling with the effects of climate change such as cyclones and drought.
In March 2019, the region was devastated by Cyclone Idai, which was considered the worst climate-related disaster to affect the Southern Hemisphere.
Cyclones served as a wake-up call for Southern African countries to revisit their disaster management frameworks.
