Zambia - Enhanced sustainability in the mining sector
The programme seeks to achieve enhanced sustainability in the Zambian mining sector focusing on aspects of environment, human rights, and climate change.
The program named "Strengthening Zambian Mining Governance in The Nexus of Environment, Human Rights, and Climate" (ZAMNEX) runs from October 2022 to September 2026.
The sector is an important lever for economic development, while also posing a risk of negative environmental and social impacts, including deforestation, loss of biodiversity and loss of livelihoods. If managed sustainably, it has the potential to contribute to poverty alleviation and to achieving the goals of sustainable development.
Integrates environment, climate and human rights
The ZAMNEX program is led by the Swedish EPA and includes the following core partners: SwEPA, Geological Survey of Sweden (SGU), Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI), in close collaboration with Zambian partners including the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment (MGEE), Zambian Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA) and Ministry of Mines and Mineral Development (MMMD).
Challenges in the mining sector
The current program consortium together with a wide range of local stakeholders has identified strategic areas of intervention that are critical to addressing challenges in the mining sector. These are:
- licensing and permit process for large-scale mining and increased awareness,
- knowledge generation and strategic planning related to climate change issues linked to mining. In connection, there are also two further areas of effort in the program designed to
- strengthen the national discourse on sustainable mining by bringing together strategic actors to highlight and strategize on some identified "hot topics" related to the Zambian mining sector and
- provide channels for Zambian actors in the mining value chain to access and interact with regional and global platforms with similar objectives to the program and offer financial and capacity support to selected national initiatives that share ZAMNEX's overall ambitions.
Through strategic work within these areas of intervention, the program aims to reach broad segments of the Zambian mining governance system at different levels that hold "business functions" to achieve a more sustainable sector in terms of environment, human rights and climate impact.
Striving for change
The program seeks to promote change by delivering strategic outcomes, generating long-term results and consequently lasting institutionalized change. It intends to do so by:
- strengthen individual and organizational capacity among participating individuals and institutions and
- add to national policy dialogue and frameworks by seeking to strategically consolidate and disseminate new knowledge produced within each program component/area of intervention and work to embed these in relevant national institutions.
Contact and more information
Would you like to know more about the cooperation in Zambia and the ZAMNEX project? Send an email to Andreas Lindström at the Swedish EPA, andreas.lindstrom@naturvardsverket.se.