Climate catastrophe leaves millions malnourished in Zambia
Floods and drought in Zambia are destroying crops, livestock, houses and infrastructure and forcing people to resettle. Nearly half of the country’s land for cultivating maize has been affected. States with historic responsibility for the climate crisis must meet their human rights obligations to provide adequate remediation and full reparation for loss and damage as well as rapidly phase-out of fossil fuels.
In recent years Zambia has faced a series of extreme weather events, amplified by climate change. In 2024, the drought crisis has led the Zambian government to repeatedly declare a national emergency. Drought has directly impacted agriculture: out of the 2.2 million hectares of maize planted nationwide, approximately one million hectares have been destroyed, affecting over a million farming households. Earlier floods, including last year, have already caused a 25 per cent decline of maize production. As maize is a staple crop, its loss threatens food supplies and aggravates the already difficult conditions faced by many rural and urban communities.
“Human dignity has been compromised as people struggle to feed themselves. The affected people do not have food, they lack water for household use and are constantly looking for food aid to feed themselves,” said FIAN Zambia Coordinator Vladimir Chilinya at a side event of the UNFCCC Climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan.
According to a recent analysis by the Zambian Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit, close to 10 million people are exposed to the adverse effects of drought, including over 6.5 million who are significantly affected. More than four million children have been screened for severe and moderate acute malnutrition. It is estimated that more than 100,000 children urgently need treatment for severe acute malnutrition. Similarly, more than 110,000 pregnant and lactating women are in need of nutritional support to prevent worsening health outcomes.
The Zambian Government has repeatedly declared a state of emergency. Due to the scale of the problem, however, it is impossible for the government to fully address the situation. Those countries with historic responsibilities for the climate catastrophe must comply with their extraterritorial obligations and ensure that human rights are protected from climate-related harm, and that affected people are provided adequate remediation and reparation for loss and damage.
A transition to agroecology is one way forward in adapting to and mitigating the crisis.
“The government of Zambia must urgently support farmers in their agroecological farming which reduces climate risks while supporting resilience of food systems,” says Valentin Hategekimana, Africa coordinator at FIAN International.
There is an urgent need to rapidly phase out fossil fuels to reduce the devastating impacts of the climate catastrophe. Carbon market mechanisms, such as those recently pushed through by the COP29 presidency, are false solutions and a dangerous distraction from states fulfilling their obligations to provide adequate remediation and reparation for loss and damage.
More ambitious funding commitments and implementation are urgently needed. States must turn existing pledges into real and adequate finance flows for Global South countries. The fund for loss and damage must ensure mobilization of funds and direct access for communities and not lead to further debts being incurred.
For more information, please contact Valentin Hategekimana hategekimana@fian.org or Sabine Pabst pabst@fian.org
