Sweden spends USD 6 million on biodiversity projects
The herald
Rumbidzayi Zinyuke Senior reporter
The Swedish government has invested USD 6 million in a project aimed at supporting communities in four districts in climate adaptation initiatives.
The Utariri project, which will be rolled out in Mbire, Hurungwe, Muzarabani and Nyaminyami districts starting next month, will run for three years.
Utariri is a Shona word meaning stewardship.
Deputy Head of Mission and Head of Development Cooperation at the Swedish Embassy in Zimbabwe Dr Berthollet Kaboru said the initiative would build resilience in the communities that will benefit from the project.
“The aim is to support communities around Mbire and surrounding areas so that they can contribute to climate change efforts. The Government of Zimbabwe has ambitious programs and we are trying to align with these to ensure that the local communities are properly adapted and get the most of their livelihood from activities that are climate smart,” he said.
He said activities to be supported by the project include reforestation and income generation projects that allow communities to address climate-related challenges.
The project will be implemented by Dan ChurchAid as the lead organization in partnership with African Wildlife Foundation, Future of Hope Foundation among others working with various government departments which include Agritex, Department of Social Development, Environmental Management Agency, National Parks and Wildlife and Ministry of Women.
Dan ChurchAid country manager Mads Lindegaard said the partners were working to create community biodiversity stewardship.
“Very few Zimbabweans are actually aware of the incredible potential wealth that nature conservation has had in this country, but in order to preserve nature, communities must have a decent livelihood. If one is hungry why would they protect the animals that destroy their fields? We must find ways to give communities the opportunity to have good livelihoods while understanding the potential wealth that nature can bring in terms of tourism, hunting and sustainable harvesting of nature,” he said.
Mr Lindegaard said they will take a holistic approach involving more partners to ensure they cover all aspects of biodiversity from water, agriculture, reforestation and also wildlife protection in a way that allows communities to co-exist more safely with animals.
“When the three years are over, we want to see communities that have gained an increased understanding of the role biodiversity plays in their lives. They should understand why it is important to preserve trees to continue to have water in the well or the stream and why it is important to preserve nature to keep temperatures down so that you can succeed in your fields as well. We want to see communities enter the value chain,” he added.
He said the project would support the production of chillies by communities as a means of driving elephants away from their fields.
The chili would then be exported to markets such as China where there is high demand, improving the income of the farmers as well as the country’s foreign exchange earnings.