Overview
This policy establishes Zambia’s national approach to disaster risk reduction and management, defining key concepts, guiding principles, goals, and institutional arrangements. It analyzes the country’s vulnerability—linked to poverty, environmental degradation, fragile infrastructure, epidemics, and climate-related hazards—and categorizes major risks including human-induced, natural, and complex humanitarian emergencies. The policy emphasizes mainstreaming disaster prevention, preparedness, and mitigation into development, with gender-sensitive strategies, early warning systems, public awareness, training, and community resilience at its core. It sets objectives and measures across the disaster management cycle: improving risk assessment and contingency planning; enabling timely response through an Emergency Operations Centre and early warning; strengthening prevention via regulation, training, and information dissemination; and advancing mitigation and livelihood restoration through infrastructure, environmental management, and diversified livelihoods. Coordination is structured through national, provincial, district, and satellite committees, with the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit serving as the permanent secretariat and operational hub. An implementation framework details roles of the National Disaster Management Committee and Technical Committee, sub-committees (health, finance, logistics, agriculture/environment, security, early warning, training), and provincial/district structures. The legal framework calls for a DMMU Act and harmonization of relevant laws. Financing includes a National Disaster Trust Fund and complementary support from donors, NGOs, the private sector, UN agencies, and communities. Monitoring and evaluation will be integrated to track delivery and outcomes.