Seeds of hope: Zambia’s fight against drought
Zambia is enduring its worst drought in four decades, with devastating consequences for people across the country. Crops failed, water sources dried up and hunger has now deepened, leaving millions of people in need of assistance.
But amid the crisis, solidarity prevails. From emergency cash transfers to long-term resilience programmes, communities and partners are working together to address the drought’s immediate impacts, all while building solutions for a more sustainable future in a context of increasing climate shocks.
Here’s what communities and aid workers in Zambia’s most remote areas told us.
A historic drought
Zambia is grappling with the consequences of its worst drought in more than 40 years. Caused by El Niño and exacerbated by climate change, the drought has affected more than 1 million farming families (6.6 million people) who depend on rain-fed agriculture. Testament to the drought’s severity, Zambia declared a national disaster on 29 February.
Mukine, a 43-year-old widow and mother of four from Sikongo town, in Western Province, said: “After my husband passed away last year, I became the sole breadwinner, farming tomatoes and vegetables to put food on the table. But I lost all the crops because of the drought.”
The drought’s impact is widespread, affecting local communities and refugees. Maryam Hassan, a 34-year-old refugee from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, lives with her two daughters in Mayukwayukwa refugee settlement, in Western Province.
Like many, she lost her crops and now struggles to provide for her family: “The drought was so much. It affected all my crops. We survive on one meal a day. People are struggling to put food on the table. Women trade sex for food to feed their children.”
To sustain her family after the drought, she bakes and sells buns and bread.
With the next harvest still months away, hunger is rising and millions of people urgently need assistance.
Responding to the crisis
Humanitarian organizations have stepped in to respond. The UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) allocated US$5.5 million to provide more than half a million people with life-saving food, nutrition, protection, and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services.
The World Food Programme (WFP) is targeting the hardest-hit areas with a drought response plan that provides cash assistance, enabling families, including Mukine’s, to buy food, seeds and basic necessities.
Maryam received cash assistance from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), with support from CERF, to buy food, soap and hygiene items, saving the rest for seeds. She hopes to receive agricultural inputs or chickens to raise, which would help generate income and improve her family’s livelihood.
Healthcare workers are also addressing the alarming rise in malnutrition.
“We’ve noticed an increase in malnutrition cases among children and mothers,” says Achimo, a nurse in Sikongo. “The main problem is that people don’t have food.”
With CERF’s support, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) provides treatment for severe acute malnutrition and moderate acute malnutrition.
The drought has made access to safe water a major challenge.
Musa works with UNICEF, overseeing water and sanitation rehabilitation projects. He explains: “The drought has affected the cleanliness and availability of water in many communities, but many families have no choice but to continue drinking from these sources to survive.”
UNICEF and partners are rehabilitating boreholes and distributing hygiene kits for families and healthcare facilities in affected communities. Each kit includes chlorine for water treatment, soap and oral rehydration solutions.
The drought is also creating protection issues for women and children. Female-headed families and adolescent girls are particularly vulnerable to increased violence, exploitation and abuse.
Falisa, 17, attends awareness sessions at a safe space in Lusaka, supported by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA). She is determined to continue her education to transform her family and community: "Many challenges happen in the community, like early marriages. When I finish school, I want to go to university and become a doctor. Then, I can help my family."
Falisa says the safe space has helped her become more self-aware of issues, including the prevalence of prostitution among young women.
"Girls often end up there because of peer pressure," she explains.
The safe spaces provide training that equips girls with life skills to help them resist child marriage, teenage pregnancy, dropping out of school, transactional sex and other risks.
The non-governmental organization Lifeline Childline Zambia also supports survivors of abuse. It provides two 24-hour toll-free lines with a call centre for women, supported by CERF, UNFPA, UNHCR and UNICEF.
Building resilience
With the rise in global temperatures and changing weather patterns, climate change threatens to bring more frequent and severe extreme weather to Southern Africa.
In addition to the emergency response, humanitarian partners are building people’s resilience against future shocks by introducing sustainable initiatives. In the Mayukwayukwa refugee settlement, solar-powered irrigation systems, provided by Caritas Zambia, now allow farmers to grow crops year-round.
Nasizo, a local teacher and farmer, shares her renewed hope: “I’ve started planting maize and green peppers again. I lost my crops earlier this year, but this project is helping me and other farmers replant by providing water.”
Caritas Zambia supports other initiatives such as oil expellers, which enable families to produce cooking oil and peanut butter to sell.
Peter, a farmer who oversees one such project, describes its impact: “With this oil expeller, farmers can generate income and support their families beyond relying on aid.”
By addressing immediate needs and building resilience, Zambia is taking steps to ensure that communities can better withstand future droughts. However, funding remains a major challenge; only 17 per cent of the $228 million Zambia Drought Flash Appeal, launched in May, has been funded. In the face of these challenges, humanitarian partners reached 2 million people and plan to assist about 3.2 million people this year.
For Maryam, Mukine and many others, it’s vital that these initiatives continue, as they offer hope and a path to recovery.