Zambia’s Development Agenda Gains More Bilateral Support at SADC Ministerial Meeting
Zambia has attracted further bilateral support toward its development agenda, with the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) pledging technical assistance to accelerate sustainable human settlement initiatives in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region.
The announcement was made on November 7, 2024, by UN-Habitat Executive Director, Ms. Anaclaudia Rossbach, during the SADC Ministerial Meeting held on the sidelines of the 12th Session of the World Urban Forum (WUF12) in Cairo, Egypt.
Representing Zambia at the high-level meeting, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Hon. Gary Nkombo, underscored Zambia’s commitment to working with stakeholders in transforming informal settlements and providing decent housing.
Hon. Nkombo highlighted Zambia’s “open-door policy” and its focus on inclusive planning and development to meet the needs of both rural and urban communities.
Ms. Rossbach emphasized the importance of member states developing and sharing strategic plans on human settlements with UN-Habitat and other partners to tap into technical and financial resources for sustainable urban development.
She further outlined UN-Habitat’s ongoing collaboration with Zambia in areas such as National Urbanisation Policy (NUP) formulation, spatial planning, and infrastructure development.
In attendance were notable Zambian officials, including Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr. Nicholas Phiri, and Zambia’s Ambassador to Egypt, His Excellency Major-General (Retired) Topply Lubaya.
WUF12, which convened government leaders, experts, and stakeholders globally, was officially inaugurated by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on November 4, 2024.
