Nature-based solutions
90 per cent of Zambia’s households rely on charcoal to meet their energy needs because charcoal is cheap and readily available. However, this dependence has created an unprecedented charcoal boom, causing the mass clearing of Zambia’s forests and woodlands.
Conservationist and CEO of Namfumu Conservation Trust, Musonda Kapena, highlights the importance of designing and implementing nature-based solutions to manage climate change, as well as the critical need for countries like Zambia to increase the economic value of sustainably produced forest products making it financially attractive to communities to stop cutting down trees for charcoal and preserve the life-giving role of Africa’s forests and biodiversity.