Promote conservation, wise use of wetlands
TENDAI BHEBE IN BULAWAYO
Matabeleland North Provincial Affairs Minister, Richard Moyo, has called for the protection of wetlands as they have faced pressure from illegal agricultural practices and housing projects.
Wetlands regulate and provide convenient water for many communities across the country.
Land barons have been fleecing desperate home seekers of their hard earned cash by illegally allocating residential stands on Wetlands, especially in Harare and other major cities across the country.
Moyo last week told delegates at the commemoration of the World Wetland Day that there has been massive wetlands loss at national level as citizens do not understand the importance of wetlands to human well-being.
He said a number of wetlands across the country are increasingly coming under threat from rapid urbanisation.
In some areas they are only sources of water for animals yet they can be transformed into development vehicles for local communities through sustainable practices.
Moyo said the ministry of Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry has implemented a number of robust initiatives to ensure sustainable wetlands management is achieved.
“I therefore urge all sectors, ministries and the relevant arms of government to mainstream wetlands management in all their programming,” he said.
As a signatory to the Ramsar Convention, Zimbabwe has tamed provisions for the protection of wetlands under the Environmental Management Agency Act (Cap 20:27), Statutory Instrument 7 of 2007 on EMA (Environmental Impact Assessment and Ecosystems Protection) Regulation and Government Gazette 380 of 2013.
