Appeal Target: US$ 2,335,311
Balance Requested from ACT Network: US$ 932,467
Geneva, 21 February 2003
Dear Colleagues,
As the hunger situation in the country has reached a very critical stage, the Christian Council of Zambia has revised their programs in the appeal with a view to improving relief assistance to their targeted beneficiaries. They have also changed areas of intervention from those indicated in the original appeal issued on the 14 August 2002. One of the main reasons for this was that by the time resources were available from the appeal, their original areas of intervention had been taken and covered by other agencies. In the original appeal, they had targeted Choma and Gwembe in the Southern Province and Lusaka urban for the Lusaka province. While Choma remains a target area, Gwembe is no longer their area of coverage. In Lusaka province, they have now moved to Mumbwa district. In line with the changes, there has been some adjustments in the budget, especially in logistics and personnel costs. The Implementation period has also been adjusted to a completion date of 30 May. 2003 instead of the earlier 30 April, 2003.
Please note that this revision only affects the CCZ program and for the sake of brevity, only the CCZ revised programme is included in this revision. For details on the LWF program please see revision 1 of 22 January 2003.
Project Completion Date:
LWF - 31 July 2003
CCZ - 30 May, 2003
Summary of Appeal Targets, Pledges/Contributions Received and Balance Requested
|
CCZ
|
LWF
|
Total Target US$
|
|
| Appeal Targets |
321,455
|
2,013,856
|
2,335,311
|
| Less: Pledges/Contr. Recd. |
214,805
|
1,188,039
|
1,402,844
|
| Balance Requested from ACT Network |
106,650
|
825,817
|
932,467
|
Please kindly send your contributions to the following ACT bank account:
Account Number - 240-432629.60A (USD)
Account Name: ACT - Action by Churches Together
UBS SA
PO Box 2600
1211 Geneva 2
SWITZERLAND
Please also inform the Finance Officer Jessie Kgoroeadira (direct tel. +4122/791.60.38, e-mail address jkg@act-intl.org) of all pledges/contributions and transfers, including funds sent direct to the implementers, now that the Pledge Form is no longer attached to the Appeal.
We would appreciate being informed of any intent to submit applications for EU, USAID and/or other back donor funding and the subsequent results. We thank you in advance for your kind cooperation.
For further information:
ACT Director, Thor-Arne Prois (phone +41 22 791 6033 or mobile phone + 41 79 203 6055) or
ACT Appeals Officer, John Nduna (phone +41 22 791 6040 or mobile phone +41 79 433 0592)
ACT Web Site address: http://www.act-intl.org
Thor-Arne Prois
Director, ACT
I. REQUESTING ACT MEMBER
- Christian Council of Zambia (CCZ)
II. IMPLEMENTING MEMBER & PARTNER INFORMATION
The Christian Council of Zambia has been in operation for fifty-seven (57) years since it was founded as the Christian Council of Northern Rhodesia in the year 1945. At independence in 1964, the name changed to the Christian Council of Zambia (CCZ). It was during this period that the Council widened its scope in terms of starting projects and strengthening the already existing educational institutions.
Apart from the strengthening of member churches, and the Christian organisations that form it, the Council has, together with member churches and communities, spearheaded developmental projects. These projects include water and sanitation, refugee projects, women and children issues, HIV/AIDS, educational projects, income generating activities, advocacy on some national issues and disaster management. It
The Council has been involved in co-ordinating, mobilising, and distributing resources. It serves communities regardless of colour, age and religious affiliation. The Council speaks out against abuses and all forms of injustices and responds to man-made or natural disasters.
The Christian Council of Zambia has been actively involved in assisting the government alleviate the suffering of people at grass-roots level by providing food to communities that have been hit by hunger due to the prolonged drought.
III. DESCRIPTION of the EMERGENCY SITUATION
Background
In Zambia, weather conditions have not improved since the early 1990s. The country has experienced drought in some parts and floods in other areas. For the 2001/2002 agricultural season, the rains failed most parts of the country except in the Northern, North-Western, and Luapula Provinces. The most affected by drought are Southern, Lusaka, Central, Western and Eastern provinces. The government has put the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries as a priority Ministry because of the hunger situation in the country. The Zambian government has declared war against the hunger situation in the country.
Factors that led to the worsening of the situation for the 2001/2 agricultural season are as follows:
- Damage of crops due to drought and/or excessive rains
- Some farmers could not afford to buy inputs such as fertilisers seed and pesticides
- Death of livestock due to corridor disease.
Due to the above-mentioned factors, the Government's Disaster Management Unit estimated a food deficit of six hundred and thirty thousand (630,000) metric tonnes. One hundred and seventy five thousand (175,000) metric tonnes is expected to come as relief while four hundred and fifty five thousand (455,000) metric tonnes is expected to come as a commercial commodity. World Food Programme is working hand in hand with the government in the area of food distribution. Other NGOs have also been sourcing for food to compliment government efforts in alleviating this problem.
The food insecurity trend in Zambia has been rising since the early 1990's. According to the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper, the current agricultural policies are not favourable to small scale farmers in Zambia. The policy of liberalisation is correct for revitalising agriculture. There is consensus that the government's pricing and marketing policies in the agricultural sector during the pre-reforms period failed to provide sufficient incentives for increased output by farmers and also discouraged private sector-led agricultural development especially in the output and input market. Moreover, because of the policy bias in favour of maize, infrastructure and a service support to the agricultural sector discriminated against other equally rewarding activities in this sector targeted at both the domestic and external markets.
By 1994, all consumer subsidies on maize and maize products were completely eliminated and the prices were totally freed.
Zambia recognises that future growth potential will be based on increased market competitiveness and that the liberalisation process embarked on earlier is virtually irreversible if market players are to respond to the emerging structure and requirements of the global economy. In this regard, agricultural producers, processors and merchandisers will be enabled to rapidly reposition themselves in the face of increasing competition, changing customer preferences and new distribution channel designs. Both agricultural producers and agri-business players will be encouraged to produce competitively and reach out to emerging markets more proactively.
The following will constitute the principal interventions in the three years of the National Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper implementation:
- Improve finance and investment climate
- Improve marketing, trade and agricultural-business climate
- Improve land and infrastructure development
- Improve technology development and dissemination
- Establish targeted support systems for food security
The government and all stakeholders indeed need to work hard at policies to revamp the agricultural system.
The weather pattern is worrying especially in the Southern Africa region. This is the main cause of food insecurity. All stakeholders in their efforts to fight hunger should put across mitigation measures in such disasters.
ACT is a worldwide network of churches and related agencies meeting human need through coordinated emergency response.
The ACT Coordinating Office is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in Switzerland.
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