Spearhead climate resilience, varsities urged

Judith Phiri, Business Reporter
THE Ministry of Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry has urged universities to proffer solutions that can address climate change issues in the country.

This comes after the Ministry, in March signed climate change mainstreaming agreements with seven universities in the country which include University of Zimbabwe (UZ), National University of Science and Technology (Nust), Lupane State University (LSU), Midlands State University (MSU), Great Zimbabwe University (GZU), Bindura University of Science Education and Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT).

Speaking during the presentation of research outputs and awarding of certificates of the climate change mainstreaming research programme last week at Nust, director of climate change management in the Ministry, Mr Washington Zhakata said to overcome some natural disasters such as cyclones, universities had to provide practical solutions to mitigate the disasters.

“The programme is coming as a result of the need for us to become climate resilient and lower carbon emission by year 2030. We do not want to see a situation whereby when we have a cyclone, people continue to die and infrastructure affected.

“The Government saw it fit by coming up with Vision 2030 where the goal is to become an upper middle to upper income economy, but if we are not climate resilient it’s going to be a problem, we will not manage to attain that vision,” said Mr Zhakata.

He said Government was losing millions of dollars due to disasters which were climate change induced hence the need to properly plan how to rebuild the destroyed infrastructure. Mr Zhakata said there was need to come up with new structures which can adapt to climate change when repairing or rebuilding destroyed infrastructure.

“We should have a situation now where we study every infrastructure, to ensure that it’s strong enough so that we do not continue wasting money. The bridges that are being swept away are not because they are not strong, but it’s just that their design did not take into account the current trend with respect to weather and climate.”

He said members of the Provincial Development Committees (PDC) should desist from reconstructing damaged infrastructure using the same design that was done in the 1970s.

Nust research and academic affairs pro-vice chancellor, Professor Yogi Naik said the research programme has had a great impact and contributed to growth of the university in terms of what it can offer in the mainstreaming of the of the effects of climate change in the development agenda.

“Nust has increased its efforts in raising awareness on issues to do with climate change. The department of Environmental Science and Health has submitted to ZIMCHE for approval, an MSc in Climate Change and Sustainable Development, a programme with a clear focus on climate change,” he said.

Prof Naik said their commitment to climate change issues has been complemented greatly by the research programme.

Meanwhile, at a related event at LSU, Vice Chancellor Professor Pardon Kuipa said the impact of climate change on humans and wildlife cannot be overemphasised and as such research was envisaged to inform the mitigation and adaptation strategies that the Ministry will implement going forward.

Prof Kuipa said: “It is my sincere hope and expectation that this climate change mainstreaming programme will go a long way in transforming the way climate change will be taught within the university, availing abundant opportunities for applied research that will inform policy direction, and improving the sustainability of livelihoods through research-anchored mitigation and adaptation strategies. As Lupane State University, we remain very supportive of the Ministry’s interventions in the effective implementation of this programme.”

The Ministry under the agreements with participating universities, offered training and undertook conventional researches to Provincial Development Committees (PDCs) as a tool for analysing impacts and supporting innovations to upscale climate change national adaptation strategies.

The Partnership Agreement was initiated under the National Adaptation Plan (NAP). The initiative came after the Government had unveiled a US$150 000 research grant for the enhancement of the capacity building of sub-national authorities to integrate climate change along the lines of devolution.