Policy centre calls for environmental safeguards in Grow Zambia plan

He said major mining, energy and agro-industrial expansions should not receive state support without meeting environmental requirements.

“No major mining, energy or agro-industrial expansion should receive a licence, public guarantee or other state support without a valid environmental decision, approved mitigation measures and a costed closure or restoration plan,” Mwampikita said.

He also called for stronger coordination among environmental and natural-resource regulators.

“ZEMA, WARMA and the Minerals Regulation Commission should conduct coordinated inspections of high-risk facilities and publish permits, compliance orders, water-quality results and remediation milestones in formats that affected communities can access and understand,” he said.

Mwampikita called on the government to protect river basins before approving cumulative expansion, and urged joint, risk-based enforcement involving key regulators.

He said the government should use basin-level and cumulative-impact assessments to identify ecological thresholds, high-risk zones and areas where development should be restricted, rather than assessing each project in isolation.

Mwampikita said the success of the Grow Zambia Agenda should be measured beyond production figures, arguing that environmental safeguards were necessary to prevent short-term production gains from becoming long-term public liabilities.

“The Grow Zambia Agenda should be judged not only by tonnes, megawatts and hectares, but also by the quality of water, restored land, protected livelihoods and public confidence it leaves behind,” he said.

He also called on the government and parliament to embed the obligations in implementation plans, budgets and public reporting from the outset.

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