Zimbabwe Gears Up for Global Wetlands Summit in Victoria Falls

By Takudzwa Tondoya

Zimbabwe is putting final touches to preparations for the 15th Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP15) which will take place in Victoria Falls from 23 to 31 July.

The international summit is expected to draw 2,400 delegates from 172 countries focusing global attention on the role wetlands play in preserving biodiversity and supporting sustainable development.

This year’s conference will run under the theme “Protecting Wetlands for Our Common Future.”

In an interview with 263chat.com ahead of the event, Joyce Chapungu, Deputy Director of Communications in the Ministry of Environment, Climate and Wildlife highlighted the critical ecological value of wetlands.

“There are plants, there are animals that depend on wetlands for some parts of their life cycles. There are some which depend on wetlands for their entire life cycles,” she said.

Chapungu also revealed that Zimbabwe has finalised a new policy aligning national biodiversity efforts with global frameworks such as the Ramsar Convention and the Convention on Biological Diversity.

“We recently developed the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, the NBSAP, for Zimbabwe. Now we await its launch. So this Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan is in line with the provisions of the Convention on Biodiversity,” she said.

Zimbabwe is set to assume the COP Presidency from 2025 to 2028 — a tenure Chapungu said presents major opportunities for knowledge sharing and resource mobilisation.

“During that time, it’s an opportunity for us to learn and to share what we’ve done in terms of wetlands management. It’s an opportunity to unlock sustainable financing for our wetlands,” she said.

She highlighted ongoing collaborations between the government and communities, pointing to the successful revival of Kasibo Wetland in Hwange District with support from the Environmental Management Agency (EMA).

“The wetland, at some point it dilapidated and through the intervention of EMA, the communities managed to resuscitate the wetlands. They managed to restore the wetland back to its original state,” she said.

Chapungu urge members of the public to take an active role in wetland preservation, saying protecting these ecosystems brings direct benefits to communities and future generations.