In 2018, IFRC Disaster Law, together with the Zambia Red Cross Society, the Netherlands Red Cross Society, the Zambia Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit and the Office of the Vice President organised an intensive training workshop for disaster risk management staff from across government and other stakeholders. The workshop focused on key legal issues in disaster risk management and tools for the drafting of disaster risk management laws and other instruments.
In 2020, a desktop mapping of Zambia’s legal framework applicable to international disaster response was conducted, using the Checklist on the Facilitation and Regulation of International Disaster Relief and Initial Recovery Assistance (the IDRL Checklist). This activity formed part of a larger exercise to map the IDRL frameworks of ten countries within Southern Africa, to identify and analyse the legal and policy arrangements for international disaster response across the region. These mappings have been compiled in a report entitled Legal Preparedness for International Disaster Assistance in Southern Africa: Regional Assessment and Country Profiles (the Report). The Report provides an overview of IDRL frameworks at global, regional, sub-regional level and national levels, assesses the legal preparedness of states in the sub-region to facilitate international assistance in the event that a disaster exceeds national capacities, and proposes recommendations to strengthen IDRL in the sub-region. A summary version of the Report, which contains the executive summary and regional analysis, is also available.
In 2022, following engagements with the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment, Zambia Red Cross was given the opportunity to provide comments on the current draft of the Climate Change Bill. With the support of IFRC Disaster Law, Zambia Red Cross presented their comments to the Ministry for their consideration.
In light of the floods occurring in the beginning of the 2023, an IDRL emergency fact sheet has been developed to provide key information on the regulatory and policy environment that applies to floods preparedness and response. Specifically targeted towards members of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, this document can support decision-making processes to optimise international disaster assistance.
