ZEDCON indaba to anchor climate financing
PRESIDENT Mnangagwa is expected to headline the third edition of the Zimbabwe Economic Development Conference (Zedcon) to run from September 15 to 17 in Victoria Falls with climate financing and economic development mechanisms taking centre stage.
This year’s edition will be held under the theme: “Building Resilience and Driving Economic Transformation under Climate Change.”
The conference is organised by the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion in conjunction with other ministries, departments and agencies, development partners and private sector organisations.
“The event will consist of presentations from identified researchers, discussions and plenary sessions. Two major papers and three supporting presentations will be selected from each of the six pillars. The President of Zimbabwe, Cde E. D. Mnangagwa will be the keynote speaker,” said the organisers in a public update.
This year’s theme reflects consensus that it is important to explore various possibilities to drive economic growth while also building economic resilience in the face of the threats and challenges caused by climate change.
“Considering the vital link between climate dynamics and economic development, this theme will bring together various stakeholders, including policymakers, the private sector and researchers, to examine ways and means to grow and expand Zimbabwe’s climate financing and economic development mechanisms in a manner that is alive to the prevailing changes in local, regional and global climatic conditions,” reads part of the pre-conference brief.
“Exploring climate resilience and economic development mechanisms will help the country to adequately respond to the effects of climate change while maintaining the current economic development trajectory.”
Early this year, President Mnangagwa declared a nationwide State of Disaster in response to the severe drought triggered by the El Niño weather phenomenon.
El-Nino drought
The proclamation underscores the critical urgency for implementing effective measures and interventions to mitigate the dire impact of climate change.
Countries across the globe are facing severe pressures from climate change and among the effects are droughts, rainfall and food shortages, reduced economic growth, among many other climate induced shocks.
Zimbabwe is one of the countries severely impacted by the current El Nino-induced drought, making the conference a vital opportunity of informing national policy to effectively respond to the devastating effects of climate change, both immediate and long term.
Considering the reported effects of climate change across several countries ranging from heat waves, flash floods, landslides, drying rivers and melting of glaciers, analysts believe it is imperative for Zimbabwe to explore ways in which to build climate resilience mechanisms while effectively responding to climate shocks in the economy.
Hence the broad aims of the conference are to bring together the researchers, academia, policy makers, civil society organisations and development partners to discuss policy implications of climate change.
The conference is expected to provide a platform for established academics and young researchers to present their solution-oriented research to policymakers
A total of 122 abstracts were submitted and the review panel selected 30 abstracts which will be part of the conference.
The Meteorological Services Department is also developing a baseline paper on Meteorological Analysis of Climate Variability, Rainfall Patterns and El Nino Effects 2025-2030 and beyond.
Topics to be tackled include climate-proofing agricultural production growth, meteorological analysis of climate variability, rainfall patterns and El Nino effects for 2025-2030 and beyond.-chornicle
