ZAMBIA / BIODIVERSITY

Current extraction rates for Zambia’s forests are unsustainable and there’s an urgent need to do more to address the issue, said a new survey carried out by the Zambian forestry department with the technical support of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and funding from the government of Finland. FAO

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:02:05
• Production Date: 2 December 2016
• Asset Language: English
• Corporate Name: FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION - FAO
• Subject Topical: DEFORESTATION; FAUNA; FLORA
• Geographic Subject: ZAMBIA
• MAMS Id: 1787492
• Parent Id: 1787492
• Alternate Title: unifeed1601202d

Description

STORY: ZAMBIA / BIODIVERSITY
TRT: 02:05
SOURCE: FAO
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH /LOCAL LANGUAGE /NATS
DATELINE: NOVEMBER 2016, LOWER ZAMBEZI NATIONAL PARK, MBONGE NATIONAL FOREST, FORESTS CLOSE TO KALUMBILA MINE, ZAMBIA’S NORTH WESTERN PROVINCE, SOLWEZI NATIONAL FOREST, ROAD FROM SIAVONGA TO LUSAKA IN SOUTH OF ZAMBIA, KAPIJIMPANGA VILLAGE, NORTH WESTERN PROVINCE, ZAMBIA

Shotlist

1. Various shots, on the lower Zambezi, hippos in the lower Zambezi
2.Baboon within Lower Zambezi National Park
3.Impala within Lower Zambezi National Park
4.Various shots of elephants within Lower Zambezi National Park
5.Various shots, Impala and giraffe in park close to Lusaka
6.Med shot, Maribou stalk within Lower Zambezi National Park
7.Tracking shot, young crocodile on banks of the lower Zambezi
8. Med shot, butterfly
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Ian Stevenson, CEO conservation Lower Zambezi:
“We’ve got big deforestation pressure around the national park and if that starts encroaching into the national park then it affects the wildlife, then that affects the people who are relying on it through tourism and job opportunities so it’s a massive system where everything relies on each other.”
10. Various shots, drone footage of forests at Zambia’s north western province
13. Various shots, burnt forest for agriculture in the Solwezi national forest
14. Charcoal being sold on side of road from Siavonga to Lusaka in South of Zambia
15. SOUNDBITE (Local Language) Edwin John Katongo, Headman Kapijimpanga village, north western province:
“A long time ago, when I was small, we used to have very large trees but now all you see is secondary forests. And in terms of wildlife, all the animals in these forests have been depleted because people have killed them all to sell for bushmeat to try to earn a living off that.”
16. Various shots, farmer hunting for moles in Solwezi national forest
17. Close up, burnt out tree stumps in Solwezi national forest
18. Various shots of different animals within Lower Zambezi National Park

Storyline

Current extraction rates for Zambia’s forests are unsustainable and there’s an urgent need to do more to address the issue, said a new survey carried out by the Zambian forestry department with the technical support of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and funding from the government of Finland.

Zambia has one of the highest rates of deforestation in the world, posing a threat, not only to Zambia’s wildlife, but also to her people
.
Country’s Lower Zambezi national park is renowned for its biological diversity and is one of the best places in the world to observe elephants. It’s easy to see why. Usually shy and difficult to spot, there are so many elephants here that sightings are very frequent.

Zambia is one of the top 30 most bio-diverse countries in the world in terms of its mammal life. Not to mention its birds, plants, insects and reptiles. But that biodiversity is under threat. A new forest survey, undertaken by the Zambian Forestry Department in collaboration with the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation, and with the financial support of Finland, highlights how unsustainable use of forests is rapidly depleting this vital resource.

A third of Zambia’s trees can be found in Zambia’s Northwestern province.

As the region’s capital Solwezi expands, people have moved into the Solwezi national forest to cut down trees and cultivate crops on the land. The cutting down of trees for charcoal production and firewood is also very common.

Newly launched Integrated Land Use Assessment, ILUA II will hopefully give the government the information they need to manage Zambia’s forests more sustainably.

The information gathered will enable the Zambian government to put in place a long-term monitoring system of it’s forests as well as to enact more sustainable forest management practices.

And with one of the highest deforestation rates in the world, these measures could not be more urgent, not only for these magnificent beasts but also for Zambia’s people, who depend on the biodiversity of the forests for their survival.