Zambia - Strengthening Climate Resilience in the Kafue Sub-Basin Project

Zambia’s climate is highly variable, with frequent droughts, seasonal and flash floods, extreme temperatures and dry spells. Floods and droughts have increased in frequency over the past three decades, costing the nation an estimated 0.4% in annual economic growth. These trends are expected to intensify in the future. Projected temperatures are expected to increase by 3-50C by 2100, with average precipitation declining during the early rainy season (October to December) and intensifying thereafter. In the absence of adaptation, rainfall variability alone could keep an additional 300,000 people below the poverty line over the next decade, and reduce annual GDP growth by 0.9%. Climate change and variability are in turn affecting agriculture and natural resource productivity, thereby exacerbating poverty and contributing to decline in economic growth. On the basis of this observed climate trends, Zambia was one of the three countries in Africa selected for the Pilot Program for Climate Resilience (PPCR), which is funded by the Strategic Climate Fund (SCF) – a multi-donor Trust Fund under the Climate Investment Funds (CIFs).