The larger part of Lunga District of Luapula Province has been badly hit by the floods leaving most houses submerged in water.
According to the Diocese of Mansa, Kasoma Lunga Chiefdom is the worst hit where the Catholic church and houses have been flooded.
The Church on its Facebook page has appealed to Government and people of good will to promptly come to the aid of the people of Lunga District.
And Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit National Coordinator Chanda Kabwe has confirmed that the Lunga District in Luapula Province has been completely flooded leaving some residents whose homes are not on the upper land stranded .
Mr Kabwe has attributed the flooding to heavy rains and narrowed water canals in the area.
Mr Kabwe accompqnies by Permanent Secretaries from the Ministries of Local Government Bishop, Dr. Ed Chomba , Infrastructure and Housing Development Charles Mushota and Luapula Member of Parliament Emerine Kabanshi has assessed the situation in the area and stated that Dredgers will be provided as soon as possible to widen the water canals .
The DMMU National Coordinator said 400 locals from 4 Chiefdoms in the District will be employed this week to carry out the works rather than outsourcing workforce.
Early last month, Housing and Infrastructure Development Minister Vincent Mwale assured residents of Lunga district in Luapula Province that clearing of canals in the district would start very soon.
Mr Mwale says he has engaged his counterpart at the Ministry of Finance to release money for fuel for the two dredgers that are stationed in Lunga distrcit.
Canals in Lunga district have been blocked because the two dredgers meant to clear the canals are not working as they have no fuel.
The Minister dispatched a team of engineers from his Ministry to go to Lunga district to go and make plans of how quickly the dredgers should work once money for fuel is released.
According to Civil Society Scaling up Nutrition Alliance Country Coordinator Mathews Mhuru, the Lunga District Administration requires K160 000 for fuel to run the dredger to clear the canals.
A consignment of Guibourtia wood bound for Vietnam and worth over RM9mil was stopped by the authorities
Customs officers conducted a check on the shipping container at the Tanjung Pelepas port and seized the illegal wood from Zambia.
Guibourtia wood is a controlled item under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Special of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites).
Johor Customs director Datuk Mohammad Hamidan Maryani said any shipment would need an export permit from the exporting country.
“We found 115 pieces weighing about 30,580kg in the container.
The wood is worth 2.9 million dollars equivalent to about 30 million Kwacha. Our sources have confirmed to our Team of Analysts that the owners of the confiscated wood belongs to a group of “Politically exposed Persons”. BA POMPWE!…
It seems this district is situated right on the swamps or marshlands, because every year the story of flooding always pops up, remember last season the district was among those needing DMMU assistance for food not because of drought but because of floods, if chenobyl and fukushima towns could be forsaken due to excess uranium exposure, This swampy area could also be forsaken and let nature take its course then turn it into a tourism national park, let the people be settled on higher ground , zambia is too big for its citizens to lack land.
Zambia needs to build resilient infrastructure. Climates are only expected to intensify. We need to collaborate with the Japanese who have strong technical capabilities in designing such infrastructure.
We also need to beef up DMMU and depolitize it.
I know someone who knows the place well. He says no one should ever live there in the first place. It started as a temporary settlement for fishermen but has since become permanent. By allowing permanent settlement there, a significant risk to biodiversity of Lake Bangueulu is being tolerated at a time whn biodiversity is the in-thing. Ministry of Environment needs to assess if it’s worthwhile having people live in a swamp.
Nemwine thanks for the update that just settles our minds. Bless
I tend to agree with people proposing that Lunga should not be a permanent dwelling for the people who have now inhabited it on a permanent basis. Its very nature is against that. Please mwe buteko ferry these people to higher grounds (they need to Omboka). better still ask these fishermen to go back where they came from before settling here. Unless they are Batwas who remain nomadic.
Montana: I just want to be objective in my engagement with fellow citizens.
Ala, ifintu kuomboka, or else kunyina mumenshi ka!
But lunga is a statutory district. Are you suggesting it’s degazetted?