
15/07/2025
Over 2 Million Zambian Households Supported in Drought Emergency Response
July 15,2025
Chipo Nachibbatu
The Government says over two million Zambian households have benefitted from social protection interventions in response to the 2024 drought emergency.
Community Development and Social Services Minister, Doreen Mwamba, told Parliament this afternoon that the support followed the Presidential declaration of a National Disaster and Emergency on 29th February 2024.
Ms. Mwamba said 952,570 households across all 116 districts were specifically targeted under the Emergency Cash Transfer programme—726,000 of which were in the 84 most drought-affected districts.
She added that these interventions ran alongside the regular Social Cash Transfer programme, which already supports 1.3 million households—who also received top-ups to boost resilience.
The Minister disclosed that the Emergency Cash Transfer programme is undergoing a full review to assess its effectiveness and guide future improvements.
Ms. Mwamba also highlighted the role of the Cash for Work programme, implemented with the DMMU and local councils, which has provided short-term jobs for vulnerable people engaged in community projects like road maintenance, drainage clearing, and tree planting.
She noted that government assessments show the programmes have helped improve food security, school retention, healthcare access, and local economic activity—while discouraging harmful coping strategies like asset sales and child dropouts.
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