Mushrooming of unplanned settlements worries Hichilema, urges planners to think sustainability

President Hakainde Hichilema has expressed concern over the mushrooming of unplanned informal settlements without adequate social amenities.

Hichilema called on planners in the country through the Zambia Institute of Planners to take interest in the situation and help to deal with it urgently.

The Head of State said this in Livingstone on Friday where he graced the 8th National Conference of the Zambia Institute of Planners.

He said the planners should use their expertise to design sustainable and resilient cities and foster innovation and promote social inclusion.

“It was pleasure gracing the 8th National Conference for the Zambia Institute of Planners drawn from various sectors and expertise of our economy across the country…,” Hichilema said.

He reminded the country’s planners to desist from corrupt activities as that results in poor workmanship that endangers public safety and wastage of public resources.

During the conference held under the theme ‘unlocking barriers to socio-economic development in Zambia’, Hichilema reaffirmed government’s commitment to the development of the country and to the overall well-being of Zambians.

He reminded the planners that, by integrating urban design, land use planning, environmental considerations, economic, social, and infrastructure development, they can create a conducive environment for businesses to thrive and communities to prosper.

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“We expressed concern on the slow pace of service delivery in some sectors and called on them to play a pivotal role in resolving these challenges by taking a proactive and integrated approach to ensuring quality services are delivered to the people in a timely manner,” Hichilema said.

He added that government’s desire was that all the 116 local authorities would have integrated development plans with priorities based on local needs.

“Local resource mobilization, and tailored solutions with strong collaboration among community governance structures,” he said.

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