By 
Minister of Green Economy and Environment, Mike Mposha, has assured the nation that it was too early to declare the dry spells currently affecting parts of Zambia as a drought.
This statement comes in contrast to a warning from his own department, the Meteorological Department, which had raised concerns about the dry spell, particularly in the southern regions.
Mposha emphasized that, despite the dry conditions, there has been no official announcement from the Meteorological Department declaring a drought.
He urged farmers and the general public not to panic, stressing that the situation was still being monitored.
In a statement issued on Monday, Mposha stated that Zambia was still expected to receive normal to above-normal rainfall in the northern regions.
“As and when the conditions change and suggest otherwise, we will release the information, but for now, the indications show that we are still okay and we are going to receive normal/above normal rainfall,” Mposha said.
He highlighted that regions such as Muchinga, North Western, and Luapula have already received over 200 millimeters of rainfall, which he described as very good.
In some areas, the rainfall has reached about 100 millimeters.
However, Mposha acknowledged concerns over some districts in the Southern Province, which have received between 16 to 30 millimeters of rainfall, which he described as inadequate.
Despite this, he noted that there was a pattern of heavy rainfall in the northern regions moving southward, and he hoped that by mid-December, the rains would cover the entire country.
Mposha also reassured the public that the government’s projections for the 2024/2025 rain season remained largely unchanged.
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