By Lumbiwe Mwanza
IT is sad that World Bank’s US $65-million-dollar project in Kabwe aimed at enhancing testing and treatment of lead contamination has not yielded much, Human Rights Watch Associate Director in the Children’s Rights Division Juliane Kippenberg has said.
In 2016, the World Bank gave Zambia $65 million for the Mining Environmental Remediation and Improvement Project (ZMERIP) which aims to reduce environmental health risks in several critically polluted mining areas in Zambia.
This also included Kabwe’s lead contamination challenge which has made the town one of the most polluted towns in the world and aimed at strengthening the capacity of Government to address the legacy of lead.
But speaking to The Scoop in an exclusive interview yesterday, Ms Kippenberg says despite such a critical project being embarked on, over five years down the line, there has been little progress in terms of tracking and raising awareness among residents in Kabwe to prevent further lead contamination.
She says it is important that more information of lead contamination is enhanced especially among the child bearing age in view of having more people tested and treated for lead contamination.
