By Cecilia Chiluba/Zambia/Lusaka
Zambia’s Human Rights Commission (HRC) has urged government agencies to always act urgently whenever the country experiences violations of environmental rights.
HRC Director of Research and Planning, Foster Hamuyube, said the Government has an obligation to protect citizens from violations of their human rights.
Mr. Hamuyube articulated the intrinsic connection between environmental integrity and the fulfillment of fundamental human rights.
Speaking in Lusaka during the High-Level Dialogue on Environmental Rights Advocacy in Zambia under the LIFT Zambia Project—supported by Norwegian Church Aid and Danish Church Aid—he said environmental protection constitutes a core human rights obligation.
“Within human rights discourse, we regard environmental protection as an obligation integral to the safeguarding of human rights. A clean, healthy, and sustainable environment is a prerequisite for the enjoyment of all other rights,” Mr. Hamuyube emphasized.
Mr. Hamuyube stated that the rights to life, food, and health are all compromised in a degraded environment.
“Even civil and political freedoms are rendered less meaningful if the surrounding ecology fails to support human dignity,” he said.
He further elaborated on the established human rights architecture, in which the State bears the primary duty to protect, respect, and fulfil rights, but noted that this framework is evolving under contemporary pressures.
“We are witnessing a shift wherein corporations, particularly large transnational entities operating in resource sectors, wield significant influence akin to that of private governance,” Mr. Hamuyube asserted.
Mr. Hamuyube stressed that a modern approach must recognize a direct corporate duty to respect human rights, complementing the State’s non-delegable obligations.
He highlighted several critical drivers necessitating robust advocacy from civil society organizations (CSOs), including escalating global demand for natural resources, the proliferation of extractive industries employing environmentally detrimental methods, and the acute impacts of climate change.
Mr. Hamuyube cited Zambia’s deforestation challenges as a salient example of a negative environmental feedback loop.
The HRC Director also referenced a concerning trend of fact denial in certain political discourses regarding environmental science.
“This, combined with rising public concern, underscores the vital role of civil society in defending environmental rights as human rights,” he said.
He added that businesses have a clear responsibility to operate with due diligence, going beyond mere legal compliance to uphold ethical and human rights standards.
The LIFT Zambia Project is being implemented by the Centre for Environment Justice (CEJ) in Luapula and Central provinces to empower communities with knowledge and practical tools to achieve measurable outcomes. These include increased access to public finances, fighting inequality and injustices such as early child marriages, and protecting the environment.
The initiative is a five-year development partnership led by Norwegian Church Aid (NCA) and Danish Church Aid (DCA), with support from NORAD and DANIDA.
The programme—Lives Saved, Inequality Addressed, and Fostering Resilience for Transformation in Zambia—is being implemented under the Joint Country Programme of NCA and DCA, with funding and technical support from their partners.
It aims to foster sustainable transformation by promoting community-led solutions that generate economic, social, and environmental benefits.
