-(1).jpg?sfvrsn=6adec585_1 "Zambia progresses forest monitoring vision through country-led dialogue")
©FAOZM Emmanuel Kabila
From 4 to 5 March 2026, stakeholders across Zambia met in Lusaka for a national dialogue on institutionalizing the national forest monitoring system (NFMS). Led by the Government of Zambia as part of their Country-Led Planning (CLP) process and supported by the Global Forest Observations Initiative (GFOI), this workshop was a key step to strengthening forest governance, climate reporting and sustainable land use planning.
Following several years of impressive progress on the technical elements of their NFMS, Zambia requested the GFOI’s support with the institutional arrangements of their NFMS. At the GFOI South-South Exchange in November of 2024, Zambia formally expressed their interest in initiating the Country-Led Planning (CLP) process. Representatives from the Forestry Department and the Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA) sought CLP support to institutionalize their NFMS for long-term sustainability.
Zambia has established vital components to its NFMS, including the national forest inventory (NFI) and the satellite land monitoring system (SLMS). These aspects provide essential data for national decision making and international climate reporting. However, technical tools need institutional backing. Long term sustainability requires clear legal mandates, stable financing, predictable staffing, reliable data systems and structured coordination across ministries and government institutions.
With a joint goal to shift Zambia from project dependent forest monitoring toward a fully embedded, nationally coordinated and sustainable NFMS, the workshop brought together representatives from major government bodies, international partners, academic institutions, and private and state enterprises.
The participating entities included the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment, the Forestry Department, the Zambia Environmental Management Agency, the Czech Development Agency, the Center for International Forestry Research of the World Agroforestry Centre, the University of Zambia, Copperbelt University, ZESCO and the Zambia Forestry and Forest Industries Corporation.
Underscoring the importance of involving emerging leaders in forest monitoring and governance, two Zambian professionals of the Young Forest Champions Initiative joined the discussions. Their participation reminded stakeholders that institutionalizing and sustaining the NFMS goes beyond streamlining administrative procedures but also requires investment in intergenerational leadership.
By combining presentations with group work, the participatory design of the workshop allowed stakeholders to collectively explore how institutionalization works in practice on a political and administrative level. In this process, the participants assessed the current maturity of the NFMS, compared perspectives across institutions and worked toward a common understanding of Zambia’s institutionalization profile.
Using an assessment framework, stakeholders evaluated the NFMS across seven institutional pillars: formal mandate, financing, technical processes, integration with climate reporting, decision making, coordination and continuous improvement. This approach created a shared diagnostic of strengths, particularly strong integration with climate reporting and the gaps that still limit a durable national system, such as funding inconsistencies and weak interinstitutional coordination.
As a result of this process, the long-term vision has crystallized: an NFMS that is embedded in national governance, supported by stable coordination mechanisms and routinely used to guide policy, planning and climate commitments.
Looking ahead, stakeholders agreed on a practical way forward to sustain momentum under the CLP process. They committed to strengthening coordination and organizing existing NFMS information, with the CLP programme ready to provide facilitation where needed. At the same time, participants openly acknowledged risks, such as potential delays or uneven engagement, and emphasized the importance of clear internal deadlines and improved communication to keep the process on track.
In just two days, Zambia moved beyond technical reflections and into a shared, national vision for the future of forest monitoring. By aligning institutions and elevating collaboration, the country took a meaningful step toward a more transparent, resilient and nationalized forest monitoring system.
This workshop marks more than a dialogue, it exemplifies Zambia’s deepening commitment to protect its forests through a system that is institutionally grounded, nationally driven and supported across generations.
The CLP programme of support is implemented by the GFOI Office with funding from the AIM4Forests programme at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), which is funded by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
