Position paper for Zambia
| Committee: | GA First |
| Topic: | Reducing space threats through norms, rules and principles of responsible behaviours |
| Paper text: | |
| Space exploration and laws have been in conversation for many years and Member States
have been in agreement on rules, but few have been fully implemented. The risk of
catastrophic collision is becoming prominent with more than 20,000 objects orbiting Earth. As
more Member States and private institutions continue to modernize space exploration, the
need for more regulations has become a top priority. Zambia is a party to the 1967 Outer
Space Treaty that creates the groundwork of space law and regulation on what countries
cannot put into space. The proliferation of antisatellite weapons (ASAT) and the rise in military
activity have created massive amounts of debris that leave many Member States in unsafe
climates. The push for further plans to protect space exploration and Member States' right to
space is a top priority. The Republic of Zambia believes the topic of space laws and the
regulations behind it should be better regulated and followed through with the creation of
new treaties.
Zambia has supported past resolutions made on this, including the Prevention of Arms Race in Space (PAROS) and Guidelines for long-term sustainability of outer space activities, which both emphasize cooperation of Member States along with responsibility for outer space usage. Zambia endorses its regional African Union Space Policy and Strategy (2016), which promotes the peaceful use of space within African Nations. Regardless of economic status, Zambia believes that the exploration and utilization of space must benefit all states and calls for knowledge to be shared between states contributing to space exploration and non-space exploration. Through the collaboration of the Outer Space Treaty and continuing the engagement for more collaborations and partnerships, Zambia strongly believes that the safety and normalization of peaceful space exploration of all Member States can be achieved. | |
| Committee: | GA First |
| Topic: | The illicit trade in small arms and light weapons in all its aspects |
| Paper text: | |
| The illicit trafficking of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) continues to disrupt pursuits of peace and human security, as reported by the Small Arms Survey (2023) which found that 250,000 deaths annually are the result of violence caused by the trafficking of SALWs. In 2023, UN Women reported that in conflict areas, women make up roughly 40% of all indirect casualties through displacement and economic instability, which highlights the disproportionate effects of SALWs. Southern Africa has become an exchange venue for SALWs because of its proximity to conflict zones and coastal illicit trade networks. The Republic of Zambia, while not in a conflict zone, is affected by challenges of rising gender-based violence (GBV) caused by SALWs, and identifying the drivers of armed conflict in the region. Globally, Zambia remains committed to the UN Programme of Action (PoA) and has ratified the Arms Trade Treaty (2013) (ATT), which promotes responsible arms management. However, the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research’s (UNIDIR) Weapons and Ammunition Management in Africa-Insight: 2024 Update found that munitions on the continent are being diverted from official stockpiles. In response, Zambia proposes a comprehensive approach that blends development and security objectives. Zambia urges Member States to expand Community-Based Disarmament Programmes through civil society and with the oversight of the UN Development Programme (UNDP). This would exchange weapons for development incentives to decrease civilian need for SALWs. To address the disproportionate effect on women and children, Zambia encourages Member States to add gender specific data to PoA national reports in accordance with Article 7 of the ATT, which highlights the link between GBV and the illicit trafficking of SALWs. Zambia also urges Member States to work with UN Women and the Control Arms Coalition (CAC) to host capacity-building workshops across SADC states. These workshops reduce the disproportionate effects of SALWs by training women in early warning systems and detection. By combining development aid and gender-responsive action, Zambia emphasises the importance of reducing armed violence and advancing humanitarian goals internationally. | |
| Committee: | GA Second |
| Topic: | Role of the United Nations in promoting development in the context of globalization and interdependence |
| Paper text: | |
| The Republic of Zambia believes that continued perseverance of diplomatic and mutually
beneficial global economic growth is heavily reliant on the development of international
sovereign debt resolution. According to the 2025 UN Center for Trade and Development
report, a total of 3.4 billion people live in countries that spend more on interest payments
than on both health and education. To ensure the continued financial stability of heavily
indebted poor countries (HIPC’s) in accordance with the 2030 Agenda, particularly
Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 17.4, Member States must ensure that credit and
debtor nations have mutually agreed upon the processes to settle repayment failures.
The Center for Global Developments 2024 Zambia case study reports on Issues with the current Common Framework for Debt Treatments beyond the Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI). The unwillingness of developing state lenders to join international financial organizations like the G20 and Paris Club causes division in official creditor committees (OCCs). Increased private foreign lending causes confusion around what fair comparability of treatment (CoT) between private and lateral lenders actually entails. The situation increasingly calls for a change to the sovereign bankruptcy framework. Certain jurisdictions are taking steps towards this, eurozone law enforces collective action clauses (CACs) on foreign public loans with over a year of maturity; these practices can prevent holdout creditors and predatory private debt holders. To properly deal with future sovereign debt restructuring in our modern global financial system, Zambia strongly recommends a change in the common framework. Zambia encourages Member States to continue passing national collective action legislation. Zambia also recommends changing the previous wording set by the Common Framework. For example, former IMF Economist Dr. Grigorian suggests a twofold approach where private creditors can seek different CoT than lateral lenders due to their lack of incentive to otherwise involve themselves in large cuts. These actions can help prevent and deal with future unsustainable debt. | |
| Committee: | GA Second |
| Topic: | Protection of global climate for present and future generations of humankind |
| Paper text: | |
| The Republic of Zambia advocates for special emphasis on the implementation of water
management investments to bolster economic prosperity and further climate resilience.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports
that Zambia itself has been grappling with one of the worst droughts in recent history,
degrading its access to safe water sources. This is especially concerning, as the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) 2024 World Water
Development Day Report cites water as an essential factor in irrigation, agriculture,
irrigation, and sanitation, all important factors of economic development in lower-income
countries (LICs). However, despite these importances, the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) reports that half of the world's population continues to face water
insecurity. Research that Member States currently conduct into water management, and
its subsequent outputs will further greater investments into continued water
management, increasing economic output in LICs and the goals of the 2030 Agenda.
In 2022, under the guidance of the Continental Africa Water Investment Programme (AIP), Zambia’s Ministry of Water Development and Sanitation began the Zambia Water Investment Programme (ZIP). Zambia, classified as a LIC by the World Bank, integrated the ZIP plan into the Zambia Vision 2030 and its Eighth National Development Plan (8NDP), which outlines Zambia's goal to become a middle-income country by 2030. Zambia believes that a special focus on water security investment can, in turn, boost economic transformation, creating more jobs and resilience to climate shocks. ZIP focuses on three investment focus areas (IFA): economic growth, environmental sustainability, and social inclusion. The AIP finds that sub-Saharan African countries lose 5 per cent of their annual GDP due to poor water management. Zambia encourages Member States to invest in increased research into the implementation of new water systems and strengthening existing ones in an effort to achieve both the 2030 Agenda as well as bolster overall economic prosperity. Focusing on these areas will use water as a launch pad for economic transformation, community resilience, and institutional strengthening. | |
| Committee: | GA Third |
| Topic: | Universal realization of the right of peoples to self-determination |
| Paper text: | |
| According to the UN, there are currently 17 non-self-governing territories, or roughly 2 million people, without the right to self-governance. All African states uphold their commitment to self-determination through Article 20 of the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights, where it stresses the inalienable right to self-determination. As the first southern African country to gain independence from colonial rule, the Republic of Zambia laid out its support for human rights through the 1969 Lusaka Manifesto (previously the Manifesto on Southern Africa). Zambia reaffirms its commitment to self-determination through the enactment of the Access to Information Act (2023), which calls for the right of all persons to have access to any information that allows them to protect or exercise their basic human rights. Zambia honors this commitment through its partnership with the Women’s Initiatives That Strengthen and Empower (WISE), which focuses on educating people to understand and promote true self-determination. WISE demonstrates this dedication by providing scholarships that cover the tuition, room and board, transportation, and supplies of students over a nine-year period. Such autonomy to make decisions and practice free expressions allows one the right to control their political, economic, and social development, core components of self-determination. Zambia urges Member States to cooperate within regional areas to expand partnerships with organizations like WISE to further people's meaningful participation and self-determination. Zambia incites willing and able Member States to mobilize funds made by voluntary contributions through the Global Partnership for Education. Donations towards organizations such as WISE that prioritize educating citizens through the funding of education paths will further the community's understanding of their right to self-determination and freedom of expression for all. | |
| Committee: | GA Third |
| Topic: | Improvement of the situation of women and girls in rural areas |
| Paper text: | |
| According to the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of
Women (UN Women), one in every ten women in the world lives in extreme poverty. UN
Women stated that climate change will leave more than 236 million women and girls
worldwide hungry by the year 2030. The Republic of Zambia recognises this threat posed
to women and girls internationally and is committed to solving it as seen by the
ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against
Women in 1985.
Zambia upholds Article 4(I) of the Constitutive Act, which highlights a key principle of the African Union, promoting gender equality. Zambia further exemplifies this principle through the Girls Education and Women Empowerment and Livelihoods (GEWEL) Programme in partnership with the World Bank (WB). GEWEL prioritises promoting women's livelihoods, specifically with their attached programme, Supporting Women’s Livelihoods (SWL). SWL focuses on skill training women with practical life and financial skills with the help of Community-Based Volunteers. Along with strengthening their saving initiatives with help from the government to personal payments, which deliver grants to a financial institution to oversee, allowing women to oversee and have control of their funds. Zambia strongly believes that enacting programmes like GEWEL and SWL will further assist Member States in the promotion of women’s financial independence and equality of opportunity. Member States can be financially and physically supported through collaboration with the WB and UN Women to further facilitate these programmes. The advancement of gender equality and women's empowerment will not only help us take a step towards Sustainable Development Goal 5 but will, in addition, help us reach and maintain a future with peace and prosperity for all. | |
| Committee: | GA Plenary |
| Topic: | Our ocean, our future, our responsibility |
| Paper text: | |
| The Republic of Zambia commends the results of the 2022 UN Ocean Conference that led
to the adoption of a declaration, “Our oceans, our future, our responsibility,” showing the
collective need to protect oceans. Even though Zambia is one of the 44 countries that do
not have direct access to oceans, Zambia is one of the most water-rich countries in Africa.
Luangwa and Kafue are the largest tributaries of the Zambezi River, which flows into the
Indian Ocean. According to Clean Water Action, 80% of marine debris comes from land-
based sources, with 20% coming from ocean-based sources. Last September, Zambia
collaborated with the Royal Commonwealth Society’s Clean Ocean Plastic Campaign to
clean the Kafue River, contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 6.1, 6.5
(Clean Water and Sanitation) and SDG 14.1 (Life Below Water), reducing land-based waste.
Moreover, Zambia, as a landlocked state, became the 87th signatory of the High Seas
Treaty in 2024, to ensure the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological
diversity.
However, despite the international efforts to protect oceans, such as the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and its 1996 Protocol, studies reveal that the majority of pollution comes directly through rivers. Zambia urges Member States to work collectively with UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and Programme of Action to protect the marine environment. Zambia asks Member States to join The Global Partnership on Plastic Pollution and Marine Litter to use it for knowledge-sharing and cooperation. Zambia urges all able and willing Member States to use autonomous solar- powered barriers and floating bins to collect plastic and debris in rivers before it reaches the ocean. The Ocean Cleanup provides with needed resources to implement this initiative. Zambia encourages Member States to cooperate with UNEP and its Global Programme of Action (GPA), which provides funding for the reduction of land-based pollution. | |
| Committee: | GA Plenary |
| Topic: | Strengthening of the coordination of emergency humanitarian assistance of the United Nations |
| Paper text: | |
| The UN defines humanitarian assistance as, “Material or logistical support given with the
objective of saving lives, alleviating suffering, and maintaining human dignity.”
Humanitarian assistance is essential within the Global South to help promote safety,
security, and sustainable development. Zambia reaffirms its commitment to
strengthening the coordination of humanitarian assistance through collaborating with the
Office for The Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and regional Non-Governmental
Organizations such as Adventist Development and Relief Agency, which targets long-term
Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) implementation.
Throughout 2024, Zambia had to adapt to an energy, water, and food insecurity crisis due to droughts. Their lasting impact made DRR an essential tool to further prevent future catastrophes. Zambia adheres to the process outlined in the Sendai Framework for implementing DRR, which includes needs assessments, risk profiling, data resources, and tracking services for Member States. In 2024-2025, the cooperation between Zambia and World Food Programme (WFP) resulted in 21,800 food vouchers to drought-affected people. The WFP is working with Zambia’s government directly to help develop and shift focus to programmes like the Home-grown School Meals Programme (HGSF), which promotes the idea of using locally grown food. Zambia adapted the Accelerated Water and Agricultural Resource Efficiency (AWARE) Programme which “Supports adaptation action to enhance climate smart water resource management and efficient agricultural water use.” Support of these programmes and others is an essential part in strengthening humanitarian assistance. Zambia recognises these programmes, AWARE, HGSF, and DRR, as they are fundamental to the development of Zambia and developing Member States alike. Moving forward, Zambia asks Member States for continued support for the research and development of programmes like AWARE, HGSF, and DRR. Zambia also highly encourages Member States to adopt these programmes as they will loosen the strain of humanitarian needs, which strengthens future humanitarian responses. | |
| Committee: | IAEA |
| Topic: | Nuclear security |
| Paper text: | |
| The Republic of Zambia recognizes that as more nuclear facilities become increasingly automated and digitized; the growing fears of cyberattack are seen worldwide as a pressing matter. Incidents such as the Stuxnet attack in 2010, which destroyed roughly 1,000 centrifuges in the Natanz nuclear facility, have further shown the possibility of cyberattacks interfering with nuclear operations. The IAEA’s focus on computer security and its Integrated Nuclear Security Sustainability Plan (INSSP) gives valuable frameworks for strengthening Member States’ capacity to prevent, detect, and respond to cyber threats. While Zambia is not a nuclear-armed country, the value of nuclear technology for peaceful applications is still vital for the growth of many countries. This technology can be used in many ways, such as agriculture, medical use, energy research, and environmental clean-up. As a committed Member State to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and supporter of the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material and its Amendment (CPPNM), Zambia pushes for enhancing nuclear security infrastructure, particularly in the digital domain. Zambia emphasizes the importance of capacity building towards a worldwide baseline for cybersecurity preparedness. Recognizing the importance of this baseline, Zambia calls upon the IAEA to expand knowledge sharing between Member States on cyber-nuclear security, as well as the establishment of regional cybersecurity centers in Africa. Strengthening cooperation, knowledge sharing, and technological resilience is essential to ensuring that all nations, no matter how developed, are protected from the growing threat of cyberattacks on nuclear infrastructure. | |
| Committee: | IAEA |
| Topic: | Strengthening the Agency's activities related to nuclear science, technology and applications |
| Paper text: | |
| Zambia holds a commitment to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), which ensures the technology is solely used for peaceful purposes, while also following the Convention on Nuclear Safety (CNS), which lays out a framework for safely implementing nuclear techniques in sensitive environmental regions. Zambia also supports the IAEA Collaborating Centres Scheme used as a model for further research partnerships and regional knowledge sharing. Access to clean and reliable water is the cornerstone of life on Earth. The Republic of Zambia recognizes the IAEA as a vital tool in providing solutions to issues such as water pollution and scarcity. Zambia is a nation reliant on its agriculture and hydropower which has been put under increasing pressure from pollutants. All Member States are urged to further utilize the IAEA’s isotope hydrology program, which has been able to track groundwater movement as well as identify sources of pollution following the frameworks of the Peaceful Use Initiative (PUI). These strategies lead Member States towards the goals of SDG 6, clean water and sanitation. The Republic of Zambia calls upon all Member States to prioritize the use of nuclear energy research to improve the health of our planet's water systems in the coming Nuclear Security Plan 2026–2029. Strengthening IAEA- led research, funding, and capacity-building in isotope hydrology will give developing nations access to clean and reliable water that is needed to not just survive but thrive. | |
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