Kapyanga, a village located on the Lusaka-Mumbwa road in Zambia’s central province, is faced with three main issues, deforestation and soil degradation and women and youth unemployment. Kapyanga is a rural area with a population of just over 7 000 inhabitants on an area of 249.4 km².
The University of Chemistry and Technology working with HYSPER, a local partner, incepted Biogas for Sustainable Livelihoods and Green Youth Entrepreneurship (BLESGY) to contribute in finding solutions to the above three main issues. BLESGY was through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) with the financial support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic.
The goals of the project were to address energy and fertilizer needs for rural communities and promote better livelihoods through youth entrepreneurships in Zambia; and mitigate land degradation and deforestation by addressing their causes.
The goals have been achieved through the provision of affordable slurry based organic fertilizers to poor rural farmers and renewable energy in the form of biogas; and enhancing youth and village sustainable start-ups for better livelihoods.
The BLESGY center has been established. The picture below tells the full story.
The center is still in its infancy stages. However, thanks to the project, the 1 200 strong nearby community:
- are using the water from the project site (about 30 homes are using the water from the project site)
- will have access to organic fertiliser for farming once the tests are completed
- are being exposed to biogas as an alternative source of energy
- about 12 women and youth will set up garden plots at the center thanks to the water and organic fertiliser sources on the site
- the community are utilising the pilot and demonstration plots to acquire skills in sustainable farming technologies.
The project was financed the Challenge Fund: Czech Solutions for SDGs, an effective driver of innovation and change in the region.
If you are interested in the initiative or Challenge Fund: Czech Solutions for SDGs, please use the following contacts:
- Czech-UNDP Partnership for SDGs: pavel.faus@undp.org / cup.applications@undp.org
- UCT Prague contact: kapilaf@vscht.cz
About UCT Prague
The University of Chemistry and Technology Prague (UCT Prague) is a natural center of study and cutting-edge research. One of the largest educational and research institutions in Central Europe, it specializes in technical chemistry, chemical and biochemical technologies, material and chemical engineering, food chemistry, environmental studies, and business. Remarkably, of the more than 4,000 students at the school, 700 are enrolled in PhD programs on average. Some of the study programs on offer at UCT are unique in the Czech Republic and are key to the future of the entire country. The school collaborates with more than 100 academic institutions, namely within Europe but also in the USA, Canada, Japan, Vietnam, and elsewhere.