Browsing by Author "MUBIANA, Inonge"

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    Strengthening Legal Mechanisms for Forest Protection in Zambia: An Examination of The Forest Act No. 4 of 2015, in Light of International and Domestic Environmental Law: Lessons drawn from Finland
    (2026) MUBIANA, Inonge
    This dissertation intensively looks at the effectiveness of Zambia’s legal framework for forest protection focusing on the Forest Act No. 4 of 2015. Analysing this act in light of both international environmental law and also comparative lessons from Finland. In Zambia, forest play an extremely important role. They help with the country’s ecological balance, socio-economic development and climate regulation. Unfortunately, rapid deforestation, illegal logging and unsustainable land use practices still continue to undermine the country’s environmental stability. Despite the enactment of the Forest Act of 2015 having the aim to make the forest governance more modern through community participation, decentralization as well as alignment with international standards, enforcement challenges persist because of institutional weakness, corruption, inadequate funding, the list is endless. This study used a qualitative research approach as it draws information from statutes, case law, scholar works, international conventions as well as policy documents. It also explores the constitutional and statutory framework for forest protection in Zambia, particularly focusing on the Constitution of Zambia, the Environmental Management Act No. 12 of 2011 and the Forest Act No. 4 of 2015, while also comparing Zambia’s Framework with Finland’s well established forest governance system. After this study was conducted, it was revealed that although Zambia has made a substantial amount of progress legislative wise, weak institutional capacity, overlapping mandates between the Forest Department and ZEMA as well as limited community benefits heavily hinder the Act’s effectiveness. The study also goes a step further and provides recommendations that speak on enhancing inter agency coordination, increasing enforcement capacity, promoting community forest rights. The study also looks at how Zambia’s domestic framework aligns with what is provided for in international conventions like the Convention on Biological diversity, the UNFCCC as well as The Paris Agreement to name a few. Overall, this dissertation argued that strengthening Zambia’s forest protection laws requires both legal reform and institution revitalisation as this will definitely ensure that forest governance upholds principles of sustainability, equity and intergenerational justice.