ZIMBABWE is losing more than 327 000 hectares of forest annually as climate change, biodiversity loss and unsustainable land use threatens food security, water supplies and rural livelihoods.
The government has, however, been encouraging communities to embrace clean energy technologies and transition from firewood to renewable energy as a critical means to protect the country’s forests and improve rural livelihoods while ensuring sustainable development.
According to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Zimbabwe, the country was at a critical crossroads where climate change, deforestation, habitat loss and competing economic interests are putting pressure on natural ecosystems.
WWF revealed this in its strategic plan, including vision and priorities for 2026-2030, providing a roadmap for accelerating environmental action in response to worsening climate change and biodiversity loss while guiding the organisation’s contribution to national, regional and global conservation efforts.
The organisation said Zimbabwe should urgently invest in nature-positive development to protect biodiversity while ensuring communities continue to benefit from natural resources.
“The country has one of the world’s highest deforestation rates, losing over 327 000 hectares of forest annually,” WWF said.
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“Key species, including elephants, lions, rhinos, and vultures, are increasingly under threat.
“Climate change, poaching, human-wildlife conflicts, and unsustainable land use continue to undermine ecosystems and livelihoods.”
The organisation said more than seven million Zimbabweans depended on smallholder farming, making environmental degradation a direct threat to livelihoods and food security.
WWF also noted that it planned to promote community-led conservation, habitat restoration and green livelihoods benefiting at least 22 000 households by 2030.
“The strategy responds with integrated, community-led interventions that link ecological restoration to economic opportunity.
“It promotes inclusive governance, nature-based solutions, and systems thinking — aligning conservation with national priorities and global commitments such as the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, the Paris Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
“By 2030, the office strategic plan aims to achieve measurable gains in species recovery, habitat restoration, and carbon sequestration, while enabling at least 22 000 households to benefit from nature-positive livelihoods.”
WWF Zimbabwe country co-ordinator Itai Chibaya said decisions taken today on natural resource management would determine the country’s ecological, social and economic outcomes for generations.
“Pressures on ecosystems are intensifying, and the margin for inaction is shrinking. Zimbabwe’s natural capital remains exceptional,” he said.
“The country holds approximately 11% of Africa’s elephant population and protected areas covering nearly 28% of its land.
“These ecosystems underpin tourism, water security, livelihoods, and provide a strong foundation for a sustainable bio-economy.
Yet they are increasingly strained by climate change, habitat loss, unsustainable land use, and competing economic demands.”
Chibaya said the protection was no longer the challenge, but ensuring quality, connectivity, and effective management.
Impacts were already evidenced by recurring droughts, extreme weather events, and declining ecosystem services which are affecting food security, water availability, and livelihoods,” he said.
“At the same time, expanding investments in mining, agriculture, infrastructure, and energy present both opportunity and risk.
“If poorly managed, they will erode the natural systems that sustain long-term growth and a viable bioeconomy.
“WWF Zimbabwe will not only support alignment, but contribute evidence, promote accountability, and help shape pathways where conservation, development, and the bio-economy reinforce each other.
“Over the next five years, WWF Zimbabwe will focus on strengthening landscape resilience, safeguarding critical ecosystems, and advancing sustainable natural resource management and climate action.”
Chibaya said priority would be placed on scalable models that deliver measurable ecological, economic, and social returns which includes supporting nature-positive investments, strengthening private sector accountability, and enabling policies and incentives that drive sustainability.