Zambia reaffirms commitment to social development at UN commission

Ministry of Community Development and Social Services Permanent Secretary, Angela Kawandami, has reaffirmed Zambia’s commitment to advancing social development and social justice through coordinated, equitable, and inclusive policies. Kawandami emphasized that these policies built on the legacy of the Copenhagen Declaration and the Doha Political Declaration. She made the remarks when she delivered Zambia’s National Statement during the 64th Session of the Commission for Social Development at the United Nations Headquarters on February 3, 2026.

The Session is being held under the priority theme: “Advancing Social Development and Social Justice through Coordinated, Equitable, and Inclusive Policies.” “Zambia’s participation reinforces its commitment to the 2030 Agenda, African Union Agenda 2063, and the principle of leaving no one behind,” Kawandami said. She noted that Zambia had strengthened child protection systems, expanded social assistance, and improved access to education and health services to safeguard vulnerable children and break the cycle of intergenerational poverty. “Zambia has strengthened inter-ministerial coordination to ensure social development considerations are effectively mainstreamed into economic, infrastructure, and sectoral planning,” she stated.

She highlighted that social protection programmes continued to expand in coverage and effectiveness, supporting poverty eradication, shock responsiveness, and productive inclusion—particularly for women, youth, and persons with disabilities. She further underscored the importance of strong data systems, evidence-based policymaking, and effective development financing. She welcomed ongoing reforms to the international financial architecture and enhanced global cooperation to support social investments.

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She also acknowledged persistent challenges such as unemployment, informality, inequality, and vulnerability to economic and climate shocks, which disproportionately affect African and other developing countries. Kawandami reaffirmed Zambia’s readiness to collaborate with Member States, civil society, and development partners in pursuit of equitable and inclusive social development for all. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express permission from ZAMBIA MONITOR.

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