Groundbreaking Ceremony for the “Project for the Development of Basic Infrastructure in Settlements for Displaced Persons and their Host Communities in the Republic of Zambia”

On 23^rd July, 2025, Mr. OMINATO Satoshi, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of Japan, paticipated in the groundbreaking ceremony in Mayukwayukwa Resettlement, Western Province, for the “Project for the Development of Basic Infrastructure in Settlements for Displaced Persons and their Host Communities in the Republic of Zambia.”
 
The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by Honourable Kapelwa Mbangweta, Minister for Western Province and Ms. Mavis Nkomeshya, Permanent Secretary for Resettlement at the Office of the Vice President, and other senior government officials and stakeholders.
 
The project aims at improving infrastructure as well as access to the social services in resettlement communities, and eventually leading to improvement of livelihood of displaced persons and host communities, thereby strengthening local integration, and ultimately contributing to the peaceful co-habitation of both displaced persons and host communities.
 
In implementing this project, the Government of Japan has provided a grant amounting to about 5.9 million US dollars through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to enhance local communities’ capacity for sustainable resettlement through infrastructure development, building resilience, and fostering social cohesion. This is to ensure realisation of dignified living conditions, access to economic opportunities, and social integration for the forcibly displaced persons in the Meheba and the Mayukwayukwa Resettlements by the year 2028.
 
During the ceremony, Mr. Ominato commended the Zambian Government and Zambia as a whole, for emerging as a shining example of compassion and care, offering a safe haven for those fleeing conflict and persecution from neighbouring countries, and providing them with a sanctuary to rebuild their lives. He underscored the progressive efforts by the Zambian Government to ensure that the first-ever National Refugee Policy and Implementation Plan were enforced fully to serve as a roadmap in enhancing the well-being of the Persons of Concern, whereby they are treated not just as asylum seekers, but as human beings with dignity, dreams and aspirations.
 
Mr. Ominato expressed confidence in the success of the project’s implementation process and expressed sincere hope that it will contribute to the further strengthening of the already existing cordial relations between the peoples and governments of Japan and Zambia.
 
To read the speech by Mr. Ominato, please click here.