eNHANCEMENT OF zAMBIA nATIONALLY dETERMINED cONTRIBUTION (ndc) afolu SECTORzAMBIA IS RICH IN NATURAL CAPITAL; AND ITS NATIONAL ECONOMY IS PRIMARILY DRIVEN BY THE EXPLOITATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES (SUCH AS LAND; WATER; FORESTS AND WILDLIFE). wITH AVERAGE RURAL POVERTY LEVEL AS HIGH AS 80.35%; RURAL COMMUNITIES IN zAMBIA ALMOST ENTIRELY DEPEND ON THE USE OF NATURAL RESOURCES FOR THEIR SURVIVAL. wITH FOREST COVER OF NEARLY 66% (OVER 50 MILLION HA) OF zAMBIA¡¯S TOTAL LAND AREA; THE COUNTRY REMAINS ONE OF THE MOST FORESTED COUNTRIES IN SOUTHERN aFRICA. hOWEVER; FOREST AND ASSOCIATED RESOURCES ARE UNDER SERIOUS THREAT OF DEGRADATION. dEFORESTATION IN zAMBIA IS A COMPLEX ISSUE DRIVEN BY MULTIPLE FACTORS. tHE PRIMARY DRIVERS INCLUDE CHARCOAL PRODUCTION; AGRICULTURAL EXPANSION; AND WEAK FOREST GOVERNANCE; PROXIMITY TO ROADS AND SETTLEMENTS; AND ECONOMIC FACTORS. tHE GOVERNMENT HAS DESIGNED POLICIES AND STRATEGIES TO PROPEL AN INTEGRATED APPROACH TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COUNTRY. iMPORTANT POLICIES AND COUNTRY DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES INCLUDE THE 8TH nATIONAL dEVELOPMENT pLAN; THE gREEN gROWTH sTRATEGY; nATIONAL bIODIVERSITY sTRATEGY AND aCTION pLAN (nbsap); nATIONAL aDAPTATION pLANS OF aCTION (napa); nATIONALLY dETERMINED cONTRIBUTIONS (ndcS) 2021; unccd nATIONAL aCTION pROGRAMMES (nap); lAND DEGRADATION nEUTRALITY TARGETS; nATIONAL aDAPTATION pLAN (2023); nATIONAL cLIMATE cHANGE rESPONSE sTRATEGY (nccrs); zAMBIA fORESTRY pOLICY AND THE zAMBIA wILDLIFE pOLICY; AMONG OTHERS. tHE PRIMARY OBJECTIVE OF THIS ASSIGNMENT IS TO SUPPORT THE wORLD bANK¡¯ IN ITS EFFORTS TO HELP THE gOVERNMENT OF zAMBIA (grz) ENHANCE zAMBIA¡¯S nATIONAL dETERMINED cONTRIBUTION (ndc) IN THE aGRICULTURE; fORESTRY AND oTHER lAND uSE (afolu) SECTOR.