» The Regional Climate Resilience Program (RCRP-2) was awarded the Best Multi-Ministerial Set-Up at the just-ended 2nd RCRP for Eastern and Southern Africa conference.

The news has excited RCRP-2 Project Coordinator Adwell Zembele, who says Malawi has brought in the required expertise across various sectors for the smooth implementation of the program interventions. “This award is a motivation. This would ensure that Malawi always engages and utilises the available expertise and resources in implementing the program activities,” he said. “The award emphasised the need for a holistic approach in resilience building for communities affected by disasters,” added Zembele. Commenting on the conference, which took place from June 2 to 4, he said it facilitated the participating countries to learn from each other by sharing best practices and how challenges encountered along the way had been addressed. “The forum also allowed participating countries to develop action plans to improve the implementation of different aspects of their country programs. The conference also enhanced partnerships among implementing countries for cross-border related interventions,” he stated. According to one of the organisers, Laura Bonzanigo, Regional Technical Team Lead for RCRP, the awards, among others, aim to recognise and honour exemplary contributions to program goals. “The Malawi team is being awarded for implementing projects through a coordinated approach involving multiple ministries, leading to stronger institutional engagement and more effective delivery,” she said during the event in Maputo, Mozambique. Bonzanigo stated that the awards celebrate exceptional contributions and achievements among countries, institutions, and individuals under the RCRP. “As such, we acknowledged best practices in areas such as environmental and social safeguards, innovation, project readiness, cross-sector collaboration, and capacity development. The awards not only served as recognition but also as motivation for continued commitment and excellence. “They also seek to promote knowledge exchange by showcasing success stories as well as reinforcing the value of collaboration, innovation, and sustainability,” she said. The awards were part of a series of regional workshops that brought together close to 60 participants from project teams from all the participating countries and regional organisations around technical topics that are crucial to enhance the program implementation and foster regional knowledge sharing. The Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs is implementing RCRP-2 and Malawi is part of a larger community of countries in southern and eastern Africa under the RCRP umbrella, including Madagascar, South Sudan, Comoros and Mozambique, regional bodies; the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO) and the African Union. The RCRP aims to strengthen regional cooperation around water-related climate challenges. It enhances the participating countries' ability in the region to respond to climate change impacts through investments in water resources management, resilience planning, and institutional capacity building.

RCRP-2 gets an award