President Declares State Of Disaster Over Degraded River Systems

President Emmerson Mnangagwa officially declared a national State of Disaster regarding the severely degraded river systems across the southern African country. The executive order activates an emergency nationwide rehabilitation program to address the extensive environmental damage documented across multiple provinces. Authorities attribute the widespread ecological destruction directly to illegal and highly destructive alluvial mining activities operating entirely outside formal regulatory frameworks. The national government issued Statutory Instrument 91 of 2026, titled Civil Protection, to formally establish the legal framework required to combat the ongoing environmental crisis. The statutory declaration provides the state with expanded legal authority to enforce strict environmental compliance and target the extensive damage caused by illegal alluvial mining activities.