Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Kalenga, teacher, Ministry of educatiob, children, landmark, judgement, headmaster, examination papers, hero, school
By Sally Chiwama
“Teacher, Headmaster and the Ministry of Education to pay sexually abused girl K45m ”.
A judge recently made a declaration in the High Court of Zambia that the “Government is responsible for all school going children in the care of it’s agents such as teachers, school authorities and any other person in it’s employment during the time the schools are in session.”
This is in a case in which a minor and her guardian sued a teacher, the Ministry of Education and the school after he was found guilty of rape.
Children trust their teachers
Like all children, pupils almost idolize their teachers, Kalenga Mutale (not real name) 13 innocently asked her teacher for past examination papers as she was about to write her grade nine final exams. Teacher “conveniently” forgot the papers after being asked more than three times, and when it suited him, he told the girl to “come and get them from home” after class. Innocent as she was, Kalenga went to her teachers home to get the past papers, she found her teacher listening to music.
“Teacher” then asked Kalenga to take a seat and later asked if she was scared to which she admitted that she was. She then asked about the past papers and he told her to go and get them from another room, she did as she was told but froze in her feet when she opened the curtain (in place of a door) only to find she was looking into bedroom. When she turned to go back “Teacher” was standing in her way blocking her from passing.
Kalenga became scared and asked him what he was doing there, he didn’t flinch and instead started telling the girl that she was pretty and wanted to marry her. “Teacher” then pushed her onto the bed and covered her mouth. Before she knew it the young girl went blank, the next thing “teacher” put his manhood in her vagina and when she tried to scream, he covered her mouth even harder.
After finishing his business “teacher” then gives her a stern warning not to tell anybody or else she would be chased from school and he would lose his job.
Kalenga Contracts an STI.
She went home but did not tell her Auntie who is her legal guardian because in her mind her Auntie is a difficult person, so she decided to keep the information to herself, before she knew it her private parts started itching. When the itching continued, she decided to go to a clinic, got examined and was given medicine to insert in her vagina and another type to take orally.
The itching persisted and the young girl got scared and went to tell “teacher” who scolded her that how come he was not getting sick himself. The situation was not getting any better and the young girl did not know what to do or where to go. She decided to tell her class teacher what had happened. In reply this teacher said he knew he story and advised her to report the case to her guardian or else he would reveal himself. Kalenga’s class teacher knew of what been going on as he was housemates with the “teacher” but decided enough was enough, he had to put an end to this. She was then taken for medical examination which included an HIV/AIDS test, fortunately the results were negative.
Performance dwindles at school.
As the trauma started sinking in, Kalenga’s performance in school started dwindling as she started getting low marks. She told this author that her friends bullied her at school and some would write notes to her and telling her that she was a bad girl and some said I was lying about the whole thing and just accusing the teacher.
“It was really traumatizing for me, because my friends were bulling me and telling me that I was just making up this whole thing and that I just wanted to put the teacher in trouble, I would go home crying”, said Kalenga.
Time to tell
Kalenga’s class teacher put her to task and told her that if she didn’t tell her auntie he would tell her himself, the young girl could not pluck up the courage to tell her auntie so the class teacher and his friend called the girl and went to a pay phone to call the auntie. When the auntie answered the phone she started crying instead of talking, so the class teacher spoke to the Auntie and urged her to listen to what her niece had to tell her as soon as she came home from school.
When Kalenga arrived home from school, her Auntie was waiting for her at home, meanwhile a thought crossed her mind that her niece could be pregnant as she could understand why her niece was scared to talk her.
“When my niece came home, I prayed that she wasn’t pregnant” we started to talk and then she revealed all that her teacher had raped her, “I couldn’t believe it, I didn’t know what to do, so the first that came to my mind was to confront the teacher at his school” said Kalenga’s Aunt.
“The Teacher’s” defense
The “teacher” testified that he knew the girl that she was his pupil but denied having carnal knowledge of her although he had wanted to talk to her about something but did not do so for three days.
The teacher also said that the young girl started spreading rumors that she was his girlfriend and that towards Valentines Day the young girl followed him with a bunch of flowers and some chocolate. He then said that he tried to avoid her as he realized that the whole thing would get him in trouble and that the young girl requested to talk to him on several occasions but he declined. The “teacher” said that the girl wanted to have a relationship with him but declined.
However, on cross examination the “teacher” admitted that the girl was his girl and that she did not propose him, he said that he called the girl his girlfriend because there was a relationship.
Headmaster knew of his teachers conduct.
The next morning, Aunt and niece decided to go school and see the report the case to the headmaster of the school. As they arrived at the headmaster’s office, Auntie reported the case and the Deputy Headmaster and a senior teacher were called into the meeting. The “teacher” was also called into this meeting.
The Headmaster told the Aunt that he could not blame the girl as she was a minor. The headmaster then reminded the “teacher” of a previous relationship with another student. The teacher was further asked if he knew the student in question and he answered in the affirmative and that the girl was his girlfriend. Then headmaster further asked the “teacher” if he knew how old the girl was and if he had had sex with her. The teacher admitted that the girl was 14 years old and but could not answer the last question as it was a very difficult one but asked to be forgiven.
The Judge said….
A teacher has moral superiority over his pupils and in any event he cannot be heard to say the student consented without independent advice, even in contractual relationship and that a girl saying that she loved him did not mean that she consented to sex, when she is below 16 years of age. The Judge further said that the “teacher manipulated the girl by deliberately forgetting the past examination papers in order to create and opportunity to sexually abuse her at his home.
The Judge also said that there could be no consent by a child under 16 and that to characterize a valentine card with words ‘if loving you is a sin, then I have committed one’ as consenting to sexual assault is legally, morally and psychologically flawed and that such a perception undermines section 138 of the penal code, is contrary to the ethics of a teacher not to sleep with school girls, and is psychologically wrong as a child under 16 is not cognitively developed to consent to sex
Judge finds headmaster “guilty”
The Judge says in his judgment that when children are deposited at school then teacher becomes their parent. That the standard of care owned by the headmaster of a school towards the pupils is that of a careful father towards his own children.
“The headmaster knew that the teacher in question was a sexual pervert and had the victim transferred to another school while he villain was left to go scot free. Could he have done the same if the pervert was in his household and it became apparent that he was sexually abusing his daughters, would he have left such a matter unreported and still retain the pervert in his household? I don’t think he would have taken a dim view if it had affected his family. His conduct therefore falls below the set standards” read the judgment.
Conclusion
Kalenga through her lawyer submitted that the case was novel and that it was special because it gives the Zambian courts a chance to move the Zambian Government by “Judge Made Law” to strengthen its policy on the protection of the girl child against sexual abuse. That with the advent of sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV/AIDS which have no cure, the chances of millions of girls being infected with this ‘death sentence’ by unscrupulous teachers / headmasters cannot go unabated” part of the judgment read.
The Judge has since awarded Kalenga and her Aunt a total of K45million (K45,000,000).
On commenting on the judgment Aunt to girl said that she was happy to see that justice had been done and that she wanted to ensure that such a situation does not happen to any child because the emotional scars do not heal and asked how she feels after the judgment Kalenga said that she felt like hero for coming out in the open because most girls tend to keep quite when such things happen to them. She further urged all young girls not to trust any strangers and report any cases sexual abuse on them.
“Now, I feel like a hero, am now my own ambassador because now am a role model, some girls even come to me for advise”, like one time a girl from school came told me that her uncle had defiled her and asked what she should do, I advised her to tell a family member or see her pastor at church” Kalenga says.
“I also tell my friends not to trust any strangers, and that they should come out when something of that sort happens, we have to fight this scourge together because a potential defiler can be anywhere, at school or at home”, said Kalenga with a big smile on her face.
One question remains to be answered though. When people know about this landmark judgment and what it means, Parents and Guardians will be suing the Ministry of Education left, right and centre. The big question though is “Will the Ministry of Education (MoE) pay for all defilement cases or will they put measures in place to curb this “vice” in the education sector.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Health, Maternity wards, Minister, Money, Mulongoti, Newspaper, Plundered, recovered, spokesperson
STATE TO INJECT MONIES PLUNDERED INTO MATERNITY WARDS
By Sally Chiwama
Government will use the K13.6 billion the Task Force on Corruption has earned from the sale of seized properties to build maternity wards at various health centers countrywide.
According to the “Times of Zambia” newspaper, Chief Government Spokesman Mike Mulongoti , said in a statement in Lusaka last week.
And health Minister Brian Chituwo told the Zambia National Broadcasting Television (ZNBC) that, Zambia had the highest number of mortality rates in the region and that the monies that were plundered deserved to that sector as mother and children were dying at alarming rate.
“Zambia has the highest mortality rate, if it is not the mother dying during child birth, it is the child that dyes because of lack of proper care” he said.
Mr. Mulongoti said that government would use the money to construct new new maternity wings to improve the health status of women and children.
Mr. Mulongoti who is also Information Minister said the decision was made during a cabinet meeting on Monday May 5.
He explained that the K13.6 billion comprised US$1,473,732.88 and K7,762,381,878.1 earned through an earlier sale of seized properties.
The total amount of money projected to be raised from the sale of recovered properties would be in excess of K200 billion.
He said that the properties included motor vehicles, industrial and agriculture equipment, warehouse and residential properties in various towns throughout Zambia.
Out of the K116 billion cumulative total assets and cash traced as at October 1, 2007, K20 billion worth of properties had not yet been disposed off.
About 30 apartment buildings in Belgium valued at $8million were some of the items recovered as a result of growing international cooperation in asset recovery and investigation.
As at last year, K85 billion worth of assets were surrendered to the state for disposal.
The K116 billion worth of assets recovered had allegedly been plundered, stolen or unlawfully obtained between 1991 and 2001.
Ends….
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: access to information, development, human right, information bill, journalists, livingstone, my speech
Speech written and read By Sally chiwama
On the commemoration of the World Press Freedom Day May 3rd 2008,in Livingstone.
Honorable Minister, Southern Province
The Mayor of Livingstone
The District Commissioner
Fellow members of the press
Ladies and gentlemen.
Let me start by saying that today is a very special day in the life of a Journalist as this is the day when we reflect on our achievements, pitfalls and our plans for the future.
The theme for this year “freedom of information, Access to Information and Empowerment of people” is also very special because it embraces the needs and aspirations of all stakeholders, regardless of status.
By this I mean that the theme is all inclusive because freedom of information is not only for the media, or Journalists per se but the general public as well.
Information is required to be accessed in order for the public to participate meaningfully and effectively in the affairs of the society, therefore, access to information is an essential part of good governance and freedom of information and expression is a basic condition of the progress and development of citizens and society.
The government has on several occasions claimed they are in a hurry to develop the country but we in the media know that that there can be no development without a free media and hence we are calling upon government to expedite the tabling of the information bill before parliament soon as it aims at promoting a culture of openness within government.
It goes without saying that these days the freedom of information and expression is being recognized as a fundamental human right and therefore, the freedom of information bill will oblige public bodies to do more than accede to requests for information.
We however, appreciate that government has provided in the recent past a somewhat conducive atmosphere to do with proliferation of community radio stations but still remains adamant on the enactment of the freedom of information bill.
Viva Press Freedom
Viva Freedom of information
Viva World Press Freedom day
Freedom & Access to information Now!!!
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Add new tag, freedom, information, Legislation, livingstone, Media, Minister, Press, Province, Southern
By Sally Chiwama
World Press Freedom Day
The World Press Freedom Day (WPFD) organizing committee in Zambia sent me to Livingstone to coordinate the World Press freedom Day activities in Livingstone. And one of the tasks I did was write the speech for the Southern Province Minister.
The speech was accepted by the Ministers office and no alterations were made to the speech.
At the same function I also on behalf of the WPFD organizing committee delivered a speech regards the media in the country.
Below is a story that appeared in the Zambia Daily Mail on May 5th 2008.
MUNKOMBWE BACKS FOI LEGISLATION.
By Wallen Simwaka
Southern Province Minister Daniel Munkombwe says information is vital for the public to effectively participate in public affairs and make the government simpler.
In a speech read for him by Deputy Permanent Secretary Aaron Zulu at the World Press Freedom day celebrations in Livingstone on Saturday May 3rd, My Munkombwe said access to information was essential to good governance.
Mr. Munkombwe said freedom of expression constituted one of the most essential foundations of a democratic society because it was a basic condition to the enjoyment of other rights.
“Without freedom of information and expression free discussions particularly on political issues such as national Constitution Conference (NCC) would be stifled,” he said.
“Mr. Munkombwe said government is aware that the free flow of information lies at the heart of the very notion of democracy. It is crucial to the effective respect of human rights”.
Government under the leadership of President Mwanawasa was committed to ensuring that human rights were respected, he said.
Mr. Mukombwe challenged media practitioners in the Southern Province to be proactive and endeavor to capture what government was doing rather than just focus on the negatives.
He, however warned the media to be careful in demanding for public information saying there should be some restrictions to certain aspects of information in the interest of national security.
And World Press Freedom Day (WPFD) organizing committee member Sally Chiwama said there would be no development without a free Media.
Ms Chiwama urged government to expedite the enactment of the Freedom of information legislation because information it would promote a culture of openness in the public sector.
“Government has always said that they are in a hurry to develop the country on several occasions but it should realize that there can be no development without a free media,” she said.
Livingstone Press Club Chairperson Florence Mwisa said the right to freedom of information was now recognized as a fundamental right because public bodies were not holding information for themselves but for the general citizenry.
Ms. Mwisa said the media would find it difficult to expose corrupt leaders if access to information was restricted unnecessarily.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: career development, Engineers, Launch, Power Stations, Victoria Falls, Zesco
THE GENDER GAP IN THE ENGINEERS FIELD IN ZAMBIA.
By Sally Chiwama
The Engineering Institute in Zambia (EIZ) has embarked on career development project that is aimed at encouraging more females to join the engineering field.
Lungu said this at the Launch of the EIZ regional branch in Livingstone
Vice Chairperson of the EIZ Eng. Julius Kazembe Lungu told this author that the response has not been excellent but rather okay and “at least it’s a start”.
“The ratios of women in the engineering world in Zambia are no great but we have started a careers development programme that is aimed at encouraging girls and women to join the engineering field” he said. He said that out of the 1428 engineers in Zambia only two (2) % were women.
He said his organization has started this from primary school level and will soon be going into the secondary schools in a bit to encourage more girls to enter the engineering field.
He also noted that there were not enough role models in the engineering fraternity to encourage girls and women to take up the engineering field.
Lungu emphasized the need for concerted efforts by all stakeholders starting from parents at home to the government especially that the number of students venturing into the engineering field had dwindled.
Asked if there was a deliberate policy to try to encourage more women to enter into engineering, Lungu said that there was no policy on women but that the board would look into coming up with a one.
Out of more than 30 Engineers at the launch only one (1) was a woman.
With all the talk of empowering women to decision making positions, one wonders whether people are walking the walk and talking the talk.
The Engineering fraternity in Zambia certainly isn’t living to that phrase.
The African Union position on 50/50 target of women and men in decision making positions and the goal 3 of the millennium development goals.
34 year old Mercy Banda was the only woman at the launch, an electrical engineer by profession says that she feels challenged to be in this profession.
Mercy started working for the Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation (ZESCO) at the Victoria Falls Power Station in 1995 and has never looked back since then. Her aim, she says “is to be one of the top women in the engineering field in the country”.
Banda says that there are three women at the Victoria Falls power station but she is the only one in Electrical Maintenance department.
She also says that in the beginning it was difficult to be accepted by the men folk in her department a they though she would never manage the job and gave her lighter jobs to do until she had to prove her self by taking up some of the most difficult ones.
“I love a challenge and like to climb poles and fix transformers, I also have to maintain the generating machines and other machines” says a confident Banda.
She says that she faces other challenges such as the gender roles as home as she is a wife and mother of two. She says that her biggest challenge is that she hardly spends time with her children as she works long hours.
Banda says that she doesn’t believe that the woman is a weaker vessel because a woman is gifted as she can multitask unlike the men folk.
“Even in the villages, a women do more work than the men folk as they have to wake up very early to fetch water and other chores and are almost all the time the last to go to bed she says.
Banda challenges fellow science subjects and venture into the engineering field. Zambian women have all the potential and should not be afraid to take up challenging jobs, she said.
Banda attributes her success in the engineering field to her supportive husband as well as her boss at the office whom she says encourages her in everything she pursues to undertake.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: CRC, Early marriage, HODI, pregant, sex, SGBV, trafficking
By Sally Chiwama in Mporokoso
Kapenda Buyamba is only 16 years old but she has already been in married two years, as if that was not enough, she is heavily pregnant and expecting her second baby. Her first one is two and half years old.
Buyamba says, she got married at a tender age of thirteen and a half after being impregnated by a boy who is now her husband. She says that there was not much to do in the camp and they had little food from her family and so she had to fend for her self most of the times. Buyamba was not ashamed to say that she was doing her first grade at one of the schools in the camp.
“Nimeowa nilikuwa na myaka kumi na tatu” (I got married when I was 13 years old,” she said in Kiswahili.
Exact figures of the number of early marriages are difficult to obtain, as so many Camp marriages are unregistered and unofficial. However, Buyamba is probably one of the many girls whose marriage will never be documented anywhere.
Namanda Mateele Project Manager of HODI a non-governmental organization that works in the camp on issues of sexual and gender based violence (SGBV) says that her organization addresses issues such as early marriages, defilement and gender based violence amongst the refugee community.
Mateele says a task force on SGBV and a Youth Group were formed to look at these issues so that youths can also come together and discuss issues that concern them.
“We have formed an SGBV youth group with 56 girls and boys, this was after we realized that there was a lot of sex amongst adolescents,” said Mateele. She said that in the youth groups are encouraged to put their education ahead of anything else. She said that one of their most important tasks was to try to convince the girls that have fallen pregnant to go back to school.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) show that early marriage in any place including Mwange Refugee Camp was part of a broader approach of building a “protective environment” for children which shelters them from this type of exploitation. It adds that early marriage can have harmful consequences to children including health problems, spousal abuse and the denial of education. Once married, girls often do not go back to school.
The society at Mwange refugee camp should therefore ensures that girls have an equal opportunity in education so that families and communities are aware of the serious risks of early marriage for young girls that legislators are committed to prohibiting early marriage and that services are available to counsel young girls who have been abused.
To stop the inhuman attitude towards girls who are involved in early marriages The CRC says there should be stringent laws against the practice of child marriages, and both the governments and the civil societies should initiate campaigns in every community on the evil consequences of child marriages.
It was observed that refugees at Mwange refugee camp who have gone through early marriages have embraced the concept of going back to school even though they are young mothers and fathers.
ZAMWA spoke to Mitwele Mwelu a grade 12 pupil, married with three children who decided to go back to school.
“Nime furahi sana, kurudi kwa shule “(Am very happy to come back to school)”. Mwelu says she is even happier that she is now writing her final exams so that when she finishes high school she will also be able to work. She says that her husband encourages her to work hard as he is a teacher at the same school.
Heri Mupata a grade 11 pupils is also another married boy with a child who is very proud to be in school and says that he is preparing for his future and have a good life with his family. Mupata says his wife is also doing a skills development course and takes the baby with her when she goes for her class.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is the most comprehensive international instrument for the definition and enforcement of human rights of children.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child is the only international human rights instrument that consistently uses both masculine and feminine pronouns throughout and makes it explicit that the rights contained therein apply equally to female and male children.
The CRC Convention will soon be turning 18years old and nearing maturity, progress achieved in areas such as education and health cannot be claimed for areas such as child participation and special protection. In many parts of the world, many girls are still subjected to various forms of violence.
The CRC notes that girls are still stigmatized by societal inferior status. “They rarely have the opportunity to express their views and concerns, let alone have them taken into account. Many girls are deprived of their inheritance rights, dragged into early or forced marriages, female genital mutilation, trafficking, exploited in the sex trade or in the labor market but this must not be let to go on. Let us all join in the fight against early marriages and looking at a girl as “just a girl.”
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Charles, electricity, Kapumo falls, Mporokoso, science, Zesco
By Sally Chiwama in Mporokoso
Solar power is a good investment for most people in rural areas but for this couple, this investment did not do much for them as they only used the solar power to light up the house but not for cooking or refrigeration. They then decided to invest in a generator so that they could use such items as the fridge and cooker but this investment also proved to be too costly as the continuous buying of fuel was draining their resources.
Charles Mubanga Mumba, Zambia’s new “scientist” and Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation’s (ZESCO) new competitor then decided that with Kapumo waterfall in his backyard, he had all that he needed to generate power from it, the biggest resources he needed was his brains and his hands.
ZAMWA visited the site where Charles Mumba, a resident of Mporokoso rural has put up a Mini Hydro Power Station using a K42million generator, tractor rim and other components at Kapumo falls on Mutotoshi River.
A farmer by profession and a humble education of Form four (grade 11) from Chasa Secondary Schools in the Eastern province, Mumba decided to follow his dream and make it come true.
The dream was realized after an application to be connected to ZESCO cost him K68 million because ZESCO said that he was in the rural area and that they would need to put up a Transformer so that even other people could be connected if they applied.
He told his wife Mary about what he planned to do but the wife thought that a man can dream but it would end at just that- a dream.
“I told my wife am going to generate power from the falls but she was sure I was going mad”, says Mumba.
Mumba then says that the beginning was very tough as he had to wake up at 04:00am every day for more that one-year and this was not welcome with his wife but emphasizes that he had to do what he had to do.
“It was not easy to see my husband leave the bedroom at 04:00hrs everyday for more than a year, but I had to support my husband and accepted the situation but it was a difficult thing to accept” says Mary.
Mary also says that she only saw her husband for a few hours in a day as she had to take breakfast, lunch and supper to Kapumo falls where the husband worked with some of their children.
Mumba then explains that he started looking for drums and used over five of them to create a heavy flow of water that he had to use to turn the turbines he created from an old tractor rim and other scrap metal. He further explains that he used an old tractor rim to make a turbine and other small components. Mumba says he has been using power for six years generated for his domestic use as it supplied power to his house and his mother’s house.
He said he tried to engage some people to work with but they failed because they had little faith that electricity could be generated from his dream.
Meanwhile, Mary told ZAMWA that life is now more bearable now as she can do anything she wants around the house and does not have to worry about paying bills to ZESCO she says with a smile. She also says that the children are now able to read and study anytime of the day.
“It is only now that I realize I have an inventor for a husband” says Mary, shyly as she expertly knits a table cloth and when he told me that he wanted to generate electricity for us, I thought he was crazy, I thought he was just dreaming” it really boggled my mind”, said Mary. She further adds that she sees no difference now with her in rural Mporokoso and those that are in town and that a lot of things have changed in their life for the better.
She proudly praises her husband that he can fix anything that he can get his hands on and that that is how they make a living. Mumba chips in and says that he gets contracts from government institutions such as the Mporokoso District hospitals to fix machines such as the Ultra sound machines, motor vehicles, computers and many other things.
He also says that now a lot of people and organizations have approached him to electrify their places but lack of funds is hindering his dreams.
Mumba says that he now his two big dreams: “To light up Mporokoso so that the town should never have to rely on ZECSO and to go school but all these are hampered by lack of funds,” he says confidently.
The government has recognized Mumbas efforts and last year President Levy Mwanawasa honored him on Independence Day. In October 2007, the Ministry of Science and Technology awarded Mumba with K80million, which he is yet to receive.
Mumba electricity project is on Kapumo falls which is five kilometers west of Mporokoso.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Climate change, environment, Mwange, refugees, UNHCR, Worldvision
By Sally Chiwama in Mporokoso
There is a proverb that says, “educate a woman and you educate the whole nation”. Given that women’s knowledge and participation in disaster situations has been critical to the survival of most communities, World Vision International (WVI) in Mwange Refugee camp have put in the fore front in the fight for a clean environment and climate change.
World Vision has developed practical tools that allow women refugees to incorporate gender equality and women’s participation in environmental and climate change initiatives.
World Visions Agriculture and Natural Resource Coordinator for Mwange Project Alexie Lumbi said his organization was empowering refugees in the camp with agriculture skills and women were considered priority in most activities.
Lumbi told the Zambia Media Women Association (ZAMWA) that the refugees are empowered with a few farming implements and inputs to supplement the rations they receive from United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR).
“We have even formed a community environment task force that includes all the implementing partners such UNHCR, HODI, Zambia RED CROSS and WVI and the host community has been put in place to foresee all the environmental issues and we have meeting every so often to brain storm on issues that are affecting our environment”, said Lumbi.
The refugees are empowered with skills such as land rehabilitation and tree planting and sensitized on use of natural resources. Lumbi also said that to motivate the community the WVI commemorates days such the World Environment Day and recognizes the efforts of their efforts by giving them tokens of appreciation and Certificates.
The community told ZAMWA that they are happy with the skills they acquire as they know that when time comes for them to go back home they will carry the skills with them and teach their family and friends back home.
Lumbi mentioned that one of the most successful projects was the use of the energy saving Mud Stoves that are used by the women in the homes. He explained that the mud stoves use very little firewood and are energy efficient, as they do not use a lot of wood. He added that women do not trek many times to fetch firewood and that close to 80% of the Mwange refugee camp use the mud stoves.
Katele Salva a refugee trained environmental guide one of the beneficiaries of the trainings that WVI offers say that ever since she started using the energy saving mud stoves, she said that she has seen many advantages in using the stoves.
“I like using the mud stove because I do not have to go to the bush many times to fetch firewood, the fire last long, I can use it for two days and that means less trips to the bushes, also my pots don’t get dirty.” She said. Salva added that some of the things that she has learned as an environmental guide include preserving of the forest. She has since appreciated that woodcutting has lessened in the community.
World Vision also emphasize that when time comes to repatriate the refugees, the houses that have been vacated are demolished and trees or banana suckers are planted so that the land is not left bare when the refugees return to their respective countries.
Zambia is currently hosting close to 18,000 Congolese refugees in Mwange refugee camp situated 35 kilometers Southwest of Mporokoso District.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: economy, EPAs, Gender, sally Chiwama, Trade, Zambia
By Sally Chiwama
As Africa seeks relaxed trade relations with Europe, women are still in the dark as to whether they will benefit from all the talks and agreements being signed in the international trade talks.
Gender and women’s rights have gained much significance in the recent past but little or nothing is done to their call, further womens voices are seldom heard in the in international fora.
A need to undertake gender analysis of some of the trade agreements is critical, for an economy like Zambia. Some of the key issues which have to be considered include culture background as regards women’s and women’s economic rights.
Few studies or gender analysis models are suited to the needs and realities of women in developed countries, particularly with regard to the impact of trade agreements.
According to a study titled ”The likely Impact of Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) Negotiations on Women in Zambia” by Vladimir Chihinya and Patrick Chengo International trade and the institutionalization of trade entail many local, national and international regulations, the effects of which are not neutral for women.
This study seeks to highlight the likely implications of EPAs for women’s rights and gender relations. It will make recommendations on how to include gender analysis more systematically in Sustainability Impact Assessments, and in trade negotiations in order to ensure that EPAs promote, and not undermine, gender equality
Under the multilateral trading system the World Trade Organisation (WTO), key issues for women and men’s employment, livelihood, entitlements and rights, as identified by IGTN include, WTO issues that are of particular importance to the work of social reproduction: agriculture, services, intellectual property and investment.
From a different perspective woman, groups in Zambia are basically formed to support the commercial interests, of women. Respondents felt that Gender analysis must be linked to tangible economic benefits; there must be a gender analysis in the sustainable impact assessment, and trade negotiations
The EU-Africa summit that has just come to a close has highlighted that that Africa was losing a lot of money because of restricted agricultural imports imposed by Europe.
In his speech at the 2007 Lisbon Summit, President Levy Mwanawasa who is also Chairperson of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) said that Zambia was losing at least $150million per year on meat exports as a result of restrictions from European countries.
Dr. Mwanawasa further said highlighted the fact that it was obvious Africa was being denied the opportunity to earn itself a living through agricultural exports to Europe. We are all aware that women make up the majority of the population in the country and the agriculture sector employs more women than men but women always getting the wrong end of the stick.
At the same summit Thomas Deve of GCAP Africa, Zimbabwe said fair and equitable trade must be a fundamental component of relations between Europe and Africa if poverty is ever to be addressed. Yet, the new EU-Africa Strategy suggests that trade relations should be built on free trade and Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs), “ EPAs are being negotiated outside the framework of the Africa-EU Strategy, under a time frame imposed by the European Union (EU) that will leave poor countries in Africa worse off.”
As of 2000 Zambia adopted the national gender policy, which entails the adoption of some milestone of programmes, to contribute to the attainment of the gender policy, and economic empowerment of women.
The EPAs were not signed at the just ended Lisbon Summit and the deadline has been shifted to December 2008. However some countries signed interim agreements before the Lisbon Summit in an earlier meeting in Brussels. These are the East African community that included Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi.
The challenge with the interim agreements are that they are not clear on the transitional arrangements to full EPA. Also the sensitive lists have not been agreed upon.
According to the Regional Advocacy Officer for the Participatory Ecological Land Use Management (PELUM) Anne Maina says ” the small businesses and industries employing many women will collapse due to unfair competition from well established European Union (EU) companies”.
In some of the economic structures, there is still lack of adequate representation of women at the management level. For instance despite the fact that women are heavily engaged in process of growing cotton in Zambia, until recently there were no women on the Cotton Association of Zambia’s Board and the so called women crops such as groundnuts will face stiff competition once markets are open to EU products thus destroying livelihoods for the women in Africa.
Agriculture represents a major activity in Zambia and the EU market has remained an important destination for agricultural exports. This makes the sector key to poverty reduction and economic development. The main potential change is related to EU liberalisation of sugar quotas, which may increase Zambian exports of sugar to the EU.
Women constitute 70 percent of the agriculture labour force in Zambia and will not only be affected as producers but as retailers as well, since most women are engaged in retailing agro-products.
In terms of economic policy making women’s involvement in policy work need to be enhanced as the current level of engagement is too minimal and strategies under the national gender policy are critical in empowering women with education; enhance literacy programmes, and enhancement of general life skills of women. In the health sector Zambia alongside most developing countries is challenged with child mortality, maternal health etc.
Zambia aims at becoming a middle income country by 2015; this will be mainly achieved through trade. EPAs must uphold the focus of promoting development focus, other than focusing entirely on trade. Zambia’s development programmes include, Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper, Private Sector Development Programme, Millennium Development Goals, Fifth National Development Plan, Commercial, Trade and Industrial Policy, Aid Policy and Strategy.
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