Appoint female press aide, presidential candidates told

TWO media bodies in the country have urged political parties in the forth-coming presidential election to consider appointing a female press aide once elected into office.
Zambia has never had a woman press aide since independence.
Speaking in an interview with Femail, Zambia Union of Journalists General Secretary Angela Chishimba said it is high time elected governments appointed female press aides as a way of empowering women in the media.
Ms Chishimba said there are capable women in the media who can represent the President both at local and international levels.
She said, “Just the same way they have appointed women in sectors, such as in the police, auditor general and anti-corruption commission, they should also empower women in the media.
Press Association of Zambia executive secretary Patson Phiri has challenged women in the media to engage in political reporting if they are to be recognised by political parties.
“But now gender empowerment has become one of the qualities of good governance, it is important that politicians look at that principle and implement it at all cost,” Mr Phiri said.
And Media Institute of Southern Africa chairperson Hellen Mwale said the appointment of a female press aide will be a great gift to the media frantenity.
She noted that SADC protocol requires to have 50 per cent of women in decision making positions.
"Fifty years after independence Zambia has only had one female spokesperson at statehouse during the reign of Dr Kenneth Kaunda by the name of Dr Mable Milimoell," Ms Mwale said.

Construction sites get 72,000 condoms monthly

OVER 72,000 condoms are distributed to each road construction site every month to meet the high demand though they remain in short supply at the source.



According to Youth Cultural Promotion Association executive director Beck Banda, the demand for condoms is high in areas where road construction works are taking place.



However, Dr Banda said the supply for condoms is low and they are not readily available even in areas such as Lusaka.



Speaking in an interview, Dr Banda who is also engaged by the Road Development Agency in sensitising road construction workers on HIV/AIDS said over 72,000 condoms are given out at sites every month.



He said “we have done so much sensitising in districts where road construction works are taking place because girls and women are indulging in sexual activities due to poverty. So we sensitise both construction workers and the community.’


Dr Banda added that sensitisation programmes will be extended to schools in the construction sites this year.


“A warning to parents with children in boarding schools located where road construction works are taking place: make sure you give adequate food stuffs to your children to avoid them going to construction workers who will give them what they need in exchange for sex,” he said.



Meanwhile Dr Banda has called on government through RDA to increase funding to the HIV/AIDS sensitisation programmes due to the huge task involved.



He said there are many communities to reach countrywide which need these services.



And Dr Banda has since commended construction firms for allowing their workers to be sensitised on good behavioural practices.


“We have worked with China-Henain, China Civil, China-state, Road and pave and China Jauxi. And we hope they continue rendering their support even the New Year,” he added.



Government through RDA in 2012 embarked on a programme meant to sensitise road construction workers on their sites and neighbouring communities on  HIV/AIDS and gender activities.



This came in wake of reports that girls and women were offering sex in exchange for money due to poverty and in turn increasing the levels of HIV/AIDS in the country.

Traditional leaders join fight against malnutrition

ZAMBIA is one of the countries in Africa with the highest burden of under nutrition in children.
Thousands of children suffer from one or more forms of malnutrition including low birth weight, wasting, stunting and underweight.
The current child stunting levels in Zambia stand at 45 percent with a breakdown of prevalence of wasting at five percent, prevalence of underweight at 15 percent and stunting is at 15 percent.
Rural areas are the worst hit with under nutrition in Zambia with Mumbwa in Central Province almost covering half of the national stunting statistics.
However, the first 1,000 most critical days programme (exclusive breastfeeding) is one of the key interventions Government has put in place to ensure child stunting is reduced.
Subsequently, the burden to reduce malnutrition has attracted fierce participation from key stakeholders such as traditional rulers, who are aiming at reducing it in their chiefdoms.
Chief Mwansakombe of Samfya in Luapula Province said he has resolved to engage in the fight against malnutrition due to the high number of children dying in his chiefdom.
The traditional leader spoke under the auspices of the Civil Society Organisation Scaling-up Nutrition alliance (CSO-SUN) at the national nutrition forum held recently.
He said 300 children die from malnutrition every year in his chiefdom and added that it is a huge number to lose in a year.
Suffice to say, Chief Mwansakombe has embarked on vigorous campaigns to end malnutrition in his area. Among the initiatives he has embarked on include sensitising women on good breastfeeding practices.
Exclusive breastfeeding of children is essential in the fight against underweight and medical experts advise that children are supposed to be breastfed for a period of six months.
Additionally, the traditional ruler urges that children are not supposed to be restricted to one variety of food.
“When you go to a Zambian home and they serve you lunch, it’s obvious you know the kind of meal you will be served. So it’s important we change the kind of food we serve in our homes,” he said.
Underweight, which mostly results in child stunting, adversely affects the cognitive development of a child.
It affects their educational abilities and outcomes, their health and future life prospects.
And the economic cost of under nutrition to Zambia over the last 10-year period has been estimated to be as high as US$775 million productivity.
Further, Chief Mwansakombe has since called on the national food and nutrition commission to decentralise their nutrition messages from district to village level.
Going east, Chief Madzimawe of the Ngoni people of Chipata said stringent measures have been take to ensure that underweight and malnutrition are reduced in the province.
In an interview, Chief Madzimawe said the royal establishment has done away with the brewing and drinking of ‘kachasu’ (a local beer), which makes parents irresponsible at the expense of providing food for their children.
He said: “We have a project like ‘mawa’ that promotes the growing of orange maize and orange sweet potatoes among farmers, which are nutritious and cardinal to the growth of children.”
“And we encourage our farmers to grow variety of crops. We are also putting up sheds where excess crops are stored so that we give out to vulnerable and poor families round our chiefdoms,” Chief Madzimawe added.
Meanwhile, Chief Macha of Southern Province also added that he is currently building a community hall, where the local people will gather for cooking demonstrations by nutrition experts.
He said it was important for people to be subjected to cooking demonstrations so that they have knowledge on how to prepare various nutritious local foods.
“I am appealing to Government to send nutrition experts to my chiefdom so that they train my people, who will in turn train the rest of the villagers on important cooking lessons that can improve the nutrition of our children and further reduce child stunting and underweight here,” the traditional ruler said.
According to the traditional leaders, recommendations must be made to improve current plans and accelerate progress towards a Zambia where all children will be afforded adequate nutrition and a full life potential, regardless of where they are born or live.
The responsibility, therefore, falls on all stakeholders to capitalise on this crucial momentum and urgently seize upon the opportunity before it is lost.
CSO-SUN Alliance National co-ordinator William Chilufya noted that investment must be made towards infant and young children nutrition. Every year, one million lives are saved, 369 million more children and their mothers have healthier lives and there is an increase in the country’s GDP by two-three percent.
“Investments in the nutrition are the best foundation for a strong, prosperous future for the nation,” he said.