World Vision Zambia has signed a five years Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Ministry of Water Development, Sanitation and Environmental Protection (MWDSEP).

The MOU aims to provide clean safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene to 1.1 million people in 98 wards across 22 district in the country.

The five-year project is expected to gobble 63 million United States Dollars.

Speaking during the signing ceremony, World Vision Zambia National Director John Hasse says the signing of the MOU is a significant step forward in transforming the lives of the vulnerable children, women and families in Zambia.

Mr Hasse says World Vision is focused on providing clean water and sanitation to every person in communities it operates including the most vulnerable populations in the hardest to reach places.

He noted that clean water is essential for hand washing and disinfection to prevent the spread of diseases such as COVID19.

Mr Hasse says World Vision Zambia is committed in bettering children’s lives through the provision of quality sustainable wash services.

He also disclosed that healthcare facilities and schools will benefit from the project as they will be provided with dignified toilets and appropriate hand washing facilities.

However, Mr Hasse bemoaned that children and parents are subjected to covering long distances to fetch water thereby depriving children time to study.

Meanwhile Minister of Water Development, Sanitation and Environmental Protection Permanent Secretary (PS) Mabvuto Sakala says government remains committed to ensuring that the Zambian people have access to clean safe drinking water and adequate sanitation services.

Mr Sakala disclosed that three dams and six weires will be constructed under the MOU.

The PS further revealed 1,500 new boreholes will be drilled and equipped with hand pumps while 330 boreholes will be constructed to support emergencies and strategic institutions.

While a further 3,000 boreholes will also be rehabilitated under the MOU.

He said under the MOU it is also planned that 50 piped water schemes will be constructed in addition a total of 30 piped water schemes will be rehabilitated.

The PS has since assured the cooperating partners that the resources allocated towards the water sector will be utilised in a prudent and transparent manner.

Minister of Tourism and Arts Ronald Chitotela has tasked his new Permanent Secretary Patrick Lungu to establish a tourism television channel to help market the country’s tourism sector.

Mr Chitotela told Mr Lungu to use his vast knowledge and experience as a media practitioner to help push the agenda of Zambia being more visible as a tourism destination of choice.

The Minister said formulating a tourism channel on the national broadcaster (ZNBC) would greatly help drive the country’s crusade to market the tourism sector locally and abroad.

Mr Chitotela was speaking at a luncheon that marked farewell for outgoing Permanent Secretary Auxilia Ponga and reception for incoming Permanent Secretary Patrick Lungu.

The Minister assured Mr Lungu that his ministry will give him as the new controlling officer the necessary support to meet the aspirations of the government.

Mr Chitotela urged Mr Lungu to build on the foundation laid by his predecessor and utilize the skills of the high caliber staff at the ministry.

The Minister paid tribute to Dr Ponga for her tireless efforts to help grow the tourism sector into a significant contributor to the economy.

Mr Chitotela noted that Dr Ponga played a cardinal role in the quest by the Ministry to amend the Zambia Wildlife Act No. 14 of 2015 as well as growing the tourism sector which has been adversely affected by the negative impact of the Covid 19 pandemic.

The Minister noted that it was during the tenure of Dr Ponga that the Ministry came up with the Covid Safety Protocols that saw Zambia get rated as one of the top four safest places to visit in the world during the first wave of the Covid 19 pandemic.

And Mr Lungu said belief in service, loyalty and patriotism will be cardinal in ensuring that Zambia excels as a tourism destination of choice.

This is according to a press statement issued to the media in Lusaka on Wednesday by the ministry’s Public Relations Officer Sakabilo Kalembwe.

Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) in Zambia has urged media institutions to be accurate in their reporting.

MISA Chairperson Hellen Mwale said credibility is developed and earned around reporting accurate information when practicing journalism.

“To earn the trust and public confidence, we have to be responsible journalists, to be responsible journalists means that we have to report the truth,” Ms. Mwale said.

In an interview with ZANIS, Ms. Mwale said to avoid inaccuracy in reporting, the media needs to make sure that the news is right before disseminating to the public by checking the facts.

She said the reason why journalists should check the facts is that the information is telling the true story in which the facts will add up to a larger truth.

“As we report, there should be quality control in news writing,” Ms. Mwale said.

MISA Chairperson also said journalists should confirm that they know the sources for every factual assertion in the story.

Central Province Minister Sydney Mushanga says there is a need for a complete overhaul of the machinery being used at the Mulungushi Dam to supply water to Kabwe and other surrounding areas.

Mr Mushanga said this is because the machinery being used at the Mulungushi water plant is very old and requires urgent attention.

He was speaking in Kabwe today when Water Development, Sanitation and Environmental Protection Minister Raphael Nakachinda paid a courtesy call on him at his office.

The Minister for Central Province feared that in case of a breakdown at the water plant, there would be no water supply in Kabwe despite the fact that there are important institutions depending on the same water supply such as the Kabwe Central hospital and the two public universities among others.

He has since called on Mr Nakachinda to consider prioritising works on the Mulungushi dam.

‘’The machinery being used at the Mulungushi Water plant is very old and needs serious attention. If it breaks down there would be no water supply in the whole of Kabwe despite the fact that Kabwe Central hospital and two universities are domiciled here,’’ he said.

Mr Mushanga further bemoaned the fact that despite Makululu being the second largest settlement in Africa, it is still faced with the greatest challenge of proper sanitation and clean water.

He appealed to the Water Development Minister to consider providing communal boreholes to Makululu and Katondo.

And Mr Nakachinda said the issue of lack of clean water in Makululu was already being addressed as his Ministry was already lobbying for funds from the Ministry of Finance.

He said the major problem in Makululu and Katondo had been the lack of funding but assured the Provincial Minister that the water issues in Makululu and Katondo would soon be attended to.

Mr Nakachinda said his Ministry had moved a step further to partner with cooperating partners for efficient service delivery adding that Vision 2030 ably articulated that 100 percent of the Zambian people should have access to clean and safe water.

‘’Therefore we put it that 90 percent of the Zambian people should by 2030 should have access to clean and safe water as close to our people as possible,’’ he said.

The duration of the Medicine and Nursing Sciences Degree programs at the University of Zambia (UNZA) have been reduced.

The Medicine Degree has been reduced from seven to six years while that of Nursing Sciences has been reduced to four years.

The Schools of Medicine and Natural Sciences revised their curricula with the assistance of the Strengthening Health Professional Workforce Education Programs for Improved Quality Health Care in Zambia (SHEPIZ).

UNZA Spokesperson Brenda Bukowa said that this has been done to ensure the competitiveness of Zambian students on the international market and bring value to the students’ academic journey.

Speaking to ZNBC News in a telephone interview yesterday, Dr. Bukowa says the revised curricula will ensure that students are not limited to the Ministry of Health alone by ensuring that they are more rigorous and versatile in their practice as entrepreneurship and management courses have been added.

Meanwhile, UNZA Vice-Chancellor Professor Luke Mumba said that with the right support, the Schools of Medicine and Nursing Sciences have the capacity to train health care providers at the specialist level in response to the growing demand.

Prof. Mumba said that the University has a deliberate policy aimed at encouraging innovative strategies for improving the programs it offers, adding that the SHEPIZ project is one such strategy.

And SHEPIZ Project Manager who is also Dean – School of Nursing Sciences, Patricia Mukwato thanked the participants for responding to the invitation and their willingness to impact the health care training through their individual contribution by developing
modules.

In another development, the UNZA Senate has revised the phased re-opening for students in their first and second year of study.

Ndola Central Member of Parliament, Emmanuel Mulenga has noted that Zambians have all the skills needed to respond to the country’s infrastructure projects.

Mr Mulenga says through the newly embraced labour based approach, Zambians have demonstrated their capabilities to handle projects just like their foreign counterparts.

Mr Mulenga said this when he inspected construction works of a police station in Chipulukusu Township, pointing out that with strict supervision from experts, Zambians have the capacity to deliver quality works.

The Mapalo Police post is being upgraded to a police station status at a cost of over K400 thousand to respond to high crime levels being experienced in the area.

Mr said the labour based model can also help the country save a lot of resources which are currently being spent on foreign contractors who are engaged in projects.

Mr Mulenga stated that going forward, Ndola City Council should ensure all Constituency Development Funded projects are implemented through labour based projects which have proved to be effective.

“Looking at the works that have been done so far, I can safely say that there is no need to bring foreign contractors in Ndola Central because our fellow Zambians are able to do excellent works like they have done here,” Mr. Mulenga said.

And Site Engineer from Ndola City Council, Tandeo Silwimba said the works will be completed in 14 days’ time pending official handover to the Zambia Police Service.

Mr Silwimba said the project whose initial works started in August 2019 have been delayed due to technical challenges which he said have been sorted out.

Meanwhile, Chipulukusu ward Councillor, Kennedy Phiri said the upgrading of the police post to a station status will help to reduce crime levels in the areas because more police officers will be deployed to the station.

Some cultural beliefs and norms have been identified as some of the major contributing factors to the escalating figures of child marriages and teenage pregnancies in Masaiti district on the Copperbelt province.

Kafulafuta constituency Member of Parliament, Joseph Kabamba has revealed to ZANIS in Ndola in an interview that besides long distances to schools that discourage many parents to send their children, some cultural norms and practices have contributed to the scourge.

In September 2020, the area was reported as one of those that recorded a spike in early marriages and teenage pregnancies during the COVID 19 lockdown when schools closed for over a term.

Mr. Kabamba said some beliefs that “girls are not for school but marriage” are still having an adverse impact on many families and as such parents still think sending their girl child to school is a sheer waste of time.

The Kafulafuta law maker said his office working with other stakeholders, have, however, continued sensitising communities and parents in particular, on the dangers of marrying off their children.

ZANIS reports Mr. Kabamba has emphasised the need for behavioural change among parents if the scourge is to be defeated in his constituency.

“So the sensitisation has continued and this is something to do with cultural issues and behavioural change and at the end of it you need to appreciate that it’s something that cannot be done overnight but something we need to engage people on until change is attained,” he said.

The law maker said in as much as some people may argue that there is nothing wrong with marriage but it’s something that should be considered at an appropriate age.

Mr. Kabamba added that unless parents and guardians realise the complications that come with early marriages and teenage pregnancies they will not stop subjecting their girl child to early marriages, hence the need to enhance sensitisation campaigns.

And Senior Chief Chiwala said to completely stop the scourge the chiefdom is in a process of abolishing some of the cultural norms that propel many girls to practice unlawful sex.

Senior Chief Chiwala said cultural norms such as initiation ceremonies are still being practiced in some areas and that should be abolished immediately.

Senior Chief Chiwala said despite having a slight reduction in the cases, the chiefdom is working day and night to ensure that the situation is addressed.

He said working with various stakeholders among them women groups, some beliefs are slowly fading away through various sensitisation programmes.

“We have continued with our robust campaign to ensuring that our girls are sensitised on the dangers involved in early marriages and teenage pregnancies. And we are also distancing ourselves from some social norms which expose our girls to sexual matters,” Senior Chief Chiwala said.

Senior Chief Chiwala who is alzo the Chairperson for the Lamba -Lima Royal Council of Chiefs said a lot of illegal marriages are being dissolved and girls being taken back to school.