Zambia Closes Border With Tanzania Due To Coronavirus

By Paul Shalala

Dr. Chitalu Chilufya at the press briefing in Lusaka 

-Picture courtesy of Ministry of Health

Zambia has shut its border with Tanzania a day after it recorded 85 Corona Virus cases, most of whom were traced from the border town of Nakonde.

On Saturday, the town recorded 76 Corona Virus cases, which included 18 Tanzanian truck drivers and eight of their Zambian counterparts.

Others included 31 Immigration, customs and clearing agents, 13 sex workers and lodge workers, two health workers from Nakonde District Hospital and four people who came in touch with a Zambian couple which had travelled to Tanzania and tested positive two weeks ago.

During a press briefing, Health Minister Dr. Chitalu Chilufya said starting Monday, no vehicle will be allowed to enter or leave Nakonde to allow for massive screening and retraining of health and border personnel.

“We are temporarily closing the border at Nakonde and we will ensure that we screen everyone. We are also enforcing a Stay Ay Home order in the town so that we deal with the virus,” said Dr. Chilufya.

The Minister revealed that Corona Virus cases in Nakonde are likely to increase as more samples have been collected from the border town.

“We have picked up a number of samples from there and tomorrow we will be announcing the results. We are still doing a validation for those samples and I urge the public to be patient. However, stay away from Nakonde, don't go there,” he added.

Nakonde is a busy border town between Tanzania and Zambia.

On a daily basis, about 1,000 vehicles cross either side of the border, mostly trucks plying the Dar Es Salaam – Lubumbashi route which feeds the mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo with equipment and fuel from abroad.

Sex work is a thriving business in the town and with the threat of the Corona Virus, contact tracing has been heightened.

The busy border has made the hospitality industry grow which has seen hundreds of lodges being built.

Zambians who travel to Tanzania to order clothes or pick imported vehicles through the Dar Es Salaam port, spend their nights in Nakonde where sex work is a ‘normal’ way of life.

“Sex workers have been very helpful in tracing some of their clients. In one case, a sex worker gave us a contact of a Tanzanian truck driver who was her client. When we phoned the number, the person who picked the call said the owner of the phone had already been hospitalized for Covid 19,” said Dr. Chilufya.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Home Affairs is sending more Police officers to Nakonde to support the response by the Ministry of Health.

“Tomorrow we will be sending more Police reinforcements to the border to enforce the health regulations announced by the President. People have to be home, we will not allow any movements,” said Home Affairs Minister Stephen Kampyongo at a joint press briefing with his Home Affairs counterpart in Lusaka.

He added that the Police Command in Muchinga Province were Nakonde District belongs, is mobilizing officers to be sent to the border tomorrow.

Already, all trucks from Nakonde are escorted by armed Police and they are not allowed to stop anyhow along the Great North Road.

The shutting down of the Nakonde border is likely to impact those who run small businesses such as clearing and forwarding, bus services and those who sale the popular Nakonde rice.

The rice, which is mainly grown across the border in Tanzania but packaged in Nakonde, is popular across the country and it is sold by thousands of small scale traders who transport it to markets across the country through trucks and buses.

On a lighter note, Zambian men have taken to social media announcing that they are switching off their phones for fear of being identified by some of the sex workers in Nakonde in case they hand over their phone numbers to health authorities as their recent contacts.

This joke has gone viral on Facebook and Twitter with some prominent radio personalities joining in the satire.

Since the wearing of masks was made mandatory in Zambia last month, most Zambians have largely followed the order.

However, across the border in the adjacent town of Tunduma in Tanzania, masks are nowhere to be seen.

This is being seen as the reason why cases in Nakonde are high because health regulations are relaxed in Tanzania.

President John Magufuli has caused controversy with his handling of the Corona Virus in Tanzania.

Cumulatively, Zambia has now recorded 267 cases of the Corona Virus out of which 7 died, 117 have recovered while 143 are still being treated.

According to the Zambia National Institute of Public Health, cases have been recorded in four out of Zambia's 10 provinces.

SDA Church Donates K290,000 For Coronavirus Fight In Zambia

By Paul Shalala

Pastor Sinyangwe hands over the donation to Copperbelt

Minister Japhen Mwakalombe. -Pictures by Richard Bulaya

On a day when Zambia has recorded its second death due to the Corona Virus, the Seventh-Day Adventist Church (SDA) has donated K290,000 kwacha towards the fight against the pandemic.

The two governing entities of the SDA Church in the country; the South Zambia Union Conference (SZUC) and North Zambia Union Conference (NZUC) have made K160,000 and K100,000 cheque contributions respectively and a third contribution of K30,000 has come from the Midlands East Conference (MEC).


MEC is one of the conferences and fields which falls under NZUC.


In a live televised donation on the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) TV1, SZUC President Dr. Harrington Akombwa handed over a proof of payment amounting to K160,000 to Health Minister Dr. Chitalu Chilufya.


This was during the daily update on the Corona Virus situation by the Minister of Health at Ndeke House in Lusaka this morning.


While putting on a face mask to show the seriousness of the situation, Dr. Akombwa said the church was making the contribution in appreciation of the great work done so far by government to fight Covid 19.


“We make this contribution in appreciation of the work you as Minister and the efforts made by His Excellency the President Mr Edgar Chagwa Lungu towards the fight against the pandemic. In handing over these documents, the money has already hit your account,” said Dr. Akombwa.


Simultaneously, NZUC President Samuel Sinyangwe also handed over an assortment of items to Copperbelt Minister Japhen Mwakalombe in Ndola.

Some of the donated items on display at Cabinet Office

The items, all valued at K100,000, include 50 liters of sanitizers, 160 bottles of liquid soap, 24 bottles of Dettol, one electric kettle, one water dispenser, 30 reflector vests, fuel worth K23,385 and four boxes of barrier tape.

The donated items will be critical in helping frontline health personnel who are taking care of two Corona Virus patients who are being treated at an isolation center in Masaiti District.


And in handing over the donation, Pastor Sinyangwe said the SDA Church made the move after realizing that the community is being ravaged by the pandemic.


“We are with the government and the people of Zambia in fighting this Covid 19 pandemic, not with weapons but with fervent prayer and acts of kindness,” said Pastor Sinyangwe.


He added that the church will continue offering solidarity to government.


“Honourable Minister we want to assure His Excellency the Republican President, his Cabinet and your Provincial Administration that our God in Heaven will give us resounding victory over this pandemic and we will emerge stronger and more united as a country, said Pastor Sinyangwe who was equally putting on a face mask.”

The delegation from NZUC and Copperbelt Conference

 which made the donation in Ndola

Among those who witnessed the donation were Ndola Town Clerk Wisdom Bwalya, Ndola Teaching Hospital Senior Medical Superintendent Dr. Joseph Musowoya and other senior government officials.


From the church, senior figures included NZUC Health Ministries Director Dr. Mwate Mwambazi, Copperbelt Conference President Kerries Liambai, Executive Secretary Angel Chipulu, Youth Director Mubika Chibwabwa and some youth representatives.


Zambia has so far recorded 40 Corona Virus cases leading to two deaths.


38 other patients were hospitalized in Chilanga and Masaiti Districts.


According to the latest update by the Minister of Health, 25 people have so far recovered and have been discharged while 13 are still being treated.

Threat of Corona Virus Causes Congestion at Kasumbalesa Border

Trucks parked along the Kitwe-Chingola Dual Carriageway 

road this morning. -Picture by Ralph Mukuka

By Paul Shalala at Kasumbalesa Border

Thousands of trucks from the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) are stuck on the Zambian side of the Kasumbalesa border post in Chililabombwe District following the detection of two suspected cases of Corona Virus in the Congolese city of Lubumbashi.

On Sunday, authorities in the Congolese border town of Kasumbalesa closed their side of the border after word went round that the Corona Virus had reached Lubumbashi.
This caused panic on the Zambian side as hundreds of truckers from SADC parked their vehicles after failed attempts to cross the border.

This forced authorities on the Zambian side to engage their Congolese counterparts who agreed to address the truckers.

“The border is wide open as I speak. But the truth is that we had two cases of Corona Virus in Lubumbashi yesterday and the Governor of Upper Katanga has directed us to take measures to avoid the spread,” said Adrian Kapampa, the Mayor of the Congolese town of Kasumbalesa when he addressed hundreds of truck drivers on the Zambian side.

Despite this assurance, truckers refused to cross fearing the Corona virus.

Buy the end of Sunday; the queue of trucks from the Kasumbalesa border reached the town of Chililabombwe which is 15 kilometers away.

And by midday today, the queue has reached the mining town of Chingola which is 50 kilometers away.

The trucks are now pilling up on the Kitwe-Chingola Dual Carriageway and authorities fear that if truckers do not cross into the DRC, the queue may reach Zambia’s second largest city Kitwe which is 54 kilometers away.

Kasumbalesa is the busiest crossing point between Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Trucks from across SADC use the border to supply the DRC with mining equipment, food and fuel.

On the other hand, raw materials from the mineral rich Katanga region pass through the Kasumbalesa border on its way to ports like Durban in South Africa, Walvis Bay in Namibia and Dar Es Salaam in Tanzania.

Kasumbalesa, which handles about 1,200 trucks on a daily basis, is a major economic center for the region and any disturbance on the operations has far reaching consequences to the two countries.

“As a municipality, we are worried because these truckers are parked along the road where there are no sanitary facilities. This is a big threat to us and can spread communicable diseases. Secondly, most truck drivers come from countries where the Corona Virus has already been detected,” said Chingola Mayor Titus Tembo in an interview.

A visit to the Chingola-Kitwe Dual Carriageway, Chingola-Chililabombwe road and the Chililabombwe-Kasumbalesa road found drivers using the nearby bush as toilet.

“In this situation it is easy to catch the Corona Virus because as drivers, we come from various countries,” lamented Kelvin Milambo, a Zambian driver who works for a South African trucking company.

Other truck drivers are more worried about health.

Some truckers from foreign countries have been stuck 

on the queue for over two days.

“We are asking the Zambian government to supply us with a water bowser so that we can be washing our hands and relieving ourselves,” said another driver who did not want to be named.

The threat of Covid 19 is high in Zambia, a southern African country which has now confirmed 12 cases.

Earlier in the day, President Edgar Lungu addressed the nation and announced that 10 more cases had been detected and an undisclosed number of people have been placed under quarantine.

As a measure to contain the virus, all schools, bars, gyms and cinemas have been shut while churches only operate for an hour per week.

The Zambian government has resisted calls to lockdown the country insisting that the country’s landlocked geographical position can disadvantage it if a lockdown is enforced.

Opposition UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema has led calls for a lockdown.

President Lungu has shut down three international airports, only allowing the Kenneth Kaunda International Airport in Lusaka to handle international flights.
Zambia has four international airports in Lusaka, Ndola, Mfuwe and Livingstone.

Of the 12 cases of Corona Virus recorded, 11 involve Zambians who returned from abroad.

This could be the reason why some international airports have been shut.

The airport in Lusaka has more sophisticated surveillance equipment.

Zambia imports and exports a lot of products from China, Europe and the United States of America and it relies on its neighbours for passage of these vital products.
This could be the reason why the Cabinet has resisted locking down the country as South Africa has done.
But despite this disease posing a big challenge to society, Zambians have taken a casual approach to it.

On the streets, people can still be seen gathering in large numbers, shaking hands and hugging.

If a lockdown ever comes to Zambia, soldiers have to be deployed to enforce it because Zambians cannot keep themselves away from the streets.

But one positive aspect the Corona Virus has brought is a quest for cleanliness.

Markets and streets are being cleaned by traders without being forced by authorities.

And the threat of the virus has hit hard on the hospitality and tourism sector.

Several national and international conferences and meetings have been cancelled or postponed.

“So far, 15,000 visitors have cancelled their trips to Zambia since we recorded our first case of the Corona Virus. Some of them are even demanding refunds,” said Zambia’s Tourism Minister Ronald Chitotela last week.

Livingstone, a town which hosts the majestic Victoria Falls, has suffered heavily due to the Corona Virus.

The town, which is unofficially recognized as Zambia’s tourism capital, has seen a slump in tourist bookings and arrivals and with the closure of its international airport as announced today, the situation is likely to become even worse.

The state run Times of Zambia newspaper has reported today that 759 out of the 1,200 workers involved in the tourism industry in Livingstone have lost their jobs.

Livingstone is named after the 18^th Century English explorer David Livingstone who became the first white man to see the Victoria Falls which locals call “Mosi Ou Tunya” or the Smoke that thunders.
In the mining region of the Copperbelt, the effects of the Corona Virus have also been felt.

The Copperbelt, which borders the DRC, has several copper, cobalt and emerald mines.

“We have also been badly hit by the Corona Virus. Most of the equipment we supply to the mines come from China and the restrictions put in place to contain the virus thatside have seen our products delaying on arrival for between 15 to 20 days,” said Augustine Mubanga, President of the Association of Mine Suppliers and Contractors.

Mine Suppliers and Contractors are a major stakeholder in Zambia’s mining sector as they employ thousands of workers to execute their contracts in major mines run by renowned international firms like Glencore, Gemfields and Vedanta.

Countrywide, alcohol based sanitisers which are being encouraged by health authorities, have run out in most chain stores as Zambians rush to protect themselves from the virus.

This has led to locals using improvised methods of sanitizing their hands using local products.