Dangote Cement Blocks Mwatishi Stream In Masaiti

Part of the Mwatishi stream drying up in Pinta Village By Paul Shalala in Masaiti The crops are dying and life has become unbearable in Senior Chief Chiwala’s Chiefdom in Masaiti District on the Copperbelt. For the past three weeks, thousands of residents in 12 villages have had no access to water. The affected villages are Pinta, Kantanga, Yusufu, Saidi Situbisha, Saidi Mujale, Kalulu and Kapindo. Other villages are Chisoboya, Chingwele, Kapala, Maliko and Matutu. Their only source of water, the Mwatishi stream, is dry and this is not because of natural causes but because of human activity. Not because it is not rain season, but because the stream has been disturbed by mining. Dangote Cement, the Zambian arm of Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote’s empire, has dug a limestone quarry inside the stream, completely blocking the floor of water. Water now flows from the stream’s source to the quarry and it stops there. After the quarry, the streams is dry up and there is no water reaching the confluence with the Kafubu river in Ndola. “Dangote has affected us. That quarry they have constructed on the stream  has affected us so much. As you can see, our crops are drying up due to lack of water,” said Pinta Musonda, a farmer in Pinta Village. Dangote runs a cement plant in Senior Chief Chiwala’s Chiefdom. The plant is strategically located in an area where limestone is readily available. However, authorities have raised the alarm. Vegetables drying up in villages along the Mwatishi stream After receiving complaints from villagers, newly appointed Masaiti District Commissioner Patrick Zulu has visited the area to see for himself what is happening. “The stream is completely blocked as you can see. In as much as we need investment in this district, we also need to balance with the needs of the local people. There is need for regulators to come and investigate this matter,” said Mr Zulu as he toured the quarry. Mr Zulu was shocked to find that Dangote had been pumping water from the other side of the stream with pipes and delivering it to the dry river bed to help keep the stream flowing. However, that effort backfired when the pumps developed faults and water could not reach all the villages. In an interview, Dangote Cement denied blocking the stream. “We have not blocked the stream, what happened is that our pumps failed to work and we could not pump more water to the other side of the stream,” said Taata Kalokoni, a Project Geologist at Dangote Cement in an interview. Asked why the company decided to build a quarry across the stream, Mr Kalokoni claimed all activities by the company are lawful. “We adhere to all regulations and all our activities have been approved. But for the quarry, we just need to normalize things with the authorities,” he added. However, civil society organizations are concerned. Their worry is that Dangote’s activities have potential to harm both humans and the environment. “The stream has been blocked completely, it no longer flows. Dangote and the government must now work together to restore this stream to its original state. Our biggest worry is that people in these villages who depend on their gardens may starve and this will lead to poverty,” said Archie Mulunda, a Board Member at FIAN Zambia. Meanwhile, the Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA) has sent a team of inspectors to the Mwatishi Stream to investigate the matter. This is where the Mwatishi stream used to flow ZEMA Spokesperson Irene Chipili has told this blogger that the team has in the past few days been on the ground, investigating the blocking of the Mwatishi stream by the cement giant. “The inspectors are investigating the impact of the action on the environment and if any illegality has been done. A full report will be availed to the public as soon as possible,” said Mrs Chipili. As to what punishment can be meted out if Dangote Cement is found wanting, Mrs Chipili said it was premature to talk about punishment before work is completed on the ground. And the Water Resources Management Authority (WARMA) has also sent its team of inspectors to the site. WARMA is a government agency which regulates the use of water resources in the country. At its cement plant in Masaiti, Dangote Cement employs hundreds of workers who produce thousands of bags of cement which briefly stabilized cement prices when the company entered the country a few years ago. The company also runs a fleet of trucks which ferry cement across the country.

How Chinese Phones Are Improving People’s Lives In Zambia

A mobile money transaction

By Paul Shalala 

Jane Malembeka is a 73 year old grandmother of Chief Malembeka’s area in the rural part of Zambia’s Copperbelt Province.

For over 50 years now, she has been practising peasant farming on a small holding which is not even on title.

She lives in an area were land is vested in the hands of the traditional leader and it can be taken away from her anytime the chief decides otherwise.

However, Mrs Malembeka is one of the many Zambians who are loyal to the traditional establishment and she has never had problems over her ownership of land she inherited from her father.

In Masaiti District, there are no banks or financial institutions were the old lady can borrow money to pay for her agricultural activities or buy food for the many orphans and grand children she keeps in her house.

She has no businesses which can earn her income on a weekly or monthly basis.

Her only hope for survival is her children who are all based in Zambia’s capital Lusaka.

An MTN Mobile Money stand

At the end of each month, she receives money through mobile money transfer.

Thanks to her cheap Chinese phone which she bought at K500 ($50) from a local shop, she now makes transactions on the phone.

Once each of her three children – a lady and two men, send her money, she walks three kilometres to a kantemba (grass thatched shop) where she presents the Short Message Services (SMSs) and withdraws her money.

“These mobile transactions have really saved some of us who live in rural areas. We have no banks or other companies which can lend us money. Look, am from withdrawing K2,000 ($200) which my children have sent me, all because of this small mobile phone. Things are better now,” said Mrs Malembeka, with smiles on her face.

Mrs Malembeka is just one of millions of Zambians in the rural areas who benefit from the benefits that digital technology has brought to the nation since mobile phones were introduced over a decade ago.

According to the Bank of Zambia, about three million Zambians use mobile money transactions using phones.

The central bank says the largest players in the sector are Airtel Money, MTN Money, Zoona and SwiftCash.

A Zoona stand

Zoona, which has the most widespread network of mobile money shops in all of Zambia’s 10 provinces, boasts of handling 200,000 transactions on a monthly basis.

“At present, Zoona’s MSE customers process in excess of 200,000 transactions valued at USD 15 million per month,” reads a statement on the company’s website.

For those who live in urban areas, the cheap Chinese phones are also of great help.

Using these locally sold phones, Zambians are now able to pay for their utility bills, make bank transactions and even buy mobile phone airtime.

“These days I no longer go to the bank to transfer money to mum at the village or pay for DSTV. All I do is go to my phone and make the transaction,” said Mulotwa Sichalwe, an engineer of Kitwe District.

To others, phones have brought them relief in their educational endeavours.

16 year old John Tonga is a Grade 12 pupil in rural Lufwanyama District.

With lack of well stocked libraries in the area, John relies on the internet for research.

“I use my phone to study especially history and sciences. I find a wide range of information on the internet for my assignments. When writing essays, I easily find resources online which broaden my understanding of history,” said John, while holding his C8 phone.

Swift Cash is run by ZamPost

Chinese phones have really penetrated the Zambian market due to their low cost of maintenance and cheap prices.

Despite their irritatingly loud ringing tones, these phones have increased the penetration of mobile phones in rural communities.

According to recent statistics by the Zambia Information and Communication Technology Authority, about 10 million Zambians have access to mobile phones.

This is out of the country’s estimated total population of 15 million.

The increase in phones has also come with the increase in news delivery and news consumption.

People who were previously isolated from the rest of the nation due to lack of phone, radio or TV signals are now up to date with the latest news.

Just at the click of a button, people in the rural part of the country are now able to watch live TV on their Huawei or Tecno phones.

These two Chinese phone brands offer TV services which have become popular especially among young phone owners.

A Shoprite advertisement

Apart from live streaming, phone owners can now download phone apps such WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube and be part of the global conversation.

They can also read about the latest global news and trends on their mobile phones and compete with their counterparts in the urban areas.

All in all, Chinese phones have made the rural part of Zambia interconnected with the rest of the nation and the world.

People who missed out of many things are now more knowledgeable thanks to digital technology.

This has made rural Zambia become an integral part of the rest of the country.

For example, farmers like Mrs Malembeka are now able to follow the price changes of products such as maize (corn), cotton and sunflower using an SMS system which the Zambia National Farmers Union uses to update their members countrywide.

In this way, the old lady cannot send her products to the market when the price has dropped and she will continue monitoring her mobile phone until when she receives an SMS showing that the price has risen and she can now make a bit of money.

Chinese phones have come to stay and as long as the income gap between the rich and the poor continues to widen in Zambia, these phones will continue helping the rural poor.

Zambia Launches MDGI To Reduce Maternal, Child Mortality

By Paul Shalala in Masaiti

Emmerine Kabanshi

Community Development Minister Emmerine Kabanshi has launched the K400 million Millennium Development Goals Initiative (MDGI) which is aimed at reducing the deaths of women and children in two provinces.

The four year initiative which is funded by the European Union and implemented by the Zambian government and UNICEF, will be implemented in eleven districts of Lusaka and Copperbelt Province.

At the launch of the project in Masaiti District on Wednesday last week, Ms Kabanshi said the reduced child and mortality rates as revealed by the Zambia Demographic Health Survey are still unacceptably high hence the launch of the MDGI.

She said the initiative will help improve health and nutrition among children and women.

As part of the project, UNICEF representative Laston  Chitembo handed over a wheelchair, labour ward utensils and other medical kits worth over K700,000 to Kashitu Health Center in Masaiti District.

During the four year project, the cooperating partners will donate land cruisers, motorcycle ambulances, surgical kits, wheelchairs, stretchers and operating theatre tables to various health facilities.

This equipment will help in increasing access to health by women and children and reduce deaths.

According to the preliminary report of the 2014 Zambia Demographic Health Survey, Zambia recorded a reduction in the maternal mortality rate from 591 to 398 deaths out of 100,000 live births from 2007 to 2013.

However, stakeholders are still worried that the figures are still high for a developing country which is losing a lot of mothers and children during delivery.

Long distances to health centers and lack of medical personnel and ambulances has added to the many challenges needed to reduce the maternal mortality rates in Zambia.