NEPAD Calls For Multi-Sectoral Approach To Fight TB In Mines

Part of the workshop in Ndola -Picture courtesy of ECSA-HC

By Paul Shalala in Ndola

Mining is a major activity in the most of the countries in Africa.

The mining sector has been a major source of revenue for these countries for over a century.

However, mines come with their own challenges.

Tuberculosis (TB) is one disease which affects most miners.

This is why the World Bank has funded a five year project dubbed Southern Africa Tuberculosis and Health System Support Project in four countries.

The Bretton Woods institution has committed US$122 million United States dollars to the project which is being implemented in Zambia, Lesotho, Malawi and Mozambique.

The project was launched in the four countries in March this year.

The African Union’s New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Agency has called for a multi-sectoral approach to the fight against Tuberculosis in the mining sector.

NEPAD Senior Policy Specialist Chimwemwe Chamdimba says there is need for African countries to take a broader perspective on TB and fight it in the mining industry.

Speaking during a recent workshop in Ndola, Ms Chamdimba said African countries must look at TB as a challenge to productivity and it should be fought hard to help develop their respective countries.

"This community of practice now moves us from looking at TB in our silos to looking at it in the broader sense so that we look at it in the labour part of it, we look at it from the mining point of view, we look at it from the employer's angle and we look at it from the employer's angle. It is from that unique blend that we can tackle this challenge which has been with us for 100 years," said Ms Chimdimba during the opening of the workshop.

The Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) also took part in the workshop.

Its representative Dr. Alphonse Mulumba, who is a Senior Programme Officer for HIV and AIDS, said he hoped more SADC members would join hands to fight TB in the mines.

Currently, SADC has 15 member states but the World Bank only selected Zambia, Lesotho, Mozambique and Malawi for the  Southern Africa Tuberculosis and Health System Support Project.

"You know that HIV and TB are very much related. The mining sector is very much critical is fueling TB. This meeting is coming in good time and we expect most of the protocols the senior leaders take will bear fruits....... We hope more members states will join this program," said Dr Mulumba.

Among institutions that made presentations during the three day workshop was the East, Central and Southern Africa Health Community (ECSA-HC) which emphasised the need for the region to operationalise the community of practice.

"Once the community of practice is fully functional, it will not only be advisory to the countries but will also offer tangible advise to the countries in order to improve occupational health services," said Dr. Walter Odoch, ECSA-HC Health Systems and Public Health Manager.

Under the Southern Africa Tuberculosis and Health System Support Project, Zambia is supposed to host a center of excellence at the Occupational Health and Safety Institute in Kitwe.

During the workshop, the delegates toured the institute to appreciate its challenges.

Zambia Launches US$45 Million World Bank Funded TB Project

The banner for the TB project

By Paul Shalala

Mining activities in Zambia bring the much needed revenue for development.

Being the second largest copper producer in Africa, Zambia largely depends on taxes from the mines to cushion its coffers.

However, mining has its own effects on people's health.

Tuberculosis (TB) is one disease which is predominantly found in mining towns.

For example, the Copperbelt Province has the highest cases of TB among provinces in the country.

According to Ministry of Health records, out of every 100,000 Copperbelt residents, about 1,112 have TB.

This figure is higher than the national average for 2014 which stood at 39 TB cases per 100,000 residents in 2014, according to World Health Organisation (WHO)’s TB Country Profile for Zambia.

Health Minister Dr. Chitalu Chilufya

“TB is an emergency. It must be fought in an urgent manner. We need a multi-sectoral approach to defeat it,” said Health Minister Dr. Chitalu Chilufya in Kitwe yesterday when he launched the Southern Africa Tuberculosis and Health System Support Project.

The World Bank funded project is aimed at fighting TB in mining towns where thousands of residents are patients.

The World Bank has incorporated the Ministries of Health, Labour and Mines to implement the project, with the Ministry of Health being the lead.

In the next five years, the three ministries will work together to fight TB in the mining sector.

“The impact of TB on the economy is big. Loss of productivity, loss of man hours and the loss of family income,” added Dr. Chilufya.

Labour Minister Joyce Simukoko, believes that the project will help miners access health services.

Labour Minister Joyce Simukoko

“My office has been receiving cases of miners fearing to report their illnesses to their superiors for fear of being fired. I want to warn employers that we will not spare anyone who threatens workers. They deserve to have medical help,” said Mrs Simukoko.

Meanwhile, World Bank Country Manager Ina Ruthenberg disclosed that the Southern Africa Tuberculosis and Health System Support Project is being implemented in a total of four Southern African countries at the total cost of US$122 million.

She named the countries as Malawi, Mozambique, Lesotho and Zambia.

“The project will therefore support the implementation of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) Heads of State Declaration of 2012 on TB as an Emergency in the Mining Sector and will also support the region and Zambia’s progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals, which include TB and the World Health Organisation’s End TB Targets,” said Ms Ruthenberg in a speech read for her by World Bank Senior Health Specialist Ronald Mutasa at the launch of the project.

In the course of the implementation phase, a Center of Excellence will be built at the Kitwe-based Occupational Health and Safety Institute where equipment will also be installed.

World Bank Senior Health Specialist Ronald Mutasa

The equipment will help in early detection and surveillance of TB.

According to Occupational Health and Safety Institute Director Dr. Connard Mwansa, the Center of Excellence will make service delivery easy for the miners.

"We will be able to conduct various services we do not currently do. Most cases we refer miners to the hospital but when get the equipment, we will be able to provide alot of services at the center," said Dr. Mwansa in an interview.

Meanwhile, two unions in the mining sector have welcomed the Southern Africa Tuberculosis and Health System Support Project saying it will save many lives.

"We thank the World Bank for the US$45 million project. this will help the Occupational Health and Safety Institute finish the office they are constructing in Solwezi. As you know, the North Western Province has a number of mines and this project will help in our members there to be served in their area," said Mine Workers Union of Zambia General Secretary Joseph Chewe.

Another mine union had similar sentiments.

"This investment by the World Bank will go a long way. It will make the Occupational Health and Safety Institute a One Stop Shop for miners. This will save thousands of our members who are affected by Tuberculosis," said National Union of Miners and Allied Workers President James Chansa in an interview.

By law, any person who is employed as a miner is supposed to be examined by the Occupational Health and Safety Institute which is located at the Mine Safety Department in Kitwe.

Every year, miners are also expected to be tested at the institute at least once to check their fitness.

This workload, which sees thousands of miners besieging the institute's offices, makes the job a bit difficult for the workers and the idea of a mobile team to be testing the miners in various mines and towns is being piloted. 

According to the WHO’s 2015 Country TB profile for Zambia, the southern African country recorded five thousand deaths due to TB in that year.

The report also revealed that 41, 588 TB cases where reported in 2015.

Zambia has only had one prevalence survey of Tuberculosis.

The National Tuberculosis Prevalence Survey 2013 – 2014 revealed that TB occurs three times higher in urban areas than in the rural areas.

In terms of gender, the survey revealed that more males were burdened by the disease than females.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The story was originally aired on TV1 on 30 March 2017 and it can be watched here. A follow up story specifically on the Regional Center of Excellence was also aired on TV1 on 01 April 2017 and its YouTube link can be accessed here.

President Lungu Wins Zambia's Tightly Contested Election

By Paul Shalala

President Edgar Lungu has been re-elected to a full five year term after beating his closest rival Hakainde Hichilema of the UPND by 100,530 votes.

This year’s presidential election was held under the majoritarian system which needed a winning presidential candidate to get above fifty percent of the votes.
According to Zambia's elections body, the incumbent won by 50.03% thereby avoiding a run off.

This electoral system was part of several reforms made to the electoral process following the enactment of the amended constitution in January this year.

President Lungu, who was first elected last year to complete his predecessor Michael Sata’s five year term, managed to beat off a strong challenge by Mr Hichilema who he also beat last year by 27,000 votes.

In this year’s final tally announced by Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) Chairperson Esau Chulu this afternoon, the 60 year old head of state polled 1,860,877 while the 54 year old opposition leader got 1,760,347 votes.

Mr Lungu, who sold himself as a deliverer of development and a candidate who will promote unity and prosperity, took command of the vote from the early stages of the count and ended the the four day tallying process as the victor.

The Thursday poll was contested by nine candidates, seven of whom polled meagre votes which were even lower than the total number of rejected votes countrywide.

Thousands of Zambians in towns across the country have comes out on the streets to celebrate the victory.

Dressed in their green and white party regalia, the PF supporters walked to their respective towns' central business districts and danced to party songs.

Those riding in vehicles honked throughout as they played loud music through public address systems mounted on top of their vehicles.

In Lusaka, hundreds of supporters marched to State House where President Lungu addressed them.

The President-elect told them that he was surprised at what he termed as tribal voting in some parts of the country.

He added that ruling party members should forget about the differences they have with their opposition colleagues and work to unite the nation.

Meanwhile, former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Anan has congratulated Zambians on the conduct of the just ended elections.

“I congratulate the citizens of Zambia for their impressive voter turnout on 11 August and for the peaceful and orderly election day, made possible by the diligent work of the election officials, party agents and monitors. In this tense and competitive climate it is essential that the security forces respect the constitution and remain impartial and professional in the discharge of their duties," said Mr Anan in a statement.

President Lungu addressing his supporters at State House

And in a joint press briefing held on Friday to issue their interim statements, international election observers described Thursday’s general elections as free and fair despite some cases of political violence recorded during the campaigns.

Some of the international observers who monitored the polls where SADC, African Union, the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa, the Commonwealth, the Carter Center and the European Union.

Yesterday, the opposition UPND briefly withdrew from the National Election Results Center in Lusaka and stopped verifying the election results citing lack of cooperation from the ECZ.

UPND lawyer and Monze Central MP-elect Jack Mwiimbu told the media that the party had presented several complaints to the elections body but none of them had been acted on.

But the party later rescinded its decision and attended the verification of the remaining results until today.

And in an interview with Muvi Television, Mr Hichilema has disclosed that the opposition party will challenge the election results in the recently operationalised Constitution Court.

PRESIDENT LUNGU'S PROFILE

Below is a profile of President Lungu written by Kasuba Mulenga and published by the Zambia Daily Mail on 29 January 2015:

His humble beginnings from House No. 4001 in Kitwe’s Chimwemwe township are perhaps what have shaped his belief that humility with firmness and decisiveness can take anyone anywhere. 

A stint as a trained military officer at what was then called Miltez in Kabwe has conceivably further molded his unpretentiousness up to the time of entering the political arena.

And it is possibly the rare mix of law and military discipline that nippily set the man in Edgar Chagwa Lungu on a political path that has now seen him elected Zambia’s sixth President in a poll contested by 10 other politicians.

According to ‘Meet Edgar C. Lungu’, a publication by Inzy Media, those who knew him in his university days as a tall easy going bloke say he was always out for action and innovation, including thinking outside the box.

This probably explains why the lawyer in Mr Lungu, while at Miltez, underwent grueling physical and mental training with such personalities as Zambia’s Deputy Ambassador to the United States Joe Chilaizya and other distinguished military officers who are now generals in the Zambia Army.

WHO IS EDGAR CHAGWA LUNGU?

An officer, lawyer, gentleman and politician who was born on November 11, 1956 at Ndola Central Hospital on the Copperbelt, he is married to Esther with whom he has six children.

President Lungu at his inauguration in January 2015

Mr Lungu did his high school at Mukuba Secondary School before enrolling at the University of Zambia where he studied law and graduated as one of the best law students on October 17, 1981.

He went to the Zambia Institute of Advanced Legal Education (ZIALE) and in 1983 bagged his legal practicing certificate at the first crack.

It is worthwhile to state that Mr Lungu only completed his ZIALE course in 1983 because he had some work stints as a lawyer at the Ministry of Justice, Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines (ZCCM) and Barclays Bank Zambia Limited, among others, before he eventually obtained a law practicing certificate.

Many lawyers have to sit for a law practice certificate examination a dozen times before they get the certificate because it is not a walk-over assessment.

Mr Lungu is an accomplished lawyer who worked for Andre Masiye and Company in Lusaka before he felt that the court room was not big enough to change people’s lives.

He briefly joined the United Party for National Development  and later bid farewell and went to the then little known PF. In 2001, he stood as Chawama member of Parliament but lost. 

He remained in the PF Central Committee and in 2011, contested the Chawama seat and won, this time around.

It is Mr Lungu whom late President Michael Sata in some recorded ‘Let the People Talk’ dialogues on Radio Phoenix was often quoted as saying, “thank you to one of my lawyers, Edgar Lungu, and all well-wishers…”

And maybe there is a natural dynamic that often links lawyers to politics that gelled Mr Lungu to the current career path just as studies in other parts of the world show regarding the relationship between lawyers and politicians.

Studies show that in many democracies like Zambia, it is often lawyers who inundate the political platform. 

This is largely due to the fact that the law deals with the same sort of interrogations and predicaments as politics constantly does.

Lawyers like Mr Lungu often have to deal with what makes a ‘just society’; the balance between liberty and security.

Another study linking lawyers like President Lungu to power says legal practitioners make natural leaders because of their “obsession process and a tendency to see things hugely in none partisan terms- ‘us or them’ and ‘guilty or not guilty’- but nonetheless always in the spirit of loyalty to a cause that is rare in other professions.

It is perhaps the lawyer in Mr Lungu that saw him stop a sizzling soccer political ordeal when the Football Association of Zambia chided the TP Mazembe trio of Rainford Kalaba, Nathan Sinkala and Stopila Sunzu last year an immigration row that seemingly went out of hand.

The players’ passports had apparently been withheld by the Immigration Department because they had left the country without immigration clearance.

But as Minister of Home Affairs, Mr Lungu ordered the release of the players’ travel documents.

“Just a couple of months ago, these boys united the country and put Zambia on the world map as a great footballing nation. Yet today, someone wants to treat them like criminals…I don’t think it’s right. Give them back their passports, these boys are heroes,” Mr Lungu directed.

As a man with a heart for the helpless, Mr Lungu assisted 30 families of the April 1993 Gabon air disaster victims to recover K16 million (then K16 billion) as compensation from government for the loss of their loved ones.

President Lungu inspecting a guard of honour

The case dragged in court for about 11 years until Mr Lungu and fellow lawyer Sakwiba Sikota used their own resources to represent the bereaved families so that they could be compensated.

One-time profiler of President Lungu, Mr Anthony Mukwita, the former Zambia Daily Mail managing director, described the Head of State as “a man of deep rooted intellect, justice and above all sense of loyalty to friends and family.”

He said Zambians backed the right candidate in the January 20 presidential election.

THE RISE OF MR LUNGU

It is common knowledge that Mr Lungu started off at the back of the line in September 2011 after President Sata made history by unseating a serving government.

Within a year under what some analysts have called the fastest rise in office, Mr Sata appointed Mr Lungu as minister of Home Affairs, at a seemingly crucial time when the PF was experiencing intra-party spats.

In less than a year, President Sata again made Mr Lungu minister of Defence, in charge of the armed forces, protecting the territorial sovereignty of the country.

Despite these tasks, Mr Lungu continued his daily routine of going home from the office and later retreating to his constituency, Chawama, where he did everything ranging from settling marital disputes to personal differences among constituents when he was not spearheading construction of road projects, health posts or police post.

One day, a few days before Christmas, a journalist called Mr Lungu and asked him to describe the year 2013 politically.

“A day in a politician’s life is too long…I cannot completely sum up 2013 today before the year ends because we don’t just know, as politicians, what happens the next day.”

When making this statement, Mr Lungu had no slightest idea that he would be minister of defence the following day.

“It is a remarkable honour for me. I feel humbled by the magnitude of the responsibility bestowed upon me to serve the people of Zambia…I am equal to the task,” he said in accepting President Sata’s appointment.

In what seemed the quest to test his leadership potentials, President Sata asked Mr Lungu to stand in for him while he would be away in China to meet that country’s new leader Xi Jinping, a feat that was made repeatedly in a clear show of confidence in Mr Lungu.

Later, Mr Lungu was given additional responsibilities when he became minister of Justice and PF secretary general on top of his defence ministerial position.

Perhaps, it was this weighty load of tasks piled on him which made the general PF membership, and particularly Members of the Central Committee, to believe he could be heir to President Sata when news of the demise of Mr Sata in a London hospital reached government on October 28, 2014.

As is normally the case in political circles, just like in homes, intra PF tiffs took centre stage in the run-up-to the election of the ruling party leader, and eventually candidate in the January 20 presidential poll.

But at the end of the day, the die was cast, and Mr Lungu contested the race for presidency of the country in which he emerged victor.

Late President Sata greets his would-be successor

“Fifty-eight years ago, I was born Edgar Chagwa Lungu at Ndola Central Hospital and grew up in Kitwe’s Chimwemwe township.

“As I stand before you today, as the sixth President of the Great Republic of Zambia, I am overwhelmed with gratitude, and I feel greatly humbled that you have decided to make me your servant – you are my masters, I am your servant,” Mr Lungu said in his inaugural speech amid deafening ovations by the people at the momentous ceremony held at National Heroes Stadium in Lusaka last Sunday.

In an apparent show of commitment to delivering service to the people, Mr Lungu has already started working, and has so far appointed some members of his Cabinet and State House staff.

Perhaps what is most intriguing about the happenings since he assumed office is the selection of former minister of Gender and Child Development Inonge Wina as the first ever Zambia’s female Vice-President.

This action has earned President Lungu continued approbations from the breadth and length of the country. 

Ex-Tanzania President Kikwete To Lead Commonwealth Observers

Former Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete

By Paul Shalala

Former Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete has been appointed by the Commonwealth to lead a 17-man team of election observers to Zambia for the country’s August 11 general elections and referendum.

In a press statement, Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland hopes that Zambia will conduct an inclusive, peaceful and credible poll to demonstrate the country’s culture of democracy.

She has disclosed that an advance group of Commonwealth observers was deployed in the country on 22 July while the rest of the team is expected to arrive on 4 August. 

“In solidarity with the people of Zambia, the Commonwealth will be present to observe these polls and will continue to work with relevant Zambian institutions towards further strengthening the country’s democracy,” said Ms Scotland.

She added that holding peaceful and successful elections is a high responsibility for the people and institutions of all Commonwealth member states.

“All Zambians including the election management body, political parties and their leaders, the citizenry, civil society, security agencies, the media and voters have a duty and responsibility to ensure a peaceful process and a credible outcome.”

According to the statement, the Commonwealth Observer Group will consider the pre-election environment and election preparations.

On August 11, the team will observe the voting, vote-counting and the results procedure.

The Commonwealth joins other international observers like the African Union, SADC and the European Union who have already deployed their observers.

Zambia has seven million registered voters who will be electing a President, Members of Parliament, Mayors, Council Chairmen and Councillors.

Voters will also be casting ballots in a referendum to amend the Bill of Rights.

European Union Deploys Over 100 Election Observers In Zambia

Some of the EU observers -Pictures by EU EOM Zambia

By Paul Shalala

The European Union (EU) has deployed 100 electoral observers to Zambia’s 10 provinces to monitor the August 11 general elections.

The EU Election Observation Mission is led by former Italian Minister of Integration Cecile Kyenge, who is also a Member of the European Parliament.

According to a Factsheet posted on the mission’s website, the team consists of both short term and long term observers.

“The Core Team (CT) is a group of 8 election experts from different EU member states. They arrived in Lusaka on 29 June to set up and coordinate the EU EOM. They analyse every aspect of the electoral process, including political, electoral and legal issues. The CT also monitors the Zambian media, and it is supported by logistical and security experts,” reads part of the statement on the website.

Since its arrival last month, the team has already mobilised and been deployed.

“The Long-Term Observers (LTOs) are the eyes and ears of the EU EOM. 24 LTOs from 23 EU member states and Norway arrived in Zambia on 11 July to be deployed to all ten provinces a few days later. In teams of two, they observe the whole electoral process in their areas of responsibility, and report back to the CT in Lusaka. The Short-Term Observers (STOs) reinforce the mission shortly before Election Day. 56 STOs from 28 EU member states and Norway arrive to observe voting, counting and tabulation in polling stations in all provinces of Zambia.”

The EU observers at a press briefing in Lusaka recently

Unlike most international observation missions which monitored Zambia’s recent elections with teams only based in Lusaka, the EU team seem to have taken a different approach to monitor the polls across the ten provinces.

As part of its preparations for the elections, the EU Observation team visited the Copperbelt over the weekend to meet various stakeholders.

Ms Kyenge led the team and she had meetings with leaders from the civil society and political parties.

As per tradition, the EU team will publish its findings in a Preliminary Statement shortly after the polls and it will release its final report in October.

The EU joins SADC and the African Union who have already sent their observers to Zambia.

The country holds general elections on 11 August to elect a President, Members of Parliament, Mayors, Council Chairmen and Councillors.

Zambia has seven million registered voters spread across its 156 constituencies.  

Nine candidates are contesting the presidency, including incumbent Edgar Lungu who was elected in January 2015 following the death of his predecessor Michael Sata in October 2014.

President Lungu Heads To Zimbabwe For Courtesy Call On Mugabe

By Paul Shalala in Johannesburg, South Africa

President Lungu and his Deputy Inonge Wina

President Edgar Lungu is this morning expected to leave for Zimbabwe to pay a courtesy call on that country's President Robert Mugabe.

According to a statement issued by President Lungu's Special Assistant for Press and Public Relations Amos Chanda, the Zambian leader is on a one day visit to meet Mr Mugabe who doubles as African Union and SADC Chairperson.

"President Lungu has delegated his authority to Her Honour Mrs. Inonge Wina, Vice-President of the Republic of Zambia to discharge functions of the office of President from 6^th February 2015 till his return from Zimbabwe. The delegation of power is pursuant to Article 39 of the Constitution of Zambia," read the emailed statement.

President Lungu was until this morning on a working holiday in the tourist resort of Mfuwe and he is expected to continue with the holiday upon return from Zimbabwe.

Meanwhile, the head of state has made the following appointments in the foreign service:

Mr. Humphrey Chibanda: Ambassador-Designate to France (Chief of State Protocol, Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

Mr. Emmanuel Mwamba: Ambassador-Designate to Malaysia (former Information Permanent Secretary) 

Dr. Solomon Jere: High Commissioner-Designate to Nigeria (former Deputy Inspector-General of Police)

Mrs. Brenda Muntemba-Sichilemba: High Commissioner-Designate to Kenya (former Commissioner of Police)

"The President has emphasised that he was in a hurry to reposition Zambia in international affairs and he therefore expects robust performance from all Zambian envoys serving abroad."

“I expect very high performance from all those serving in the Foreign Service and will not tolerate misconduct and laziness from anyone. We are in hurry to deliver,” read the statement in part.

President Lungu Delivers Maiden Speech At African Union Summit

President Lungu during his inauguration on Sunday

Zambia's President Edgar Lungu today delivered his maiden speech at the African Union Summit in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.

Below is the verbatim of his address:

 Your Excellency, Chairperson

In the interest of time, May I simply say “All Protocols Observed”

I wish, from the outset, Chairperson, to express through you, the deepest gratitude of the Zambian people for the overwhelming support that we received during the trying period following the death of our late dear President, His Excellency Mr. Michael Chilufya Sata.

Mr Chairperson,

You, our fraternal African Brothers and Sisters further supported us during the transition period as the democratic credentials and governance institutions were put to test. I am pleased to inform this august House that the just ended presidential by-election in my country, in what was a hotly contested race, has once again demonstrated the collective resolve of the Zambian people to ensure that Democracy and Good Governance are firmly entrenched in our governance system.

In this regard, I would like to take this opportunity, Mr. Chairperson, to thank SADC, COMESA and indeed the African Union for sending Election Monitoring and Observation Missions to Zambia. The elections were declared as transparent, peaceful, free, fair and credible. Zambia continues, therefore, to be privileged to have demonstrated that it is possible to have peaceful changes of Government, even for that matter, from one political party to another.

Mr Chairperson,

Allow me, at this juncture, to reaffirm Zambia’s commitment to the ideals of the African Union and also my Government’s readiness to continue to be fully engaged in the activities of our continental body. I wish to further state that Zambia will seek to enhance her presence at the continental level and beyond, by making her voice heard and actively participating in the programmes of the Union.

On the subject of Agenda 2063, Mr Chairperson, my Government firmly believes that this is an important blueprint for the future of our continent and should be fully supported, as a vehicle for Africa’s development. We need to ensure that the spirit and resolve contained in this carefully crafted document is fully incorporated into the Post 2015 Development Agenda process and other global developmental efforts.

It is in the same vein that as a continent, Africa should prioritise her strategic economic partnerships in order to ensure that they speak to the African Agenda and that our interests are safeguarded.

Mr Chairperson,

My Government also intends to be more actively engaged in peace-building and conflict-resolution initiatives on the continent, and particularly within SADC and the Great Lakes region.

Furthermore, the Ebola virus has clearly demonstrated the need for our close collaboration in addressing such emerging threats to our social and economic security. While the pandemic may now be showing signs of decline, the continent should continue to remain alert and my Government will render support to the various commendable efforts already being made.

I also wish to express Zambia’s concern with the increasing occurrences of ruthless attacks and violent tendencies of terrorist groups as well as the militarisation of extreme faith-based organisations, which is manifesting itself on the continent of Africa. This matter requires our urgent and concerted efforts.

Mr Chairperson,

Regarding the reform of the United Nations, I wish to reassure this Assembly that Zambia will, through her membership of the Committee of Ten, continue to play her part in ensuring that the process is accelerated. To this effect, I wish to inform this august house that Zambia will be hosting the next meeting of the C10.

Mr Chairperson,

In ending my remarks, it would be remiss of me if I did not mention that my government wholly welcomes our theme for 2015. As measure of our long-standing commitment to the importance of women to development and their role in leadership, I wish to confirm to this august House that, in accordance with the Beijing Platform, immediately following my assumption of office, I appointed a female Vice-President, Her Honour Mrs. Inonge Mutukwa Wina, M.P., the first in the history of my country!

Lastly I wish to reassure you, my Colleagues that Zambia can be counted on to support the activities and programmes of our continental body in fulfilment of Agenda 2063.

May God Truly Bless Africa.

Shukran!   

Merci Beaucoup!                  

Muito Obrigado!          

I Thank You!     

International Observers Describe Zambia's Presidential Poll Credible

By Paul Shalala

Kgalema Motlanthe

International election observers that have monitored Zambia's presidential election on Tuesday have described the poll as credible.

The 23-member African Union Election Observation Mission says the pre and post election period has been largely peaceful and meeting international election standards.

Former South African president Kgalema Motlanthe, who is leading the mission, says the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) presided over a well organised poll.

"The African union Election Observer Mission commends election officials for their attention to detail during the counting process," said Mr Motlanthe.

The mission further recommends that Zambia allows independent presidential candidates, allow majoritarian electoral system and extending the period for swearing in the new president to allow electoral disputes to be sorted out.

Mr Motlanthe also called on the ECZ to implement the continuous voter education.

Meanwhile, the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA) says the polls were largely peaceful despite reports of violence among political parties.

Former Mauritius President Cassam Uteem, who is head of the EISA Elections Observer Mission to Zambia, says the people of Zambia freely voted and exercised their democratic right on polling day.

He however recommended that Zambia legislates the introduction of the joint election of the President and Vice-President as running mates, introduce the election of the President by absolute majority and expand the period between the announcement of results and the presidential inauguration.

Mr Uteem further recommended that there be separation between the functions of the Returning Officer of the presidential election from those of the Chief Justice to avoid potential conflicts of interest.

Sofonea Shale

And the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Non-Governmental Organisations Observer Mission has also declared the 20th January presidential election as free and fair.

Head of the SADC NGO Observers Sofonea Shale says the election was credible.

“We have experienced voter apathy due to the movement of people from one place to another.  We do not expect the number of people who have voted to be more than 40 percent,” Mr Shale said.