Teachers’ unions have backed Minister of Education, Douglas Siyakalima’s warning that teachers abandoning their rural schools risk losing their jobs.

The District Teachers’ Union (DTUZ) General Secretary, David Siamutwa said the warning is timely.

Mr Siamutwa explained that learners in rural areas are not different from those in urban areas as they also need quality education.

“The needs of pupils in rural areas are just the same as the needs of those in urban areas therefore, there is need to render the teaching services to children in the rural areas because leaving those areas will mean there will be no education in those parts of the country,” said Mr Siakalima.

Mr Siamutwa emphasised on the need for teachers to be professional by honoring their deployment.

Meanwhile, Mr Siamutwa has implored the government to consider improving living conditions for the teachers serving in remote areas.

He highlighted that teachers will not shan their posts if housing conditions are improved in rural areas.

And Mr Siamutwa has also called on the communities in which the teachers are deployed to serve to embrace them.

Mr Siamutwa has however expressed concern over reports of witchcraft, which he said scare teachers to serve in rural areas.

“We urge the members of the community to accept the teachers to make their work easy.”

In a related development, Basic Education Teachers Union (BETUZ) Director Public and International Relations, Obby Chisala says the union is saddened by reports of teachers abandoning their posts in rural areas as reported by the Ministry of Education.

Mr Chisala counselled teachers to offer their services professionally regardless of the areas they are posted to work from.

“Our role as teachers is to deliver quality education to every Zambian regardless of where they are,” said Mr Chisala.

He appealed to government to continue improving working conditions for teachers working in rural areas.

Mr Chisala however said the union in line with government reforms is committed to building housing units for rural based teachers.

Yesterday, Minister of Education Douglas Syakalima warned that teachers who abandon their assigned rural postings risk losing their jobs and that government has intensified efforts to curb absenteeism in underserved areas and firing is one of them.

The Zambia Meteorological Department (ZMD) has announced that it is closely monitoring the progression of Tropical Cyclone Gezani that made landfall over the east coast of Madagascar yesterday, Tuesday, 10^th of February 2026.

Giving an update on Cyclone Gezani, ZMD disclosed that the cyclone was Intense at the time it made landfall over Madagascar with maximum average wind speeds of 148 km/h and a central minimum sea-level pressure estimated around 975hpa.

The media reports that the Department describes the current status of the cyclone as severe, with sustained winds of 130Km/h and a pressure level 985 Hpa.

The storm is projected to be in the Mozambique Channel by tomorrow, Thursday, 12th February 2026.

ZMD revealed that its interaction with the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) is expected to further enhance rainfall activities across Zambia.

The impact of the interaction with the ITCZ includes widespread rainfall with periodical Heavy falls.

It is anticipated that significant rainfall amounts may lead to flooding, especially in low-lying areas and along river banks.

Other effects are enhanced soil moisture, as a result of waterlogging and flooding, increased thunderstorms and lightning activities may occur, posing risks of lightning strikes.

“Strong Winds: Occurrence of gusty winds could cause damage to infrastructure and vegetation,” stated ZMD.

Meanwhile, ZMD has warned the public to avoid low-lying areas due to expected flooding and also to desist from crossing flooded points, roads and bridges.

The Department has further cautioned the public to avoid outdoor activities during thunderstorms and seek shelter indoors.

This is contained in a media update on Cyclone Gezani issued to ZANIS by the Zambia Meteorological Department in Lusaka.

Minister of Information and Media, Cornelius Mweetwa says the current administration has recorded a success story in the fight against corruption in Zambia.

Mr Mweetwa says this is evident by the number of the large-scale cases of corruption being taken before the courts of law.

The Minister notes that for the past four years, the country has witnessed a number of properties whose owners have failed to account for their sources of funding being forfeited to the state, including millions of dollars.

Mr Mweetwa said this in Lusaka during a briefing on the recently released 2025 Corruption Perception Index by Transparency International Zambia (TIZ) which relates to public sector corruption in Zambia.

“We are talking about Zambia’s scoring in the Corruption Perception Index 2025 where TIZ has said the country is rated from 39 to 37 out 100, shy of the global average which is 42.

This comes against the backdrop that in the last two years, Zambia has been recording an upward gain of positive steps in the fight against corruption,” he said.

The Minister indicated that the fight against corruption under President Hakainde Hichilema’s administration has gone according to plan and in line with the presidential pronunciations that the government was going to robustly fight the past, present and future corruption.

The Minister therefore, urged all citizens to detest corruption because it is a community disease that steals public resources away from the intended beneficiaries, into the private advantage of a few privileged who occupy public office.

He urged everyone to join in the fight stating that it should not be left to the government alone.

“President Hakainde Hichilema is calling upon the citizens to know that corruption should be fought by all,” Mr Mweetwa added.

He added that the law has not segregated anyone as it has visited even high-profile status citizens who have either been convicted or being acquitted, as acquittal is part of the crusade.

Mr Mweetwa added that perception index might have also been informed in part by how the ZAMSA forensic audit was instituted and governments’ pronouncements on the abuse of the Constituency Development Funds.

 Chongwe District has recorded 24,902 cases of non – bloody diarrhea from January 2025 to date, with the highest numbers among children under five years old.

The media reports that District Health Surveillance Officer, Kelvin Mwakapushi revealed the figures during a presentation at the District Epidemic Preparedness and Management 2025 fourth quarter meeting.

Mr Mwakapushi noted that people aged 15 to 21 also recorded high cases during the period.

He called for sensitisation among caregivers, especially mothers who spend time with children under five, on how to prevent the disease.

Meanwhile, Chongwe District Director of Health Services, Morton Zuze said his office has intensified efforts to reduce the spread of the disease.

“We are currently offering prevention services to reduce cases of non- bloody diarrhea in areas where it is high such as distribution of granular and liquid chlorine. The office has also strengthened disease surveillance and testing of water samples to detect and treat the disease early,” Dr Zuze.

He urged stakeholders to assist with resources like fuel to support staff in prevention and management activities.

Ndola Mayor, Jones Kalyati has commended Bootstrap Christian University for issuing out 1000 scholarships to Ndola based youths through the Mayor’s office.

Speaking when he officiated at the launch of the Scholarship program, Councilor Kalyati said offering scholarships to the less privileged in society will lessen the burden of people paying for tuition fees.

He said a lot of people in the peri- urban areas are finding it difficult to sponsor their children due to the high cost of tuition fees.

He revealed that the program will be ongoing for the next five years.

The Mayor has since encouraged members of the public to apply for the scholarship and acquire the needed knowledge from the school.

Bootstrap President, Justine Likuka said the scholarships are non- political saying that they are meant for the vulnerable people of Ndola district.

Dr Likuka explained that the scholarships will be divided in two, of which 1000 will go to the office of the Mayor and the other 1000 will be for the whole Province.

He said each constituency will receive about 250 scholarships through the Mayor’s office.

Dr Likuka said Ndola district needs more educated people for it to continue thriving.

Copperbelt Province Education Officer, Kasune Zulu has called on the school to impart quality education to the learners so that they are able to make a difference in society.

Mr Zulu said through the partnership with Bootstrap the two will work together to ensure that the institution is anchored on a strong foundation.

President Hakainde Hichilema is expected to participate in the 39th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, which will be held from February 14 to 15 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The Assembly, which is the African Union’s highest decision-making body, will this year convene under the theme “Assuring Sustainable Water Availability and Safe Sanitation Systems to Achieve the Goals of Agenda 2063.”

The theme aims to reaffirm the African Union’s commitment to strengthening political leadership, building partnerships, mobilising resources and promoting Africa’s water and sanitation agenda on the global stage. Deliberations are expected to focus on driving transformative action, improving governance and accelerating progress towards continental and international water and sanitation targets.

Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Mulambo Haimbe announced the President’s participation in a statement issued today.

The two-day 48^th Ordinary Session of the Executive Council of the African Union (AU) has officially opened today in Addis Ababa, with a call on Foreign Ministers from across the continent to engage into devoted deliberations that will reflect the aspirations of the African continent.

The deliberations at the high-level ministerial meeting will prepare the platform for the 39^th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, slated for February 14 and 15, 2026 at the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa.

Chairperson of the Executive Council, Tete Antonia, said during the official opening that the meeting plays a vital role in shaping the strategic direction of the AU by coordinating and reviewing key policy areas of common interest to member states.

Zambia is being represented in the council meeting by Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Mulambo Haimbe, who is accompanied by his Permanent Secretary for International Relations and Cooperation, Etambuyu Gundersen and Zambia’s Ambassador to Ethiopia and Permanent Representative to the AU as well as United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Albert Muchanga.

Mr Haimbe said the theme for this year’s ordinary session of the African Union summit, ‘Assuring sustainable water availability and safe sanitation to achieve the goals of Agenda 2063’, is of critical importance to Zambia.

He said in an interview that the water deficit leads to energy and food insecurity and compromises general development of a given region.

“As you all know, the absence of energy, which is for us as a country, driven through the hydro facilities that we have, becomes a security challenge. This is one of the themes which this particular African Union summit will be looking at,” he said.

Mr Haimbe added that the theme speaks directly to the wellbeing of the Zambian people hence the conversations in the ongoing Executive Council meeting and subsequently in the AU summit this weekend, will be very important.

He further said the discussions align well with Zambia’s efforts especially that the country has been one of the champions towards driving matters of water and sanitation on the African continent.

“As you know we did host the PanAfcon five, which was an important part of the deliberations leading to where we are today and we expect that here at the summit, we will adopt the continent-wide water and sanitation policy,” Mr Haimbe said.

In line with its mandate, the Council is tasked with harmonizing policy frameworks, reviewing reports from AU organs and specialised committees, and consolidating recommendations that will guide deliberations at the highest political level.

The media reports that the outcomes of the Executive Council session will directly inform the decisions and declarations to be adopted by Heads of State and Government during their meeting this weekend.

The Foreign Ministers are also working to ensure that continental priorities are aligned and that proposals which will be presented to leaders are those that reflect broad consensus among member states.

Furthermore, the discussions will also focus on institutional reforms, Africa’s strategic positioning within the G20, and preparations for the theme of this year’s summit.

The theme signals a strategic shift toward addressing water security and sanitation as foundational pillars for economic growth, public health, environmental sustainability and climate resilience.

The ministers are expected to outline actionable pathways to accelerate progress in these areas across member states.

The issues of peace and security also remain central to the Council’s agenda and ministers are reviewing reports under the AU’s flagship “Silencing the Guns” initiative, with particular attention to ongoing conflicts in Sudan and the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The Ministry of Technology and Science has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Inq. Digital Zambia to expand the National Free and Limited Public Wi-Fi Initiative across the country.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Permanent Secretary Brilliant Habeenzu, in a speech read on his behalf by Director of Communications Nkula Mwanza, said the agreement builds on the successful pilot phase at Lusaka Intercity Bus Terminal, Kapiri Mposhi Bus Station and Chisokone Market in Kitwe.

During the three-month pilot, over 120,000 users accessed free Wi-Fi, benefiting students, traders and travelers.

Dr. Habeenzu highlighted how digital connectivity is driving economic empowerment, citing traders who have adopted mobile payments and online advertising.

He added that expanding internet access will help young people acquire skills in coding, robotics and entrepreneurship, supporting innovation and job creation.

Inq. Digital Zambia Managing Director Duncan Pie said the partnership demonstrates a shared commitment to expanding meaningful digital access.

He noted that public Wi-Fi in high-traffic areas is already transforming business operations and pledged continued collaboration with government to strengthen Zambia’s digital foundation.