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Minister of Transport and Communications Hon. Brian Mushimba makes the first call to launch the second phase of the Universal Access Programme, paving the way for every citizen in the country to have access to a mobile phone signal.
MINISTER of Transport and Communication Brian Mushimba says the US$440 million Zambia National Data Centre (ZNDC) will be launched next month as Government prepares to offer services online.
Mr Mushimba, who inspected the works at ZNDC in Lusaka yesterday, was satisfied with the quality of works which are 98 percent complete.
The minister is hopeful that once completed, ZNDC will enable Government to provide quality services to the people.
“This is part of the Smart Zambia phase one project as we move to electronic-government system, which will see Government provide all services online,” he said.
Mr Mushimba also said Government is working on modalities to reduce the cost of information communication technology (ICT) services in the country.
Zambia is one of the countries with the highest cost in ICT services, a situation Government intends to address to make the services available to as many people as possible.
“ICT services unlock a lot of sectors and that is why it is important to make them available to as many people as possible. we want to make it a catalyst to a lot of activities,” he said.
Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority (ZICTA) director general Margaret Mudenda said ICT is pivotal to a country’s development.
Ms Mudenda said the three-tier data centre will be able to store information for Government as well as private institutions without worrying about losing it.
“The national data centre is one way of preparing for the future, this is one of the latest modes of storing data,” she said.
Meanwhile, ZNDC general manager Garry Mukelebai said the data centre will be down for only 94 minutes in a year.
He assured stakeholders that they will always have access to their data
Minister of Commerce,Trade and Industry Margaret Mwanakatwe flashing the PF symbol just after President Lungu filled in his nomination at Mulungushi conference center
LUSAKA Central Member of Parliament Margaret Mwanakatwe says there is an urgent need to redesign Kulima Tower bus station to solve problems faced by the travelling public.
Mrs Mwanakatwe, who is Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry, said the current congestion at the station and the nearby roads such as ChaChaCha and Freedom Way could be permanently resolved by expanding the station into a two-storey facility.
She said this during her conducted tour of the bus station, which is in the heart of the central business district, on Tuesday.
Mrs Mwanakatwe also inspected drainages on Freedom Way and Chachacha road.
She said the blocked drainage system at the bus station and on ChaChaCha Road and Freedom Way brought business to a standstill whenever there was rain.
“This perennial flooding in the CBD caused by blocked drainage system will be resolved immediately and permanently,” she said.
Mrs Mwanakatwe also toured the closed Civic Centre Clinic which is currently undergoing rehabilitation.
She said she would engage Minister of Health Chitalu Chilufya to ensure the renovations are completed on time.
Mrs Mwanakatwe also toured Sikanze police camp which also falls under her constituency, Lusaka Central.
Meanwhile, Lusaka mayor Wilson Kalumba has said areas such the CBD that includes COMESA, Kulima Tower, Church road opposite Levy Mwanawasa Business Park and the two roundabouts (Kabwe and Kafue) all get flooded because of indiscriminate dumping of littre in the catch pits for the underground drains.
Mr Kalumba said the Lusaka City Council had engaged the Road Development Agency (RDA) to ensure the contractor working on the Lusaka 400 (L400) roads moved on site to work on the side drains on the newly paved roads which had resulted into floods.
He said the CBD gets flooded every time it rains and that the council has found a lasting solution to address the problem.
FILE: Dr Guy Scott at Lumwana Mine greets Mr Bill MacNevin General Manager and Mr Nathan Chishimba Corporate Manager Lumwana mine in Solwezi on Saturday Picture By Eddie Mwanaleza.ZAMBIA Chamber of Mines (ZCM) says most mining firms are not likely to spend on capital projects in the medium term despite reclaiming value added tax (VAT) refunds from Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) due to low copper prices.
Since 2014, some mining companies decided to put projects on hold due to a dispute over VAT rule number 18 that requires the companies to show documentation from a country where goods are being exported to.
But last month, ZRA commissioner general Kingsley Chanda said K2.6 billion out of the K5 billion owed in VAT refund had been paid out.
Asked if stalled projects will take off, ZCM president Nathan Chishimba said ZRA is engaging affected mining companies over the matter.
“So far, there are no problems but individual companies can explain more on their suspended projects. However, most companies are now strict with capital expenditure allocations due to depressed copper prices and also the global economic environment is not yet stable.
“In the medium term, we don’t see any major investments taking place,” he said in a recent interview.
On the outlook for 2017, Mr Chishimba said the industry is cautious but optimistic.
“We are hopeful that the mining industry will overcome the global investment challenges and the ones relating to Zambia such as limited power supply and uncertainty in government regulations,” he said.
Recently, Mr Chanda said ZRA has been liquidating the arrears as long as the mining companies come with documents that show proof of exports.
“Only K2.4 billion has not been paid back due to lack of documentation and we have written to mining companies giving them a deadline to submit the documentation,” he said.
VAT rule 18 requires mining companies to obtain documents from the customs office in the country the copper is being exported to, but the commodity, usually, ends up in other countries due to the complexity of metal exports and numerous middlemen handling the exports, a move that has resulted in some companies failing to obtain documentation.
Zambia Police Spokesperson Esther Mwata KatongoGender-based violence (GBV) is on the rise in Zambia with 18,540 cases recorded last year compared to 18,088 in 2015, police spokesperson Esther Katongo has said.
This represents a 2.4 percent increase in the number of GBV cases.
And three church mother bodies have appealed to Zambians to pray unceasingly for family unity and road safety in the wake of a spate of gruesome murders and Tuesday’s road traffic accident which claimed 10 lives on the Great North Road.
Mrs Katongo said in a statement yesterday that Copperbelt recorded the highest number of GBV cases at 5,554 followed by Lusaka which recorded 3,751 cases while Central Province cases stand at 2,673.
“Other provinces are Western with 1,585; North-Western with 1,455; Eastern with 1,003; Southern with 684; Luapula with 629; Muchinga with 624 and Northern Province recording the lowest at 383,” she said.
And 2,363 cases of defilement were reported countrywide, out of which 2,344 were girl victims and 19 were boys.
Mrs Katongo said Lusaka Province recorded the highest number of defilement cases which stood at 1,064 followed by Central Province with 274, Eastern Province had 264 cases, Copperbelt recorded 243 cases while Luapula recorded the lowest number with 59 cases.
She also said that there were 265 cases of rape in 2016.
“106 cases of rape were taken to court resulting in 29 convictions, two acquittals, three withdraws whilst 72 are still pending in court. 136 cases are still under investigation at various police stations whilst 23 cases were withdrawn. Copperbelt recorded 64 cases followed by Lusaka with 54, Central had 39 cases while the rest of the country had a total of 108 cases,” Mrs Katongo said.
She also said the country recorded 77 GBV-related murder cases representing 0.4 percent of the reported cases out of which 36 were male victims, 30 female, 7 girls and 4 boys.
She said 51 cases were taken to court with 5 convictions, 1 acquittal, 45 still pending at court while 26 cases are still under investigation at various police stations.
“Lusaka recorded the highest number of murder cases with 18 cases, followed by Central province 16 and Copperbelt province 12 cases, North-Western recorded 11, Muchinga province had 10 while other provinces put together recorded 10 murder cases,’’ she said.
And the country recorded 6,769 cases of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, representing 36.5 percent of the reported GBV cases of which 5,666 were female victims while 1,103 were male victims.
She said Central Province recorded the highest number of assault cases with 1,544 followed by Copperbelt recording 1,453 and Lusaka 1,287 cases with Northern Province recording the lowest number at 112.
“For human trafficking cases, the country recorded 23 cases out of which 5 were male victims, 4 female, 7 boys and 7 girls,” she said.
Meanwhile, Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia (EFZ) executive director Pukuta Mwanza, Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops (ZCCC) secretary general Cleopas Lungu and Bishops Council of Zambia (BCZ) Bishop Abinala Manda said in separate interviews that the country needs prayers.
“There is a spiritual backlash as exhibited by the gruesome murders of three people and the loss of 10 lives in a road traffic accident,” Reverend Mwanza said.
He advised people in relationships against resorting to physical confrontations whenever they have differences but to instead seek counselling.
Rev Mwanza said killing each other is not the solution, hence the need for the death penalty to be re-introduced so that it acts as a deterrent to murderers.
He said that some people now no longer fear killing others because of the absence of the death penalty.
And Father Lungu said that since life belongs to God, there is need for prayers over such unfortunate incidents
He said that it is not enough to just say one is a Christian when their faith does not translate into action.
Fr Lungu said that since Zambia is a God-fearing nation, there is need to commit everything in God’s hands.
Meanwhile, Bishop Manda urged the people of Zambia to continue praying so that the country can overcome the dark cloud that is hovering over the nation.
Bishop Manda said prayer and fasting are key when it comes to solving such problems.
The Zambian economy has experienced tough times in 2015 and 2016 after a period of fast expansion. The economic woes swiftly combined for the slowdown, suggesting they can dissipate quickly.
Here are six points that argue for a little more optimism in 2017.
1.Copper prices regained some losses. At US$5,720 per metric ton on 19 January 2017, the price of the metal has recovered to May 2015 levels. After five years of annual decline this is good news although it remains far below the 2011 recent peak. Where it goes now, nobody can say with clarity. The more bullish fear supply shortages (with the possibility of strikes in Chile and exports bans in Indonesia), they think the new US government will invest more in infrastructure and take heart from better manufacturing data from China. The more bearish think the recent rally might be overdone as supply appears to them as ample to meet global needs.
Despite the recent power outages, lower prices and mine closures; Zambia’s copper production has kept growing as new mines have ramped up their production (production in Q3 2016 was the fourth highest quarterly output since 2000). Annual production in 2017 is being forecast to be slightly higher again. More copper exported at a higher price is good for the economy. The recent EITI report highlights Zambian mining industry contributed ZMW 9 billion in 2015, equivalent to 26% of total government revenue.
2.Above average rainfall. What is good for farmers and electricity generation (Zambia is 95% dependent on hydro) is good for the economy. The 2016 harvest was 10% up on 2015 and in 2017 cereal production is expected to exceed the recent average (2011-15) of 3.22 million tons. Army worms have caused some havoc, but their maneuvering will not be enough to stop a very good harvest according to the FAO who report an ‘enhanced chance for above-average rainfall conditions’ and that the ‘2017 agricultural outlook is favorable’.
Despite the good news there are still people in the southern area facing food insecurity, as they –unlike much of the country- got hit by a second round of El Niño dryness, but the Government asserts humanitarian support is being provided. Tight supplies and higher demand over borders mean that the mealie meal price is still rising putting pressure on people’s pockets in urban areas. Either less food is bought for families or other consumption plans get the chop. Not everyone benefits from economic growth, particularly when the prices of essentials keep rising.
The rain is also helping replenish hydro-electric reservoirs. Frequent data on Lake Kariba is posted on the Zambezi River Authority website, and it appears that, despite levels remaining historically low, the annual recovery (more water flowing in, than is being used) has started 7 weeks earlier than in 2016 (when rains came late). This and the recent addition of Maamba Collieries to the grid will help the sector, although power outages (loadshedding) will persist in some form or other until reforms are progressed with, financial sustainability of the sector improves and big new projects come online.
3.A period of exchange rate stability. For 9 months the Kwacha has not deviated more than 10% from the rate of 10 Kwacha per US$. The currency plummet of 2015 (mostly August to November of that year), when chaos replaced the fundamentals, had undermined confidence in the economy. And although the rate remains far weaker than the ZMW 6.4 per US$ at the start of 2015 the recent stability has helped businesses and investors make clearer decisions.
4.Inflation back in single digits. Zambia imports many goods (including some of its food) so when the exchange rate weakens prices increase. The depreciation in 2015, coupled with a weaker harvest, sent annual inflation above 20%. However, since then really tight monetary policy and careful exchange rate management has pushed inflation back into single figures (7.4% in December 2016). NB the Zambian statistics website produces monthly trade data and inflation reports.
5.Returning market confidence. The November 2016 Kwacha bond auction was three times over-subscribed. Having stayed away after the currency went into its 2015 free-fall, international investors dipped their toes in August 2016, but in November they came back with confidence and the prospect of high real returns (interest rates remained high as inflation has declined). This and an unexpected ‘fifth’ quarterly bond auction (they’re now to be held every two months) provided the government with some much needed cash to clear some of the spending arrears at the end of a tough 2016, where borrowing opportunities and revenue collection fell short and expenditure pressures mounted on account of emergency power imports and unbudgeted petrol and diesel subsidies.
6.Liquidity is a little less tight. To tame inflation and the exchange rate plunge, in a context of loose fiscal policy, the central bank had to make liquidity really tight. This has squeezed banks and the private sector just as the economy slowed down making things really tough. However, there are now grounds to argue good news might be on the horizon. The annual growth of commercial banks’ liquidity turned positive in December 2016 after 12 months of decline. This came after the central bank eased monetary policy slightly (although they did not alter the policy rate) at their November 2016 monetary policy meeting.
Easing liquidity constraints should permit some much needed credit growth that has stuttered for some time and made it harder for firms to expand. Faster growth and less extreme fiscal imbalances are still required before the central bank can ease monetary policy much further. This would help get the cost of borrowing down closer to something reasonable (they’re currently close 35%-40%) and ease a huge impediment to the private sector.
Remember that the 2015 and 2016 slowdown was attributed to global headwinds (mainly via plummeting copper prices) and domestic pressures (weaker harvest, power outages, deteriorating confidence, and political uncertainty). The above numbers suggest some change on each of these fronts. Despite all the global uncertainty in 2017 and much needed reform on the domestic front: are these arguments enough for renewed economic optimism in 2017?
Well, none of these trends?especially the copper price bounce? is guaranteed to continue, but they should be enough for growth to pick-up to 4%. To get back to the magic number (7% growth that doubles the size of the economy in 10 years) better economic policies and structural reforms are needed. With the political space from no election until 2021 this should be possible, but it will take bold action.
The Author is a Senior Economist at World Bank Group
Accused murder Rapheal with the deceased Stella Moonga
Women for Change (WfC) adds its voice in condemning the recent grave Gender Based Violence (GBV) occurrences which have been resulting in death of intimate partners.
WfC would like to reiterate that any form of GBV, against a woman, girl boy or man is wrong and should be condemned in the strongest sense.
This rise in the vice points to the need for all sections of society in Zambia to step up their vigilance and actions towards fighting the scourge.
It is acknowledged by various stakeholders that GBV is caused by multiple factors and more often than not takes place in homes and hidden places and therefore only a combination of actions at all levels of society can reduce and eventually wipe it out.
GBV is caused by a number of factors that include exposure at individual level, especially as a child to GBV. Further, an environment might contribute to GBV prevailing if services that are supposed to curb the vice are unavailable or farfetched. This is compounded by poverty, ignorance of the law, bad cultural practices that tolerate GBV and gaps in existing legislation meant to address GBV.
For instance if an area is poverty stricken it’s members who in most instances are unaware of the laws and rights will be exposed and tolerate GBV from those wielding power and are comparatively economically sound. Further if the environment is lacking key services like nearby schools or water, weaker members of society such as women and girls are exposed to GBV. For instance long distances are covered by women and girls to fetch water or access schools thus presenting an opportunity for assailants to attack them.
Some of the above factors are common in Zambia, many adults who today perpetuate GBV grew up in homes where GBV was prevalent. Further, the majority of GBV survivors are poor or unaware of the law, while others due to lack of counselling services meant to aid them leave abusive relationships or help them make legal and fair decisions when faced with the vice have been harmed or have harmed their perpetrators because the services are not easily available.
Moreover the rural community is mainly governed by customary laws which tolerate GBV and to an extent are weak in terms of bringing the culprits to book.
Another factor that contributes to high GBV prevalence is the continued shielding of GBV perpetrators by family members, community and institutions like schools to save face of the perpetrator, family or institution while the survivor suffers.
At times, assailants in an attempt to silence the survivor do corrupt them or their families and threaten to harm them through use of witchcraft.
The above factors therefore point to the apparent need for action at every level of the Zambian society to curb GBV.
To this end WfC is calling on families and communities to be vigilant and report GBV incidents to law enforcing agents and ensure to protect the survivor and not the culprits or family name.
As regards the traditional leadership, we urge them to develop stiffer rules and punishment for GBV culprits and increase counselling services as was before when we used to hear of nsaka or some form of micro court where culprits where reprimanded and punished for misdeeds in the community or family level for less serious GBV cases.
To address the ignorance on legal protection for GBV survivors, we call on all actors to increase sensitisations in all parts of Zambia to improve knowledge levels of the laws. And to ensure that the knowledge is used, the relevant services must be brought closer to the people while government must consider upscaling counselling services to all health institutions as part of medical services.
For instance, WfC has established about 13 Anti-GBV onestop village-led Shops in rural parts of the country where trained community facilitators provide both legal advice and counselling services to fellow members of the community. In addition, these also carry out sensitisations in their communities as a preventative and corrective measure. They also collaborate with Victim Support Unit of the Zambia Police to ensure justice for survivors.
Further, those enforcing the law and constituting the justice systems in Zambia need to ensure that such cases are fully addressed and that the law is applied fully.
We are confident that if all stakeholders play their role fully, GBV will be a thing of the past or will be brought under control like other national problems.
Lastly we wish to reiterate that that GBV is a harmful act and must be condemned regardless of the gender involved and therefore culprits must be brought to book.
Lumba Siyanga, Executive Director, Women for Change
President Edgar Lungu departs Addis Ababa Ethiopia at the End of AU Summit – Pictures Eddie Mwanaleza/Statehouse.FODEP has expressed concern over reports that President Edgar Lungu is not ready to hold a fresh referendum because it is costly.
Chimfwembe Mweenge the FODEP Executive Director said it is his organization’s considered opinion that President Lungu should have waited for the report from the Minister of Justice whom he said should be receiving submissions from stakeholders on the constitutional amendments including the holding of the fresh referendum on the expanded bill of rights.
He said his organization believes that people must be allowed to exercise their reserved power through elected members and established institutions through a national referendum on arriving at the People Driven Constitution as recognized in the Republican constitution.
He wondered how the Patriotic Front party will deliver on its pro-poor electoral mandate if not by securing their social, economic, political, and civil rights in the expanded bill of rights.
Further Mr Mweenga accused the PF of backtracking on its major electoral promise to the Zambian people when it promised to deliver a people driven constitution within 90 days and the same to be adopted through a national referendum.
He said FODEP is of the view that the only way the country can enjoy these 2nd generation rights is through the holding of the referendum to amend the constitution to include the enhanced Bill of Rights thereby making them justifiable in our courts of law.
Mr Mweenga was commenting on President Lungu’s statement that the country will not have a referendum before 2021 because it is too costly.
Minister of Agriculture Dora Silaya(l) being welcomed by Grain Association of Zambia Chairperson George Liacopoulos(l) during the tour of the Grain Storage SolutionMinister of Agriculture Dora Silaya(c),Coventry Hawke Coventry Managing Director Chris Hawke(r) and his Broker Colin Fletcher(l) during the tour of the Grain Storage SolutionMinister of Agriculture Dora Silaya admiring the Groundnuts during the tour of the Grain Storage SolutionMinister of Agriculture Dora Silaya(r) and Coventry Hawke Coventry Managing Director Chris Hawke(l) at the Grain Association of ZambiaMinister of Agriculture Dora Silaya probing the Maize seed during the tour of the Food Reserve AgencyMinister of Agriculture Dora Silaya probing the Maize seed during the tour of the Food Reserve AgencyFood Reserve Agency Executive Director Chola Kafwabulula(l) explaining to the Minister of Agriculture Dora Silaya(r) as she toured the Food Reserve AgencyBaulen Milling Plant Sight Supervisor Patrick Mumbi(r) explaining to the Minister of Agriculture Dora Siliya(l) how many bags of Meal Meal they produce pay day,This was when the Minister toured the solar milling plantMelania Chipungu(l) a Farmer from Ibex Hill extension explainig how Molinga works to the Minister of Agriculture Dora Siliya(r)Melania Chipungu(r) a Farmer from Ibex Hill extension explaining to the Minister of Agriculture Dora Siliya(l) how to grow mushrooms.Minister of Agriculture Dora Siliya and Melania Chipungu during the tour of Melania”s Farm in Ibex Hill ExtensionMinister of Agriculture Dora Siliya(l) admiring the Molinga Tree when she toured Melania Chipungu(r)”s Farm in Ibex Hill ExtensionMinister of Agriculture Dora Siliya(l) admiring the Cassava plant when she toured Melania Chipungu(r)”s Farm in Ibex Hill ExtensionMinister of Agriculture Dora Siliya during the tour of the solar milling plant in Bauleni
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has again directed all former diplomats to surrender their diplomatic passports and CD vehicles.
Ministry Spokesperson Dorcas Chileshe said, “following the deadline of 31st January, 2017 given to recalled Zambian diplomats, cautioning against the continued use of CD number plates and Diplomatic passports, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has requested relevant authorities to ensure that the set deadline issued is adhered to.”
She said, “Last month, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hon. Harry Kalaba expressed concern over the continued use of CD number plates and diplomatic passports by recalled diplomats who had been in the country for more than six months following their recall from the Foreign Service.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs wishes to remind all recalled diplomats of the obligation to surrender the passports and number plates within the required stipulated period. In this regard, the Ministry wishes to appeal to all concerned recalled Diplomats who have not yet done so, to kindly surrender their diplomatic passports and CD number plates to the Ministry to avoid being inconvenienced.”
Dr Savior Chishimba after leaving the ACC Headquarters
The opposition United Progressive People (UPP) has received an official letter from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Zambia to notifying the party about the desire of the Commission of Inquiry to receive our submission.
UPP President Savior Chishimba said “We have just had a telephone conversation and the submission has been scheduled for Friday, 3 February 2017 at 14:30 hours at the Malawi High Commission.”
Dr Chishimba also rubbished reports in some sections of the media that Malawi President Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika has established that there was no corruption in the procurement of maize must be treated as illegitimate and desperate state propaganda to downplay the scandal.
He said the Commission of Inquiry has not concluded its sittings.
“Likewise, the Anti-Corruption Bureau of Malawi and the parliamentary committee are still carrying out investigations and reports have not yet been rendered to government.”
“Further, the High Court for Malawi dismissed the application of the attorney general yesterday who wanted the suspended Minister of Agriculture, Hon. Dr. George Chaponda, to be restored on account that the CSOs and the Church did not have locus standi in the matter. The court held that the CSOs and the Church had locus standi and that the evidence was overwhelming,” he said.
He said, “In view of the foregoing, it would be very sad if the PF-MMD Government continues to trivialise this matter. Our own ACC officially commenced investigations upon establishing that there was a prima facie case. The fight against corruption will only be won when our nation moves from political rhetoric to action.”
He warned that the UPP has not even yet moved to more serious corruption scandals.
“The maizegate scandal is just a tip of an iceberg. We shall not lose the battle against corruption. We urge all Zambians to pray so that God’s justice can prevail in our land. Enough is enough of the corruption of the executive arm of government, which has sadly spread to our judiciary.”
Ethiopian Refugees
A group of 147 Ethiopian migrants detained in Zambian jails for between one and five years returned home last week, with the help of IOM.
The migrants, who included 11 children, started their journeys at different times over the course of 2011 and 2015.
Most of them were headed for South Africa, where they were hoping to find employment and join family members already living and working there.
With the help of smugglers, they travelled from Ethiopia through Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia – a journey of approximately 4,000 km – which took between two to three weeks.
The migrants reported having paid between USD 4,000 and USD 5,000 to smugglers.
“My brother and my father paid the smugglers 90,000 Ethiopian Birrs (USD 4,000). They then gave me around USD 200 pocket money, but the ‘bosses’ (smugglers ‘appointed’ in each country) took my money and gave us little food and water during our journey. When we were in Tanzania we didn’t eat for two days. Sometimes we had to sleep in the forest, on the wet ground,” said Tamrat Desalgn, a 23-year-old migrant from the southern part of Ethiopia.
Undocumented migrants in Zambia normally receive a minimum sentence of 15 years in prison for “consenting to be smuggled”.
Migrants are mostly unaware they are at risk of imprisonment once they cross the Zambian border from Tanzania.
“When the day of our court hearing came, we were all given 15-year sentences. I was shocked….I couldn’t understand why 15 years. That day we all sat under a tree and cried. We cried under that tree every day for a week. We were worried about our future,” said Desalgn.
Following intense advocacy by the Ethiopian government, UN and NGO partners, the 147 migrants were pardoned by President Edgar Lungu on 24 December 2016.
Immediately after the pardon, IOM Zambia conducted an assessment of the migrants and found them to be all eligible to be returned home to Ethiopia under IOM’s Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration program.
With the help of the Zambian government and the Ethiopian embassy in Harare, identification documents were provided to all the migrants, together with food, clothes, air tickets to Addis Ababa and a travel allowance of approximately USD 40 per each migrant.
“We are very satisfied with how swiftly we were able to assist the migrants return home following the pardon by the Zambian President. By working closely with the Immigration Department, the Zambia Correctional Services and the Ethiopian embassy in Harare, we ensured the safe return of people, many of whom had lost hope of returning home after spending a long time in prison,” said Abibatou Wane, IOM Zambia’s Chief of Mission.
On 26 January 2017, the migrants boarded a plane from Lusaka, Zambia, to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where they spent the night at IOM’s Assisted Voluntary Returnees’ Transit Centre before travelling to their homes.
The 11 children were taken to a children’s shelter where IOM, in partnership with UNICEF, is currently assisting them with family tracing.
The operation was funded by a pool of donors including the US State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, IOM’s Global Assistance Fund and IOM’s non-profit US Association for International Migration (USAIM).
ZMA president Dr. Aaron MujajatiZambia Medical Association has commended Government for its efforts in eradicating pilferage that has cost the health sector huge sums of money in missing drugs.
ZMA president Aaron Mujajati said there were several loopholes which could affect the high pilferage rate in medical supplies in the distribution chain from the point if supply to the consumers, clinics and hospitals.
“It only excited us as DNA to learn that Government has established various strategies to try and curb the high level pilferage that cost Government huge amounts worth in missing drugs.
The concern is real, and what we are requesting is for the establishment of appropriate strategies which will eliminate the Vice permanently”, he said.
He also added that there was need for Government to establish a computerised monitoring system to track the drugs from the point of dispatch to its destination.
Government, through the Ministry of Health, last week announced that there would be no shortage of drugs this year owing to strict measures out I place to curb pilferage and other such vices leading to disappearance of drugs as well as expiry of stocks.
Health Minister Dr. Chitalu Chilufya explained that Government has allocated sufficient funds for the procurement of medicines for improved care and treatment, as well as introduced safety measures against pilferage.
The Road Transport and Safety Agency has with immediate effect suspended the operating licence for accident prone Mazhandu Family Bus Services.
This was disclosed by RTSA Director and Chief Executive Officer Zindaba Soko during a news conference in Lusaka this morning.
Mr Soko said the Agency the Road Service Licence for Mazhandu has been suspended with immediate effect pending investigations into the recent road traffic accidents in which 10 people died in Kabwe.
He said the agency expects Mazhandu Family Bus to put in place necessary logistics and stop operations in the next 24 hours.
Mr Soko said RTSA will not leave this deteriorating road safety records for Mazhandu unchecked hence saying failure to act now risks losing more people in road accidents in future.
“You will recall that the Road Transport and Safety Agency had engaged Mazhandu Family Bus Services on several occasions in the past four years regarding the poor road safety profile which had resulted in a number of accidents with a lot of lives being lost. The Agency on 7th of April, 2016 wrote to Mazhandu Family Bus Services requesting the company to show cause why the Road Service Licence (RSL) should not be suspended or revoked after one of their buses registration number ALP 5119 was involved in a road traffic accident along Great North road in Kapiri Mposhi area with sixty-one passengers on Board. Five (05) passengers died on the spot and two (02) died afterwards bringing the total number of fatalities to seven (07),” he said.
He said several other accidents had previously been recorded involving Mazhandu Family Bus Services fleet of buses.
“On 9th and 16th January, 2015, two of your buses registration numbers ABZ 5921 and ALZ 4562 were involved in separate road traffic crashes in Central and Copperbelt Provinces respectively resulting in one (01) person dying and fourteen (14) others sustaining injuries. On 16th February, 2015, another bus registration number ACZ 4562 overturned at Kasongo area near Luanshya turn off on the Ndola-Kitwe dual carriageway with sixteen (16) people on board and one (01) person died on the spot with some sustaining injuries.”
“On 29th February 2016, another bus registration number ABK 8288 was involved in a road traffic accident around 0600 hours along Nakatindi road en route from Sesheke to Lusaka where one (01) person died on the spot. On 30th of January, one Mazhandu Family bus with registration number ALZ 3197 had a road mishap in Kabwe earlier that evening at around 19:00 hours. The driver however used the same bus and started off the following day at around 05:00 despite assuring the passengers that the company would send another bus to continue with the journey. Further, one of the passengers has revealed the bus had a mechanical problem which led to diesel spilling on the tyres.”
“However, the driver and the Management of Mazhandu Family bus did not attend to this problem and opted to use the same bus with an alleged mechanical fault,” Mr Soko said.
“On 31st of January, 2017, the same bus with registration number ALZ 3197 driven by Vincent Hangandu collided with a Freightliner truck registration number ACM 1160 belonging to Sandhu Transport around 0540 hours on Great North road near Lwansimba between Kabwe and Kapiri Mposhi. Nine (09) people died on the spot from both vehicles: seven (07) from the bus and two (02) from the truck. The 10th victim died at the hospital leaving several injured.”
He said preliminary investigations relating to the current accident have revealed that Vincent Hangandu lost control of the bus due to over speeding, the bus then swayed into the opposite lane where it collided with the south bound Freightliner truck.
“In our letter to Mazhandu Family Bus Services dated 7th April, 2016, we indicated that investigations into the cause of the crashes involving their fleet of buses revealed that all crashes occurred after the drivers lost control due to excessive speed leading to such accidents.
“The Agency wishes to reiterate with concern that the road safety record of operation for Mazhandu Family Bus Services has increasingly deteriorated from 2013 despite various engagements including road safety education and development of a road safety workplace policy to which Mazhandu is one of the 30 companies which the RTSA is implementing this initiative.”
He said the Agency notes with concern Mazhandu Family Bus Services have either failed or neglected to address the problem of over speeding in their operations and because of that, the nation has continued to lose people as a result of accidents that are otherwise preventable.
Mr Soko said the accidents involving the Mazhandu fleet of buses have been frequent and are posing a serious danger to the public.
HOME Affairs Minister Stephen Kampyongo
The Ministry of Home Affairs has refuted the story circulating on social media alleging that Home Affairs Minister Stephen Kampyongo has issued a statement that Lobola will be abolished in Zambia by June 2017.
Ministry Acting Spokesman Levy Lilanga said the statement further suggests that the Minister said that his ministry was working round the clock on a bill which, if passed will outlaw the practice of paying ‘Lobola.’
“We urge members of the public to treat the malicious statement with the contempt it deserves as it is false and misleading. At no time did the Minister issue such a statement and has no intention to do so,” Mr Lilanga said.
We would like warn all those peddling these lies with the aim of misguiding the general public to desist or risk being arrested and prosecuted.”
I work for Mazhandu Family Bus Services and I can confirm that fatigue could have been responsible for the Mazhandu Bus accident horror near Mulungushi University yesterday.
Our driver was on the same bus previous morning from Lusaka to Livingstone and came back to Lusaka in the afternoon.
He later complained that the bus had some mechanical problems that needed to be attended to.But management insisted that he proceeds to Kitwe same afternoon using the same bus despite the mechanical problems that were not fully rectified.
That’s how he left for Copperbelt in the afternoon covering a route from Lusaka to Livingstone back to Lusaka and proceeded to the Copperbelt where he arrived around 22:00hrs.
[pullquote]Whenever we complain we are told by the boss that he is well connected as main sponsor for the ruling PF party[/pullquote]
Around 03:00hrs yesterday morning, he was again awake in readiness to start off as the first bus to Lusaka which he did until the fatal accident that happened and claimed his life together with many other people.
Whenever we complain, we are told by the boss that he is well connected as main sponsor for the ruling PF party.
If Zambian people remember, our operating license was suspended for one month but within 3 days we were back on the road despite not having met any of the conditions that were set for us.
Even this time around, we know nothing will happen and we shall continue losing lives.
The problem is we have no jobs to feed our families otherwise some of us we would have left a long time ago.
