Copperbelt Permanet Secretary, Villie Lombanya, has called on the Ministry fo Mines to work in harmony with the Forestry Department and local authorities when issuing sand mining licenses to avoid creating conflicts of interest among stakeholders.

Mr Lombanya said it was important to work in harmony with other stakeholders in championing development because all government ministries and department had one objective of bringing development to the people in the province.

The Permanent secretary made the call during the Provincial Development Coordinating Committee meeting on Friday at Savoy Hotel.

Mr Lombanya said the Ministry of Mines should consider other stakeholders’ interests so that what one government organ was doing should not create a conflict with other interests of other government ministries.

He added that there was also need to promote dialogue among government departments and local authorities so that government remained focused and move in one direction in developing the province.

Mr Lombanya observed that the province was endowed with abundant natural resources and all the stakeholders should play their part in the effective planning and management of the resources for the good of all.

And the meeting heard that the Road Development Agency (RDA) has secured some funds to do all the Chingola Township roads.

RDA Chief Engineer, Thomas Zimba, told the meeting that the funds were secured in Lusaka and he was going to finalize the paper work with the Chingola District Commissioner, Tobias Maliti, at his office for the works to commence.

Mr Zimba said the RDA was committed to deliver on its mandate but was constrained by the erratic flow of funds.

The meeting expressed concern that the RDA was not doing enough in the province which has in some cases attracted criticism from the members of the public towards District Commissioners, Councils and the provincial administration.

[ZANIS]

Vice-President, George Kunda, has arrived in Port of Spain, the Capital City of Trinidad and Tobago in South America, to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), which officially opens this Friday.

Mr Kunda and his entourage arrived at Piarco International Airport last evening at 22:40 hours local time aboard British Airways.
He was accompanied by his wife, Irene, Foreign Affairs Minister, Kabinga Pande, Central Province Minister, Ackimson Banda and Senior Private Secretary at the office of the Vice-President, Kenneth Ngosa.

On hand to receive the Vice-President at the airport were high ranking government officials from the host country, Zambian High Commissioner to Britain, Professor Royson Mukwena, Deputy High Commissioner to Canada, Nedson Nzowa and other senior government officials.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Patrick Manning, says he is optimistic that this week’s Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting could overcome the pessimism surrounding next month’s united Nations Climate Change talks in Copenhagen, Denmark.

The Prime Minister was giving the feature address at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth People’s Forum at Queen’s Hall yesterday.

Mr Manning said as chair of CHOGM, Trinidad and Tobago is working assiduously with other nations, in and out of the Commonwealth, to attain a position that is strong enough to advance the process toward a global agreement on this critical matter affecting humanity.

He said the fact that the United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon and other world leaders outside the Commonwealth, such as the French President, Nicolas Sarcozy and Danish Prime Minister, Lars Rasmussen are attending CHOGM is an indication of the intensity of the efforts on climate change.

Mr Manning underlined the need to tackle climate change, saying a recent UN Summit of world food security had found escalating mass starvation and malnutrition, with the world having one billion starving people.

“Six million children die of hunger every year, seventeen thousand every day. Much of this tragedy and trauma is taking place in the Commonwealth,” he observed.

He said the Commonwealth, with its diversity, is a microcosm of humanity and reflects diverse positions on climate change.

“We are, therefore, in a very good position to lead the way forward on this matter,” he said.

Mr Manning urged the People’s Forum to let their views be known on climate-change and on the global financial crisis. He blamed the latter crisis on a violation of trust between citizens and the bureaucracy which he said must be loudly condemned.

Inviting comments from the People’s Forum on small business and other issues, Mr Manning told the gathering that the voice of the people must be heard on every issue of concern.

He said democracy is more than a periodic visit to a voting booth but rather an unending process that must always deepen the involvement of the citizenry in national affairs. The voice of the people must continuously be heard, and its influence felt.

And Commonwealth Secretary-General, Kamalesh Sharma, hailed the role of civil society, saying it was one leg of a three-legged stool comprising society and also made up of the government and the business sector.

He said all three need each other, adding that there is supposed to be creative tension between the trio which each have their own constituencies.

Mr Sharma said the People’s Forum contains the voice of the people and it must be heard. He said the global economic downturn had hit civil society groups both by reducing donations and by increasing demands for their services.

He added that civil society acts both to protest, cajole, criticize and hold accountable, but can also advise, support and partner.

Commonwealth Foundation Chair, Simone de Comarmond, also gave an address in which she said people in the world who have been traditionally vulnerable have now been even worse hit by the global economic crisis. [ZANI]

The Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) has procured 100 motorbikes to enable it enforce road traffic regulations effectively in the country.

RTSA deputy director for road transport Robert Mtonga disclosed this in an interview with ZANIS in Kasama recently. Mr. Mtonga said the motorbikes would soon be handed over to the Zambia Police Service under the Traffic Unit to enhance their mobility while ensuring that safety standards on public roads were observed.

He explained that RTSA was working closely with the police to curb reckless driving among motorists, which has resulted in fatal road accidents.Mr. Mtonga, who was in Kasama for the RTSA public sittings to review the 2010 public service licenses for transport operators, said his Agency was concerned with the increase in road traffic accidents in the country.

He stated that 90 per cent of road traffic accidents happening in the country were due to human causes, mostly bordering on failure to observe traffic regulations.
Mr. Mtonga cited over -speeding as a big problem among motorists which requires urgent attention to safeguard people’s lives.

Meanwhile, Mr. Mtonga described the RTSA public sitting in Kasama as successful considering the high number of transport operators who turned up to have their 2010 public service licences renewed.
He however urged transport operators to hire drivers with Public Service Vehicle (PSV) licences to avoid their vehicles being impounded for having unqualified drivers.

Mr. Mtonga further advised bus operators servicing distant routes to make sure their vehicles were fitted with speed-limiters to avoid being in conflict with the law.
ZANIS

President Rupiah Banda says government will continue supporting cultural events in the country because they are an important unifier.

Mr. Banda says traditional ceremonies play a cardinal role by breaking artificial tribal barriers.

And the President has said his government will continue involving chiefs in matters of national interest because of their critical role in the governance system of the country.

Mr. Banda said chiefs need to be involved in development issues because of their influence on their subjects.

He said traditional leaders do not only act as good mediators in matters of traditional boundary and succession dispute but also on matters of national development.

The President said this over the weekend in a speech read on his behalf by Community Development Deputy Minister Moses Muteteka.

This was during the Lwiindi Traditional ceremony of the Toka-Leya of chief Sekute in Kazungula District.

Meanwhile, the President disclosed during the ceremony that government through the Ministry of Community Development and Social Services under the department of culture affairs is currently undertaking a programme of constructing and rehabilitating cultural villages at provincial centers.

Mr. Banda said this is in order to provide venues where artists, artisans and cultural practitioners can train, produce and market their products.

He said the Provincial office in Livingstone will soon complete the construction of the Maramba Cultural Village where various cultural products and exhibits will be showcased for employment and wealth creation for the people.

The President encouraged artists and cultural practitioners to develop their skills and marketability if government’s programme of developing culture industry is to succeed.

And the President said the reduction of poverty among people lies on improved agriculture production.

He said government has put in place policies suitable to assist the vulnerable in society.

Mr. Banda said viable farmers such as those households headed by females, orphans, widows, the elderly and the disabled will have to acquire farming inputs.

He however, stressed that government gets very concerned when it hears stories of farmers selling the seeds and fertilisers because the trend poses a danger to food security at both household and national levels.

ZANIS

Zambian Ambassador to Ethiopia Albert Muchanga, has called on Zambian nationals living in Ethiopia to make use of the Diaspora desk which President Rupiah Banda recently set up at State House to address the welfare of Zambians living abroad.

Mr. Muchanga said that Zambia is currently offering good investment opportunities to both Zambians and foreigners hence the need for Zambians in the Diaspora to participate.
He said the Zambian Embassy is for this reason planning for an investment sensitization seminar for the Zambian community in Ethiopia.

This is contained in a press release made available to ZANIS in Lusaka today by Zambian Embassy in Ethiopia First Secretary to the Press Dorcas Chileshe.

Mr. Muchanga said the seminar will create a platform for Zambian nationals in Ethiopia to discuss various ways in which they can participate in contributing to the country’s development.

He said this in Addis Ababa at the weekend when he addressed Zambians who had met to elect new office bearers for the Zambian Association in Ethiopia

Mr. Muchanga commended the Zambian community in Ethiopia for exhibiting a strong team spirit.

ZANIS

President Rupiah Banda was today among hundreds of mourners who gathered at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross to attend the church service for the late Former Zambia Army Commander Geojago Musengule’s son Major Joe Musengule.

Several cabinet ministers, senior government officials, service chiefs and members of the diplomatic corps joined the President at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross to pay their last respects to Major Musengule.

Major Musengule, who is the third of Lt Gen Geojago and Mrs Muriel Musengule’s four children, passed away on November 19 after suffering a heart attack.
His death is believed to have been triggered by the death of his wife of eight years, Halodatte Musengule who died on November 14 at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) after an illness.

Major Musengule who will be put to rest at Mutumbi Cemetary, leaves behind a son and two daughters.

And reading out Maj Musengule’s life history, family representative Joyce Makulu disclosed that the deceased joined the Zambia army in 1994 as an officer cadet shortly after completing his secondary education at Kabwe Secondary School.

Mrs Makulu said before that Maj Musengule did his grade one to three in Yugoslavia before returning home where he completed his primary education in Kabwe.

ZANIS