Zambia hosts the first Southern African Agriculture Development Partnership Platform (SADDPP) conference

By DOREEN NAWA
Zambia is today hosting the first Southern African Agriculture Development Partnership Platform (SADDPP) conference. Government and agribusiness officials will discuss potential partnerships that will strengthen agricultural practices — and the industry as a whole.
The event is curated by The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Business Foundation and the Agribusiness Forum (ABF).
The conference will largely focus on the private sector’s much needed contribution to agribusiness development.
“This conference is going to showcase the promising achievement and results achieved through collaborative efforts between the private sector and government partnerships in the region. Upon such success, we will chart a way forward for a Zambia-specific partnership plan to implement in the agriculture sector,” Lynette Chen, NEPAD Business Foundation chief executive officer said in the report.
Brenda Nang’amba, ABF acting executive secretary said the gathering will hopefully force stakeholders to act on commitments that will better Zambia’s agriculture sector.
“We need to formulate sustainable solutions that will unleash Zambia’s potential to become the region’s food basket. We are, therefore, excited to be working with the NEPAD Business Foundation which ensures there is regional private sector and Government support in order for projects [that have been] developed to have meaningful national and regional impact,” Nang’amba said.
Wealth creation and food security are amongst the most important agriculture sector improvements, Nang’amba added.
The report called the conference a “timely intervention” because of the private sector’s experienced hurdles rooted in unstable policy and infrastructure.
After reviewing the constraints to investment and trade along the Beira Corridor, the NBF launched the Southern African Agriculture Development Partnership Platform (SAADPP) in 2012.
The SAADPP is a private sector led platform that seeks to unlock investment and trade bottlenecks in the region by removing barriers to agriculture development.
Following the successful regional launch of the SAADPP as well as the Mozambique SAADPP in May 2013, the NBF, in partnership with Zambian Agribusiness Forum, is launch the SAADPP Zambia today 29 August 2013 at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Lusaka Zambia.
The purpose of the conference will be to bring policy makers and members of the private sector together in order to identify and begin designing solutions to challenges faced in increasing agricultural investment and trade in Zambia.
The private sector champions of the regional platform will present the progress on regional interventions, including proposed projects and investment opportunities that have already been identified.

Zambia Police trains officers in child forensic interview, DNA analysis

By DOREEN NAWA
THE Zambia Police has trained sixty officers in the child forensic interview and DNA analysis.
And a Police Forensic Laboratory will be opened in Lusaka to process DNA and other evidence to identify perpetrators of these crimes and improve prosecution.
Speaking when he officiated at a graduation of 60 police officers, Home affairs permanent secretary Maxwell Nkole said the 60 officers will serve as a launch pad towards the setting up of the first ever police forensic lab in the history of Zambia.
“We are aware of the fact that perpetrators of these crimes have for long time gone scout free due to insufficient or in some cases lack of forensic evidence,” Mr Nkole said.
The sixty which included police prosecutors, crime scene investigators and victim support unit officers graduated at the Lilayi Police Training College on Thursday.
And in a statement yesterday, Regional Security Officer for the U.S. Embassy Kory Hammond said preventing and prosecuting child sexual abuse and gender-based violence is a shared goal of the Zambian and US governments and is part of the response to prevent HIV.
“Law enforcement is a service profession and graduates of this course have a responsibility to protect the weakest and most vulnerable members of society,” said Mr Hammond.
Mr Hammond also disclosed that 6 trainers from the U.S. state of California conducted the training.
The training is supported by the US through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the ministry of Home Affairs.
He said the main objective of the training was to strengthen the ability of the police and justice system to protect victims and prosecute perpetrators who defile children and commit gender-based violent crimes.
Despite reports of child sexual abuse increasing, the rate of successful prosecution of these cases is low.
Mr Hammond said ‘One-Stop Centres’ for Gender-Based violence are being opened around the country.
Meanwhile Mr Hammond said three laboratory specialists from Zambia are currently being trained in Utah, United States to perform forensic laboratory examinations at Sorenson Forensics.
Sorenson Forensics will assist in setting up the lab and training staff on the ground.
“There is a backlog of cases where evidence has been collected but not tested, including semen specimens collected from defiled children that can conclusively identify the perpetrator,” Mr Hammond said.
Mr Hammond said police prosecutors, police and medical personnel also traveled to California in June this year to learn best practices in interviewing children, investigating crime scenes, and medical-legal examination of victims.
“This is part of a Public Private Partnership exchange programme supported by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the University Teaching Hospital and the Georgian Foundation, a non-profit organization,” Mr Hammond said.

Zambia displeased with soaring medical cases treated abroad

By DOREEN NAWA
THE Ministry of Health has expressed displeasure at the increasing number of medical cases being treated abroad.
And the ministry says the challenges in addressing non-communicable disease countrywide are too big to be left to the government alone.
Speaking at a health symposium at Radisson Blu Hotel in Lusaka yesterday, Minister of Health Joseph Kasonde said Government has started upgrading hospitals countrywide to ensure that they provide quality healthcare services.
“We have spent huge sums of money as a country in procuring medical services abroad, and it is time we got quality machinery in our hospitals and started to manage medical cases within Zambia,” Dr Kasonde said.
And Dr Kasonde said with the high demand for the treatment of non-communicable diseases, Government needs support from the private sector.
In a speech read for him by director clinical care and diagnostic services Welani Chilengwe,   Dr Kasonde said there is need for public private partnerships in ensuring quality healthcare delivery countrywide.  
The health symposium was organised by BBraun, a German medical and pharmaceutical manufacturing company with offices and facilities in more than 50 countries.
BBraun has a standing contract with government to upscale the University Teaching Hospital Dialysis Centre and to also introduce the same service at Livingstone General Hospital and Ndola Central Hospital.
Dr Kasonde said Government is delighted to synergise with BBraun, which has developed interventions in the medical field that have become synonymous with generic name excellence.
And Germany Embassy counsellor Isolde Aust said some German companies which have invested in Zambia have had no regrets so far.
Mrs Aust said Zambia’s peace and progressive policies are conducive for investment in any sector, including health.

CHINESE AND AFRICAN LEADERS HERALD A NEW ERA OF HEALTH COOPERATION AT FIRST CHINA-AFRICA HEALTH MINISTERS’ MEETING

China-Africa cooperation on health could benefit millions of Africans and solve some of the toughest problems in human history, a senior UN official said Friday.
"China and Africa have a long history of cooperation on health, and this year marks the 50th anniversary of Chinese medical teams being sent to Africa," Michel Sidibe, executive director of the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), said in an interview.
"I myself clearly remember when a Chinese health team came to my hometown in Mali when I was a child," Sidibe said.
"I believe China-Africa cooperation on health has the potential to bring huge benefits to the lives of millions of Africans, and solve some of the most intractable health problems in human history," he said.
The UNAIDS chief lauded China's experience, technical know-how and competitiveness in the health sector, saying it could boost progress in Africa.
China could work with Africa to develop simple, low-cost and easy-to-use tools and medical equipment, and promote the African pharmaceutical industry, he said.
In addition to machines and products, China's long-standing tradition of barefoot doctors also provided valuable experience for Africa, which sought to train at least one million community health workers, Sidibe said.
A sound cooperative partnership was mutually beneficial, Sidibe said, with China reaping financial gains, generating public good and learning from Africa's experience, especially in combating HIV/AIDS.
"Africa has many lessons for China," he said, citing Africa's success in boosting treatment access in remote, rural and minority areas, simplifying anti-retroviral treatment procedures and engaging civil society in fighting HIV/AIDS.
HIV/AIDS A CENTRAL PRIORITY:
The head of UNAIDS stressed the priority of HIV/AIDS in China-Africa cooperation on health, as the deadly epidemic remained one of the most serious health threats in Africa.
In many African countries, HIV prevalence is above 25 percent, and over a million people die from AIDS-related causes every year, according to the UN official.
"In my view, any collaboration on health in Africa must treat HIV as a central priority," he said, adding the response to HIV could serve as a pathfinder for other areas of health cooperation, such as malaria, schistosomiasis, tuberculosis, and mother and child health.
"And China's contribution to this effort will be decisive," he said.
UNAIDS has been pushing to have 15 million people under anti-retroviral treatment by 2015 and Sidibe said the HIV/AIDS movement was not only a medical, but a development and human rights issue.
"It's not just about pills," he said. "It is about restoring the dignity of people," as effective HIV treatment would enable patients to go to work and take care of children.
NEW ERA OF PARTNERSHIP:
"This partnership is already 50 years old," Sidibe said of China-Africa cooperation on health, noting health workers moving from China to Africa had helped expand the service delivery system in Africa, especially to the poor.
"But what is more important is about a new era of partnership," he said.
According to the UN official, a new partnership is expected to emerge between a transforming Africa and a growing China based on shared responsibility, shared values and the principle of mutual accountability.
"I personally feel this week's discussion is very productive about that," Sidibe said, referring to the Ministerial Forum on China-Africa Health Development held Friday.
At the forum, Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed to continue to promote cooperation with African countries on health and development initiatives.

Third International Conference On Family Planning To take place in Ethiopia

Thousands of experts, advocates and leaders will gather in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in November to assess global family planning progress and challenges one year out from the historic London Summit
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 13 August 2013 - Thousands of political leaders, scientists, health care professionals, advocates and young leaders from around the globe will gather in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 12-15 November 2013 for the Third International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP 2013). Organized around the theme 'Full Access, Full Choice,' ICFP 2013 will call attention to the wide-ranging benefits of helping couples plan and space their births and take stock of progress to ensure that everyone has access to voluntary family planning services and methods that meet their needs.
ICFP 2013 will be held one year after the 2012 London Summit on Family Planning, which generated unprecedented political will and financial support to reduce global unmet need for family planning by giving 120 million more women access to modern contraceptives by 2020. At ICFP 2013, participants will share the latest data, research and program findings to help achieve the Summit's goal. The conference, which is jointly organized by the Ministry of Health of Ethiopia and the Bill and Melinda Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, will be preceded by a High-Level Ministerial Meeting on 12 November, focusing on youth and the Demographic Dividend.
'New political and financial commitments have reinvigorated global family planning. Countries including Ethiopia, Malawi and Rwanda have stepped up, but there is still much work to be done,' said Jose 'Oying' Rimon, Deputy Director of the Gates Institute. 'ICFP 2013 is an opportunity to share strategies for success and continue building momentum to achieve full contraceptive access and choice for everyone everywhere.'
The conference will recognize nations that have made new or expanded commitments to family planning and have seen the benefits of doing so. Among them is the conference's host country, Ethiopia. Thanks to new commitments from its government, Ethiopia doubled the number of women with access to contraceptives between 2005 and 2011, and reduced unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortions and maternal and child mortality. Expanding family planning also leads to better child nutrition, improved educational attainment and stronger national economies.
'Ethiopia has seen firsthand how giving a woman the resources she needs to plan her pregnancies improves not only the woman's life, but also the health and well-being of her family and community,' said Dr. Kesetebirhan Admasu, Ethiopia's Minister of Health. 'We look forward to sharing Ethiopia's successes with the international community, and are eager to learn from the experiences of others who are expanding access to family planning.'

‘Unsafe abortions causing high maternal death’

By DOREEN NAWA
THE Zambian government says despite having legal provisions on the termination of pregnancies, women have continued using unsafe methods of removing pregnancies leading to complications and premature deaths.
And World Health Organisation (WHO) country representative Olusegun Ayorinde Babaniyi says unsafe abortions are one of the leading causes of maternal death and illness around the world, yet it is also one of the most preventable.
Speaking at a meeting on the Dissemination of the WHO safe abortion technical and policy guidance for health systems recently, deputy director in the department of surveillance and research at the Ministry of Health Maximillian Bweupe said unsafe abortions have become a topical issue globally because women are having injuries with some dying from deaths that can be prevented.
“The number of pregnancy-related deaths in Zambia remains unacceptably among the highest in the world, as it currently stands at 591 per 100,000 live births far above the millennium declaration target and 2015 is just around the corner,” Dr Bweupe said.
Dr Bweupe said the subject of abortion in society is considered taboo with widespread stigmatisation and criminalisation by both non-professionals and professionals, leaving women with few options and resorting to clandestine and backyard unsafe methods of terminating pregnancies.
“We are aware that some of the societal norms subject many women to unsafe or unwanted sex and this results into unwanted pregnancies. Additionally, overall family planning coverage remains low and put together, these factors lead to a high number of unsafe abortions,” Dr Bweupe said.
In Zambia, statistics indicate that unsafe abortions contribute up to 30 percent to the maternal mortality ratio and that is why Government has taken steps to design appropriate strategies to prevent unsafe abortions through the prevention of unwanted pregnancies.
Dr Bweupe said ending unsafe abortions is an urgent public-health and human right imperative.
And Dr Babaniyi said unsafe abortions are a serious drain on the very limited public health resources adding that African governments spend, on average US$114 per case to provide care for illness and disability associated with unsafe abortions, yet per capita spending on healthcare averages just about US$48.
“The terrible effects of unsafe abortions go well beyond the individual woman. Losing a mother and caregiver devastates the lives of children and families, and losing a healthy woman’s contributions to society reduces productivity and weakens her community,” Dr Babaniyi said.
And Ipas Zambia executive director Felicia Sakala said women around the world risk their lives to end unwanted pregnancies, yet unsafe abortions are preventable.
Mrs Sakala said advocacy for increased access to safe legal abortion is needed in order to mitigate the ever-increasing cases of unsafe abortion related deaths.