More than 3,000 US and African members of the government, private sector and civil society are gathering in Lusaka, Zambia for three days to discuss ways to strengthen trade between the United States and sub-Saharan Africa. The event is hosted by the president of Zambia.
Senior US officials, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, US Trade Rep. Ron Kirk, MCC CEO Daniel Yohannes, Assistant Secretary of State Johnnie Carson and US Deputy Trade Rep. Demetrios Marantis (who I had the pleasure of interviewing last week), will be in attendance.
Health workers in Zambia say they are battling the worst cholera outbreak in years.
The waterborne disease has killed more than 130 people and sickened close to 5,000 others in the southern African country since March. Luke Arend, head of the Lusaka office of aid group Medecins Sans Frontiers, says that’s the highest number of cases in a decade.
Health ministry spokesman Dr. Reuben Mbewe said Thursday the outbreak was due to flooding in Lusaka, the capital, after torrential rains. Shallow wells that are a main source of domestic water have become contaminated by overflow from pit latrines.
Here’s a powerful post from noted Zambian AIDS activist Princess Kasune Zulu, part of our World AIDS Day blog series this week.
Twelve years ago when Dr Tembo gave me the news that I was HIV positive, he gave me only six months to live. While Time magazine’s Man of the Year—Dr. David Ho—had created a cocktail of drugs that could suppress HIV, it would be years before treatment made its way to the poor hospital in Luanshya, Zambia where I lived.
Even five years later, only eight thousand people in Africa had access to these drugs—but millions had died. At the time, few people knew or admitted what had claimed their lives. We called the disease “Slim” or “Kalawe Noko,” which means ‘go and say goodbye to your mother.’ It had no respect of person—it took the young and the strong, leaving behind the weak and the frail.
Proudly today, I have witnessed a great increase in the number of people accessing treatment. Given the “perfect storm” of conditions that allowed AIDS to march across Africa, the fact that the tide is now turning is both remarkable and inspirational. Millions of deaths have been averted. Children can now sleep at night with their parents watching over them.
But I caution to add—our task is far from over. In 2008, for every two people who started taking antiretroviral drugs, another five become newly infected. Access to treatment is a long way from being universal.
We need to maintain the pressure on our elected leaders, our places of worship and our broader communities to march forward.
Twelve years ago, I was given six months to live. I am still fighting, and God willing, I will continue to do so. I will continue to fight until all who require treatment, regardless of where we were born and how we contracted the virus, have access not only to HIV/AIDS treatment, but to all health services. That to me is universal access—and that is a basic human right.
UNICEF USA’s Fieldnotes Blog has a great report from a rural health clinic in Zambia– specifically post-natal and prevention of mother-to-child treatment (PMTCT) care.
Rolina is HIV positive and is enrolled in the clinic’s PMTCT program. She and her husband Terrance married in 2002 and they have three children; Terrance is also HIV positive. Both Rolina and Terrance are doing everything in their power to ensure that little Brenda stays safe and healthy which is not the case for Brenda’s older sister Constance. Constance is 4 years old and HIV positive. Constance is on pediatric treatment which is keeping her strong. Their older brother Clayton does what he can at 7 years old to look after his two younger sisters.
Mother to child transmission (children from HIV positive mothers being infected during pregnancy or delivery) in Zambia is the second most important factor of transmission. PMTCT provides parents with hope but more importantly if the treatment is followed correctly it provides parents with a healthy child.
Terrance and Rolina are leaders in their community. They are open about their status in hopes of making a difference in other people lives. Terrance runs an HIV/AIDS couples support group in Keemba and sees 20-25 couples each week. Rolina adhering to the PMTCT program stopped breastfeeding Brenda at 6 months despite the statement this makes to the community. Mothers who bottle feed their child are questioned and sometimes frowned upon. But Rolina does not get discouraged because she knows that breastfeeding past 6 months increases the risk of her child becoming infected.
In Zambia, a rainy season has raised fears of a cholera outbreak. To help prevent a cholera outbreak, UNICEF and its partners have launched a new advocacy campaign called “Your Life is in Your Hands.”
The key to the campaign’s effectiveness, according to UNICEF, is that it relies on peer-to-peer advocacy, meaning that children and young people become effective ambassadors in spreading the importance of good hygiene to their peers. The campaign is being rolled out “through town–hall meetings for school children, follow-up events in schools, radio public service announcements and a UNICEF cartoon character named SOPO.”
You can read more about “Your Life is in Your Hands” here.
The Swedish and Dutch governments announced today that they will suspend $33 million in aid to Zambia following reports about embezzlement in the Ministry of Health. Reports indicate the civil society was calling for the Ministry of Health to publish expenditures, but former President Mwanawasa cancelled the spending reports, which may have led some officials to siphon funds for their own use. In response to concerns that the lack of funding will affect the delivery of health services, the Minister of Finance Musokotwane stated that the Zambian government will develop a plan to fill the gap and investigate the corruption charges.
The transparent publication of spending by donors and governments is a critical component of ensuring money for development is used as effectively as possible. Like the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria, the Swedish and Dutch governments’ response to reports of embezzlement in the health sector suggests their support for the idea that well-governed programs are critical to successful development and that aid can help to encourage transparency and accountability.
Two of my colleagues were in Rwanda last week for a conference of African Ministers on climate change and whilst there they caught up with Catherine Namugala, the Zambian Minister of Tourism, Environment and Natural Resources.
She did a little video for ONE, talking about climate change in Zambia. She says that the adverse effects of climate change are definitely being felt in Zambia, most notably for subsistence farmers and others living off the land. Changing rainfall patterns as part of climate change are leading to increased flooding and drought for example.
Namugala goes on to say that even though her country does not contribute significantly to climate change, Zambia is focussing on raising awareness amongst the general population and also looking at ways to adapt to the effects of climate change. Emphasising that it’s a question of morality, Namugala concludes with a call to developed countries to do their bit as the major contributors of global warming.
Right now, some of the world's biggest oil companies are fighting to keep some of their deals with foreign governments secret. Let's tell big oil we won't be bullied.
Cuts to poverty-fighting programs won't balance the budget, but they will set back progress on Canada's development priorities and risk jeopardizing existing investments.
2011 marks 30 years since the first cases of AIDS were documented. Take a closer look at the specific, achievable goals we must hit by 2015 to make this year the beginning of the end of AIDS.
Twelve years ago when Dr Tembo gave me the news that I was HIV positive, he gave me only six months to live. While Time magazine’s Man of the Year—Dr. David Ho—had created a cocktail of drugs that could suppress HIV, it would be years before treatment made its way to the poor hospital in Luanshya, Zambia where I lived.
