Football Fanaticism vs Patriotism

Recently, I got into an online discussion with a friend about football. He and I support opposing teams in the English Premier League. Our conversation turned to the unhappy fact that many supposed football fans are unable to have a rational conversation about the sport or their team with other supporters. This was prompted by my posting a comment about our Manager, who accused the opponents in the upcoming match of being obsessed with the Champion's league. I assured my friend that I consider myself to be one of the few enlightened football supporters.

For those in doubt about where my football 'allegiance' lies

I love my team, but I see no need to insult other people because they support another team. Do people have nothing else to do with their lives than engage in fake and extremely contrived rivalry that is just plain ridiculous.

If more people in Zambia applied as much passion, loyalty, dedication, time, effort, energy and finances to the state and welfare of our nation, as they do to football, Zambia would be a great country indeed. Fathers would spend more time with their children and many a bar would go out of business (no major loss in my book -- perhaps HIV and gender based violence would conversely reduce also). If our political and corporate leaders were half as interested in development as they are in football, we would be a middle income country right now and not by 2030. Our national football team rarely struggles to raise funds from the national budget or from big business sponsors. At the same time, if we invested a fraction of the time and money that we do in foreign football into the local game, our national team would a have a steady supply of quality players. Then, perhaps I would consider the Chipolopolo Boys as deserving of my devoted attention. 

It distresses me that people get so emotional about football, but not many of the injustices we see around us everyday. If we were as patriotic as we are blind supporters of football clubs, to the point of insulting or beating up other fans after the loss of our team, our country would be in a much better place. And patriotism is not the same as supporting the national team. We are so forgiving of football teams, players, managers etc, but are so quick to jump ship and abandon our country (figuratively or physically) when things get rough. We take time to plan our schedules and finances around the sport, but will not go out of our way to support local businesses and products. A mediocre and under-performing team still gets people crammed into a bar to watch another defeat.

Don't get me wrong, I am a loyal (but informed and rational) football and Manchester United fan. I went to the world cup in South Africa, for the love of the game. But honestly, some football supporters need to get a life. 

It is for this reason, that I rarely have football conversations with the unenlightened and ignorant majority of football supporters.


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A Vital Voice

This short video inspired me and brought tears to my eyes. It is sad that girls must bargain in order to have a better life. But, what I have learned from this, is that the smart person uses the resources available to them to make a better life.

In many instances, we work against harmful cultural practices, but examples like this show that everything can be turned to one's advantage. The one who comes before sunrise, brings good news. Wow!

"We Are Tomorrow's Zambia"

This past Youth Day, on 12th March 2011, our still happening, 74 year old president, sent us a message.

Yes, RB has a YouTube Channel.

I definitely like the fact that someone in State House is trying to communicate with youth in a language they think young people will understand and relate to. This is a good start, which the idealist in me wants to believe can lead to more dialogue and engagement with young people. And quite frankly, I don't see anyone else making the effort to communicate with me as a young person. And so, advantage - Banda.

We all want to be heard, to feel understood and to know that we have been considered -- that we matter. Every good PR person knows this.

Obviously, the discerning will see through such tricks. But, honestly, I don't think we have very many of such people around. In a developing country such as ours, the masses are satisfied with very little and that, ladies and gentlemen, is exactly how our leaders like it.

International Women's Day - 100 years of Phenomenal Women

Phenomenal woman, I salute you.

I was inspired to write this morning, by the fantastic coverage in today's Guardian to mark the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day. It is a public holiday in Zambia. A small, token recognition, but every journey begins with a small step.

I had initially thought of writing about the many phenomenal women that have inspired and motivated me in my life, but perhaps I will list them at the end. Instead, I wanted to explore a little bit about the negative attitudes toward women's development and gender issues in Zambia today.

I live in a country officially listed as one of the poorest and most disadvantaged places in the world for a girl child to be born and grow up in. The lot of a woman in Zambia is not an easy one. It is even harder for girls. To make it to the age of 16 or even 21 means you will have survived many hardships. In Zambia today, many people have become tired of hearing about gender. There are many men (and very many women), who look around the offices and board rooms and on TV and see women CEOs, managers and executives and think that our work is done. Have we come a long way? Yes we have. But, we are far, far, far away from arriving at our destination.

How quickly we forget that the women we see in the offices and on TV are the tip of an anthill. I attended a meeting chaired by one of Zambia's prominent gender activists. There were many representatives from various districts in the country. One senior government official from northern province commented that the fact that she (my boss), was in her position showed that we now had 'gender'. Her response struck me. She said, "Do not look at me as the Executive Director and do not look at me on TV or because I write a newspaper column and think that I represent Zambian women. I am the exception!"

In a population of 13 million, those people who make it to college and into the formal sector are the 5% minority. Of these lucky few, much less than half are women. It baffles me how often we forget this. People ask me why I always talk (including frequently in this blog), about how priviliged I am? This is because in my work, I am always looking at statistics and I see myself in them everyday. What stands out is the larger number on the other side. If we who have been advantaged, think we have 'arrived' and that we can afford to say that "women must now work to be recognised on merit", as though affirmative action has achieved so much (when it has not), then it is a sad day indeed.

I am where I am on merit and perhaps because it was recognised by someone that it is important to give young women an opportunity to progress. I am grateful for that because I know I deserve every reward I have been given and I have earned every promotion or achievement I have received. I am definitely saying that merit is what we should strive for, but to think that we have somehow achieved equality because a bank or two has a female CEO is just plain ridiculous. We would be doing a great disservice to the many other women in this country to whom we have a responsibility to bring up with us as we go forward with our personal and national development efforts.

Yes, it is our responsibility. Intergenerational justice demands it.

When we pick up the newspapers or flick through the roll calls of history, we will see named women and many more unnamed, undocumented and un-photographed women who have fought battles for women who they would never know or see. Those who fought for our independence. Those who fought for a woman's right to vote; to be educated; to work outside the home; for equal pay and benefits. For the right of women to shop and travel and socialise where they wanted. Then are those women who challenged the way we dress and do our hair; who showed us how to sing, and perform, and make money. Those who set up their own businesses and empires. What about the women who reminded the world that it is not right for women to be battered, abused or sexually assaulted; who ensured that perpetrators of such crimes were punished? The women who fought for our health care; who fundraise for research into breast cancer and other diseases that mainly afflict women. Those who entered professions that were male domains and excelled. Those who pushed the envelope so that I would have the right to choose to do it too or not to do it if that was MY choice. I am grateful to those women who write, document and film the plight of women and girls all over the world who need to have their stories heard. Because many years ago women in England took to the streets so women could vote, I am a registered voter; and will make my choice count in our elections later this year.

Phenomenal woman, I salute you.

We owe it to these women to continue in this cause and we owe it to the girl in Chadiza whose parents would rather sell her off in marriage at the age of 12. Even though the Head Teacher knows this is wrong, s/he has no means to offer a definite promise of a better future should the girl not get married. What are the prospects to get out of Chadiza or rather, have a better life right there in Chadiza? It should not be about getting a fancy job in an office, but being empowered and educated enough to live a better life where you are. We know that every year of education a girl child receives adds to her own life expectancy and even more years to the lives of any children she may have. I believe that education remains the window of opportunity for women to better their own lives and ultimately the nation and the world.

Phenomenal woman, I salute you.

In this vein, I am starting a trust with a friend of mine, that will try to encourage women from my village who have 'made it' to give back and help the next girl. Now, it is well known that I am from the Copperbelt, a town girl through and through. But the role models in Chingola town are lining the streets. I am talking about my registered village in Kabompo District, Northwestern Province - where my mother comes from.

This idea was inspired by two trips I have made in my work. One was when I worked in Chadiza, in the Eastern province of Zambia. We had spent a week in a community doing a PRA (Participatory Rural Appraisal), and when we asked the young people who they could point to that came from that community and had gone on to school and finished and then on to college and was working, who they looked up to as a role model, they could only mention one guy who had become a teacher somwhere in the next district. Obvioulsy, this was one small community/ward. But the truth is that I heard the same story in many other communities and districts and provinces as well. The most recent was in Kaoma, where the older women we spoke to were able to name one lady who is a senior civil servant and was very active in the community by coming back to develop the area and encourage others.

This project is not about those who are rich enough to have extra, but ordinary working women who make enough to get by, giving a chance to others. Even though we give support to our own families, there are always those who don't have connections or relatives in town to help them out. This is not a huge NGO, but just young women getting in a car and contribting money for fuel and accommodation to go and speak at schools back home to encourage girls and motivate them with positive role moedls who don't come from rich families but who are just ordinary women trying to do something for other women.

Phenomenal Woman of the last one hundred years, I salute you.

The spirit of ubuntu is this - I am, because you are, because we are. One hundred years from now, may I have lived a life worthy to be counted as one of you.

Phenomenal woman, I salute you!

Social media booms in Africa

Did you know that Facebook is the most visited website in Africa? 

‘Studies suggest that when Africans go online (predominantly with their mobile phones) they spend much of their time on social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and so on). Sending and reading e-mails, reading news and posting research queries have become less important activities for Africans.

In recent months Facebook — the major social media platform worldwide and currently the most visited website in most of Africa — has seen massive growth on the continent. The number of African Facebook users now stands at over 17 million, up from 10 million in 2009. More than 15 per cent of people online in Africa are currently using the platform, compared to 11 per cent in Asia. Two other social networking websites, Twitter and YouTube, rank among the most visited websites in most African countries.’

This is from the UN’s Africa Renewal magazine, published in December 2010. Here is the link to the article: Africa Renewal Magazine | A social media boom begins in Africa.

I found this piece interesting for a number of reasons: Our internet use in Africa (and Zambia) compared to the rest of the world is still low, but our Facebook use is higher than that in Asia - in terms of percentage of sites accessed. More importantly, however, what does this study say about our development prospects in Africa?

If Africa is to develop and propser socially and economically, many have touted the internet, information and technology as one of the ways to do it. But, isn't it telling that as Africans, we are more interested in social media than in business, science and economics. And, before people become over excited about a social media revolution in Egypt, we should be realistic that Twitter, Facebook et al were merely components in a much larger revolutionary mechanism. Do we escape into YouTube because we don't know where else on the internet to go, or because we are running away from our poverty stricken, corruption laden real lives?

A Song About Love

Today is Valentine's Day. The day of love. Not very deep inside of me, I am a romantic. In 1st Corinthians the Bible says that love '...bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails'. Don't listen to the cynics; love really does makes the world go round. Human beings would not exist if it weren't for the love that helps us to be patient, to be kind, to be gracious, to have mercy and to forgive. Love makes us want to do better and be better. Love covers a multitude of sins in all our relationships.

No matter the disappointments and heartbreaks that life, love and relationships may bring, I really do believe in love. And it is for this reason that I always come back to a song, 'I Am Ready For Love' by India Arie.



I believe in love!

The Stench of Disease and Despair

I have been afflicted with a recurring ear infection for some time now. After ten months of visiting a private hospital, I accepted the stark truth; that I had reached that stage -- the UTH stage.

Our healthcare system in Zambia points to one place, the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) on Nationalist road. You can go to the most expensive private clinic in the country, but if you are genuinely sick, you will end up at the UTH. This is of course for your own good. Zambia is a relatively small country populationwise. Preliminary 2010 census data puts our official population at 13 point something million. 

The University Teaching Hospital - Lusaka, Zambia

The UTH is a teaching hospital, so all the specialists are found there, passing on their knowledge to the next generation of physicians. Being the referral centre means that staff here have the advantage of seeing every ailment known to this region. The common ailments and the rare and obscure diseases alike. Private hospitals tend to see patients within a very narrow disease spectrum. They don't handle the big stuff, unless it is one of these well funded and equipped mission hospitals out in the hills somewhere. But even these only benefit from one or two skilled expatriate surgeons in a particular field.

Back to my experience. 

I am convinced that the state of our healthcare system says much about the state of our nation and about our social and economic development. I did not doubt the competence or skill of the staff I interacted with. In fact, I thought often of my hard earned Kwacha invested in private hospitals over the last one year. However, my situation was far from critical. I drove myself after popping into the office to check mail etc. I had thought I would be back by lunch time (but it turned out that I only left the UTH just before 5pm). I paid to be fast-tracked to the top of the doctor's list (next in line after admitted patients). I think that my professional attire, high heels and insistence on only speaking clear and sharp English ensured that I did not wait very long and was well attended to. 

The doctor ordered a series of tests and x-rays. Some could only be done at our famous Nkanza Laboratories (where erring men are called for paternity tests and suspicious partners submit DNA samples). Mine was not so glamorous as this. My doctor insisted the x-ray be done at the UTH because she trusted them more than my having it done at a private hospital. Who was I to argue with her? 

After being sent all over the hospital because one cashier didn't have a receipt book and the other was not accepting out-patient payments, I finally made my way to Radiology and immediately regretted my decision. The stench of death and disease was everywhere. As was the pungent aroma of sorrow and despair. 

It is my privilege (and I try not to take it for granted), that I am one of the 5% who went to school and finished; then went to university; graduated and found a good job. I earn enough money that I go to UTH by choice, not by necessity. My appearance, voice and demeanor generally command respect (of course, depending on the situation - female gender and youth in Africa are frequent disadvantages). I can afford to pay to be seen at 11:30 and so not have to begin queuing at 6am as many do. I drive there and do not have to walk 21km to get to only see a disgruntled, overworked, underpaid brusque nurse instead of a doctor.

As I walked out of UTH holding my nose when I passed patients lying in waiting rooms or in corridors with gaping wounds everything felt SO WRONG. It shouldn't be like this. I was amazed at how cheap everything was. From the tests to the x-rays. People should not have to struggle to pay a dollar for a blood test. My x-ray only cost me K10,000 (two US dollars). More than ten times less than in some private hospitals. 

Don't get me wrong! UTH is not as bad as it once was; but, neither is it as good as it has been. It is an institution that is clearly underfunded and under-resourced. Most people there know what needs to be done but not all departments have the capacity to do it. For instance, I went to get a blood test but they didn't have any bottles. So, I had to leave to begin looking for a pharmacy in which to buy one. The test was done and I was given my blood (in a vial) with a slip of paper and told to take it to the haematology department for testing. The other sample, I was to take around the corner to another lab department. 

For my own convenience and safety, I was advised by friends who work there to carry my x-ray home with me, together with my out-patient card. This is just in case it gets lost or misfiled. Hence, it is safer with me. A relative who works in the hospital offered to follow up my test results for safe keeping. Once my review date comes up, all I need to do is dig out all my information and get in line to see the doctor.

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If you have time, please have a read of this interesting blog from an American resident on placement at UTH.