LACK OF SAFE WATER, SANITATION AND SOAP ‘AN EMBARRASSMENT’, SAYS WHO

Alarming figures on a lack of clean water in health centres have been highlighted in a joint report published on Tuesday by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef). “Access to water in health centres and even in delivery rooms has fallen between the gaps in the millennium development goals,” said Bruce Gordon, coordinator of water, sanitation, hygiene and health for the WHO. “It’s an embarrassment for the health sector that this issue is so ignored. It’s a fixable crisis. It’s a crisis because it’s hidden.”

Nurse Vinima Baya carries a tub that is used to bring clean water

to the community health centre for women in labour, in the village

of Diatoula, 15km from Bamako, Mali.

Photograph: Tara Todras-Whitehill/WaterAid

In low- and middle-income countries, 38% of health centres have no access to water, according to the report. It says that adequate sanitation is lacking in 19% of health centres, and 35% do not even provide water and soap for staff and patients to wash their hands and maintain basic hygiene.

Dirty water and the lack of safe toilets are among the top five killers of women worldwide. Without these basic facilities, health centres cannot adequately prevent and control infections, placing mothers and children at risk during delivery. Where latrines are not provided, mothers in labour may have to go outside to relieve themselves, and tend to leave health facilities within hours of giving birth, leaving little time for them to receive advice and support.

Drawing on data from 54 countries, the report covers more than 66,000 centres. But the data is likely to overstate actual access significantly, since most surveys merely note the presence of water within 500 metres of the health centre rather than indicating whether supplies are piped, safe to drink or year-round.

The report is a first step towards a baseline study as NGOs and health organisations encourage governments, donors and stakeholders to make water, sanitation and hygiene (Wash) in health contexts both a higher political priority and measurable as part of the new sustainable development goals. Better data is crucial for Wash access to be included in indicators on heath, education and gender goals.

The findings show that Mali is currently the poorest performer, with just 20% of health facilities providing clean water. There is inequity within many countries – for example in Kenya, where 58% of hospitals had access to water but only 35% of primary health clinics. In Ethiopia, there is access to drinking water in 99% of the capital’s health facilities but only 23% in the Gambela region.

Vietnam is one country that now monitors Wash in health centres. It has encouraged progress by holding a clean toilet contest and offering incentives to improve services.

Globally, one in 50 babies die before they are a month old. According to a report released by WaterAid on Tuesday, one in five newborn deaths could be prevented with safe water, sanitation and clean hands. In 2013, more than 2.7 million newborns did not survive a month, and 99% of these neonatal deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries.

Barbara Frost, WaterAid’s chief executive, said: “The links between dirty hands, dirty water and infant mortality have been known about for over 150 years so this is not a solution waiting for an answer, but an injustice waiting for action.

“The ability to keep a hospital or clinic clean is such a fundamental basic requirement of healthcare that you have to question whether a facility without clean running water or basic sanitation can adequately serve its patients.”

Diatoula in Mali, 15km south-east of Bamako, is a community of 1,000 people. Vinima Baya, 29, the only nurse, runs the centre with the support of a pharmacist, Soungalo Diarra, 30, who had three months’ training in the typical medicines likely to be required at the centre. She did three years’ specialist nursing training after completing her baccalaureate.

Baya, who is originally from Bamako, has two children herself. She came at the request of the community, but can only afford to stay on by growing onions to sell in her spare time. Her husband lives near his work in a nearby town.

It costs 3,500 CFA ($5.60) for an uncomplicated delivery at the centre, plus any necessary drugs. This fee covers salaries and the basic equipment at the centre – there is no state or other external funding.

As there is no water within the facility, patients need to bring in 25-30 litres of water or five buckets’ worth to try to maintain a clean environment during the birth. There is a hand pump on the other side of the village near the school (donated by Japan), but the nearest water point to the centre is a deep well, which can run low at certain points of the year.

Reviewing her register, Baya notes that there have been 33 births at the centre so far this year; three of the babies were born dead and two died within their first month.

Sixteen-year-old Fatoumata Djarra’s son, Allaman Sidiqi Djarra, her first child, died 15 days after he was born.

Fatoumata Djarra, 16, who lost her son 15 days after he was born,

outside her house in the village of Diatoula, 15km from Bamako,

Mali. Photograph: Tara Todras-Whitehill/WaterAid

“When I was pregnant, I came for consultation and advice. I gave birth here in the community health centre. It was at night. I came with my family members,” she said. “They went to collect water at the well in the village. I didn’t have any special circumstances in my delivery.”

When Fatoumata noticed her baby was not well she gave him traditional medicine. “I just noticed some black spots on his legs and his body. He wasn’t feeling good, he didn’t eat anything, he didn’t drink anything. It took only one day before he died.”

Though Fatoumata did not return to the health centre for confirmation, the symptoms suggest sepsis infection.

 

Funding challenge

Ahead of the development finance meeting in Addis in July, ways of raising the necessary capital for water, sanitation and hygiene are under urgent consideration. A live debate is whether Wash would benefit from a global fund mechanism like HIV and aids, vaccines or education, or whether it would be better served by more cross-cutting funding. Currently, it is often down to households and communities to find their own solutions. The WHO-Unicef report found that only 25% of countries have funded plans to address the issue.

the guardian 

ETHIOPIA DENIES TEMESGHEN DESALEGN ACCESS TO MEDICAL CARE IN JAIL

Authorities in Ethiopia have denied medical attention to Ethiopian journalist Temesghen Desalegn, who has been imprisoned since October, according to sources close to the journalist.

Temesghen Desalegn, owner of the now-defunct newsmagazine Feteh (Justice), is serving a three-year term in Ziway Prison, outside Addis Ababa, on charges of defamation, incitement, and false publication in connection with a series of opinion pieces he wrote in Feteh in 2012, according to news reports and a translation of the charge sheet that CPJ reviewed.

Sources close to Temesghen, including two who visit him in prison, told CPJ that Temesghen suffers from stomach and back pain for which he used to receive weekly medical support before he was jailed. The sources said that Temesghen has been denied medical access since he was imprisoned and that his back pain has worsened to the point that walking is difficult for him.

The African Charter on Human and People's Rights, to which Ethiopia is a signatory, states that authorities are obligated to ensure that its citizens receive medical attention when necessary. 

CPJ's calls to the Ethiopian justice ministry in Addis Ababa, and CPJ's calls and emails to the Ethiopian embassy in Washington, were not answered.

Earlier this year, prison authorities denied Temesghen prison visits from friends and family for more than a month, according to a public letter by Temesghen's mother, Fanaye Irdachew. Authorities did not provide an explanation, but local journalists told CPJ they suspected Temesghen had been denied prison visits after an article he wrote from prison was published in several Ethiopia news websites. The articles detailed the mistreatment of prisoners at Ziway Prison.

Temesghen often criticized the authorities in his articles. In 2012, he wrote two articles that discussed the peaceful struggles of Ethiopian youth movements for political change, according to the charge sheet that CPJ reviewed. He also wrote two columns that criticized alleged government efforts to violently suppress student protesters and ethnic minorities reviewed.

"Temesghen Desalegn has not committed any crime. He is being punished for his criticism of the Ethiopian government," said CPJ East Africa Representative Tom Rhodes. "We call on authorities to stop harassing Temesghen and allow him immediate access to medical care."

Ethiopian authorities were holding at least 17 journalists in jail-more than twice the number as the year before-when CPJ conducted its annual prison census on December. Dozens of journalists fled Ethiopia in 2014 fearing arrest, CPJ research shows. Local journalists said they suspect authorities had cracked down on the press in order to silence critical voices ahead of May 2015 legislative elections. 

CPJ 

“LIVE” SOCCER COMMENTARIES: A QUESTION OF SPORT

Professor Mwizenge Tembo

As an example of a ‘live’ radio soccer commentary, wind back the hands of time and picture yourself at Dag Hammerskjoeld stadium   when Zambia played Uganda in a regional qualifying match in the 70s. Below is an actual part of the ‘live’ commentary by Dennis Liwewe. Thanks to Professor Mwizenge Tembo of Bridgewater College in Virginia for posting it on You Tube.

“Here comes Mwape (Kenny). Mwape again to his captain Musenge Ackim) Musenga back again to Mwape. Mwape picks up the ball again and he takes a long, long shot past the center circle position in a 1-0 situation and then intercepted far away from here…..again it was a foul to Zambia. Ten meters inside, taken very quickly to Jani Simulambo…..a long, long beautiful shot over to Bernard Chanda. Chanda you have got the the ball, shoot! You are missing it again……I never believe! 1-0 Uganda in the lead. Mwape has the ball. He takes a long, long shot past the center circle. He is looking for Mugala (Burton) Mugala has got the ball….all the way to Chola (Alex)…….it’s a Goal!.. ……. 1-1 to Chola. Chola makes it 1-1 in 27 minutes.”  At full time, Zambia had beaten Uganda by 4-2.

Dennis Liwewe, was a personality who moved Zambia and its neighbouring countries, Africa and the  world at large with his lively commentaries and critique. His respected voice during ‘live’ soccer commentaries. He was the voice of Zambia’s football that earned him an award of Distinguished Service by First Republican President Dr. Kenneth Kaunda in 1977. Without doubt, Dennis had a way of keeping a soccer match ‘live and alive’ on radio. Determination, self-discipline, constant practice and the eagerness to want to do a good job was the only way of getting best results in any soccer match. Appearing on the British Broadcasting Corporation”s Fast Track programme presented by Farayi Mungazi, Dennis put across his thoughts on what makes a good, exciting ‘live’ soccer commentary. Below are some excerpts I picked from the full interview
Farayi Mungazi :Why is football such a great game to you?

Liwewe: Football is a great game to me personally because I showed the world that I never played the game in my life, I never knew the game at school because I wanted to get Grade A in English Language so while my colleagues were on the pitch playing I was reading. I was very brilliant - I can assure you. But I decided to take on a new challenge in broadcasting and that was it. I used to record football commentaries from the BBC and then go to the bush to study it and took my own style of broadcasting - the African style of excitement particularly on the radio. I did try television commentary but people said it was a disaster. That is not my style. Mine was radio commentary. The problem I had was that most of the people including the then president of Zambia, Dr Kenneth Kaunda, when they were going to matches at the stadium carried their radio sets to watch matches when I was doing commentary. So one was I aware that all these people were listening and watching at the same time so one couldn't afford to do mistakes. So preparations had to be very very thorough. So it made me do the job perfectly well.

David Owen : What preparation did you go through before games. What tricks did you have for remembering player names and positions?

Liwewe: Those days it was difficult because the opposing teams were only seen on match days and you had the team sheets one hour before the game. There were no names at the back of the jerseys too so it was tough. But with determination, self-discipline and the eagerness to want to do a good job helped me. I practiced in the shower early in the morning. The constant practice on imaginary matches helped a lot.

Liwewe’s son Ponga, also a well known sports commentator on Supersport says much as radio commentaries are different compared to those carried out on television, preparations are almost the same except on radio “you have to be more imaginative” in order for the listener to appreciate what you are talking about.

 On a quick ten minutes telephone conversation with him from South Africa last week, Ponga said, “I have worked in commentary on both radio and television and the two styles are totally different. On radio you have to be much more descriptive as you have to create a picture in the mind of the listener since they are not able to see the pictures. You have to inform them where on the pitch the ball is, give them an indication where the receiving player is and the movement of other players. When the ball is crossed into the box, listeners need to know from where it is coming from, whether it is near the by-line or further down field, which means the quality and significance of the cross differs. It’s not enough to just say the ball is being played into the box.”

He added that for television commentary, everyone sees what is happening and the role of a commentator is more to be more analytical, and hence the creation of the role of a co-commentator who talks tactics, potential scenarios and gives a more in-depth perspective. Ponga said on TV the commentator does not need to mention each and every player who is on the ball, and at times even a pause helps as the viewers can see what is happening.

Concluded Ponga, “The key to success in both radio and television commentary is preparation. You have slit seconds to give details and little time to refer to notes so you have to know your subject. You also have to know the players, not only by name but by the way they run, walk, their physical profiles so that even when you can’t see clearly, you can tell who it is.

I once emceed an event which was the Africa Cup of Nations trophy tour in South Africa and was able to recite the history of the tournament from 1959 to 2010, looking at the key moments of each of the 26 tournament’s that had taken place up to that point in time. It would not have been possible to store this information in a short period of time, but because I had constantly read and been to many tournaments it was not too difficult to refresh my memory and to read where I was lacking in information.”

With the given explanations above, it is clear that becoming a professional “live” soccer commentator requires a lot of work and a lot of practice if one has to be noticed. My advice is “be yourself and develop a different style from all other commentators. Always remember that there can only be one Dennis Liwewe!

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Ben Kangwa is a broadcast journalist and media consultant based in Lusaka.

COMMUNITY RADIO; A QUESTION OF LANGUAGE

I had already received my letter of recall from the Foreign Service after having served almost seven years at the Embassy of the Republic of Zambia in Washington DC. That was mid 2014. During the period I was at the Mission, I had several times gone on one of those ten day leave to visit friends and relatives spread across the United States.

Though I had been to Atlanta once before on official duty, I had always longed for an opportunity that would enable me visit places of interest such as the CNN Center, the Martin Luther King Jr National Historic Center, the World of Coca-Cola and the Jimmy Carter Library. Most of all, I had always promised an American friend Professor Debra (Spitulnik) Vidali that one day, before the end of my tour, I would bring along my family to Atlanta so she could get to meet them.

Professor Vidali is an Associate Professor of Anthropology at Emory University. She spent several years in Zambia in Lusaka, Luapula and Northern Provinces researching on the Bemba language. She has authored numerous essays on radio and peoples’ relationships with media and language in Zambia.  In the 80s, her first port of call had been the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) where she interacted with most broadcasters from both the English and Bemba sections. She had also lived and met with some Bemba chiefs in most parts of Luapula and the then Northern Province. At Emory University, she is recognized as an expert in the Bemba language and the Bemba traditions.

It was no wonder that when I visited her at the Department of Anthropology, her office was full of African Literature books, many of Zambia writers. Her library consisted Zambian writers from Stephen Mpashi’s Pano Chalo, Chekesoni, Uwakalema Takaleka to Andrea Masiye’s Before Dawn, Dominic Mulaisho’s Tongue of the Dumb, Alick Musonda’s Maliongo, Imamba taifyala mamba mbiye. Other Zambian writers included books by Mubanga Kashoki, Maon Kachinga, Brighton Lubasi, Phallen Bwalya and Mwanza Nakawala. Dr. Vidali also has the largest private collection of Harriet Chirwa and Agnes Morton’s Bana Chimbusa programmes, Mwansa Kapeya’s Ifyabukaya and David Yumba’s Kabusha Takolelwe Ubowa.

She was later to tell me that her celebrated Bemba Presenter and Producer on local language radio on the Home Service of the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) was the late David Yumba, the initiator of Kabusha Takolelwe Ubowa, a Bemba proverb translated into English as “A person who inquires first, is not poisoned by mushroom”. The programme whose letters were be read by the co-presenter, the late Emelda Yumbe, were answers to letters from listeners about politics, current affairs, the family and society in general. The same programme was presented and produced in the Lozi and Kaonde languages as Singanyeganye and  Mbulaiko respectively.

Dr. Vidali woud also state the importance of other local language programmes on the Home Service (Radio One) such as the Nyanja’s Phochezda Madzulo (meaning to hang around in the evening), Ifyabukaya in Bemba (meaning things you know), Malikopo, a Tonga programme of a hero advising people in urban areas whose income had become low to go back to the land).

As we got deeper into the importance of vernacular or local languages in community broadcasting, we were first agreed that radio is the most popular mass medium in Zambia and that at the moment Zambia had a four tier broadcasting system that comprises public, commercial, community and religious broadcasting.

This statement had been further made by the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) in its submission to the Parliamentary Committee on Information and Broadcasting in November, 2014 and I quote, “A Public broadcaster is one that broadcasts for public benefit rather than for commercial purposes. Whereas, according t the IBA Act, a Commercial broadcaster is one that provides a diverse range of programming addressing a wide section of the country. It provides an appropriate amount of local and national programming.

On the other hand, Community and Religious broadcasting is one that reflects the needs of the people in the community which includes the cultural language and demographic needs. It focusses on the provision of programmes that highlight grassroots community issues such as developmental, environmental and educational with Religious broadcasting focusing on the religious beliefs and needs of the people and provide a distant broadcasting service dealing specifically with religious issues,” end of quote.

The emergence of local language usage as a central component of Community Radio is an outcome of the liberalized market that has shifted broadcasters’ attention to the rural audiences as the largest section of the population of Zambia. For instance, rural populations are always a focal point in terms of government policy making and in the highlighting of activities carried out by the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and any organization that is concerned with improving the living standards and conditions of the under-privileged. It can also be used to address issues focusing on agriculture, the environment and tourism.

Politically, ethnic tensions, human rights and corruption can be addressed and ‘digested’ fully in the usage of a local language on a Community Radio.  Other issues include how low literacy levels, gender disparities, problems of HIV/AIDS and any other communicable diseases can be tackled.

Local language on Community Radio can also contribute to a positive media step towards information, entertainment and education provision. For this reason, it is expected that Community Radio that uses local language in its broadcasts should carry more local content that is relevant to their target population. Kariba FM located in Siavonga, as an example, would be expected to address issues that affect the farming and fishing community in Siavonga or indeed highlight any other issue that deeply affects people in Siavonga area.

 Herbert Macha a media expert, who was instrumental in the launch of Kariba FM Radio says, “The radio broadcasts in Siavonga, Chirundu and some parts of Zimbabwe. People in the area predominantly speak Tonga and a bit of Goba. 70 percent of programmes are in Tonga and only 30 per cent are in English.”

According to Macha, for a long time people in the area had no or poor reception from ZNBC and therefore were forced to listen in to Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) whose programmes are in Shona and Ndebele.

He adds, “You must also understand that there are Tonga speaking people in Zimbabwe and this radio has linked the two peoples’ who unfortunately found themselves on either side of the Kariba.

 In the same line one would expect Mazabuka FM Radio to address issues of interest to the local community. The role of Mazabuka FM, Kariba FM, Liseli, Lyambai, Radio Mano, Chikuni, Chikaya and the rest of the other Community Radio Stations spread across Zambia cannot be over emphasized.

Against this background, it could be said that Community Radio plays an important role in peoples’ lives. It gives people a sense of the world they live in. They get information and news on what is happening within their locality, country and the world at large. It allows people who are otherwise excluded from other forms of mainstream media such as print media, a channel to express their voices and a role to play in public discourse. But at the end of it all, the local language plays a catalyst role.

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Ben Kangwa is a broadcast journalist and Media Consultant.