Chilimba helping to turn tables

By ANN ZULU

WOMEN in Zambia are still considered as dependants, but a group of 10 women in Lusaka’s Kanyama compound are turning the tables to disapprove the suppressive stereotypes which have kept many of them from owning or inheriting land and property.

These women are breaking the cultural syndrome through table banking, commonly known as ‘‘Chilimba’’, a way to access and offer loans without going through a microfinance organisation.

According to a member of the group Nancy Bwalya, the group was formed in 2015.

Mrs Bwalya told the this reporter that the group has greatly boosted her social and economic well-being.

“I remember when I joined the group I took a loan of K5,000 and started my own business of selling second hand clothes. Since then, my business has been booming and I no longer depend on my husband to provide everything I need. We no longer have misunderstandings with my husband,” Mrs Bwalya said.

Another member of the group Betty Mwila agreed with her colleague, saying she has also greatly benefited from the Chilimba group.

“It is very difficult to ask for money from your husband to start up a business and help to cater for the needs of the family. You do not even know where to start from because most men are greedy when it comes to money, sometimes they even become violent,” Mrs Mwila said.

Mrs Mwila has invested in vegetable farming after receiving a K5,000 loan from the group.

She uses her profits to boost her savings and hopes to be able to take a bigger loan to buy a piece of land for her farming.

“My only wish right now is to borrow a bigger amount from a bank and buy land I can use for my farming,” she said.

‘‘Chilimba’’ literally means grasping a bundle of money which has been collected from members of an organised group.

The strategy of ‘‘Chilimba’’ involves members meeting monthly at an agreed location and tabling their contributions, which are referred to as shares.

But unlike the conventional practice of taking the collections to the bank, the members share out the money depending on the number of shares each has and financial need.

And group chairperson Namakau Mwiinga said trust, openness and honesty was vital in a Chilimba group.

“We know each other very well, that is why it is so easy for us to form the group and become each other’s guarantor. This is important because we have no other security for the loans except how well we know each other,” Mrs Mwiinga said.

Zambia is largely a patriarchal society where women are denied access to land, which serves as the major tangible and valuable asset in securing any long term development loan.

Despite existing legislation outlawing any form of discrimination against women, the social and cultural structures have for years been used as a yardstick to determine the place of a woman in society.

So when Mrs Mwiinga thinks about where she has come from and where she is going, she is happy to be a member of the Chilimba group.

“My life has changed.  I am now able to support my husband in paying school fees for our children. We are at peace with each other unlike before.

“My husband no longer worries about small things like sugar, or salt. He is happy that I joined the group,” Mrs Mwiinga said.

She adds that she would like to buy a two-acre piece of land to build rental houses as her long term plan to break the family from the chains of poverty.

“We have a small plot and whatever we grow is not enough for home consumption and sale. That is why my aim is to increase my shares to a level that I can take a huge loan to invest in more profitable business ventures,” she said.

The loans acquired through Chilimba are repaid at a minimal interest rate compared to the banks’ interest rates which exceed 40 percent in some cases.

As a rule, members know where each one lives, as the rotating monthly meetings are carried out in the homesteads.

This makes it easy for the members to trace loan defaulters.

In some of the groups, household property such as chairs, cooking utensils and television sets are attached to the loan as security.

A member who is unable to repay the loan within the set time limit is required to notify the group so that she can either be assisted or the period extended.

In extreme cases, where a member deliberately ignores informing the group or does not repay the loan, members are forced to take away the household property.

Even as women find ways of empowering themselves economically, Government, development partners and other stakeholders still have a lot to do to eliminate the barriers that perpetuate gender discrimination in accessing resources.

The horror of fibroids.............. One out of three women has it: but it can be tamed, says doctor

By ANN ZULU

OUT of every three women in Zambia, one has fibroids but despite these alarming records, there is less information about the preventive and treatment of the health condition.

According to consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist Dr Steven Mwape, fibroid cases were on the increase and women above 30 years were more likely to have the disease.

Dr Mwape, however, noted that most fibroid cases do not cause any health problem.

He explained that the same hormones that control menses promote the growth of fibroids, adding that if a female has been having her period throughout her life the chances of having fibroids were higher.

“When a woman is pregnant, they do not have menstruation and so there is a break in the menstrual cycle. It has been observed that people who have several pregnancies in their lifetime are least likely to have fibroid.

“However, those who have had no break in their menstrual cycle are most likely to have fibroids,” Dr Mwape said.

He said fibroid was a benign growth of the womb, which was not dangerous but the malignant growth (cancer) could pose health challenges.

Dr Mwape noted that one could live with fibroids but should seek treatment if it causes pain around the abdomen during and after menses or experiences visible enlargement of the lower abdomen and excessive bleeding with lots of blood clots, dizziness and weakness as a result of the blood loss.

He said if the fibroid was causing problems then the patient needed surgery - myomectomy or hysterectomy.

“Myomectomy involves the removal of fibroid growth while hysterectomy involves the removal of the womb.

“People usually discover they have fibroid accidentally when they go for a scan for another health situation because there is no clear symptom to show one has fibroids.

“When this happens one should not worry because medical doctors are able to manage those that cause problems,” he said.

The most visible sign of fibroid is the enlargement of the lower abdomen. However there are other reasons why a lady may start developing a big tummy.

While there may be some health reasons there is also lifestyle. Inevitable situations may also cause a lady to have a visibly big stomach.

One such condition is pregnancy, however some women may not have flat stomach after giving birth.

Dr Mwape explained that the increase in the belly size after childbirth was due to the stretch in the abdominal walls that occurred during pregnancy.

He said the womb begins to expand especially during the second half of the pregnancy, as it expands to cater for the growing foetus, and the increasing amount of amniotic fluid around the baby.

Said Dr Mwape: “The stretch sometimes becomes so much that there is a lot of stretch marks called striae.

“After the baby is delivered, the womb may try to return to its original size but it usually doesn’t because of the stretch that has taken place. However, there is individual variation.

“Some women have a lot more elastic muscle tissue, so even when they are stretched, they come back a little normal than others, but for most people the stretch causes the abdominal walls to become lax,” he said.

Dr Mwape advised women to do the abdominal wall exercise for a few weeks after pregnancy.

“If a woman had a normal delivery then three weeks after delivery when she is completely well, then she can start the exercise,” he said.

He added that the results are better if one starts the abdominal wall exercise early after childbirth.

“The woman should lie on her back and the neck resting in both hands. Then lift the legs with knees stretched up to the waist level. This can be repeated a number of times.”

Meanwhile, a survey by this reporter revealed that most women develop a bid stomach after childbirth and some men have a high regard for those who are able to maintain a flat belly even after childbirth.

Most of the women talked to explained that after birth, they used cloth to tie their stomachs for some time, but the reduction was not significant.

Others explained that they wore a corset beneath their clothing, and very few exercised after childbirth.

There were also the ladies who did nothing at all after childbirth, but had their bellies return to normal.

From the survey, it was also discovered that some women were overly worried about their tummies after pregnancy whereas their husbands did not.

However, some men were critical of young ladies who have not delivered but have visibly big stomachs.

They explained that it was a complete turn-off for them.

Fibroids may cause ladies’ tummies to be big, post-pregnancy conditions may also cause their abdomen to enlarge, or even cholesterol.

Through vigorous exercises one could reverse her big tummy and through good diet the health problems associated with high cholesterol could also be under control.

The challenges of fibroids could also not be out of control if women take seriously the advice their doctors give them. 

Changing feminine face of poverty ……women rise to become backbone of agriculture and owners of land

By ANN ZULU 

MANY widows in Zambia, especially in rural areas, have taken up farming as a way of supporting their children’s education.

Chaka Mbewe, a 50-year-old woman from Chongwe district, is one such person.

She lost her husband years back and had to depend on farming to cater for the four children the husband left behind.

She has a four and a half acres of land on which she grows maize and groundnuts. She also rears a few goats and pigs.

Ms Mbewe said farming was the only thing she could do to support her children’s education, but several challenges such as lack of fertilizer, traction services and others made it difficult for her to succeed.

Generally, rural communities lack lots of opportunities including income generating activities for women to take advantage of.

The effect of this is the constant migration of young females from rural to urban areas to engage in illicit activities.

Undoubtedly, women comprise the largest percentage of the workforce in the agricultural sector, yet they produce less than their male counterparts.

That is not because women are less able than men or because they are less resourceful. Certainly, it is also not because they are less motivated than their male counterparts.

According to gender activist Gladys Mutukwa, it is because women do not benefit equally from farm inputs such as fertilizer, insecticides, machinery and information on modern farming practices.

This gap is making it impossible for Zambian women to become the thriving farmers they need to be in order to pull themselves out of poverty and give their children a better life.

Ms Mutukwa said if women countrywide had the same access to productive resources as men, they could boost agricultural production and help reduce levels of hunger.

“In rural areas the majority of women are engaged in agriculture as their main economic activity and many of these women are the breadwinners of their families. It is out of their sweat that children are fed, clothed and school fees paid,” Ms Mutukwa said.

Culturally in Zambia, women do not own land even though they form the largest percentage of the agriculture workforce.

Lack of access to land is making it difficult for women to engage in commercial agriculture. Also because of lack of resources, they do not have access to hired labour and tractor services.

They struggle on their small farms alone, hence their engagement in subsistence farming.

Women also tend to face greater challenges when it comes to securing credit. They are generally less experienced with borrowing from an institution, and without assistance and support, they find it difficult to access the much needed finance.

Most agricultural extension officers’ focus is always on owners of large-scale commercial farms while providing limited research and farming techniques to smallholders, the majority of whom are women.

Most advanced technology such as tractors, cultivators, planters and other farming equipment often benefited male farmers to the detriment of women.

Lack of market research and information limit women farmers to market access as they are confined to local markets where prices are generally low and exploitative.

Lands Minister Jean Kapata says Government was aware of the fact that majority of women in the country, especially in rural areas, did not have access to land.

She however said this might soon be a thing of the past as Government was working towards giving priority of land acquisition to women.

She said the Patriotic Front (PF) government under President Edgar Lungu’s administration was committed to its promise of ensuring that 40 percent of women had access to land.

 “Access to land still remains a challenge to women, but that will no longer continue because the PF government under the leadership of President Lungu is determined to empower women through land and ensure that women have access to land just like the men.

“We are more interested in empowerment and attainment of gender equality as a prerequisite for sustainable social and economic development of the country.

“In Zambia only about 20 percent women have secure access to land, but as Government we will make sure that at least 40 percent of land in the country goes to women,” Ms. Kapata said.

She observed that having secure access to land would help to empower women, both individually and collectively.

Ms. Kapata stressed that women were also entitled to land, saying that Government would ensure that women’s rights such as land were protected and promoted.

She said affirmative programmes to support women’s access to land administration services were underway.

Ms. Kapapta said land was a form of security and collateral for women, building women’s resilience and food security, as well as raising their social status and dignity.

“Access to land means that women will have access to financial assets, including credit and savings, and also reduce the poverty levels in Zambia, because poverty has a feminine face. So we will ensure that women’s rights on land are protected and promoted,” she said.

Meanwhile, Government through the ministries of Community Development and Gender, in collaboration with the World Bank, has also embarked on the Women Empowerment and Livelihood Project.

About 75,000 women from 51 districts countrywide would be empowered and trained in financial literacy and life skills, which includes farming.

Minister of Community Development Emerine Kabanshi said the main objective of the project was to increase access to improved livelihood for women in extreme poor households in selected districts.

“The project became effective in April 2016 after the signing of the agreement between Government and the World Bank. The total financing amount is US$65 million over a period of five years.

“The selected women will be supported with training in life and business skills, including savings and productivity grants that will be provided to assist them finance their small livelihood activities,” she said.

Empowering and investing in women farmers, specifically in rural areas, will significantly increase agricultural productivity while reducing poverty in Zambia

Life of child prostitute and mother …..how teenager survives with baby on Lusaka streets

By ANN ZULU

MANY people see prostitution - the act of trading one’s body for money and other material things - as normal. In fact in most parts of the world, prostitution has been legalized.

However when a child engages in it, it becomes a global discourse.

Charity, 17, is one of the many children in Zambia who is living her life as a prostitute.

Leaving Chongwe, her hometown, to search for greener pastures in Lusaka, all Charity was offered was the streets as a home and a baby to look after.

“I don’t know the whereabouts of the father of my child, I have not seen him in a while,” she told me.

Apparently, she had been abandoned by the man who impregnated her, the same man who deceived her that he loved her and had encouraged her into sleeping with other men to sustain them.

Consequently, after the baby was born 10 months ago, the only trade Charity had been taught for survival was prostitution.

She has religiously followed this path so she and her baby will live by the day. She sleeps with more than three men every day to make a daily wage of K50.

To many people, a K50 is nothing but to Charity it’s a pay-off for a rigorous day’s job. Unfortunately, sometimes the money is snatched by some of her wicked clients.

She added that on two occasions some men had pretended they wanted her to render a helping hand, but molested and raped her and all she could do was to cry and dry her own tears.

Charity is a mother while she herself still needs the guardian hands of a mother. One wonders how many girls in her predicament would have handled this situation.

She had the choice of a risky abortion and a perhaps a normal life all over again but she opted to be a parent at her tender age.

She must have felt tremendous love for her unborn child and in the midst of all the hardship and emotional turmoil, Charity chose to hold her baby for nine months in her womb and bring her forth into the world. Charity is indeed a true epitome of a strong African woman.

As we talked, she hurriedly averted her attention to respond to the cry of her hungry baby girl. She caressed her and briskly unbuttoned her blouse so she could reach her breast to feed her child.

As baby Mapalo drew food from her mother’s nipple, I wondered just how safe and healthy the breast milk was for her baby.

“I don’t know if I’ve contracted any disease because I don’t go to the hospital,” she said.

Clearly, Charity had been practising unprotected sex. And if anything was wrong with her, her 10 months old baby will share it too.

And what happened to Mapalo whenever her mother had to serve a client?

Charity said every time she had a ‘‘business’’ call, she left her daughter with a certain woman who sells cassava by the road side and paid her K5 when she returned. What a life! What a future for Mapalo!

Does Charity have friends?

“I don’t have any friends; it’s a dangerous world out there to befriend anybody. Most times I hang around pubs and most of the girls usually smoke and drink and get into fights with the men. I don’t want to be part of bad company especially for the safety of my daughter,” she said.

Charity seems to know what she’s up to and what she wants for her daughter and like every other girl that has dreams and fantasies, Charity has always wanted to be a teacher.

There are many such girls on the streets of Zambia, who are victims of their own circumstances.

Child prostitution is on the increase. Our society is becoming unfriendly to children each day. Unfortunately, prostitution to some of them is the last resort.

Many of these children have been denied love and parental care. Others just drift away from their homes to seek material wealth which they think have been deprived of.

In most cases they are victims of poverty and cruelty - men and women who are supposed to be protecting them take advantage of their vulnerability and abuse them sexually. In the process they destroy a bright future.  

Charity is a classic example of a new breed of Zambian citizens: young, abused, vulnerable kids who learn life the hard away on the street – some with a baby on their back.

One wonders what tomorrow holds for many of them.

Child marriage continues to ruin young lives in Zambia

By ANN ZULU

THE practice of child marriage, defined as a formal marriage or an informal union of anyone younger than the age of 18, is a reality that continues to affect many children globally and Zambia is no exception.

Zambia is among the top 20 countries with the highest prevalence rate of child marriage in the world.

Although the scourge affects both boys and girls, the latter are disproportionally victims.

According to the 2013-2014 Zambia Demographic and Health Survey (ZDHS) 17 percent of girls aged 15-19 are married compared to only 1 percent of boys of the same age group and 42 percent of women aged 20-49 report having married before the age of 18, compared to 4.2 percent of men.

What are the causes of child marriage in Zambia?

Poverty

Many families in Zambia especially in rural areas are still living in object poverty, therefore, poverty has proved to be one of the most significant factors driving child marriage in Zambia

Child labour Ambassador Samson Mutambo explains that parents and guardians see child marriage as a potential opportunity to benefit financially from the bride price for their daughter as well as an opportunity to ease their strain on household resources.

“Economic hardship forces parents and guardians to make difficult choices as they try to manage their living situation and encourages short-term strategic thinking rather than consideration of investment in longer term gains.

“For their part, girls see marriage as an opportunity to escape challenging economic and material circumstances and as a means of responding to their own basic needs,” he said.

Lack of recreation

In Zambia, the rates of child marriage are higher in rural areas than urban, as are teenage fertility rates.

Latest data available from the 2007 DHS indicate that girls in some rural areas are more than twice as likely to marry as their counterparts living in large towns and cities.

The survey also reveals that girls in rural areas also tend to marry, on average, about two years earlier than girls of the same age living in urban areas.

Chikobo ward Councillor Reagan Mubtsa in Chitambo Constituency of Central Province disclosed that children in his ward have limited access to a range of programmes, information services and few opportunities for leisure and recreation.

“Like other children in rural areas, children in my ward do not have access to leisure and recreation facilities, they don’t have things to do and so they resort to engaging in sexual activities which eventually lands them in early marriages,” Mr Mubatsa said.

Not going to School

The dynamics between child marriage and education are complex and flow in multiple directions; some girls marry because they cannot go to school.

For many families, the financial cost of sending children to secondary school is prohibitive. With annual secondary school tuition reported to be approximately K2, 700 and annual and annual family incomes in rural areas reported at about K900.

Secondary schooling is financially prohibitive for many families, even before taking into account the indirect costs for items like uniforms, materials and transport. With average rural household size 5.2 persons, the high ratio school fee to income makes it impossible for families to consider sending more than one or, at the most, two children to school at any one time.

“Sometimes children want to go to school and parents are ready to take them to school, but they don’t have funds or school fees, hence, children stay at home without anything to do. They have no recreation centres, hence if they can’t go to school, recreation becomes sexual activities,” A father of six and resident of Chitambo, Josias Chola said.

Teenage pregnancies

Marriage is a common response to teenage pregnancy in many Zambian communities. It is widely accepted that if a girl becomes pregnant, then she should marry the father of the child.

A 16-year-old Mercy Banda, who was married off when she was 14 years but now divorced, said her parents forced her into marriage when they found out that she was pregnant.

“When I was 14, I was impregnated by a boy who was two years older than me and my parents said they could not support my child, so I had no option but to marry him. But we are not together anymore,” she said.

Vulnerability of orphan’s stepchildren

Orphans and step children are more vulnerable to child marriage, especially in areas where HIV prevalence rates are high or there are greater levels of divorce and remarriage.

At community level, extended families are involved in the care of orphans and in meeting their basic needs through early and middle childhood income. Usually when orphans reach puberty, guardians tend to think that their duty of care has been met and that it was acceptable to seek out marriage for non-biological children in the household.

“The main issue is orphan children- their inability to feed themselves or be fed by their guardians and the quality of care by guardians. Orphans come mainly from households with HIV where the parents have died or they have been forced out of a home due to re-marriage,” says Nkweto Mubanga, a nurse.

Similarly, stepchildren are often pressured by stepparents to become independent as a means of reducing the demands on the households’ economy or of freeing up the limited resources available to support children from the current marriage.

Stepchildren are also cited as being mistreated and such treatment renders marriage a more attractive option to children because they seek to run away from what they deem an intolerable living situation.

“She must have been mistreated at home by her cruel step mother, who may have not been giving her food to eat or might have been beating her,” Ms Mubanga added.

Risks associated with child marriage

Adolescent girls have continued to die from complications arising from early child bearing and they continue to drop out of the school system before completing their education, therefore, reducing their chances of escaping poverty. Girls also experience emotional difficulties when they move out of their family home, such as challenges that couples encounter in managing their relationship with one another and caring for small children when they themselves are young and lack experience.

Interventions

Child marriage is an issue that has gained attention in Zambia. Nearly every week, there are media reports and press releases on the topic, and regular statements are made by chiefs, government officials, non-governmental organisations, academics and front-line workers in rural and urban areas.

The Zambian government, working in partnership with stakeholders, had embarked on the programme to end child marriage, officially launched in 2013.

The Ministry of Gender was given the responsibility of coordinating the national efforts against child marriage, while addressing the vulnerabilities as well as the consequences associated with marrying off children.

“In carrying out the intervention, my ministry is responsible for strengthening coordination at all levels, raising awareness on child marriage, facilitating the review of policy and legal frameworks related to children and marriage, building capacities of stakeholders at all levels, mobilising funds and facilitating service delivery related to addressing the vulnerabilities and consequences of child marriage,” says Gender Minister Victoria Kalima.

In order to strengthen the national response to ending child marriage, the Ministry of Gender, working with stakeholders, last year developed a National Strategy on ending child marriage, a document which outlines the strategic focus for the period 2016-2021.

Ms Kalima explained that the National Strategy was aimed at accelerating National efforts to end child marriage by 2030 by providing an operational framework that reflects the current national and global trends and efforts.

“I am confident that the National Strategy on ending child marriage will promote and contribute to the protection of the rights of all children, both those affected by child marriage as well as those at risk.

“It will support their development and welfare as espoused in the Revised National Child Policy, the Revised Sixth National Development Plan, Zambia’s Vision 2030, the United Nation’s Convention on the Rights of Children, the African Union Charter and other relevant national international policy and legal document,” Ms Kalima said.

With all these interventions, everyone has a responsibility to ensure that all children grow up in a safe environment, have access to health care and develop themselves to their full potential.

The fight against child marriage will remain only wishful thinking if proactive measures put in place are not implemented by all to ensure that this becomes a reality.

Child marriage leads to multiple violations of children’s rights, especially for the girl child and has globally been identified as one of the detriments to development, therefore, there is an urgent need for concerted efforts of various players to ensure children fully develop before they enter into marriage.

Hate speech in politics discouraging women participation

By ANN ZULU

CONTINUED hate speech among political parties is discouraging 

women from participating in politics, Zambia National Women’s Lobby chairperson Beauty Katebe has said.

Ms. Katebe charged that men had continued to dominate the political arena.

She said the women movement was concerned that only few women had taken the mantle to participate in politics.

She attributed hate speech among politicians as one of the contributing factors discouraging women from engaging in politics.

“It’s so sad that men are still dominating politics in Zambia and we feel that politics of hate speech has contributed to this because women love to be respected, and they do not want to get involved in something that will make them lose their respect and worthiness,” Ms Katebe said.

She reiterated that the political field in the country had been marred with hate speech, urging political parties to stop the vice.

She appealed to political parties to co-exist and live in harmony.

Ms. Katebe noted that if hate speech was stopped, more women would be interested in joining politics.

 “There is need for women to take part in politics and the whole electoral system. So we urge political parties to desist from hate speech and instead, co-exist.

“Women are scared of the being disrespected and violence that is likely to erupt every time cadres from different political parties meet because it affects them more than anyone else and they cannot even defend themselves from the brutality,” she said.

And Ms. Katebe called on women in politics not to feel intimidated, but showcase their worth, saying no one would give them leadership on a silver platter.

“What is depriving women leadership in this country is the syndrome that only men can lead. Who said to be a president in this county you must be a man?” she asked.

Juggling work and family is no obstacle for ambitious female banker

By ANN ZULU

THE notion of being a role model to her three children and to excel in the male-dominated banking field is what drives 34-year-old client analyst Chuma Chabala.

Stanbic Bank client analyst Chuma Chabala receives the best student award at the recent Zambia Institute of Banking and Financial Services (ZIBFS) 16th graduation ceremony.

Mrs Chabala, who works in the Stanbic Bank’s corporate and investment banking unit, says it is important for women to know that they can have a “big goal” career-wise and achieve it while looking after their families.

“I encourage fellow women to strive to constantly improve themselves professionally by exposing themselves to programmes that can help them develop their careers,” she says.

“It becomes easier when you get started with something than when you keep procrastinating because you may never fully know what potential you have.”

Mrs Chabala delicately juggles time as a client analyst in one of the busiest Lusaka banks, which involves client relationship management and research, and looking after her three children aged six, four and one.

Mixing motherhood with a demanding career requires a careful balancing act, and for Chuma this has been helped by her optimistic, problem-solving disposition – an ability to get through things even when they seem impossible.

“You just have to make time for things you deem important in life as time waits for no one, while ensuring your family is not neglected at the same time,” she says.

Recently, she had added studies to her already packed schedule and she excelled with flying colours.

Mrs Chabala was presented with the best student award at the Zambia Institute of Banking and Financial Services (ZIBFS) 16th graduation ceremony held on February18, 2017.

Her new qualifications add to the Bachelor of Science degree in computer science she obtained from the Copperbelt University.

“I had to balance time for work, study and family by being disciplined with the way I managed my time. I had to deliberately set time to be with my family and attend to my school, and stick to the times I had set. This worked for me and that is how I managed to balance it all up,” she says.

In between her busy schedules, she still found spare time for her hobbies of reading, baking and watching movies.

If nothing else, Mrs Chabala’s desire to live her dream of standing out in a sector that has for a long time been dominated by men adds more fuel to her ambition.

“I want to be a woman of excellence hence the need to advance my studies and do my best in my position at work,” says Mrs Chabala who has been with Stanbic Bank since 2006.

“My ambition to become a more valuable employee of the bank is what gave me the drive to embark on the programme I studied and to excel by being the overall best student. I had to make time despite a busy schedule of a demanding job and family life,” she said.

She’s in a good place, too, working for a bank that recognises the achievement of women.

Last year Stanbic Bank set a goal of attaining the 50-50 gender equality, which has seen most of departments in the bank being headed by women.

In October 2016, the bank held its annual Blue Diamond celebration of women bankers that brought together all its women employees from across the country with the aim of mentoring, networking and dealing with the challenges women face within the bank across the country.

Recently, the bank was recognised for supporting women entrepreneurs in Zambia by the African Women's Entrepreneurship Programme (AWEP) Pan-Africa.

Inaugurated in 2011 and registered in June 2016, AWEP Pan-Africa seeks to take advantage of the offerings of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) including enabling a range of duty-free products to enter the US market.

Its central thrust is to enable African women and men to participate in the American market, using regional linkages, policies and strategies.