Women to aid women in flood hit areas hit areas

BY NOEL IYOMBWA
CURRENTLY more than one million households in 30 Districts of Zambia have been affected by severe floods and nearly 2.3 million people are facing starvation as a result of droughts.
Zambian women from various sectors across the country have come together to raise funds to help fellow women who are affected by floods and droughts.
This will be achieved by setting up income-generating activities through village banking.
The fundraising campaign called “Women aiding Women” is being spearheaded by women led NGOs that include Alliance for Nutrition and Reconstruction, Care for Nature Zambia, Save the Environment and People Agency,
Shiwangandu Development Trust and Zambia Alliance for Women in collaboration with community activists, media and women from the private sector.
Campaign coordinator Nsama Musonda Kearns said that in such situations, it is women that usually suffer the most as they are charged with the responsibility of taking care of babies, children, the sick and old-aged people in their families including their spouses and siblings.
“Women are usually faced with the stress of looking for income to provide meals for the families, safe and clean water for drinking and basic use and providing clean clothes among other responsibilities, and usually this income is obtained through farming.
“In a case where crops are destroyed through floods, the burden is unbearable as the whole family is left vulnerable to starvation
and it is the poor woman that will spend sleepless nights wondering where she will get resources to sustain her family,” Musonda said.
She explained that women understand better the pain that other women suffer which is why the organisation decided to come together to raise funds that will help ease the burden of women.
She said that donating consumable goods such as mealie meal alone may not be sustainable as they are other essential goods such as relish, cooking oil, sugar, salt and other daily needs, hence through the campaign the target is to raise at least K10,000 startup capital for 30 districts in Southern, North Western, Eastern, Luapula, Muchinga and Northern Provinces amounting to K300, 000 which will be donated to women groups to set up businesses.
“We are encouraging people to give freely and willingly anything they can afford from as little as K100 only, to any amount that one is able to manage, “she said.