Traditional leaders urged to sensitize their subjects

Traditional leaders urged to sensitize their subjects

Shangombo, June 10, ZANIS —- Gender and Child Development Deputy Minister Josephine Limata has urged the traditional leaders in Western province to start sensitising women in their chiefdoms on empowerment funds which the government has allocated to them.

The minister also advised the traditional rulers in the area to play a leading role in discouraging early marriages in their chiefdoms.

Ms Limata said the traditional leadership in Shangombo district should take action and start sensitizing and encourage women in their respective chiefdoms to form clubs and apply for empowerment funds through the office of the District Commissioners to enable them set up business projects and sustain their lives.

ZANIS reports that the minister said this when she held a closed door meeting with Indunas at Shangombo Constituency office today.

She said the PF government is determined to ensure that all disadvantaged women in the country get empowered.

“We want you to go and sensitise your women in your chiefdoms to form clubs they can register and apply for empowerment fund,” she told the Indunas in Lozi.

She said the PF government wants to fulfil its pre- 2011 tripartite elections campaign pledge of putting more money in people’s pockets by empowering women economically.

The deputy minister also advised the Indunas in the area to also sensitise their subjects against early marriages.

She said government was concerned by the increase in number of early marriages in the country saying the scourge often endangers the girl child’s life and health.

The deputy minister reiterated that government would start grabbing the married girl child and take her back to school while at the same time take punitive action against the offending parties.

Mrs Limata urged the Headmen to sensitise their subjects on the importance of educating their girl children who she said would look after them much more than the boy-children.

And one of the traditional leaders in the area, Joseph Kwandulike has called on government to consider setting up a high school in Shangombo district.

Induna Kwandulike said government should consider constructing a high school in the district as most of the school going children are forced to walk long distances to secondary school places in surrounding areas, a situation he said discourages a number of them to continue their education to the end.

He also said by having a boarding school in from grade eight to twelve, school children would have easy access to education.

And, in response, the minister assured the Induna that she is going to present the concerns to the line ministry, adding that she is hopeful the money for such important venture would be budgeted for in the 2014 National Budget.

The Deputy Minister is on a ten days tour of Southern and Western provinces to sensitize women in the two areas on the need to utilise government’s women empowerment funds.

The Gender Deputy Minister is on this tour accompanied by Mr Abraham Chiwana, the Director for Child Development in the Ministry of Gender among others.