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Articles by Obert Simwanza
Zambia resumes vote count after pause over violence
Zambia resumed vote counting Friday after a nationwide suspension over alleged attacks on polling staff and the theft of marked ballot papers ratcheted up tensions. The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) halted the count around noon, a day after presidential and parliamentary elections and hours after opposition leader Brian Mundubile claimed victory.
Zambia suspends vote counting nationwide citing violence
Zambia suspended vote counting nationwide on Friday following reports of violence in some districts, the electoral commission said. The copper-rich southern African nation went to the polls on Thursday in an election focused on economic hardship. President Hakainde Hichilema, who has been in power since 2021, faced off against his main challenger among the 14 contenders -- Brian Mundubile, a 55-year-old former minister in the previous Patriotic Front (PF) government.
Zambia resumes vote count after pause over violence
Zambia resumed vote counting Friday after a nationwide suspension over alleged attacks on polling staff and the theft of marked ballot papers ratcheted up tensions. The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) halted the count around noon, a day after presidential and parliamentary elections and hours after opposition leader Brian Mundubile claimed victory.
Thousands turn out as Zambia president rallies for second term
Tens of thousands of supporters of Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema thronged the capital Lusaka Tuesday as he made a last-ditch effort to sway undecided voters two days before the election. His main challenger at Thursday's vote, newcomer Brian Mundubile, meanwhile alleged a pattern of abductions and arrests to silence and intimidate the opposition.
Drought-hit Zambia To Extend Power Cuts To 17 Hours A Day
Zambia is bracing for electricity cuts of 17 hours a day from next month as a prolonged drought dries up its hydropower dams, undermining economic activity and pu...
Drought-hit Zambia To Extend Power Cuts To 17 Hours A Day
Mauritius 4 hours ago HORROR ATTACK Tourist, 29, killed ‘by Tinder date’ in Mauritius had tongue cut out so ‘she couldn’t scream’ as vid shows final moments The US Sun - Vera Demertzis, Will Stewart • 4h THIS is the tragic moment tourist Zaliya Shamigulova was last seen alive before she was brutally stabbed to death in Mauritius by her Tinder … Noah Lyles 5 hours ago Viral 16-year-old sprinter Gout Gout gave the coldest response when asked if he's the next Usain Bolt sportbible.com - Rory...
Drought-hit Zambia to extend power cuts to 17 hours a day
KARIBA - Zambia is bracing for electricity cuts of 17 hours a day from next month as a prolonged drought dries up its hydropower dams, undermining economic activity and putting jobs at risk. Since the southern African country declared a national disaster in February because of the drought, it has been scaling back power supply and importing electricity from neighbouring countries.
Cheers in Zambia after landmark debt deal
Jubilant lawmakers in Lusaka sang Zambia's national anthem on Friday after foreign lenders agreed to restructure part of the country's debt, a move that entrepreneurs said brought hope for the crippled economy. Zambia defaulted on its $18.6-billion foreign debt in 2020 at the height of the Covid pandemic. The restructuring deal, covering around a third of the tab, came on Thursday at a two-day summit in Paris hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron.
Explainer: Global financing summit to address climate-related issues
22 Jun 2023 04:01pm PARIS, France - The Summit for a New Global Financing Pact will be held in Paris on June 22 and 23. Its stated goal is to build a new contract between the countries of the North and the South to address climate change and the global crisis. Leaders from countries and regions and representatives of international organisations and civil society associations will participate in the upcoming summit to discuss climate change-related financing issues through six round tables.
Cannabis academy bets on South Africa pot revolution
22 Jun 2023 03:56pm JOHANNESBURG - In a leafy suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa, green leaves adorn the walls of a school where students learn how to grow cannabis -- but smoking pot is banned. The teaching aims to dispel stigma around marijuana, says Linda Siboto, the co-founder of the institution, which styles itself as Africa's first cannabis academy.
UN chief "deeply troubled" by situation in occupied Palestinian territory
22 Jun 2023 03:52pm UNITED NATIONS - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is deeply troubled by the continued violence and loss of life in the occupied Palestinian territory, his spokesman said on Wednesday. "The secretary-general condemns all acts of violence against civilians, including acts of terror," Farhan Haq, deputy spokesman for the UN chief, said in a statement.
Over 30 per cent of job seekers in Japan suffer from gender discrimination: survey
22 Jun 2023 03:39pm TOKYO, Japan - A recent survey has shown that nearly 33 per cent of job seekers in Japan feel discriminated against because of their gender, local newspaper Asahi Shimbun reported. The Japanese Trade Union Confederation, known as Rengo, conducted the online survey that covered 1,000 males and females aged between 15 and 29 who took employment exams within the past three years.
African concerns mount as West pours aid into Ukraine
By ALI BEKHTAOUI, OBERT SIMWANZA 21 Jun 2023 04:31pm PARIS, France - African countries are casting a worried eye as the West pumps aid into Ukraine, sensing a retreat in pledges to help their development and fight climate change. According to the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), assistance for Ukraine in 2022 shot up to $16 billion, compared to less than a billion a year earlier, while that for Africa fell by eight per cent to $29 billion.
Hotel, choppers seized as Zambia steps up anti-graft drive
President Hakainde Hichilema took office last year with the kind of anti-corruption promises that Zambians have learned to take with a grain of salt. This week, those promises became more real. Two former ministers were arrested within 48 hours of each other, including ex-justice minister Given Lubinda, who now leads the party that lost to Hichilema's.
Zambia new president sworn in on pledge to repair economy, rights
LISTEN 3 HOURS AGO In his sixth bid for the presidency, Hakainde Hichilema defeated the incumbent Edgar Lungu, 64, by almost one million votes. By Patrick Meinhardt (AFP/File) Zambia's newly elected president Hakainde Hichilema on Tuesday promised to rebuild the ailing economy and alleviate poverty as he was sworn in following an election hailed as a milestone for African opposition movements.
Zambia challenger wins presidency in landslide
Zambian business tycoon and veteran opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema scored a landslide victory on Monday in bitterly-contested presidential elections. After a campaign dominated by the country's economic woes and marked by sporadic violence, Hichilema garnered 2,810,757 votes against 1,814,201 for President Edgar Lungu, according to nearly final results. Lungu conceded defeat, saying he congratulated "my brother...
Zambia opposition leads early vote count, incumbent cries foul
Zambia's main opposition candidate was leading Saturday in partial results for a tight presidential election while incumbent leader Edgar Lungu cried foul in three provinces. Following a high turnout in Thursday's vote, Hakainde Hichilema, 59, was ahead of Lungu, 64, in about 40 percent of the constituencies announced so far, even as EU observers said campaign conditions had been "unequal" and favoured the incumbent.
Zambia counts votes from close election as army reinforced
Vote counting was underway in Zambia on Friday after a hard-fought general election that saw sporadic clashes and troop reinforcements dispatched to three provinces. The ballot is expected to be the tightest yet in the third successive standoff between President Edgar Lungu, 64, and veteran opposition candidate Hakainde Hichilema, 59.
Army re-inforcement, social media curbs as Zambia votes in hard-fought polls
President Edgar Lungu deployed more troops in parts of the country to quell election violence after Zambians flocked to vote on Thursday in tightly contested polls pitting him against long-time rival Hakainde Hichilema, as the internet saw partial restrictions. After 12 hours of voting, polling stations started closing at 6 pm (1600 GMT), though several hundreds still in queues were being allowed to cast their ballots.
Zambians give handkerchief salute to fallen statesman Kaunda
LISTEN 3 HOURS AGO Kaunda played a key role in southern Africa for nearly three decades. By STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN (AFP/File) Mourners waving white handkerchiefs, Kenneth Kaunda's trademark symbol, gathered at a Lusaka stadium on Friday for a state memorial service for Zambia's first president, who died last month aged 97. Neatly distanced in compliance with Covid social distancing rules, scores of mourners stood on the terraces, dancing to dirges and solemn music played by a military band.
Zambia's Kenneth Kaunda, Africa's 'Gandhi', dead at 97
Zambia's founding president Kenneth Kaunda died on Thursday at the age of 97, the government announced, days after he was admitted to hospital with pneumonia. Cabinet secretary Simon Miti said in an address on public television that Kaunda "died peacefully" at 2:30 pm (1230 GMT) at a military hospital where he had been receiving treatment since Monday.
Kaunda: Zambian Liberation Leader Dies At 97
Former Zambian president Kenneth Kaunda was a hero of the struggle against white rule in southern Africa, but lost his hold on power when democracy spread across the continent. Kaunda, who was admitted to hospital on Monday for pneumonia and died Thursday aged 97, ruled for 27 years and was one of the last remaining African liberation heroes. He became the first foreign head of state to be visited by South African liberation icon Nelson Mandela on his release from prison in 1990.
Zambia's Kenneth Kaunda, Africa's 'Gandhi', dead at 97
Zambia's founding president Kenneth Kaunda died on Thursday at the age of 97, the government announced, days after he was admitted to hospital with pneumonia. The government declared 21 days of national mourning, ordered flags to fly at half mast and banned all entertainment in honour of the "icon and global statesman".
Debt and Covid are a double whammy for Zambia
For days on end, Mildred Mwenya hasn't seen so much as the shadow of a customer in her pharmacy in the Zambian capital Lusaka. Today, her stomach was as empty as her premises. She had been unable to afford breakfast before coming to open the store. She is one of a growing number of victims in Zambia of a double hit -- a macro-economic crisis combined with the coronavirus pandemic.
Zambia dazed by wave of mysterious gas attacks
All the woman remembers before she passed out was an overwhelmingly pungent odour that suddenly filled her living room while she was watching television around midnight last month. She managed to jump off the couch and peer through the window to see four men running away from her family's house in the Chawama township of Zambia's capital Lusaka.
Zambia Dazed By Wave Of Mysterious Gas Attacks
All the woman remembers before she passed out was an overwhelmingly pungent odour that suddenly filled her living room while she was watching television around midnight last month. She managed to jump off the couch and peer through the window to see four men running away from her family's house in the Chawama township of Zambia's capital Lusaka.
Zambia dazed by wave of mysterious gas attacks
Zambia has been rocked by a wave of mysterious gang-related gas attacks that has sparked widespread panic over the last three months All the woman remembers before she passed out was an overwhelmingly pungent odour that suddenly filled her living room while she was watching television around midnight last month. She managed to jump off the couch and peer through the window to see four men running away from her family's house in the Chawama township of Zambia's capital Lusaka.
Zambia dazed by wave of mysterious gas attacks
Zambia has been rocked by a wave of mysterious gang-related gas attacks that has sparked widespread panic over the last three months (AFP Photo/DAWOOD SALIM) Lusaka (AFP) - All the woman remembers before she passed out was an overwhelmingly pungent odour that suddenly filled her living room while she was watching television around midnight last month.
Zambia proposed constitutional reforms stoke opposition
Proposed constitutional reforms that would sharply increase President Edgar Lungu's powers ahead of elections in 2021 are stoking concerns about Zambia's democratic credentials, analysts and civil society groups say. Bill number 10 is to be discussed soon by parliament, where the ruling Patriotic Front (PF) holds a majority. Lungu, in power since 2015, faces mounting complaints that he is cracking down on dissent and seeking to consolidate power.
From cardiology to tomato grower: An accidental farmer in Zambia
Tuzini farm, located 25 kilometres north of Lusaka, produces an average 72 tonnes of tomatoes a month and supplies beyond just the capital city Lusaka Four years ago Maria Zaloumis quit her job as a cardiology nurse in Australia, to attend to her ailing father in her native African country of Zambia. Today Zaloumis, 34, is one of the country's leading tomato farmers.
From cardiology to tomato grower: An accidental farmer in Zambia
Four years ago Maria Zaloumis quit her job as a cardiology nurse in Australia, to attend to her ailing father in her native African country of Zambia. Today Zaloumis, 34, is one of the country's leading tomato farmers. She had been living and practicing as a specialised nurse in Australia for 12 years, but in 2015, she resigned and flew back home to help care for her lawyer father who was battling amnesia.
Zambia's president collision course with mining giant
If mounting foreign debt, an anaemic currency and stagnating growth aren't enough, President Edgar Lungu's move to break up Zambia's largest copper mining firm threatens an investor exodus and thousands of job losses. Higher taxes on the mining sector were supposed to help Zambia with its debt problem, but Lungu has taken a hardline approach with international mining companies, accusing them of failing to pay taxes and threatening to expel them from the country.
Zambia's president collision course with mining giant
Zambian President Edgar Lungu has moved to strip London-based Vedenta of its prize asset in the country in a tax dispute (AFP Photo/DAWOOD SALIM) Lusaka (AFP) - If mounting foreign debt, an anaemic currency and stagnating growth aren't enough, President Edgar Lungu's move to break up Zambia's largest copper mining firm threatens an investor exodus and thousands of job losses.
'Say no to China': Anger mounts in Zambia over Beijing's presence
Not all Zambians are happy about China's presence in the country "China equals Hitler" said the sign held up in the Zambian capital Lusaka by a protester opposed to Beijing's tightening grip on the economy of the southern African nation. The demonstrator, James Lukuku, who leads a small political party, was picked up by police and spent several hours in a cell reflecting on his one-man protest.
'Say no to China': Anger mounts in Zambia over Beijing's presence
LUSAKA, Zambi - China equals Hitler" said the sign held up in the Zambian capital Lusaka by a protester opposed to Beijing's tightening grip on the economy of the southern African nation. The demonstrator, James Lukuku, who leads a small political party, was picked up by police and spent several hours in a cell reflecting on his one-man protest. But he is not alone in opposing China's growing presence in President Edgar Lungu's Zambia and in particular its major program of loans to Lusaka.
Zambia deports MDC's Tendai Biti, defying court order
FILE PHOTO: Tendai Biti, former finance minister, speaks to journalists after a two-week ban on public protests issued by the police was struck down, in the capital Harare Lusaka - Zambian authorities on Thursday deported top Zimbabwe opposition figure Tendai Biti in defiance of a court order after he tried to claim asylum, his lawyer said.
Zambia deports Biti, defying court order
Zambian authorities on Thursday deported senior Zimbabwe opposition leader Tendai Biti in defiance of a court order after he tried to claim asylum, his lawyer said. “They have defied the court order to allow him to seek asylum and as I am speaking to you right now he has been handed over to the Zimbabwean police,” lawyer Gilbert Phiri told AFP.
Zambia deports top Zimbabwe opponent Biti, defying court order
Zambian authorities on Thursday deported top Zimbabwe opposition figure Tendai Biti in defiance of a court order after he tried to claim asylum, his lawyer said. "They have defied the court order to allow him to seek asylum and as I am speaking to you right now he has been handed over to the Zimbabwean police," lawyer Gilbert Phiri told AFP.
At least 10 killed in Zambia mine dump collapse: police
At least 10 subsistence miners were killed when a mine dump known locally as Black Mountain collapsed in Zambia's second-largest city and copperbelt mining hub Kitwe on Wednesday, police said. The vast mound of dark earth in the country’s northeast has become an economic lifeline for thousands of people who make a living from activities that local media report have been partially legalised.
Fears of hidden debt in Zambia
International lenders and markets are growing increasingly concerned about “hidden debt” in Zambia, a situation similar to the one that plunged neighbouring Mozambique into a deep financial crisis. For several weeks financiers have demanded answers about the level of the country’s true external borrowing – but officials have rubbished any suggestion of concealed debts.
Fears grow Zambia hiding debt like Mozambique
International lenders and markets are growing increasingly concerned about "hidden debt" in Zambia, a situation similar to the one that plunged neighbouring Mozambique into a deep financial crisis. For several weeks financiers have demanded answers about the level of the country's true external borrowing -- but officials have rubbished any suggestion of concealed debts.
Fears grow Zambia hiding debt like Mozambique
Zambia, the second largest copper producer in sub-Saharan Africa, insists that its debt pile stands at $8.7 billion -- but there have been suggestions it could be double that (AFP Photo/GULSHAN KHAN ) Lusaka (AFP) - International lenders and markets are growing increasingly concerned about "hidden debt" in Zambia, a situation similar to the one that plunged neighbouring Mozambique into a deep financial crisis.
Fears grow Zambia hiding debt like Mozambique
For several weeks financiers have demanded answers about the level of the country’s true external borrowing — but officials have rubbished any suggestion of concealed debts. Zambia, the second largest copper producer in sub-Saharan Africa, insists that its debt pile stands at $8.7 billion — but there have been suggestions it could be double that. The allegations have raised fears among Zambians and foreign investors for whom the memory of Mozambique’s hidden debt fiasco is still fresh in the mind.
Zambia crackdown on sex dolls provokes fierce rights debate
No one sells them openly, no one admits to owning one, and no one has been arrested -- but Zambia is waging a fierce campaign against sex dolls. The government launched the crackdown on the sex toys last month, threatening offenders with heavy jail terms over the dolls which, it says, are "very unnatural".
Zambia's crackdown on sex dolls sparks debate over rights, religion
Zambia's fierce campaign against sex dolls made the largely conservative country a hot topic of conversation and provoked debate on social media. Picture: Pixabay Lusaka - No one sells them openly, no one admits to owning one, and no one has been arrested -- but Zambia is waging a fierce campaign against sex dolls. The government launched the crackdown on the sex toys last month, threatening offenders with heavy jail terms over the dolls which, it says, are "very unnatural".
Zambia crackdown on sex dolls provokes fierce rights debate
The Zambian government has launched a crackdown on sex dolls, calling them "very unnatural" and threatening offenders with heavy jail terms (AFP Photo/GREG BAKER) Lusaka (AFP) - No one sells them openly, no one admits to owning one, and no one has been arrested -- but Zambia is waging a fierce campaign against sex dolls. The government launched the crackdown on the sex toys last month, threatening offenders with heavy jail terms over the dolls which, it says, are "very unnatural".
Zambia's crackdown on sex dolls provokes fierce rights debate
No one sells them openly, no one admits to owning one, and no one has been arrested— but Zambia is waging a fierce campaign against sex dolls. The government launched the crackdown on the sex toys last month, threatening offenders with heavy jail terms over the dolls which, it says, are “very unnatural”.
Zambia crackdown on sex dolls provokes fierce rights debate
No one sells them openly, no one admits to owning one, and no one has been arrested -- but Zambia is waging a fierce campaign against sex dolls. The government launched the crackdown on the sex toys last month, threatening offenders with heavy jail terms over the dolls which, it says, are "very unnatural".
Zambia crackdown on sex dolls provokes fierce rights debate
The government launched the crackdown on the sex toys last month, threatening offenders with heavy jail terms over the dolls which, it says, are “very unnatural”. The action has propelled the issue of sex dolls to the top of the news agenda and made them a hot topic of conversation and debate on social media, dividing opinion in the largely conservative southern African country.
Refugees flee to Zambia, accusing DR Congo troops of killings
About 6,000 Congolese residents have fled across the border since late August, triggering an emergency response from the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) which has struggled to provide basic food rations and shelter. DR Congo’s huge eastern region has long been wracked by violence, but fighting between government soldiers and militia groups, as well as inter-ethnic clashes, has increased this year.
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