Mazabuka Mayor Vincent Lilanda has called on government to invest more in preventive care to save lives and money spent on drugs and treatment.
Lilanda, who is also Local Government Association of Zambia President, says preventive care saves more lives and resources which are meant to go towards treatment.
Speaking at his office when a delegation of 25 Malawian environmental health practitioners paid a courtesy call on him, Lilanda, who is also an environmental health practitioner, said there is need for the Environmental Health practitioners in Zambia to work with the Local Government Association of Zambia to prevent the outbreak of diseases.
He said public health practitioners are key in disease prevention as they form the bulk of workers in local authorities.
He noted that molasses which is in large quantities in Mazabuka is not well utilised for good nutrition.
“Here in Mazabuka we have a lot of molasses from Zambia Sugar and we need to start making sure that it can be processed and feed our animals. It is a good ingredient for animal feed. In other countries they use it as animals feed but not here,” he said.
Lilanda lamented that in Mazabuka, molasses is used to brew a local beer called Maureen Mukiya instead of it being processed into stock feed.
“There is a residential area here called Kaleya where people use molasses to make beer. It’s an area which is a no-go area for Police. That is a public health issue which we need to address,” he said.
And Malawian Environmental Health Association Vice President Collins Kamuloni said the tour in Zambia has been insightful.
“We have learnt alot and this has made the delegation more enlightened on public health issues,” said Kamuloni.
Nvumabaranda Group of Companies whose Chief Executive Officer Kennedy Nduna is a public health practitioner, has sponsored the 7 day tour for h. Malawian public health practitioners.
The delegation has so far visited Nvumabaranda Farms in Ndola, Copperbelt University in Kitwe, Solwezi Municipal Council, Solwezi General Hospital, Sentinel Mine in Kalumbila, Rusangu University and paid courtesy calls on Minister of Health Sylvia Masebo and the Malawian High Commission in Lusaka.
The delegation is now unwinding by visiting the Victoria Falls in Livingstone before proceeding to Malawi on Sunday.
They are scheduled to visit the iconic falls before taking a boat cruise on the Zambezi river.
Kalemba April 19, 2024
