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SENATE HANSARD 25 AUGUST 2021 VOL 30 NO 59
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Wednesday, 25th August, 2021
The Senate met at Half-past Two o’clock p.m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. PRESIDENT OF SENATE in the Chair)
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. SEN. MUZENDA: I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 1 to 3 be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 4 has been disposed of.
HON. SEN. MATHUTHU: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMITTEE ON HIV AND
AIDS ON THE STUDY VISIT TO UGANDA ON HIV AND AIDS
MANAGEMENT AND FINANCING
HON. SEN. CHIEF NGUNGUMBANE: I move the motion
standing in my name that this House takes note of the First Report of the Thematic Committee on HIV and AIDS on the study visit to Uganda on
HIV and AIDS Management and Financing.
HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: I second..
HON. SEN. CHIEF NGUNGUMBANE: Thank you Madam
President for allowing me to present the report on the study visit to
Uganda by the Thematic Committee on HIV and AIDS on the HIV and
AIDS Management and Financing. I will go straight to the introduction.
Introduction
As part of its oversight function and in accordance with its work plan, the Thematic Committee on HIV/AIDS resolved to undertake a study visit to Uganda on HIV/AIDS management and financing. The study was undertaken from the 28th July to the 1st of August, 2019. The delegation comprised of the following Members of the Thematic
Committee on HIV/AIDS; Hon. Sen. Chief Ngungumbane, Member of Parliament and leader of the delegation, Hon. Sen. Chabuka K., former Member of Parliament, Hon. Sen. A. K. Tongogara and Mrs. Mafuruse,
Clerk and Secretary to the delegation.
Objectives of the visit
- To share experiences on the role of Parliamentarians in strengthening national laws and policies that deal with HIV and AIDS;
- To identify and learn best practices that worked in Uganda; and
- To recommend for replication of best models on HIV/AIDS management and financing in Zimbabwe.
Background
HIV and AIDS is intercontinental and knows no colour, creed or boundary. HIV/AIDS is multi-sectoral and dynamic and requires extensive sector linkages and harmonisation of interventions. In Africa, South of Sahara carries the biggest global HIV and AIDS burden, with Eastern and Southern Africa alone accounting for at least 52% of the world’s persons with HIV.
In response to the scourge of HIV/AIDS, global frameworks for development have been recognising the need to address the epidemic. Such frameworks include the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) adopted in the year 2000 and HIV/AIDS was goal number six.
Accordingly, the international AIDS Conference held in 2014 in Melbourne, Australia launched the ambitious treatment of 90-90-90 targets to accelerate the efforts to combat HIV/AIDS. This ambitious treatment target states that 90% of all people living with HIV will know their HIV status by 2030; 90% of all people with diagnosed HIV infection will receive sustained antiretroviral therapy by 2030 and 90% of all people receiving antiretroviral therapy will have viral suppression. In 2015, the MDGs lapsed and gave birth to the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs) Framework. Under this framework, three health related MDGs on Child Mortality, Maternal Mortality and
HIV/AIDS were replaced by the overarching health goal. It is SDG Number three (Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages with 13 targets. Of these targets, HIV/AIDS falls under target 3.3 which speaks to ending the epidemic.
The epidemic of HIV/AIDS was first identified in Zimbabwe in
- In response to the epidemic, the Zimbabwe Government through
Parliament, enacted the National AIDS Council of Zimbabwe Act in 1999 to halt the devastating effects brought by HIV/AIDS and by improving the lives of those living with HIV. This was followed by the enactment of the National AIDS Trust Fund, commonly known as the AIDS Levy as a funding mechanism for HIV/AIDS in the country.
Furthermore, a prevention programme called the Zimbabwe National HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan (ZNASP) 2011-2015 was put in place to curb the spread of HIV infection and is currently undergoing review in response to the emerging trends with the aim of achieving the 90-90-90 global targets by 2030.
It is evident from the above that Parliament has been very active and influential in how HIV and AIDS is managed and financed in Zimbabwe. Accordingly, the Thematic Committee on HIV and AIDS was appointed to carry out oversight function on HIV and AIDS issues and policies implementation across sectors, hence the resolution to undertake a study visit on HIV and AIDS Management and Financing in Uganda.
Uganda is heralded as the archetypical success story in tackling the HIV/AIDS epidemic (Molhiddin and Johnson, 2006; Yaude, 2007) as a result of the Government’s ability to set clear goals for itself, ensure cross-Government commitment to the eradication of the virus and adapt health strategies according to capacity gaps. The successful handing of the epidemic suggests a decrease in national prevalence level from 18% in the 90s to 6% at the turn of the century.
FINDINGS OF THE COMMITTEE
The HIV and IDS Statistics in Uganda
In the late 80s and early 90s, Uganda offered pioneering approaches to HIV epidemic response. The HIV success story was driven by the direct leadership of His Excellency the President, Yoweri Museveni who led the national HIV campaigns on educating Ugandans about behaviour change, the strategies for managing HIV and challenging stigma and discrimination. Today, Uganda boasts of the reduction in HIV prevalence rate from 18% in the 90s to the current 6%.
Table 1 shows the HIV statistics in Uganda as at December, 2018.
Table 1: HIV and AIDS Situational Analysis for Uganda and Zimbabwe as at December 2018.
| Country | People living with HIV | Adult HIV
Prevalence (ages 15-40) |
New
Infections |
AIDS
Related Deaths |
Adults
Antiretroviral Treatment |
Children on
Antiretroviral Treatment |
| Uganda | 1.4 million | 5.7% | 53 000 | 23 000 | 73% | 66% |
| Zimbabwe | 1.3 million | 12.8% | 38 000 | 22 000 | 89% | 65% |
The above Table shows the HIV and AIDS statistics for the year 2018 for Uganda and Zimbabwe. To reckon with the period under review, Uganda had more people living with HIV (1.4 million) than Zimbabwe (1.3 million). The adult HIV prevalence rate for Uganda was lower (5.7%) than Zimbabwe (12.8%). Although Zimbabwe’s HIV prevalence rate had fallen from a high of over 29% in 1999 to 12% in 2018, more needs to be done to lower it to a single digit as is the case with Uganda if the country is to end AIDS by 2030. The statistics also show that Uganda was leading in terms of new infections (53, 000) while Zimbabwe recorded 38,000, an indication that Zimbabwe was doing well in prevention strategies to curb occurrence of new infections. The table also shows a marginal difference on AIDS related deaths statistics between Uganda and Zimbabwe owing to the provision of antiretroviral treatment which improves the survival of People Living with HIV (PLHIV). In terms of antiretroviral treatment, Zimbabwe was leading with 89% of adults on treatment while Uganda had 73%. Regarding children who were on antiretroviral treatment, there was a marginal difference, with Uganda having 66% and Zimbabwe 65%.
Modes of HIV Transmission and Groups most affected by HIV in Uganda
The delegation learnt that like Zimbabwe, Uganda’s main HIV transmission mechanism is sexual contact which accounts most of the new HIV infections. It is imperative to state from the onset that the delegation noted similarities in terms of the groups that were most affected by HIV in Uganda. It is also important to note that while fishing communities were among the most affected by HIV in Uganda, mining communities were among the most affected by HIV in Zimbabwe and that like Zimbabwe, Uganda was also faced with challenges in addressing issues surrounding access to reproductive health care services for young people, sex workers and men who have sex with men.
Adolescent girls and young women
HIV prevalence is almost four times higher among young women aged 15 to 24 than young men of the same age. The issue faced by this demographic picture includes gender based violence (including sexual abuse) and a lack of access to education, health services, social protection and information about how they cope with these inequalities and injustices. Indeed, young Ugandan women who have experienced intimate partner violence are 50% more likely to have acquired HIV than women who had not experienced violence.
Sex workers
HIV prevalence among sex workers was estimated at 37% in
2015/16. It is estimated that sex workers and their clients accounted for 18% of new HIV infections in Uganda in 2015/16. A 2015 evidence review found between 33% and 53% of sex workers in Uganda reported inconsistent condom use in the past month driven by the fact that clients often pay more for sex without a condom.
The criminalisation of sex work and entrenched social stigma means sex workers often avoid accessing health services and conceal their occupation from health care providers. In particular, stigma toward male sex workers who have sex with men is exacerbated by homophobia. Indeed, many sex workers in Uganda consider social discrimination as a major barrier in their willingness or desire to test for
HIV.
Men who have sex with men (MSM)
HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men (sometimes referred to as MSM) in Uganda was an estimated 13%, and this was the most recent data available. A 2017 study among men who have sex with men in Kampala reported high risk behaviours to be common, including 36% of respondents reporting regularly unprotected anal sex, 38% selling sex, 54% having multiple steady partners, 64% having multiple casual partners, and 32% injecting drugs.
Pervasive HIV related social stigma and high levels of homophobic violence caused by conservative social attitudes and stigmatizing legislation result in men who have sex with men feeling less inclined to access HIV services. The 2017 study mentioned above found 40% had experienced homophobic abuse and 44.5% had experienced suicidal thoughts.
The Uganda Anti-Homosexuality Act was passed by Parliament in December 2013 and officially signed into law in February 2014. Although the law was annulled in August 2014 due to technicality based on the number of MPs present during the vote, it is thought to have resulted in increased harassment and prosecution based on sexual orientation and gender identities. It has also triggered negative discussions from the general population on social media, in which violence and anti-homosexual discrimination are advocated. HIV outreach workers and service providers working in Uganda with men who have sex with men have also reported heightened challenges in reaching this population.
People who inject drugs (PWID)
Since the Global State of Harm Report in 2014 estimated HIV prevalence among people who inject drugs at 16.7% in Uganda, the Government of Uganda has pledged to prioritise innovative approaches to help this population. Accordingly, in 2017, the Ugandan Ministry of Health authorised a number of needle and syringe programmes to be
piloted.
Fishing communities
HIV prevalence among Uganda’s fishing communities is estimated
to be three times higher than the general population. A 2013 study of 46 fishing communities found HIV prevalence to be at 22% with no variation between men and women. The reason for such high prevalence among this community is thought to be the result of a complex range of factors, including a high degree of mobility, a high rate of fishermen who pay for sex, injecting drugs, and a lack of access to HIV prevention and testing services.
National Initiatives to End Aids by 2030 in Uganda
In the quest to reduce its HIV prevalence rate from 6% to Zero and to meet the 90-90-90 United Nations (UN) targets of ending HIV and AIDS by 2030, the Government of Uganda undertook some national initiatives to achieve the goals. The most important one was the Presidential Fast-Track Initiative on ending HIV and AIDS in Uganda, launched in June 2017 by His Excellency, President Yoweri Museveni. In launching this programme, President Yoweri Museveni called upon all Ugandans, political, cultural, religious and civic leaders to embrace the initiative. He also called upon all sectors, private, public, civil society and the media and development partners to ensure that they contribute to ending AIDS as a public health threat in Uganda. The initiative is premised on five pillars or the five- point plan
The Five Point Plan
- Engage men in HIV prevention and close the tap on new infections, particularly among adolescent girls and young women; ii. Accelerate implementation of Test and Treat and attainment of 90-
90-90 targets, particularly among men and young people; iii. Consolidate progress on eliminating Mother-To-Child
Transmission of HIV; iv. Ensure financial sustainability for the HIV and AIDS response; and
- Ensure institutional and effectiveness for a well-coordinated multisectoral response.
This initiative tasked key people such as men, young people, parents and leaders to play their role in meeting the 90-90-90 UN target.
Achievements of the Fast Track Initiative: June 2017 –
December 2018
Prior to the start of the Fast-Track Initiative, a lot of studies had continuously revealed that men and their risky lifestyle were one of the major source of new HIV infections. Men have very poor health seeking behaviour, they are less likely to test for HIV compared to women. So the majority of men compared to women do not know their status. For example, out of 8 million people who tested for HIV in 2016, only 38% were men. In order to significantly reduce the number of new infections and be able to realise the target ending AIDS by 2030, the Presidential
Fast Track Initiative put a lot of emphasis on reaching out to men.
Consequently, the number of males on ART increased from about
316,000 in 2016 to about 410,000 by the end of December 2018.
The Zimbabwe Approach to Fast Tracking Commitments to end AIDS by 2030
In order to fast track commitments to end AIDS by 2030,
Zimbabwe set 10 country targets as highlighted below.
Target 1: Ensure that 30 million people living with HIV have access to treatment through meeting the 90-90-90 targets by 2020.
Target 2: Eliminate new HIV infections among children by 2020, while ensuring that 1.6 million children have access to HIV treatment by
2018.
Target 3: Ensure access to combination prevention options, including pre-exposure prophylaxis, voluntary medical male circumcision, harm reduction and condoms, to at least 90% of people by 2020, especially young women and adolescent girls in high prevalence countries and key populations – gay men who have sex with men, transgender people, sex workers and their clients, people who inject drugs and prisoners. 14 Social Behaviour Change, 14 Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision (VMMC), 14 Condom Promotion and
Distribution, 14 Key Populations.
Target 4: Gender inequalities and end all forms of violence and discrimination against women and girls, people living with HIV and key populations by 2020.
Target 5: Ensure that 90% of young people have the skills, knowledge and capacity to protect themselves from HIV and have access to sexual and reproductive health services by 2020, in order to reduce the number of new HIV infections among adolescent girls and young women to below 100 000 per year.
Target 6: Ensure that 75% of people living with, at risk of and affected by HIV benefit from HIV sensitive social protection by 2020.
Target 7: Ensure that at least 30% of all service delivery is community led by 2020.
Target 8: Ensure that HIV investments increase to US$26 billion by 2020, including a quarter for HIV prevention, and 6% for social enablers.
Target 9: Empower people living with, at risk of and affected by HIV to know their rights and to access justice and legal services to prevent and challenge violations of human rights.
Target 10: Commit to taking AIDS out of isolation through people-centered systems to improve universal health coverage, including treatment for tuberculosis, cervical cancer and hepatitis B and C.
Key Achievements for Zimbabwe
The following are some of the key achievements made by
Zimbabwe after implementing the above 10 targets:
- Decentralised differentiated care models which are basically community centred namely: Community Anti-retroviral Re-fill Groups (CARGS) and Community Adolescent Treatment
Supporters (CATS) who take turns to collective treatment for the rest of the members in their groups, ii. Sign Language and Special Needs Training for key health personnel in order to expand HIV Testing Services to clients with special needs.
- Final transmission including breastfeeding period was 8.5% in 2018, indicating that Zimbabwe was on track towards achieving the global elimination target to less than 5% by 2022.
- There was an increase in condom uptake of males from 120 million in 2017 to 135 million in 2018.
- Although there is no legal protection for key populations
(transgender and men who have sex with and sex workers) in
Zimbabwe, there has been programming for Female Sex Workers (FSW), MSM, transgender and prisoners. To this end, NAC through Center for Sexual Health and HIV and AIDS Research
(CeSHHAR) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), established ten static sites for sex workers and seven drop-in centres, five for MSM and two for sex workers.
- The finalisation of the Legal and Regulatory Environment Assessment (LEA) with the overall objectives of assessing the legal, regulatory and policy environment in relation to HIV and
AIDS in Zimbabwe.
Progress towards achieving the UN Targets of 90-90-90
Table 2 and 3 show the analysis for the achievement of the UN targets of 90-90-90 for Uganda and Zimbabwe respectively, as at
December 2018.
Table 2: Analysis for the achievement of the 90-90-90 targets by
2030 for Uganda
| UN Target | Indicator | 90 Cascade |
| Estimated number of people living with HIV – 1.4 million | - | |
| The First 90 | People living with HIV who know their status | 89% |
| The second 90 | People on ART | 89% |
| The Third 90 | Virally suppressed among those tested for Viral Load | 90% |
Data Source: A report of the Presidential Fast-Track Initiative on Ending Aids as a Public
Health Threat in Uganda by 2030: Period June 2017 – December 2018.
Table 3: 2018 Analysis for the Achievement of the 90-90-90 targets by 2030 for Zimbabwe
| UN Target | Indicator | 90 Cascade |
| Estimated number of people living with HIV – 1.3 million | - | |
| The first 90 | People living with HIV who know their status | 90% |
| The Second 90 | People on ART | 87.36% |
| The Third 90 | Virally suppressed among those tested for Viral Load. | 73% |
Data Source: Zimbabwe 2019 Global AIDS Monitoring Report.
As shown in Table 2, above, Uganda managed to hit its set UN targets of 90-90-90 before 2020. The country status as of December 2018 was at 89-89-90. This means that for the first 90 that aims at having 90% of people living with HIV knowing their status by 2020, Uganda was standing at 89% by December 2018. For the second 90 that aims at having 90% of people who test positive to be enrolled on care and treatment, Uganda was standing at 89% by December 2018. For the third 90 that aims at ensuring that all those on treatment achieve viral load suppression, Uganda managed to hit this 90% by December 2018.
Similarly, the above table indicates that Zimbabwe was also close to achieving the set targets as its status was at 90-87-73. This means that for the first 90 that aims at having 90% of the people living with HIV knowing their status by 2020, Zimbabwe managed to surpass the set target standing at 90% by December 2018. For the second 90 that aims at having 90% of people who test positive to be enrolled on care and treatment, Zimbabwe was standing at 87.36% by December 2018. For the third 90 that aims at ensuring that all those on treatment achieve viral load suppression, Zimbabwe was at 72% by December 2018. It is therefore evident that during the period under review, Uganda was faring well compared to Zimbabwe.
HIV and AIDS Financing:
For the first time, Uganda managed to design and outline strategies through which money was going to be locally mobilised in order to fund the National HIV response. This has been a major achievement of the
Presidential Fast-Tract Initiative considering that for many years, over 80% of Uganda national HIV/AIDS priorities were funded by foreign donors. The Presidential directive to all institutions to mainstream
HIV/AIDS provided a platform to concretise and operationalise the HIV Mainstreaming Guidelines where all Government ministries and local governments would contribute 0.1% of their annual budget to HIV/AIDS work. This directive was estimated to raise at least US$5 million annually and this is over and above the AIDS Trust Fund that was authorised by Parliament. The private sector also came up with their own innovation of the One Dollar Initiative which was estimated to raise about 10 million annually for the next five years. All these were sustainable and creative strategies that were going to enable Uganda fund its own response and set targets by 2030.
Like Uganda, Zimbabwe relies heavily on donor funding for its
HIV response. The biggest funder of the country’s HIV response is the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, followed by
PEPFAR. In terms of domestic resource mobilisation, the Zimbabwean Government collects an AIDS levy made up of 3% payee and corporate tax, which contributes to Zimbabwe’s domestic share of funding for HIV response. This domestic resources mobilisation tool was also adopted by the Government of Uganda as stated above. However, due to economic hardships Zimbabwe is faced with, the revenue collection base has been shrinking, making it difficult for the country to mobilise more resources locally. In light of the integration of TB, cancer, and hepatitis B and C services into the HIV and AIDS programme, it means Zimbabwe has to identify new sources of HIV financing.
Other Key HIV Prevention Interventions by the Presidential
Fast-Track Initiative:
The line ministries and partners developed and implemented frameworks with activities to reach adolescent girls, young women and men, their families and communities with appropriate HIV prevention interventions as outlined below.
Adolescent Girl Agenda:
The adolescent and Young Women Inter-Ministerial Task-Force (chaired by the First Lady) developed a framework for addressing adolescent and young women issues, to guide all sectors on issues underlying their vulnerability to HIV.
The National Sexuality Education Framework
The First lady launched the National Sexuality Education Framework intended to provide guidance to various sectors reaching in and out of school children, adolescents and young people.
The National Parenting Guidelines
The Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development (MGLSD) finalised and launched the parenting guidelines. The guidelines complement the sexuality education framework and specifically aim to equip parents with knowledge and skills in raising children.
The Presidential Initiative on AIDS Strategy for
Communication to Youth (PIASCY) Programme
The PIASCY was reviewed targeting young people in school to equip them with information and skills on responsible sexuality and reproductive health choices. The programme is being implemented in 42 districts of Uganda under the USAID funded projects.
The Social Economic Empowerment Projects
These projects are aimed at empowering adolescent girls and young women (10-24 years) with skills and capacity to stay HIV negative and cope with the epidemic. These include: Uganda Women Empowerment Programme (UWEP), Operation Wealth Creation
(OWC), Women Fund and Youth Fund, National Agricultural Advisory
Services (NAADS), Determined Resilient Empowered AIDS-Free Mentored and Safe women partnership initiative (DREAMS), the Karamoja Empowerment Project, the Empowerment and Livelihood for
Adolescents (ELA) and the Global Fund Catalytic Programme.
The Role of Parliamentarians
The delegation had the opportunity to interact with the Committee on Health at the Parliament of Uganda. This platform offered the Parliamentarians from Zimbabwe and Uganda an opportunity to share experience and lessons in playing their oversight, representative and legislative roles. Some of the roles played by the Ugandan
Parliamentarians are outlined as follows:
Provide leadership in realising the right to ending HIV and
AIDS
The importance of leadership in the response to ending HIV and AIDS is widely recognised especially in mobilising the communities at national and sub-national levels. As such, Ugandan Parliamentary Committees have participated in offering leadership and providing accurate information on HIV and AIDS throughout the country. For example, the Speaker of Parliament in Uganda is the Champion of the Girl Child who is highly vulnerable to HIV infections. The Speaker has influenced policies and programmes aimed at reducing vulnerability of girls and women in Uganda. These include: the Uganda Youth
Livelihood Programmes and the Women Economic Empowerment
Programmes. Additionally, the Committee on HIV and other Related Matters developed the HIV Communication Toolkit as a policy document whose purpose is to guide leaders at all levels to reach stakeholders with correct and consistent HIV and AIDS information.
Enacting Supportive Laws
Parliamentarians have played a key role in ensuring that there is supportive and conducive legal and policy environment to protect the right of the people infected and affected by HIV. The Parliament of Uganda, in consultation with the Uganda AIDS Commission and other stakeholders, enacted the HIV Prevention and Control Act of 2014, in the same way Parliament of Zimbabwe enacted the National AIDS Council of Zimbabwe Act in 1999. Parliament of Uganda further gave technical support in the development of the National HIV Strategy Plan
2015/16-2019/2020 and the National Monitoring and Evaluation Framework. Parliament also supported the enactment of the HIV Prevention and Control Act of 2013 for the regional block of East
Africa.
Increasing Parliamentary Oversight
Parliamentarians have and continue to play a critical role in the
HIV and AIDS response. The Parliamentary Committees at Uganda
Parliament Actively participated in the launch and roll out of the
Presidential Fast-Track Initiative on Ending AIDS as a Public Health Threat in Uganda by 2030. Different Committees of Parliament for example HIV, Education, Health, Presidential Affairs and Budget
Committees rallied communities across the country. Furthermore,
Parliamentarians made oversight visits to the fisher folks (Key Populations) at the landing sites, to schools and these visits helped to appreciate the HIV interventions. The key recommendations that were made from the oversight visits contributed to influencing policy and programmes at national and sub-national levels in the management of
HIV and HIV response.
Ensuring Predictable and Sustainable Financing
Ugandan Parliamentarians played a critical role in prioritising the appropriation of the National Budget allocations towards sustainable and evidence-informed HIV and AIDS plans. At the time of the study visit by the Committee, Parliament of Uganda had appropriated 0.1% of the annual budget for the Government ministries, departments and agencies to finance the HIV programmes. This is over and above the funds that were to be collected from the AIDS Trust Fund (ATF).
Ensuring Accountability
Parliament of Uganda holds the Government accountable for implementing programmes that are non-discriminatory and reach all populations in need. The Parliament ensured that programmes reach general population and have the right to access HIV and AID|S treatment. Women, children and men have access to HIV testing and treatment without discrimination, and that health services are able to respond to the specific needs of women and girls living with HIV. For example, under the Elimination of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV (EMTCT), Parliament ensured that all programmes are designed to protect the expectant mothers from Transmitting HIV to new born and the country had reduced new infections among new born from 26,000 in
2016 to about 3 000 in 2018.
Lessons Learnt
- Political will is very critical towards the fight against HIV and AIDS.
- Legislators are key to influencing and promoting HIV and AIDS policies, programmes and activities as they act as role models to their communities.
- Mobile HIV and AIDS counselling and testing facilities are key enablers in improving accessibility of threes services to the key populations such as truck drivers, sex workers and surrounding communities.
- Appropriate and strong financial mechanisms or resource mobilisation are critical in supporting HIV and AIDS programmes and activities.
- Targeting key populations such as young people in rural communities in HIV and AIDs programming helps in reducing
HIV prevalence.
Recommendations
Over and above the AIDS Levy, the Government through the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, should spearhead the fight against HIV and AIDS for the purpose of setting up of a Presidential Fund towards this noble cause as this will demonstrate the highest level of political will. Zimbabwe legislators should lead by example through voluntary HIV testing and counselling as well as continue to lobby for more HIV and AIDS awareness campaign programmes in the country by
December, 2021.
The Ministry of Health and Child Care should endeavour to establish roadside health clinics (roadside wellness centres) at truck stops and borders that stay open late and are located near parking facilities by December 2022. These should also provide access to health care, counselling and health education for long distance truck drivers, sex workers and the surrounding communities.
In its 2022 National Budget, the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development should consider coming up with effective financing mechanisms geared towards increased resource mobilisation for HIV and AIDs prevention, treatment and care in the country through some of the following ways:
- Tapping into the informal sector by earmarking about 10% of
VAT for HIV and AIDS programming; or
- Considering earmarking 10% of the Health Levy for HIV and
AIDS programming; or
- Considering earmarking 10% of the 2% tax for HIV and AIDS programming; or
- Consider directing all Government ministries and local governments to contribute 0.1% of their annual budget to HIV and AIDS programming as is the case in Uganda.
9.5 The National AIDS Council should continue the scaling up of HIV and AIDS programmes and activities in rural communities, targeting the young people who are most at risk in order to achieve the UN targets of
95/95/95 goal.
10.0 Conclusion
The study visit was an eye-opener, not only to the delegation but to the legislators in general as the findings in this report underscored the importance of effective and efficient HIV and AIDS management and financing systems. It is therefore very critical for Zimbabwe as it strives towards ending AIDS and becoming an upper-middle class economy by
2030 to be cognisant that a strong economy needs a healthy nation. Thus, the positives that were learnt during this study visit should be considered for HIV response in Zimbabwe.
*HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: Thank you Madam President for
affording me this opportunity to go to Uganda on a work visit to see and learn about best practices on how they have tackled the issue of HIV and AIDS up until they have reached the level of six percent. I would like to thank the leader of our delegation Hon. Sen. Chief Ngungumbane. This is a well written report, it is concise and precise. It detailed what we observed and what we learnt. We learnt how they are conducting their business.
Madam President, what this report has explained, if we were to take it seriously and also implement it in our country, we will benefit from their ideas by ensuring that we eradicate HIV and AIDS.
Yesterday, we were debating a motion on health. It was about how best we can develop the health systems of this country so that our nation becomes a healthy nation. We need health infrastructure so that we are able to work as we try to improve the economy in our country as well as health issues that need to be done and there is need for a healthy workforce.
Mr. President, the most important thing that we can copy from what the Ugandans have done is to collaborate with the Ministry of
Health. Everyone should come on board from the President going down. At the moment, with the Presidential Scholarship Scheme, it is my opinion that we should come up with a Presidential AIDS levy that would assist us in curbing the AIDS menace because without funding no plans can come to fruition.
Mr. President, I know that Zimbabwe is among the top countries in coming up with the programme of AIDS Levy but because of the prevalence of AIDS, the funds are getting exhausted. So we need to come up with other ideas to ensure that we raise sufficient funds to fight against the AIDS menace. Mr. President, you have heard from the report that the legislators live with the people in the communal lands. In the communities where they lie, they have a major part to play in assisting in the eradication of AIDS. If we were to ask one another in this august House as to how many of us were tested for HIV and AIDS, you may observe that those that were tested are in the minority or nonexistent at all. It is one of the sectors that the Government strived on, they asked their legislators to lead by example.
If you are a legislator, you are a leader and a role model, so you should lead from the front. Once you endorse Government programmes on the treatment of HIV and AIDS and also play your part in that you become the first person to be tested for HIV and AIDS, it helps the people to also want to be associated with the same problem because their leader is leading from the front.
We observed that when the President was vaccinated for COVID19, there was a sudden uptake of the people that wanted to be vaccinated. So you find that currently all people are now interested in receiving this vaccination. I urge legislators to play their role, lead by example and also participate in these programmes.
Still on that note Mr. President, people perish because they do not know. Ignorance is the chief culprit that has led to the death of a lot of people. We know that in the communal lands where we live, we have traditional leaders – the institutional leadership that is the chiefs, headmen and village heads. Once these are at the forefront in all the programmes that we want to do as Parliament, (since they live with the people because 70 % of our population is in the rural area) once these leaders are given power to assist the Government to ensure that information is properly disseminated and they also take a lead in enlightening the people; I sincerely believe that we will be able to succeed. In the majority of cases we fail because people will be ignorant.
Health professionals do have campaigns that are taken to the people but they do not reach everyone within the community. There are various communities and each area has its own Chief. Each Chief has got his Village heads. Once this traditional leadership is given the chance to lead and speak with the village health workers and the
National Aids Council, workers in the communal lands will be able to win because of the NAC and DAC structures that we have that deal with HIV and AIDS. Whilst we put our heads together in that regard, we will be able to emerge victorious and reduce the number of HIV/AIDS infections.
I would like to go further and state that I just want to thank our Government for what it did with regards to this disease which has led to the numbers going down. We are better than Uganda in terms of HIV
AIDS infections. Uganda is on 60% and we are on 38%. I applaud our Government for a job well done. Zimbabwe is one of the first countries that introduced the AIDS Levy and the others copied from us. Let us continue encouraging each other as a country. When we have a problem, it is not for an individual but for the nation. We should not compartmentalise the problem and say this is a medical issue and we do not know what the Vice President and Minister of Health and Child Care is going to do. We should never be tempted to think along those linesbecause by doing so, we will be behaving like insane people. We should put our heads and effort together as Zimbabweans and pull in the same direction to eradicate problems so that we are able to overcome
any pandemics that we may face and we will remain in a better place. Once we do that and if we come up with the recommendations that are contained in the report, we should also look at those that we will be capable of implementing as a country so that we can raise funds to eradicate this disease. It will be of benefit to us.
AIDS kills but a lot of funding is being used to cure or eradicate COVID-19. As a result, the Government coffers will be strained because of the diseases we have to cope with which may not have been budgeted for as a country. Let us help one another and ensure that we defeat this pandemic in our country.
Thank you Mr. President for giving me this opportunity and I conclude by thanking you for sending us to Uganda to learn the best practises and observe what happens in other countries. I thank you.
HON. SEN. CHIEF NGUNGUMBANE:I move that the debate
do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. CHIEF MAKUMBE: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 26th August, 2021.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): I move that we
revert to Order of the Day Number 2 on the Order Paper.
Motion put and agreed to.
CONSIDERATION STAGE
FORESTRY AMENDMENT BILL [H.B. 19 A, 2019]
Second Order Read: Consideration Stage: Forestry Amendment
Bill [H.B. 19 A, 2019].
Amendments to Clause 5 put and agreed to.
Bill, as amended, adopted.
Third Reading: With leave, forthwith.
THIRD READING
FORESTRY AMENDMENT BILL [H.B. 19 A, 2019]
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Mr. Speaker Sir,
I now move that the Bill be read the third time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read the third time.
CONSIDERATION STAGE
CYBER AND DATA PROTECTION BILL [H. B.18 B. 2019]
Amendments to Clauses 5, 6, 37 and New Clause 37 put and agreed to.
Bill, as amended, adopted
Third Reading: With leave, forthwith.
THIRD READING
CYBER AND DATA PROTECTION BILL [H. B. 18B, 2019]
THE MIMISTER OF INFORMATION COMMUNICATION
TECHNOLOGY, POSTAL AND COURIER SERVICES (HON.
- MUSWERE): Mr. President, I now move that the Bill be read the third time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read the third time.
MOTION
STRENGTHENING THE HEALTH DELIVERY SYSTEM TO
ACHIEVE UNIVERSAL HEALTH COVERAGE
Fifth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the need to strengthen the health delivery system in Zimbabwe.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. CHIMBUDZI: Mr. President, I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 26th August, 2021.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE JOINT THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS ON THE PROVISION OF
QUALITY EDUCATION, SANITISATION AND HYGIENE
MANAGEMENT IN SCHOOLS
Sixth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on Report of the Thematic Committee on Sustainable Development Goals on the Provision of Quality Education, Sanitisation and Hygiene Management in Schools.
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. KOMICHI: Thank you Mr. President Sir, for according me this opportunity. I would like to thank Hon. Sen. Chief Mtshane, the mover of the motion. From the onset, Zimbabwe placed education as one of its top priorities. We have the history of upper tops which was an instrument that was used by the Government to ensure that the children of this country have access to education immediately after the colonial era. It is a good thing and it gave a chance to every Zimbabwean, men and woman that are holding degrees. Some of them are professors; all came from such an effort. There was a lot of development in the school of education. There was also adult education for the elderly so that they could cover the time when they were under oppression, when they were not affording the opportunity to go to school, which is quite a good thing. We are highly rated among all the other countries in Africa in terms of our education standards. Our literacy rate is over 90%, which by standard is very high. Such a legacy is still in existence and we should maintain that legacy of being an educated country.
Be that as it may, we have some areas that are lagging behind. As Government, we must focus our attention in that area. These are the resettlement areas where our farmers are. In these resettlement areas, we still have poorly built schools. There are schools which do not have requisite facilities that would let children endure in their education. These areas have no access in terms of road infrastructure. The road infrastructure is so wayward that there is no easy access by commuter omnibuses or buses. As a result, they do not attract the best teachers because the majority of teachers choose to go to areas such as Harare urban centres where there is infrastructure which also leads to poor quality education in such areas.
The resettlement areas have zero percent pass rate in some of the examinations. They are now densely populated and we have a log of generations that are lagging behind in terms of education. If there is to be a re-evaluation, the 90 plus percentage that we have attained could actually be around 70% because of the population that is hidden in such areas. There is a population of school children who are suffering. If you closely observe, you would witness that child marriages is prevalent in that area because they do not have an opportunity to go to colleges and universities because of their poor pass rates. The environment is not conducive to an extent that once they complete Grade 7, boys and girls end up indulging in sexual activities. As a result, child pregnancies are rife. We urge the Government to closely look into these issues and focus in those areas.
The budget for the education sector should be concentrated more on the resettlement areas. There should be easy access to basic services so that teachers can be able to easily travel to buy their clothes and other commodities. These areas should attract qualified personnel to go and teach. The temporary teachers issue should be dealt with because the majority of teachers in such areas are temporary teachers and we end up producing half-baked graduates.
I once again extend my gratitude to Hon. Sen. Chief Mtshane and his Committee for the good work that they did in producing such a report. Indeed, such areas do not have quality education. There is no sanitisation to talk about, it is a place where children use the bush as a form of a latrine such that if you were to go to an area within a radius of 100 metres from the school, you find that there will be human waste, which is not healthy and conducive to a good environment for children. I want to believe that the Minister of education, once he receives the report, will be able to respond to the concerns raised and come up with a programme of action to attend to the issues raised. Thank you once again Hon. President of the Senate.
*HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: Thank you Mr. President for giving me an opportunity to add my voice. I have come here to ensure that I add my voice to this particular report because I was one of the Hon. Senators who travelled with this particular Committee as we were having these visits to schools to establish the state of affairs regarding the quality of education in those schools. We also sought to find out the reasons why there were school drop-outs in such schools. We also looked into the issue of the issuing out of sanitary wear to the girl child by the Government.
Mr. President, we visited four schools. First and foremost, I would like to say that this programme which was brought by the Government to declare roads a national disaster should be given top priority to road infrastructure development in the communal lands. The roads which we travelled through are in a sorry state. It is difficult for children to travel such long distances and bent roads to reach their schools. In the majority of cases, there is no transport to talk about; people who have their vehicles do not want to use bad roads. That issue must be addressed.
Despite the fact that we were going to investigate on the quality of education and whether the learning environment was conducive, the issue of the road infrastructure should also be addressed. The roads are in a sorry state. We went to the first school in Mangondo and it shows that they had spruced up the school premises on the day that we arrived. We could even tell that the school was in a sorry state. Even the water supply we were shown was put up for the show as they were aware that Parliamentarians were coming. The issue of access to water should be addressed, it is a major challenge and even the toilets that they are using have no water. Those issues need to be rectified.
Mr. President, we were told that the sanitary wear that was being provided by the Government, in the majority of cases, the girl children were not receiving them. They received a single packet and others were given just panty liners. How is the girl going to wear the panty liner when at times she does not even have the pant? It is a challenge that needs to be addressed. Ways should be identified in order to address the challenges that the children are facing. We went to Musume and
Mberengwa and we observed
H.I 340350 Wednesday, 25 August, 2021
There are schools which do not have requisite facilities that would let children endure in their education. These areas have no access in terms of road infrastructure. The road infrastructure is so wayward that there is no easy access by commuter omnibuses or buses. As a result, they do not attract the best teachers because the majority of teachers choose to go to areas such as Harare urban centres where there is infrastructure which also leads to poor quality education in such areas.
The resettlement areas have zero percent pass rate in some of the examinations. They are now densely populated and we have a log of generations that are lagging behind in terms of education. If there is to be a re-evaluation, the 90 plus percentage that we have attained could actually be around 70% because of the population that is hidden in such areas. There is a population of school children who are suffering. If you closely observe, you would witness that child marriages is prevalent in that area because they do not have an opportunity to go to colleges and universities because of their poor pass rates. The environment is not conducive to an extent that once they complete Grade 7, boys and girls end up indulging in sexual activities. As a result, child pregnancies are rife. We urge the Government to closely look into these issues and focus in those areas.
The budget for the education sector should be concentrated more on the resettlement areas. There should be easy access to basic services so that teachers can be able to easily travel to buy their clothes and other commodities. These areas should attract qualified personnel to go and teach. The temporary teachers issue should be dealt with because the majority of teachers in such areas are temporary teachers and we end up producing half-baked graduates.
I once again extend my gratitude to Hon. Sen. Chief Mtshane and his Committee for the good work that they did in producing such a report. Indeed, such areas do not have quality education. There is no sanitisation to talk about, it is a place where children use the bush as a form of a latrine such that if you were to go to an area within a radius of 100 metres from the school, you find that there will be human waste, which is not healthy and conducive to a good environment for children. I want to believe that the Minister of education, once he receives the report, will be able to respond to the concerns raised and come up with a programme of action to attend to the issues raised. Thank you once again Hon. President of the Senate.
*HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: Thank you Mr. President for giving me an opportunity to add my voice. I have come here to ensure that I add my voice to this particular report because I was one of the Hon. Senators who travelled with this particular Committee as we were having these visits to schools to establish the state of affairs regarding the quality of education in those schools. We also sought to find out the reasons why there were school drop-outs in such schools. We also looked into the issue of the issuing out of sanitary wear to the girl child by the Government.
Mr. President, we visited four schools. First and foremost, I would like to say that this programme which was brought by the Government to declare roads a national disaster should be given top priority to road infrastructure development in the communal lands. The roads which we travelled through are in a sorry state. It is difficult for children to travel such long distances and bent roads to reach their schools. In the
majority of cases, there is no transport to talk about; people who have their vehicles do not want to use bad roads. That issue must be addressed.
Despite the fact that we were going to investigate on the quality of education and whether the learning environment was conducive, the issue of the road infrastructure should also be addressed. The roads are in a sorry state. We went to the first school in Mangondo and it shows that they had spruced up the school premises on the day that we arrived. We could even tell that the school was in a sorry state. Even the water supply we were shown was put up for the show as they were aware that Parliamentarians were coming. The issue of access to water should be addressed, it is a major challenge and even the toilets that they are using have no water. Those issues need to be rectified.
Mr. President, we were told that the sanitary wear that was being provided by the Government, in the majority of cases, the girl children were not receiving them. They received a single packet and others were given just panty liners. How is the girl going to wear the panty liner when at times she does not even have the pant? It is a challenge that needs to be addressed. Ways should be identified in order to address the challenges that the children are facing. We went to Musume and Mberengwa and we observed similar things; the conditions were not good. We observed that the teachers will be there but the departments did not have individual reports. The communication was centred on the Head. The Head was given the reports of all the departments. That shows that there was difficulty in communication. We learnt that the children were given sanitary towels but the major challenge is that once you are given the sanitary towel this month, you are not given the sanitary towel the following month. What is the child going to do the following month? Menstruation is a natural process which a girl child experiences every month. My plea Mr. President is that this programme should be ongoing, so that we know that the children are consistently going to be assisted because they will not be facing difficulties in going back to using leaves and rugs for their menstrual cycle. Some may not even go to school because they would not have the means to ensure that they are in hygienic mode to be able to attend school.
We were further told that dropouts are on the increase and this is being caused by poverty because they do not have anything to sustain themselves. Some schools like those ones in Tsholotsho that are at the border and schools such as Makheleli, we observed that the children are not held in high esteem to value education. There is no importance being placed on education because they cross the border and do piece jobs in nearby countries. When they come back, they will be driving motor vehicles. So they believe that once they cross the border to the neighbouring country, they will have a better type of living, hence education is being neglected. I propose that the Ministry of Education should go on a campaign in schools and communities to teach the children about the importance of education. I say this because there is lack of appreciation of the importance of education. It will be quite good if they are enlightened on the importance of education.
During these visits, we also observed that the people that are living with disabilities have a serious challenge. For instance, in the majority of schools that we visited, there were no ramps for use by the disabled children. There is no infrastructure that is in place for children that live with disabilities. This issue should be looked into so that the children who live with disabilities in the communal lands have easy access to schools and have infrastructure suitable for their use. Imagine a disabled child who is going to travel on a bad road and at the school there are no facilities that are conducive to a disabled person. We were disturbed by their plight. We feel that such anomalies should be addressed. Children living with disabilities have rights and they are also equal to other humans. Therefore, they should be treated as such, so as to enable them to a better quality of life and a better quality of education. They should not be discriminated upon. They should also enjoy the same privileges as those that are able bodied.
We also observed the challenge of teachers, especially in Tsholotsho. At Tsholotsho High School where we visited, we were told that some teachers would be transferred to urban schools but there will be no replacement. This results in children being disadvantaged and they lose out. This is one of the reasons that affect the quality of education at schools that we visited because teachers are transferred without finding a replacement.
We also observed that orphans have serious challenges to attend schools, especially child headed households. As a result there is no one that assists such households, hence they drop out of school. As children, no one will be encouraging anyone to go to school. Also there will be no source of funding for them to go to school so they end up withdrawing from school. Again, the issue of distance discourages them from continuing with school. In certain areas, children walk long distances to school. So being children, no one checks on them and they end up not going to school because of these long distances. If they go to school, they will reach the school very tired. In the majority of cases, children just abstain from going to school.
Teenage pregnancies are also rife. People take advantage of these innocent girls and impregnate them. As a result, they lose out on their education. Once they leave school - we know that they can go back after they give birth but they would not be comfortable to go back to school because their peers will laugh at them. Very few children go back to school after giving birth. Majority of cases just prefer to stay at home rather than going back to school.
In conclusion, we were talking about the impartation of knowledge, the problem that we have is we just teach the girl child. By this we are not getting anywhere because the girl child falls pregnant, because she has been impregnated by the boy child. When it comes to education, we should educate both the girl child and the boy child. We should teach them at the same time and tell them that the reason why they should abstain from sexual intercourse when they are together, both the boy child and the girl child become enlightened. As they grow up, they are mindful of the fact that they should not be involved in early sexual intercourse, which may lead to early pregnancies. I would want to thank you Hon. President for giving me this opportunity to add my voice to the report that details our fact finding mission into the quality of education in our schools and the state of the schools. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. CHIMBUDZI: Thank you Mr. President for
allowing me this opportunity to add my voice to this motion. I thank the Committee for the work that they did. The report shows what has to be done, as well as highlighting the problems that are being faced in the education sector. Let me say that Zimbabwe as a country, took giant strides in ensuring that there is education for all, which came up in 1980 at the advent of independence.
The boy child and the girl child were given an equal opportunity to go to school because they were not able to attend school during the liberation struggle. Since we attained our independence, all the children were being urged to go to school because it is important for a country to have an educated population, as well as an educated leadership. It will have serious development effects. We thank the Government for taking such a stance.
The problems of infrastructure that we observed and the issue of school drop-outs and early marriages are challenges that we are mostly seized with. It has been said in the report that early marriages are being caused by poverty. As a nation, we must have laws that are harsh so that they act as a deterrent measure. Once these girls become pregnant, they may have challenges in delivering the baby because of the age. As has been earlier on stated by Hon. Sen. Tongogara, parents must play a major role in the life of our children. The teachers are there to deal with the children during school time. In the majority of cases, parents should ensure that they play their role and bring up their children well.
Yesterday and today, I observed on television that there were teenage pregnancies during the COVID-19 pandemic. From the report, in South Africa from March 2020 to March 2021, 23 000 girls fell pregnant. Zimbabwe also experienced its own teenage pregnancies.
This is caused by inactivity because an idle mind is the devil’s workshop. These children ordinarily should be in school but now because of inactivity, they do not have any other way of occupying themselves.
In communal lands, the majority of schools have pit latrines.
These pit latrines are not user friendly to people living with disabilities. There are no facilities for people living with disability in communal lands and this is a major challenge to the disabled. The Government should come up with a new type of a toilet that can be used in all schools, be it the flush system that Hon. Sen. Dr. Parirenyatwa once made reference to. These ones would be good but would have challenges in the border areas such as Mukumbura where the area is arid and water is a challenge. Be that as it may, good toilets are required.
A child living with disability has parents. However, I have observed that a disabled child is discriminated in a family. It could even lead to divorce of the parents. I urge parents to accept their disabled children. If you do not want to look after your disabled child, who do you expect to do so? It is not the duty of the teacher to look after a disabled child.
There is a lot of work to be done in our schools. In the past, we used to see in the education system that there was an Inspector who would supervise schools. Whenever the school inspector would be coming, schools would be clean and a lot of defects would be remedied. It is no longer being done. There is no longer adequate supervision in schools. Teachers do as they please these days because there is no supervision. Government should look into that area because if there is someone to supervise them, the way things are done will be changed. We thank the Zimbabwean Government because it wants every child to be educated.
The sanitary wear project is good. We had a programme with Hon. Sen. Tongogara in Mazowe. We do not believe that the sanitary wear from Government is all distributed. I suggest that instead of
Government giving cash to schools, they should train students to be able to saw their own sanitary wear. The school can then sell the sanitary wear to the women within their communities and the programme becomes self sustaining. It will also create employment to school leavers. It is my considered view that Government should come up with such programmes as we are observing the First Lady doing. This programme has grown in leaps and bounce in Harare. So, Government should borrow a leaf from the First Lady and follow suit. I thank you for affording me this opportunity Mr. President.
**HON. SEN. R. NYATHI: I want to thank you for the opportunity you have given me Mr. President to debate on this motion that was moved by Hon. Sen. Chief Mtshane. We have heard what everyone has said that they visited schools. This is a good thing which should be done, that we visit all schools in each province. I do not think they visited all schools that are supposed to be visited. There are schools in rural areas that are not accessible and that were built using mud. For example in Lusulu, I want to say that if Government is to visit schools, let us visit all schools because in these rural schools there are disabled learners who should also be taken care of. Education in Zimbabwe is very important because the country is known for its education in the whole of Africa. We are talking of early marriages – this is because our Government is not visiting all schools and taking care of all learners. During our learning days, teachers knew that when they go to work, they will be going to teach every child irrespective of their ability.
It is our duty as Members of Parliament to check if all learners are learning because teachers these days are selective. As Government, we should check who should be beneficiaries of Government programmes in schools because we have orphans and vulnerable students in these rural schools. You realise that those who deserve assistance are not given but it is given to those students who are better off. Binga is very big Mr. President and has a number of vulnerable students who need assistance. Thank you Mr. President.
HON. SEN. MUZENDA: Thank you Mr. President. I move that
the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 26th August, 2021.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE JOINT PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON LOCAL
GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING
AND THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON PEACE AND SECURITY
ON THE ASSESSMENT OF PROGRESS MADE IN AREAS
AFFECTED BY FLOODS AND ON CONSTRUCTION OF COVID 19
TREATMENT, QUARANTINE AND ISOLATION FACILITIES
Seventh Order read: Adjourned debate on motion the Assessment of Progress made in areas affected by floods and on construction of
COVID-19 Treatment, Quarantine and Isolation Facilities.
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. CHIMBUDZI: Thank you Mr. President for
affording me this opportunity to add my voice to this motion that was moved by Hon. Sen. Dr. Parirenyatwa and his seconder. This was a report on the floods that were experienced and the places that need to be looked into as regards the COVID issue. I am going to concentrate on the issue of the floods. I am one of the people that travelled to
Chimanimani which is in a sorry state even up today.
Be that as it may, let me say that the report was truthful in that it exposed the truth. Things were quite bad in Chipinge and lives were lost. What pleased me most which has not been mentioned, is that the people of Chipinge were very grateful for the assistance that they received from the Government and they were quite clear about it. They also thanked the Government for quickly coming to their assistance when they experienced this Cyclone Idai. The report also touched on the issue of hunger. Indeed, people were hungry. The bulk of the food was coming from the donor community. Government had not yet mobilised its own resources and donors do have timelines in which they operate. It is after the expiry of these timelines that our Government was supposed to have quickly stepped in. The delay that took place led to the people complaining about the late availability of food but the majority of the people were grateful for the early assistance that they received in the Chipinge area.
Mr. President, we also want to thank our Zimbabwean and South
African armies who were seized with the reconstruction of the bridges. This shows that there is unity between South Africa and Zimbabwe, hence they came to the aid of the Zimbabwean families after bridges had been washed away. People on the different sides of the river were no longer able to communicate and interact. It is quite sad that the majority of lives were lost in that natural disaster. It is never known when such a disaster would strike but we would like to thank the Lord that at least some survived when others lost their lives during the floods.
Mr. President, the Department of Construction is doing quite well when given tasks to construct houses. However, their work is delayed because they do not have sufficient resources. I believe that if they are given sufficient resources for construction of houses and schools, they will quickly meet their target of constructing a school or a house. We would want to thank them for doing such splendid work in such areas despite these challenges that are being faced. They were promising that goods will be disbursed. I hope that the work in Chipinge will continue to be done and things will return to normal. Thank you Mr. President. HON. SEN. DR. PARIRENYATWA: Mr. President, , I move
that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MATHUTHU: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 26th August, 2021.
MOTION
HONOUR IN RESPECT OF MBUYA NEHANDA STATUE IN THE
CITY OF HARARE
Eighth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the heroics of
Mbuya Nehanda.
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. TSOMONDO: Thank you Mr. President for
affording me this opportunity to also add my voice on this motion. I would like to thank Hon. Sen. Kambizi the mover of this motion and the seconder. I also want to thank our President and his Government for their vision which saw it fit that we must have a monument of the late Mbuya Nehanda along Samora Machel. The reason being that it has been a long outstanding matter and what has been done by His. Excellency the President will help the majority of Zimbabwean children who did not know what Mbuya Nehanda looked like. It will help those that are in schools and those that are going to come. When they see that statue, they will be able to understand what Mbuya Nehanda’s legacy is all about.
We want to thank the President and his Cabinet for coming up with such a statue for Mbuya Nehanda. The history of Mbuya Nehanda was chronicled even before we were born. We grew up knowing about her legacy and her legacy lives on. Her life is well chronicled and she was hanged. She was not at peace when she met her death. Her desire was to ensure that this country is returned to the black people. As a woman, she was abused before she died. After she died, her spirit kept roaming around this country and because of the decree that she made, that is after it was fulfilled, as Zimbabweans we took up arms and liberated our country. It appeared as if it was easy but this was very difficult. These were difficult times. Her contribution is so big. She played a mammoth task in the liberation of this country. The majority of the songs that would be sung during the liberation war included the name Mbuya Nehanda. Even when liberation war veterans whenever they would be cross, they would swear by Mbuya Nehanda and this had an important meaning during and after the liberation struggle.
Our highest note – ZW50 bears the image of Mbuya Nehanda. It is blessing us and I am quite happy as a liberation war veteran because I appreciate the importance of Mbuya Nehanda. If you go into Samora Machel Avenue, you will observe a lot of children also looking at the statue. I am happy that our children have learnt about Mbuya Nehanda. She is the first woman to be killed for this country. I was taken aback and surprised that there are some people that are disrespectful. We know that there was a tree along Seventh Avenue or along that area. What surprised me is that the tree was cut down by a disrespectful person. This tree symbolised the trials and tribulations that our ancestor went through and was hanged on that particular tree. This disrespectful person willy-nilly cut down that tree.
That was not a good thing. People should know their history. The history of Zimbabwe should be known by our children. They should know Zimbabwe from ab initio. We are in this Parliament because of that first lady. There are men heroes such as Mapondera, Sekuru Chaminuka and Kaguvi – Mbuya Nehanda is the only woman whose name is ever mentioned. This galvanised us as women into action because women were being looked down upon but because of the heroics of Mbuya Nehanda, women were spurred on and inspired by
Mbuya Nehanda. A lot of women are now doctors, some President of Senate or Vice-President of the country because of the stance that was taken by Mbuya Nehanda. She is known for having said that despite the fact that you are killing me, my bones shall rise. We went to war because of Mbuya Nehanda.
I am quite grateful for what the President and his Cabinet did who came up with the idea of erecting the monument of Mbuya Nehanda in the capital city of Zimbabwe so that everyone can see the statue of one of our heroes – Mbuya Nehanda, who was severely tortured by the whites. She was the first woman to say that this country should be ruled by black people. Despite being in pain, she mentioned that this country should be ruled by her children. We had a song entitled ‘Mbuya Nehanda kufa vachitaura’. The song went on to say that the black people must take arms and liberate this country. I thank the President for taking such a stance of coming up with a statue in the capital city of Zimbabwe. I thank you Mr. President.
HON. SEN. MUZENDA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 26th August, 2021.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE 65TH VIRTUAL SESSION OF THE COMMISSION
ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN ON WOMEN’S FULL AND
EFFECTIVE PARTICIPATION AND DECISION MAKING IN
PUBLIC LIFE
Ninth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the 65th Virtual Session of the Commission on the Status of Women.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MUZENDA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MATHUTHU: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 26th August, 2021.
MOTION
ENFORCEMENT OF PENALTIES ON LIVESTOCK THEFTS
Tenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the theft of livestock.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MUZENDA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 26th August, 2021.
MOTION
VIRTUAL REPORT OF THE 48TH PLENARY SESSION OF THE
SADC-PARLIAMENTARY FORUM
Eleventh Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the 48th Plenary Session of the SADC-Parliamentary Forum.
Question again proposed.
(v)HON. SEN. MOHADI: Thank you Mr. President Sir. I want to thank you for giving me this opportunity to wind up my report. Before I wind up, I would want to thank you for giving me this opportunity to thank everyone who contributed during the debate on this motion. It is a very important report and it was widely debated because it had issues that have to do with each and everyone. Mr. President, without much ado, I move for the adoption of the report.
Motion that this House takes note of the Report of the 48th Plenary Session of the SADC- Parliamentary Forum held virtually from the 4th to the 5th of December 2020, put and agreed to.
MOTION
DEVELOPMENT OF LIBERATION HISTORY MODULES
Twelfth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the need to provide material and financial support to the SADC initiatives for the development of the liberation history modules.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: Mr. President, I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. CHIRONGOMA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 26th August, 2021.
MOTION
ADMINISTRATION OF FOOTBALL IN THE COUNTRY
Thirteenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the financing of football from the fiscus.
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. FEMAI: Thank you Mr. President. I now want to wind up my motion which was debated by a lot of people who supported the motion. I would like to thank all of them. They are numerous so I will not mention them by name but I want to thank all who contributed to this motion.
Before I wind up, the person who was top most on the motion is George Shaya. I do not know what will happen to the five times soccer star of the year in Zimbabwe. That was never repeated again. We heard that there was someone who fought for the country, who went to Mozambique and came back. This was said by the war veterans and we all say that person is a hero. Today, for football to become well known as it is in this particular country, it is because of George Shaya who led Dynamos to victory over Orlando Pirates. Dynamos had lost 3-0 in South Africa but George Shaya scored equalising goals but alas he is no more today. The Government of the New Dispensation, through its President, said that heroes are no longer from one sector, hence you find the likes of Oliver Mtukudzi became a national hero. This is because His Excellency the President, Cde. Mnangagwa extended a hand by declaring that anyone who would have contributed extra ordinarily in any field is a hero. I was hoping that George Shaya would be declared a national hero. That would show that soccer and the legislature are one and the same thing. Football is a recreational facility. It gives therapeutic healing to a person, even one who might be on their death bed when they go to watch soccer they come with a better mind. I am saddened by the loss of George Shaya’s life.
In conclusion, I would want to say when people heard me talking about my motion, urging Government to come into the soccer fraternity and address the problems that the football fraternity is facing because of uncouth characters who are getting there to steal money, Mr. President, today I have evidence that was produced in this particular newspaper of someone who forged that he is one person who runs Dynamos, that he was the founder member of Dynamo, forged documents and prejudiced the football club. The person was impersonating that he was the founder member and all the others have passed on and he claimed that he now had the sole ownership of the shares. Mr. President, that as it may, I thank all those who contributed to the motion and once again, my condolences to the George Shaya family. I now move that the motion be adopted. Motion that this House;
MINDFUL that owing to its popularity, football is affectionately referred to as the beautiful game because of its unifying effect as it draws fans from all walks of life regardless of their colour, creed, race, religion, political, social, economic persuasions and affiliations;
FURTHER MINDFUL that football has become a cash cow for local authorities who rake in handsomely huge sums of money whenever popular soccer clubs like Dynamos, Highlanders, Caps United, among others, play matches at venues under the jurisdiction of the respective
Councils;
NOTING with disapproval the rampant chaos bedeviling the administration of football in the country resulting in top flight football players retiring into abject poverty after their playing days are over;
NOW, THEREFORE, CALLS upon the Executive to:
- Ensure that Football Clubs such as Dynamos and other community teams are adequately resourced from the fiscus in view of the revenue that they bring in whenever they play at venues administered by local authorities.
- Consider bringing normalcy in the administration of football in the country considering that our national team has become our flag bearers by qualifying for the Africa Cup of Nation (AFCON) showcase.
- Put in place legislation that caters for the welfare of soccer players after their playing days are over, put and agreed to.
MOTION
FIRST JOINT PETITION REPORT OF THE PORTFOLIO
COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND CHILD CARE AND THEMATIC
COMMITTEE ON HIV AND AIDS ON THE PETITION FROM THE
ADVOCACY CORE TEAM (ACT) ON THE AGE OF CONSENT TO
ACCESSING REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH CARE SERVICES BY
THE ADOLESCENTS AND YOUNG PERSONS IN ZIMBABWE
Fourteenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the first joint Report of the joint Thematic Committee on HIV and AIDS and
Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care on the Petition from the Advocacy Core Team (ACT) on the age of consent to accessing reproductive health care services by adolescents and young persons in
Zimbabwe.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MUZENDA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MATHUTHU: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 26th August, 2021.
MOTION
ADHERENCE TO OFFICIAL EXCHANGE RATES
Fifteenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the efforts by the government to stabilise the currency.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: I move that the debate do now
adjourn.
HON. SEN. CHIRONGOMA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 26th August, 2021.
MOTION
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE GENDER POLICY AND IPU
GENDER SENSITIVE TOOL KIT
Sixteenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the sexual harassment and violence against women.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MUPFUMIRA: I move that the debate do now
adjourn.
HON. SEN. TSOMONDO: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 26th August, 2021.
On the motion of HON. SEN. MUZENDA seconded by HON. SEN. MATHUTHU, the Senate adjourned at Four Minutes to Five o’clock p.m.