Media Centre

Zambia, 1 June 2011: UNICEF Zambia donates 40 motorcycles to Ministry of Health

LUSAKA, Zambia, 1 June 2011 (UNICEF) – To support the Government of the Republic of Zambia’s efforts to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), UNICEF has donated 40 motorcycles to the Ministry of Health. The ministry will distribute the motorcycles to 20 rural districts in support of Government’s efforts to promoting hygiene and health education, including Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS).

“UNICEF will spare no effort to further assist the great work being implemented by the Government to prevent disease and improve access to water and sanitation,” said UNICEF Zambia Representative Dr. Iyorlumun J. Uhaa. “It is against this background that UNICEF is providing this logistical support to Ministry of Health to spearhead the sanitation and hygiene component of the National Rural Water and Sanitation programme. In our commitment to help Government reach the MDGs with equity, the motorcycles will be used Environmental Health Technicians in 20 districts that are most in need across five provinces (Copperbelt, Eastern, Luapula, Northwestern, and Southern).”

During the presentation of the motorcycles, Dr. Uhaa said, “In our new country program, we have committed ourselves to supporting Government’s efforts to provide water and adequate sanitation through our mutual objectives of halving the proportion of population without access to sustainable and safe drinking water in target districts by 2015; halving the proportion of the population without access to an improved sanitation facility in target districts by 2015; and ensuring that 60 percent of households in target districts adopt improved hygiene practices, including hand washing with soap by 2015.

“Meeting the sanitation- and hygiene-related MDG by 2015 is achievable, but we will need collaborative and coordinated efforts to create the necessary synergy. That is what today is all about,” Dr. Uhaa said. “Through the Government-owned CLTS programme, UNICEF is supporting the logistical capacity of the health foot soldiers, the Environmental Health Technicians, by contributing these 40 motorcycles. UNICEF is also proud to have helped Government bring CLTS to Zambia, a grassroots programme where community members acknowledge their unsafe hygiene practices and face up to the undesirable health risks that they are creating.”

In receiving the donation on behalf of the Ministry of Health, the Honourable Minister of Health Kapembwa Simbao, MP, thanked UNICEF and said, “I would like to mention that the mode of transport that my ministry has benefitted at the right time will certainly go a long way in solving the health problems affecting our people. I wish to most sincerely thank UNICEF for this donation and wish also to promise that the motor bikes will be put to good use and for the intended purpose. This will include among others reaching out to the communities for data collection, analysis, and reporting so that beneficial interventions are identified. In the same vein, I wish to advise the recipient districts to look after the motor bikes well and guard them jealously against misuse.”

About UNICEF
For 60 years UNICEF has been the world’s leader for children, working on the ground in 155 countries and territories to help children survive and thrive, from early childhood through adolescence. The world’s largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations, and governments.

For further information, please contact:

Patrick Slavin, Chief, Communications, +(260) 211-252055, pslavin@unicef.org or
Betty C. Nalungwe, Senior Communications Assistant, +(260) 211-252055 bcnalungwe@unicef.org

Español Français