David Livingstone in Central Province

By NDUBI MVULA, Lusaka,
IN our continued mission to explore tourism as per Zambia Tourism Agency motto of; “Let’s Explore”, the tour of duty vetures into Central Province focusing on the historical monuments.
Many are familiar with the works and explorations of one Great Scot’s man Dr David Livingstone. Central province is one of the areas that he left his foot-steps that can be seen and appreciated today.
These foot-steps can be found in Serenje District where the monument lies approximately 90 kilometres west of the Great North Road and can be reached by taking the Mkuku road 39 kilometres from Serenje Boma turn off or 13 kilometres south of Kanona for 62 kilometres, the turn-off to the right for one kilometre to a primary school.
Once here, a visitor is expected to take either the dambo edge road for 20 kilometres or take the bush road for 6 kilometres, then turn left for 20 kilometres, to the Livingstone memorial.
The Mkuku road is an old better road is said to be fit to accommodate all types of vehicles that tourists can use.
The memorial marks the place where Dr David Livingstone, explorer and missionary, died on 1st May, 1873. It was built on the site of the tree under which his heart was buried.
Dr David Livingstone first set foot on the continent of Africa on 14th March, 1841 but it was just over ten years later, on 4th August 1851 that he crossed the Zambezi River at Mwandi and arrived for the first time in Zambia then northern Rhodesia.
By 1853 he was back north of the Zambezi, heading westwards through the Barotse Valley to the coast of Angola. After a few months in Loanda he sat out again to cross the continent from west to east.
It was on this journey, on 16th November, 1855 that he became the first European to see the great waterfall of ‘Mosi-Oa-Tunya’ (The Smoke that Thunders), which he renamed Victoria Falls in honour of his Queen. Six months later he reached the East Coast and set sail for England.
Between 1858 and 1864 he made a comprehensive exploration t the lower Zambezi, and of Lake Malawi. On this last African journey, starting in 1866, he travelled up Lake Malawi and westwards to Lakes Tanganyika, Mweru and Bangweulu.
He is believed to have traversed parts of what are now Democratic Republic of Congo and Tanzania, where he was met by Henry Morton Stanely at Ujiji, before setting off south-wards in an attempt to reach the copper-mining are of Katanga province. Skirting the eastern side of Lake Bangweulu he was badly delayed by floods, much of the area being under more than a metre of water.
It is noted that during the whole of this time Dr Livingstone was suffering from dysentery and is his weakness he frequently had to be carried through the swamps. The last entry in his diary, dated 27th April, 1873 reads, ‘knocked up quite’.
Becoming still weaker on 29th April, he was carried to Chitambo’s village, a few kilometres beyond the flooded area. On 1st May, while kneeling in prayer, he died.
Following his death, his followers removed his heart and viscera and buried them in a metal box at the foot of an mpundu (parinari curatellifolia) tree. The body was smeared with salt inside and out and exposed to the sun for fourteen days. They then wrapped up the preserved body and carried it over 1,500 kilometres to the east at Bagamoyo, where it was transported to England and buried with national honours in West-Minister Abbey.
Another site worth visiting is the Fort Elwes situated in Mkushi District. This Fort lies near the Democratic Republic of Congo border some 40 kilometres north-east of Mkushi.
Fort Elwes was built in 1896-97 by a party of European prospectors sent out by Rhodesian Concessions Limited to search for alluvial hold and other minerals in the Muchinga Escarpment and adjacent country lying to the west of the Luangwa Valley. At that time British forces were planning an attack on Mpezeni’s Ngoni in Chipata and it was feared that the Ngoni might be driven westwards into the prospector’s area. The fort was erected by Frank Smitheman to provide a refuge for his party in case of such an eventuality.
The fort is sited at an altitude of some 1,600 metres above sea level on a pass through the Irumi Hills into Shaba. It is a rectangular structure of massive dry-stone walls almost two metres thick in places and originally over three metres high.
There were abutments at each corner and a raised walk-way along the inside of the walls. The only original entrance was an underground passage under the wall. Remains of internal structures of pole and daga are still visible.
Being overlooked by hills, the Fort could not be held against an enemy armed with modern weapon but prove virtually impregnable against spearmen or arches.
It is believed that the Rhodesian Concessions withdrew their prospectors in 1898 and the Fort was then abandoned and the origin of the name ‘Elwes’ is not known.
In the next segment we will venture into yet another exciting area within the central province known to be one of the smallest and private owned National Park but so significant to the tourism sector.

Six Reasons to visit Zambia

AS the Vogue, the World’s renowned fashion publication clocks 125^th Anniversary, it has touched on Zambia’s rich tourism sites and this week, we feature how the country is being marketed by other publications.
According to the magazine, Zambia may be home to Victoria Falls, but it’s so much more than that as it is vast, as large as France, Switzerland, Austria, and Hungary combined, with a rich history for conservation and responsible tourism that continues to thrive today.
It’s also culturally diverse, with more than 70 tribes living seamlessly side by side.
Many, including Zambians themselves, have called Zambia authentic Africa. Whatever title you choose, no one can argue that it’s real and it harkens back to another era on the continent.
As one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, this World Heritage site is the largest waterfall in the world, with a width of 5,604 feet and a height of 354 feet. Known locally as as Mosi-oa-Tunya, or the “smoke that thunders,” Vic Falls is located on the Zambezi River between Zambia and Zimbabwe. You can buy day visas for either country the day that you are there to get a view from both sides of the fall.
A heli ride over the falls is the best way to fully grasp the scale of it all. Second to the aerial view is an adventurous dip into the Devil’s Pool, which has you jumping into a deep pool at the edge of the fall. Images are Instagram gold.

And Karen Loftus writes that legendary guide and cutting-edge conservationist Norman Carr was a trailblazer on the tourism front, setting up the first public game viewing camp in the ’50s in Zambia.

He was also instrumental in setting up Zambia’s national parks in the ’50s and ’60s. He believed that locals should benefit financially from tourism, a precedent that his protégé Robin Pope adhered to, as did other tour operators in Zambia and several others since, throughout Africa. You can go from safari camp to village visit, see firsthand where your dollars are being spent, be it schools, wells, or computers.

Robin Pope takes it a step further with Kawaza on the outskirts of Luangwa National Park. It’s an immersive travel experience where you live like a villager for a day and a night. Visits start with a village tour where a growing band of kids follow along, giddy to have their picture taken.

Then it’s dinner and dancing around a fire with a village band playing instruments made from what was found, as in wheels, wood, and shoes. Accommodations are single, mud-thatched huts and an elephant shower, which is a bucket of water you throw on yourself. A walk to the well with the women in the morning makes for pure travel magic.

Unlike Kenya, Tanzania, or Botswana, Zambia tends to have less-to-no crowds and is far less expensive than East Africa and its Southern African neighbours. And the bonus is that you just might see the big five before breakfast.

When on safari anywhere in Zambia, you are literally walking in Norman Carr’s footsteps. A formidable hunter working for the government in his 20s, Carr’s moment changed Zambia and all of Africa as he proposed protecting versus shooting animals and charging the public to see the wildlife. He had guests shoot behind a lens, versus a rifle, with his then-photography tours and gave portions of his fees to locals. The rest is eco- and responsible-tourism history.
Carr started with walking safaris, as he felt you never know a country unless you walk it. He and his guides since have taken many a guest on walking safaris, a powerful thing to do in Carr’s footsteps, on his land, in his country with his guides, many who have walked with him. There’s nothing quite like coming face-to-face with a herd of charging buffalo. It’s exciting but not scary if in the right hands.
The best bush luxury is the Nsolo Camp which has Norman Carr’s stamp all over it, as he discovered the idyllic spot in 1987. Set in a dry river bed in a bend in the Luwi Sand River in South Luangwa National Park,

Nsolo Bush Camp has five chic chalets on raised wooden decks. After a torchlight dinner, take it one safari step further and opt for sleeping under the stars in a bed with nothing but a mosquito net between you and the wild.
Expect plenty of activity throughout the night as the water hole in front of the camp is a hot spot for wildlife and pride seeking prey and staking their territory. An iconic bush walk before breakfast is the best way to wake up at camp.
They may not have 60-plus years under their bush belt like Norman Carr’s crew, but Tongabezi is nearing its 30th year and is equally iconic in the region as it is one of the most sought-after luxury camps in all of Zambia. Nestled on the riverbanks of the Zambezi, it’s a mere 12 miles upstream from Victoria Falls.
In a nutshell, the Zambian safari and pristine wildlife is something that anyone whether local or foreign tourist should get to know and appreciate. What the Vogue magazine has tabulated is but just a tip of an iceberg.
There is more to enjoy in Zambia.

‘Inject pace in nursing school works’

HEALTH Minister Chitalu Chilufya has directed the Copperbelt Province Health administration to speed up the remaining works at the Roan School of Nursing in Luanshya to enroll 150 students this month.

Speaking during a visit to Luanshya , Dr Chilufya  said he wanted to see the school commence work in a month because the infrastructure was already in place and offering courses in midwifery.

He directed that all the 150 general nursing students should come from the Copperbelt, with the majority from Luanshya so that youth unemployment in the area could be reduced.

Dr Chilufya made the announcement in Luanshya when he visited the learning institution on his national inspection tour of health facilities under construction and those beirng upgraded.

“Youths are a priority and we want to ensure they are catered for. I want to see 100 youths enrolled for general nursing training and an additional 50 who will be under e-learning programme which is the same as those in full-time,” he says.

Currently, since the introduction of e-learning in nursing in 2014, five schools namely Livingstone, Chipata, Mufulira, Kitwe and Ndola were selected to offer the course. Luanshya will be the sixth. 

He expressed happiness with the manner the expansion works of Roan School of Nursing School were progressing, saying the project was in line with the 2017 African Union (AU) theme of promoting demographic dividends to the youths.

He says Zambia was on the right track to achieving the objectives of the AU theme and commended the contractor who is reported to have gone beyond his contractual allocation complete almost 90 percent works.

Dr Chilufya says he was overwhelmed to note that the local contractor had gone out of his way to see to it that government’s vision of offering quality health education was attained.

He said Roan Hospital was also being modernised into a fully-fledged modern training hospital in line with the vision of President Edgar Lungu.

Roan School of Nursing Principal Tutor Ronald Katongo said the nursing school currently had 140 students.

Dr Chilufya also visited the newly-constructed Roan Township Maternity Clinic, Section Three Clinic, Chibolya Pediatric Clinic and Chaisa Urban Health Centre.

He said the government would soon release money for the completion of the health facilities.

He said while some works could have taken long to complete, he was impressed that the majority of the projects being upgraded were within the design time-table and would soon be offering the needed quality medical services.

USA ready to do business with Zambia

THE World Trade Centre Los Angeles (WTCLA) and the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) have pledged to help Zambian companies seeking to explore markets in the State of California of the United States of America. 

WTCLA is an affiliate of the LAEDC and is Los Angeles County's leading promoter and facilitator of global connections and inbound foreign direct investment. 

WTCLA International Trade Manager Michael Smith says the LAEDC is determined to provide business assistance through market research to Zambian businesses wishing to locate or expand operations in Los Angeles County.

Mr. Smith says the LAEDC stands ready to help Zambian companies build capacity to allow them to tap into the U.S market in sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, construction, and technology skills transfer.  

He said this during a trade discussion meeting with Zambia’s Honorary Consul and Chief of Post in California Robert Sichinga Jnr, Embassy of Zambia in Washington D.C First Secretary Trade Charity Zulu and her Tourism counterpart Marsha Chipasha Holdway in Los Angeles.

In a media release obtained from First Secretary for Press and Public Relations in Washington Cosmas Chileshe, Mr. Smith further urged the Embassy of Zambia in Washington D.C to avail WTCLA with detailed specifics of projects seeking investment in various sectors in order to position Zambia as a choice of investment destination.

Los Angeles County is the largest County economy in the U.S. with the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of over 640 billion United States Dollars. And LAEDC is part of a team in California planning to visit Zambia next year to explore areas of investment in the country.

And Mr. Sichinga also called on the LAEDC to identify companies in Los Angeles that will help Zambian companies add value to most of its products to increase on exports.

He said Los Angeles County is leading in sectors similar to those that Zambia has targeted as part of its growth of non-traditional exports and its Job Creation and Industrialization Strategy.

Mr. Sichinga further called for the expertise of the LAEDC to help package Zambia in a way that appeals to the Los Angeles based investor.

And Ms. Zulu said Zambia has launched the seventh national development plan that has outlined key areas of investment in the country.

She said Zambia’s manufacturing sector has considerable investment potential, as the country is relatively well endowed with raw materials and as such value addition, as well as technology transfer, is key.

Ms. Zulu further said Zambia among other interventions is also exploring ways of the use of alternative and renewable energy to meet the country’s energy deficit.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Holdway also urged the (WTCLA) to help identify companies in the film and digital industry to partner with film makers in Zambia to raise the country's tourism profile.