UNFPA Zambia Update

Message from UNFPA Representative

UNFPA Representative Mr.
Duah Owusu Sarfo (left)
and Zambian First Lady Dr.
Christine Kaseba (middle),
welcome a new born baby
at the University Teaching
Hospital Ante-Natal Ward
during International Day of
the Midwife in 2012

As

2013 unfolds, UNFPA

has scaled up its
commitments to
improving the lives of women and
young people in Zambia drawing lessons from its valued
gains and challenges faced in
2012.

January - March, 2013

We have reduced new HIV

infections in a significant way;
almost 85% of HIV positive
women are able to prevent
transmission of the virus to their
babies through PMTCT; we see
more gender based violence
cases reported; and almost 100%
of girls are enrolled into primary
school.

The UNFPA team in Zambia is

implementing UNFPAs cluster
approach to programming focusing its sexual and
reproductive health interventions
on women and young people.

However, more needs to be

done. Maternal mortality rate is
as high as 440 per 100,000 live
births. Over 42% of girls are
married before18 years. Only
one midwife is available for
every 1,240 women. The
percentage of women with
access to family planning is as low
as 24%. About 7 young people
become infected with HIV every
hour. This is unacceptable.
In 2013, UNFPA will look to bring
more evidence-based support to
the Government of Zambia, scale
up interventions for adolescents
and youth, and advance
women's reproductive health
particularly increasing access to
family planning.

As a self-starter country there is

much we are proud of already.
A journey to ensure that every
We have clarity of more focused
pregnancy is wanted, every child- interventions and have
birth is safe, and every young
introduced a number of
persons potential is fulfilled can
harmonized operational practices
never be smooth sailing. But if, as to effectively deliver on results.
Every pregnancy should be
Individuals and teams, we have a
wanted, every child-birth should
We also recognize the partnership be safe, and every young
passion for human development
from the Government of Zambia
and the well-being of families,
persons potential should be
towards this process - it is this
then we will stay on course and
fulfilled. This is what UNFPA has
strategic collaboration that
enjoy the straight stretches, and
committed itself to achieve.
sustains the momentum.
work together to get back on
track when we come across a
As we now count 1,000 days to
small detour.
go before the end of the
Millennium Development Goals,
Zambia has some significant
strides to show.

PAGE 2

UNFPA Zambia Update

Cluster

Breaking silos, optimizing

resources and delivering results

approach

UNFPA has globally introduced the

Cluster Approach as a new way of
work in order to maximize results
through coherent planning and
implementation of country
programmes.

This new way of working is expected

to have three concrete outputs:

resource mobilization and political

advocacy.

Much stronger and focused

As a self-starter country, UNFPA

Zambia has welcomed this innovation
to focus our interventions on young
people and women, while ensuring
that gender and population
dynamics are integrated across both
clusters . Contributing to the GRZ/
UNFPA Country Programme 20112015 and UNFPAs 2013 priorities,
UNFPA Zambia cluster focus areas are
summarized in the chart below :

technical support to government

Much better quality of

programmes, will be delivered in

The Cluster Approach streamlines
an integrated fashion
UNFPAs work into two sections or
clusters: Women's Reproductive
Stronger knowledge sharing and
Health and Adolescents and Youth.
communication, including
It is a more efficient and effective
identification and use of good
way of working that seeks to minimize
practices; an integrated
transaction costs and break down
approach to monitoring and
superficial walls between thematic
evaluation; and evidenceareas. It seeks to take UNFPA to its
informed/results-oriented
core business around MDG 5,
planning, communication,
reproductive health and youth.
In UNFPA Zambia
Country Office, this
approach has so far
ensured an integrated
response that leverages
resources through
thematic partnerships
and facilitates
coordination between
thematic areas, joint
programming,
knowledge sharing on
technical and policy
issues and promoting
implementation
synergies by combining
support services.
Implementation will also
provide the Country
Office with a forum
where programmes can
be articulated and
coordinated.

PAGE 3

UNFPA Zambia Update

Upcoming Events
International Day of the Midwife

5 May

International Day to End Fistula

23 May

World Population Day

11 July

Using Population Data to Promote Reproductive Health

he core of UNFPAs work,

focusing on reproductive health,
strongly influences population
trends and national development. In
turn, these population trends - including
fertility, mortality, migration, growth rates
and age structure - impact on every
aspect of human, social and economic
development.

May 2013
Su M Tu W Th Fri Sa
7

10 11

12

13 14 15 16 17 18

19

20 21 22 23 24 25

26

27 28 29 30 31

George Mwewa, a staff of Planned Parenthood

As a direct influence of high fertility rates, Association of Zambia (PPAZ), providing counseling
services on family planning in Chazanga township,
the number of people in Zambia has
Lusaka. UNFPA in collaboration with PPAZ provides
mobile family planning services in various communities
tripled over the past 50 years, from 3.5
twice every week. These services aim to reduce the high
million in 1964 to 13 million in 2010. By
fertility and maternal mortality rates, as well as stem the
transmission of HIV. Photo Credit: UNCG/2013/Smith
2050, the number of people living in
Zambia is expected to reach over 26
million. We also see a significant change in the structure of the population - in
2010, 45% of the population were below age 15.

July 2013

Child marriage and adolescent pregnancy also impact on population trends of

fertility and mortality. Data shows that women who begin having children in
adolescence tend to have more children and shorter spacing between
pregnancies all of which are risk factors for obstetric fistula, maternal and child
mortality. In Zambia, 42% of girls are married before age 18, and adolescent
pregnancy rate is as high as 146 births/1,000 women.

Su M Tu W Th Fri Sa
1

10 11 12 13

14

15 16 17 18 19 20

21

22 23 24 25 26 27

28

29 30 31

atistic

al St
ation

Key N

Between January and March 2013, UNFPA Zambia has provided both technical
and financial support to the Government of Zambia - particularly the Central
Statistics Office and Ministry of Finance to scale up national capacity to
generate and utilize statistical data and evidence on population, in order to
inform national policy and planning - specifically for sexual and reproductive
health.
UNFPA Zambia is proud to highlight that this technical and financial support has
in the last 3 months resulted in finalization and dissemination of the 2010 Census
of Population and Housing; capacity building of data collectors for the ongoing
Demographic and Health Survey; development of modules for integration of
population factors in development planning; and country assessments for the
International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) beyond
2014 .

Total Population : 13 million (60.5 % rural / 39.5% urban)

Total fertility rate : 6.2 births per woman

Population below age 24 : 4.5 million

Maternal mortality rate : 440 per 100,000 live births

Population falling below poverty line : 60.5%

Contraceptive prevalence rate : 24.6%

HIV Prevalence : 14% (12% male / 16% female)

Skilled deliveries at birth : 46.5%

Number of young people living with HIV (10-24) : 8,506

Number of midwives : 2,380

Condom use among young people : 27%

Adolescent fertility rate (15-19 years) :146 births/1,000 girls

Youth unemployment rate : 16.7%

UNFPA Zambia Update

PAGE 4

UNFPA Supports Campaign to End Child Marriage

CHIPATA, 13 APRIL 2013 -- Zambian
law forbids marriage below the age of
21, but many girls end up being
married even at 13 years. Getting
reliable data on child marriages is
difficult, but estimates show that
almost half of Zambian women are
married by the age of 18 - one of the
highest prevalence rates in the world.

Prior to the official launch, Dr. Kaseba,

accompanied by Cooperating
Partners and Government officials,
visited eight homes with child brides
aged between 14 and 18 in Luangeni
constituency. During the home visits,
she learnt that most teenage girls are
married off after getting pregnant,
later dropping out of school. Dr.
Kaseba has since urged the affected
A UNFPA sub-analysis of the 2007
girls to consider going back to school
Zambia Demographic and Health
and acquire skills to empower themSurvey indicates that on average, two selves economically. "Government will
out of five girls will be married before
help you [young girls] decide what
their 18th birthday - representing
support you need - but you should
about 42% of women. Once Zambian know that education is priority as it will
teenage girls are married, only part of help you have a bright future. " she
them (28.1%) use contraception in
said.
spite of their needs to space their
childbearing time. Of
them, 55.8% have their demand
for contraception satisfied.
The analysis further indicates that
while child marriage is common
in Zambia, girls living in poverty
and in rural areas face a higher
risk of being married at an early
age, while girls who do not have
access to education are
particularly vulnerable.
To respond to this issue, the
Ministry of Chiefs and Traditional
Affairs (MoCTA), with support
from the United Nations and
other Government and
Cooperating Partners, has
embarked on a nationwide
campaign to end child marriages
in Zambia.

As a priority for 2013, UNFPA Zambia,

under its adolescent and youth
cluster, has in the last three months
scaled up interventions to reach
marginalized adolescents girls including girls affected and at risk of
child marriage. This follows the UNFPA
Executive Directors commitment for
UNFPA to invest up to an additional
$20 million to reach the most
marginalized adolescent girls in 12
countries including Zambia.
In February 2013, UNFPA Zambia was
identified as the lead UN Agency to
support national programmes to end
child marriage - including facilitating
support from other donors and
cooperating partners.
UNFPA Zambia is proud to have
directly contributed to the launch of
the campaign to end child marriage
on 13th April 2013 - focusing on the
development of advocacy messages
and materials. With support from the
UK Department for International
Development and the Embassy of
Sweden, UNFPA will in 2013 work with
the Ministry of Chiefs and Traditional
Affairs to invest in programmes that
will:

enforce national legislation

against child marriage

support information sharing with

communities to transform
negative traditional norms that
influence child marriages

create safe spaces for girls

affected and at risk of child
marriage

And Paramount Chief Mpezeni called

on all traditional leaders to root out
First Lady Dr. Christine Kaseba officially child marriages in their chiefdoms and
launched the campaign, with a call
encourage child brides to go back to
to end the scourge which is robbing
school. "I created a school scholarship
young people, especially girls, of an
fund to help vulnerable children,
opportunity to excel in life. The launch especially girls, to help them stay in
took place in Luangeni Village of
school and avoid early marriage" he
Paramount Chief Mpezeni in Chipata said.
District, Eastern Province.

build up girls education and

health assets

UNFPA Zambia Update

PAGE 5

In Pictures: Launch of Child Marriage Campaign

The dummies depicting a husband and a

child bride were burnt to symbolize
action against child marriage.

14 year old Lucy (name changed) with

her 22 year old husband and 8 months
old baby.

Girls in Luangeni village took time off

school to also participate in the launch.

His Royal Highness Chief Ntambo

represented the house of Chiefs in
support of the campaign.

Community members came in large

numbers to participate and support the
launch.

The First Lady Dr. Christine Kaseba was

escorted by Ngoni Warriors as she
prepared to burn the symbol of child
marriage.

First Lady Dr. Kaseba joins in dancing

to a song about ending child
marriages by famous Zambian
musician Sister D.

UNFPA Zambia Update

PAGE 6

UNFPA Scales Up
Efforts Around Family
Planning
LUSAKA, 21 February, 2013 - With direct technical and
financial support from UNFPA Zambia, the Ministry of
Community Development Mother and Child Health
launched a National Family Planning Campaign and an 8
-Year Family Planning Scale-Up Plan in Kalingalinga
compound, Lusaka on 21st February 2013.
The campaign and scale up plan were officially
launched by the first lady Dr. Christine Kaseba, who
highlighted that family planning was the only way women
can enjoy a healthier and fulfilling reproductive life, thereby contributing positively to the economic development
of the country. She noted that although the country has
made strides in achieving access to primary education,
reducing and stabilizing new HIV infections among others,
interventions on family planning have continued to be
low.
Dr. Kaseba also observed that lack of information on
family planning has led to low contraceptive use among
women and girls in the country. She encouraged all
relevant Government, civil society and cooperating
partners to scale up interventions that will ensure all
women, particularly those in remote rural areas, have
access to family planning information and services.
Family planning is a critical pillar for
decreasing maternal and child mortality.
Family planning allows women to space
births, avoid unintended pregnancies and
abortions, and prevent sexually transmitted
diseases

UNFPA Representative a.i, Ms. Viola Morgan

Contraceptives and Ante-Retroviral displayed at the

launch of the family planning campaign.

The scale up plan aims to increase national

contraceptive prevalence from 33% to 58% by 2020. As
chair of the family planning national technical working
group, UNFPA Zambia has committed itself to build
national capacity and provide technical and financial
support to ensure that this plan is effectively
implemented.
In addition to developing the 8-year scale up plan,
UNFPA also facilitated a national dissemination of
Zambias commitments made at the 2012 London Family
Planning Summit. The dissemination took place on 19th
February 2013, where the following national commitments
were shared with stakeholders:
Policy Commitments
1. The Government will initiate dialogue with religious
and traditional leaders including other government
Ministries in order to increase contraceptive
coverage from 33% to 58%.
2. To address policy barriers on the delivery of injectable
contraceptives in order to allow task shifting to
community health assistants and trained volunteer
community based distributors.
Financial Commitments
1. To increase the government of Zambia budgetary
allocation to family planning by 100%
2. To secure increased financing for family planning
through the existing donors and expansion of existing
partnerships.

Delivery Commitments
Speaking at the launch, UNFPA Representative a.i Ms.
Viola Morgan stressed that family planning is a critical
1. To strive to eliminate the unmet need of family
pillar for decreasing maternal and child mortality. She
planning through and improve universal coverage of
added that family planning ensures that women are able
family planning through an expanded method mix
to enjoy their reproductive rights - allowing them to space
and increased access, particularly to the underbirths, avoid unintended pregnancies and abortions, and
served population
prevent sexually transmitted diseases. She reaffirmed
2. To strengthen the supply chain for family planning
UNFPAs commitment to supporting efforts to scale up
commodities through expansion of the Essential
family planning, which is one of the Agency's global
Medicines Logistics Improvement Programme and
priorities.
other channels.
3. To utilize sub-district structures to generate demand,
Prior to the launch, UNFPA worked with the Ministry of
dispel the myths and open up the dialogue around
Community Development Mother and Child Health and
family planning in Zambia.
several civil society organizations to develop an 8-year
national family planning scale up plan 2013 to 2020.

PAGE 7

UNFPA Zambia Update

Youths Contribute to Shaping Post-2015 Development Agenda

Lusaka, 22 February 2013 - As part of the national post2015 consultations facilitated by the United Nations
system in Zambia, UNFPA supported two consultations on
the post-2015 development agenda. These included:
Vision for Youth in Post-2015 Development Agenda and
Vision for Maternal Health in Post 2015 Development
Agenda. The consultations were facilitated by Restless
Development - a youth led civil society organization, and
Planned Parenthood Association of Zambia.
Over 50 vibrant and enthusiastic youth participated in the
youth consultation, which highlighted pertinent issues
affecting young people in Zambia and
recommendations for a way forward in the next
development agenda post 2015.
The maternal health consultation was attended by civil
society organizations, parliamentarians, youth
organizations and Government officials. The consultation
concluded that Sexual and Reproductive rights are
fundamental for economic and social development.
Only by fulfilling these rights will women, men and young
people have the possibility of making informed decisions
about critical aspects of life, which may determinate
both their individual and their communities future. If the
world is going to ensure individuals have the means to lift
themselves and their families out of poverty, then it is
essential that all people and particularly women have
the freedom to choose if, when and where to have
children.

Top 10 Post
Post--2015 Priorities for Zambian Youth

Unemployment: Encourage youth entrepreneurship, and

reduce high-education and experience level requirements
for employment

Poverty: Sensitize the rural areas on the importance of education

Education: Free education from primary to tertiary levels for

the less privileged

Gender Based Violence and Early Marriages: Incorporate

gender equality sensitization of ladies on high self esteem

Sexual Reproduction Health: Increase access to contraceptives and information on how to use them properly. Abortions should be illegal*

Alcohol and drug abuse: Invest in youth recreational facilities

Health: Bring health facilities near areas/ improve access to

clean and safety water/ involving other stakeholders

Youth Participation (ownership in development): At all levels

engage / involve youth in participatory planning and development

Poor sanitation: Improve access to clean and safe water

Attention to those who are Disabled or have Special-Needs:

Provide facilities and qualified teachers for the Disable and
Special-Needs students

For countries like Zambia which have a rapidly increasing

population, a more sustainable national birth rate
increases stability and makes the achievement of other
goals (such as the MDGs) more likely.

Top 4 Post
Post--2015 Priorities for Maternal Health

The Post 2015 Global Development Agenda must include a

goal on sexual and reproductive health and rights as essential priorities.

Youths from all

10 Provinces in
Zambia
gathered to
discuss young
peoples
priorities in the
post 2015
Development
Agenda

Underlying causes of maternal mortality must be addressed,

including issues of gender inequality, vulnerability of youth,
SRHR in the constitution, universal access to SRHR, family
planning, child marriages and teenage pregnancies.

Build health systems that are accountable for resources and

results starting from service delivery points to district, provincial and national levels. This should be backed by consequences (incentives and punishments) for good and bad
performance.

Guard against Private sector privatization which has the

potential of making health a commodity. The state needs to
combine different stakeholder expertise in achieving results
efficiently.

PAGE 8

UNFPA Zambia Update

2010 Census Results Shared

Lusaka, 7 March 2013 - The 2010
by providing financial and technical
The report also indicates that a larger
Census of Population and Housing
support to the 2010 Census of
number of people reside in rural
analytical report was officially
Population and Housing. She added
areas(60.5%) compared to urban
launched on 7 March 2013 by
that UNFPA will continue to support
areas(39.5%).
Secretary to the Treasury, Mr. Fredson the Government through the Central
Yamba, who encouraged
Statistical Office to ensure finalization Youth unemployment rate (15-35
years) is also very high. Out of 2.5
development stakeholders to
of the various census reports.
million youths in the labor
continue supporting
force, 16.7% are
Government in making
unemployed. Of these, 7.5%
Population
is
our
most
valuable
available accurate, reliable
are rural based while 22%
and timely statistics for national
resource and we can only take stock
are urban based.
planning, monitoring and
of it through Census. We now have
evaluation.
Infant Mortality Rate (IMR)

the data, therefore, the challenge

stands at 76 deaths per 1000

Speaking at the launch,
remains with all of us to ensure it is
live births in which rural and
UNFPA Assistant
urban areas had rates of
put
to
good
use
by
making
informed
Representative Ms. Sibeso
81 and 68 deaths per 1000
Mululuma commended
decisions for our people
live births respectively. Total
Government for its unwavering
fertility rate stands at 5.9. This
Ms.
Sibeso
Mululuma
dedication to ensuring that the
implies that on average,
UNFPA Assistant Representative
results of the 2010 Census of
each woman aged 15-49
Population and Housing are
years would approximately
made available to all stakehave 6 children in her entire
holders who need the data for
reproductive
period.
various planning and decision making Specific support to this process
purposes. She stressed that the
includes facilitating the finalization of The report further highlights that the
importance of such a dissemination
percentage of maternal related
provincial reports as well as
exercise cannot be overemphasized supporting capacity building efforts
deaths (15-49 years) stands at 9.3%.
because census data is an essential
Of these, 11.8% occurred in rural
for district data dissemination.
tool for evidence-based planning,
areas while 6.7% occurred in urban
According to the report, Zambias
monitoring and evaluation of
areas.
current population stands at
national policies and plans.
13,092,666 - with males representing
Ms. Mululuma added that the United 49.3 % while females represent 50.7%
Nations attaches great value to
of the total population. This is an
census undertakings and it is for this
increase from 9,885,591 in 2000.
reason that the UN, through UNFPA,
complemented government efforts
In his speech, UNFPA Country
Representative, Mr. Duah Owusu-Sarfo,
Population Factors Critical in Development Planning
highlighted that human beings are both
UNFPA Representative
the initiators and recipients of
development. He stressed the need to
he 21st Inter-agency Technical
pointed out that the 2012 theme for the
ensure development policies are
Committee on Population (ITCP)
ITCP meeting was appropriate as the
influenced by population dynamics and
was held in Livingstone, Zambia on country has been grappling with the issue
also consider linkages between policy
13th November 2012 under the theme;
of brain drain especially in critical sectors
variables and the environment within
"Migration and Sustainable Development:
of health and education. He said
which such policies are implemented. Mr.
The Zambian Experience".
Government has re-affirmed its
Owusu-Sarfo added that strengthening
commitment to adopt appropriate policies institutional arrangements such as the ITCP
The meeting was officially opened by the
and strategies to address the issue of
is critical to achieve socio-economic
Secretary to the Treasury, Mr. Fredson
migration and promote sustainable
objectives, and that UNFPA is committed
Yamba, who stressed the importance of
development.
to assisting the government in these areas.
addressing migration issues in Zambia. He

PAGE 9

UNFPA Zambia Update

Members of Parliament Commit to High Impact HIV Interventions

As

public leaders, Parliamentarians

play a critical role in social and
economic development at national and
community level. In Zambia, the
Coalition of African Parliamentarians
against HIV (CAPAH) has over the years
grown into a formidable institution that has
contributed significantly to the fight
against HIV and AIDS through community
mobilization and role modeling positive
behaviors.
With support from UNFPA, the National
HIV/STI/TB Council and Planned
Parenthood Association of Zambia
brought together over 50 members of
parliament in February 2013 to map out
strategies that would accelerate progress
towards the reduction of HIV prevalence
and transmission in Zambia - focused on
addressing underlying and catalytic
factors of gender inequality and
reproductive health. The following was the
final communique from the
parliamentarians:

We, the members of the Coalition of

African Parliamentarians against HIVZambia Chapter, gathered here from the
23 24 February 2013 in Chaminuka,
Lusaka, to deliberate on high impact HIV
and Sexual Reproductive Health
Interventions; acknowledge progress
made in addressing HIV and Sexual
reproductive health in Zambia, including in
the following areas:

Vertical programming which impacts

on the quality of services and
programme efficiencies; which also
lead to high levels of stigma and
discrimination

High HIV Prevalence rate: especially

among married women and young
people

Limited Cervical Cancer Screening,

treatment services and facilities

Increased sustainable Domestic

Extremely limited male involvement in

Sexual Reproductive Health and HIV
services

Targeted budget lines for Sexual

Financing:

Reproductive Health and HIV in an

integrated health system

High Total Fertility Rate with a large

differences between urban and rural
areas:

High Maternal Mortality:

Advocate for the speedy and

High levels of Child Marriage and

Adolescent pregnancy rates in our
country

Encouraging men to be agents of

Strengthen Multi-sectoral
Coordination across line Ministries in
recognition of the linkages between
health and development:

resourced decentralization process

change

We are further concerned with the low

domestic financing of the health sector,
and HIV in particular, which threatens the
sustainability of gains made in the national
response.

We commit to follow-up on the above

mentioned issues. This is in line with our
mandate as CAPAH members and as
legislators to improve the quality of life of
our constituencies so as to bring about
We acknowledge the need to address the sustainable development to Zambia as a
whole.
afore-mentioned bottlenecks

infant mortality rates are falling;

Integration of Sexual Reproductive

we are positively impacting on the

maternal mortality as its rate
progressively declines;

We further acknowledge current bottlenecks that hamper the sustainability of the

national response, which include:

interventions, including in prison

settings

High level of Sexual and Gender

Based Violence:

our programmes to deal with the dual

pandemics of HIV and AIDS, and TB
are now bearing fruits

Evidence driven, health and HIV

our life expectancy is steadily rising;

reproductive health commodity

security with a specific and increased
budget line dedicated to
commodities

That there is still high levels of stigma

and marginalization of subpopulations after more than 30 years
of the epidemic,

the battle against malaria is being

waged with increasing success; and

Scaling up Family Planning and

and challenges. In order to do so, we

recognize the importance of making
strategic investments in the following
areas:

to quality and affordable adolescent

and youth friendly services;

Health and HIV: at all levels,

Investment in the elimination of

Mother to Child Transmission of HIV
and AIDS (eMTCT)

Strategic investment in youth and

adolescent Sexual Reproductive
Health : strengthening age and
culturally appropriate comprehensive
sexuality education; while at the
same time, ensuring access,

We further call for continued support from

all our stakeholders, including community
members, traditional, civic, religious, and
other opinion leaders; young people;
women; men to join us in accelerating
progress towards achieving our health
goals.
We appreciate the technical support
provided by the National AIDS/STI/TB/HIV
Council (NAC), the Planned Parenthood
Association of Zambia (PPAZ), and the
United Nations System in Zambia, in
particular UNFPA for bringing us together.

PAGE 10

UNFPA Zambia Update

t!

s on
n
o
i
ulat
t
a
r
ong

UNFPA Representative
Reflects on his Past 27
Years of Service with
UNFPA

NFPA Representative Mr.

Duah Owusu-Sarfo bid farewell to UN Zambia staff and
Implementing Partners at the end of
February 2013 upon retiring from
UNFPA.
Reflecting upon the last four years of
his tenure in Zambia, Mr. Owusu-Sarfo
proudly highlighted that UNFPA
Zambia has made significant
contributions towards advancing
health related MDGs in Zambia.
"Zambia has sustained real gains in
terms of sexual and reproductive
health. I am proud that I have been
part of this journey with UNFPA, and
also part of the One UN Team in
Zambia, said Mr. Owusu-Sarfo at a
farewell meeting organised for him.
His reflections were shared by
Government counterparts and UN
colleagues with whom he worked
with in Zambia. UN Resident
Coordinator, Ms. Kanni Wignaraja
commended Mr. Owusu-Sarfo for his
commitment and great team work

Yo

men
e
r
i
et
ur R

knowledge and skills in championing

the organisations mandate. She
towards advancing the UNs
highlighted that Mr Owusu-Sarfoss
contributing to national development
strong leadership skills have been
in Zambia. Duah has been a
greatly appreciated by all UNFPA
champion of reproductive health
staff.
issues, not only within UNFPA and the
UN family; but also contributed to
After 27 years of service to UNFPA, Mr
efforts led by other partners, said Ms Owusu-Sarfo leaves Zambia for his
Wignaraja.
home country in Ghana. He has
served as Representative in Zambia;
And Ministry of Gender and Child
and previously as Representative in
Development Permanent Secretary
Papua New Guinea, Deputy
Ms Edwidge Mutale commended Mr Representative in Ethiopia and in
Owusu -Sarfo for his commitment and other positions in the Ghana Country
strong partnership with Government
Office.
partners, adding
that his patience
and
understanding has
often times
cleared
operational
challenges faced
in implementing
development
programmes.
Speaking on
behalf of UNFPA
staff, UNFPA
Assistant
Representative Ms
Mr. Duah Owusu-Sarfo (far left) smiles as he receives a
Sibeso Mululuma
farewell gift from UNFPA staff
added that Mr
Owusu Sarfo has
been a great champion of women's
and young peoples reproductive
health, and that he has constantly
encouraged and supported
individual staff members to use their

This newsletter is prepared by UNFPA-Zambia. For further information please visit:

http://countryoffice.unfpa.org/zambia/; or Phone: +260 211 250800/97889 2556; Fax +260 211 251201