A Binary Country

For a country so fiscally poor as Zambia, any extra income is extremely welcome. As such, a thriving tourism industry has made the most of the country’s extraordinary beauty. Its geography and wildlife mean that it has tremendous attraction for the more adventurous tourists, literally off the beaten track, while those who appreciate their creature comforts a little more can relax in one of the many top class hotels in Livingstone. On our trip we were largely working in the bush with remote communities, but at the end of the trip we spent some time in Livingstone, to reacclimatise to civilisation after washing in hippo water for a fortnight. It was as well we did take this time to readjust. One day we were visiting schools in desperate need of basic supplies, like shoes, and the next we were amid the decadence of the Royal Livingstone Hotel, sipping gin cocktails while the sun set over the Victoria Falls and zebra roamed through the grounds.

One woman who embodied the best of both worlds within this binary country was the inestimable Chieftainess Mwape. She grew up in the Mwape district, along the banks of the River Luangwa, with her mother, the former chieftainess. When she finished school she left the area and made a new life in Lusaka. She met her husband and had children. She had a nice house and a good job, and was happy for years. Then one day she got the news that her mother had died and she had been selected as the next chieftainess. She left it all. She travelled back to the scene of her childhood, leaving her children, her friends, her life in Lusaka, and started again, building on the legacy of her mother and bringing the knowledge she had gained in the big city to bear in a very different setting.

NPAC has been working with Chieftainess Mwape for many years now, and they are impressed with the techniques she is using to ensure all the aid they send gets to the people who need it most. When the containers arrive she stockpiles everything in her guest house and puts the word out to all the settlements in her district, announcing the day that everything will be shared out. The people gather, and the first to choose are the elderly and vulnerable, followed by the families, and then the rest of the group. The first thing you touch is the thing that you take, so there is no picking over the offering for things to sell, and everyone takes what they can carry on their cart or bicycle. Baby bundles are sent to the clinic, and the new mothers do not receive anything unless they bring their children in for check-ups and vaccinations, thus ensuring they remain healthy. This strict control means that the aid sent is fairly distributed, and it is gratifying for NPAC to know that someone in such a position is working so carefully to make the most of what we can send.

If you’re interested in the work NPAC does please visit www.npac.org.uk or call 0115 9390 999.

Chieftainess Mwape and David Scott.