Lazarus Sauti

Lazarus Sauti In Matthew 19: 14 (New International Version), Jesus said: “L et the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” This verse clearly shows that children are the flowers of heaven; they are the most beautiful and purest creation of God; and they are the beauty of this world. Early in the morning when Rutendo Mashona (not her real name) puts her uniform and begin to go to school for the sake of knowledge, her parents feel a specific kind of joy. Sadly, there are other children who cannot go to schools due to different socio-cultural problems. These children only watch Rutendo and others go to schools and wish to seek knowledge. These children dream to be lawyers, journalists, doctors, nurses and pilots like their peers but due to varying hindrances, difficulties and desperate conditions of life, they are forced to kill their aspirations. Having been forced to kill their dreams and wishes, th...

Lazarus Sauti The World Health Organisation (WHO) states that 15 percent of the world population is living with disabilities. However, information and communication technologies (ICTs) have the potential to make significant improvements in the lives of these persons, allowing them to enhance their social and economic integration in communities by enlarging the scope of activities available to them. ICTs can transform the lives of those with greater disabilities far more than they can the lives of those with fewer disabilities. Sadly, continental – if not – global commitments to ensuring universal access have all too often failed to sufficiently address the specific needs of people with particular disabilities. This means people living with disabilities are suffering, as a result of barriers that stop them from accessing ICT products and services. A synthesis report of the ICT Consultation in support of the High-Level Meeting on Disability and Development of the 68...

Lazarus Sauti News of the South - The European Space Agency (ESA) today launched an advanced telescope, Gaia, designed to detect a billion stars and provide the most detailed map yet of the Milky Way. The agency reported in a webcast that the telescope was successfully hoisted by a Soyuz-STB-Fregat rocket from ESA’s space base in Kourou, French Guiana.

Lazarus Sauti The ability for everyone to have equal opportunity in education, regardless of their social class, ethnic background or physical disabilities is an enabler of a knowledge-based economy. A knowledge-based economy is a system in which knowledge is created, acquired, transmitted, and used more effectively by individuals, companies, and communities to promote economic and social development. It relies on the use of ideas rather than physical abilities and on the application of technology rather than the exploitation of cheap labor. Accordingly, the time is now right for all Africans to help improve education because it is a key contributor to the continent’s socio-economic growth. Vice President of Zimbabwe, Joice Mujuru believes that youths should take education seriously and shun social vices that hinder them from attaining higher positions in life. “The only tool that can empower any person for the challenges ahead is education and discipline is impor...

Lazarus Sauti African countries should take advantage of hosting African youth games to promote domestic tourism. Tuelo Serufho believes hosting African youth games has the potential of boosting revenue for the host country. “Hosting African youth games has got the potential of boosting the country’s tourism sector as both athletes and spectators would require accommodation and catering services,” he said. This means many benefits will be reaped from hosting the games of this magnitude. For any country, hosting youth games is an incredible opportunity to give a significant boost to its sporting structures. Organisations will benefit greatly from being exposed to the preparations for such an event, venues will be refurbished and the local economy will receive a boost. Botswana was awarded the rights to host the 2 nd African Youth Games from May 22 nd to 31 st 2014 and its Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, Shaw Kgathi said the games would put his country ...

Lazarus Sauti Black and minority players are not getting relevant opportunities to coach and manage after they finish their careers in the English game and they are becoming demoralised over the issue. To make matters worse, there are now only three black managers in the top four divisions of English football. Norwich boss Chris Hughton is the only black manager in the Premier League, while Chris Powell and Paul Ince manage in the Championship. Birmingham City coach Michael Johnson expressed it this way: “We have three black managers at the helm and when you look at boardroom level, we have none. The statistics are alarming and there does seem to be a trend that we are not getting opportunities.” What is causing this problem? Johnson remarks: “I think it is a lack of education from the guys upstairs, the board members who seem to think that black players are ok to go and play for their club, but when it comes to managing or stepping upstairs into the boardroom, th...

Lazarus Sauti On World Food Day, the United Nations says investment in nutrition is key to unlocking a better future. This highlights the power of nutrition to transform individuals, societies and economies and the need to make it central to all development efforts. “Undernourished girls and boys face barriers in health, in school performance and later, in the workplace, which limit their human potential and their capacity to contribute to the societies in which they live,” said WFP Executive Director Ertharin Cousin. “Prioritising nutrition today is an investment in our collective global future. The investment must involve food, agriculture, health and education systems,” she said. Accordingly, countries within the great African continent should invest in nutrition and embrace its power to change the lives of citizens. This is why the M inistry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development of Zimbabwe, the Food and Agricultu re Organis ation of the Un...

Lazarus Sauti Organised crime is a threat to African citizens, businesses, state institutions as well as the economy as a whole. Criminals easily operate across borders, which creates a need for consistent African–level action. Furthermore, a rise in organised crime, drug trafficking and piracy is a threat to peace and stability across Africa. This means the African Union should continuously adapts its response in relation to the growing complexity of the situation. It should co-operate and share information on security matters to fight organised crime, drug trafficking and related security threats. This is the reason why a security expert, Ottilia Maunganidze, believes African governments need to work together to develop effective strategies to combat organised crimes and drug-related challenges on the continent. She said: “Combating organised crime cannot be done in isolation. Not only will states need to engage in greater co-operation and information sharing...

Lazarus Sauti Air Force of Zimbabwe Commander Air Marshal Perrance Shiri has called on the nation to embark on a major tree planting exercise to reduce the country’s fresh fruit import bill. Speaking at a tree planting event at AFZ Headquarters in Harare yesterday, Air Marshal Shiri said the excess of fresh fruit imports from South Africa was not ideal for a country undergoing an agrarian revolution. He said: “We want to play our part in ensuring our country has a mini-fruit revolution. We want to set up a planting exercise that will cascade to all our bases, the surrounding communities and most importantly our farmers throughout Zimbabwe.” The AFZ Commander also added that such fruit tree planting exercise would save Zimbabwe millions of dollars annually. “Fruit tree farming will not only save us on foreign currency but it will also create much-needed employment for our people. Employment in our forestry sector currently stands at over 7 000 jobs. In essence, the co...

Lazarus Sauti The African continent is losing a significant number of children due to preventable diseases. This loss is caused by mothers who are neglecting breast feeding. Thus, breastfeeding still requires a lot of support if the continent is to achieve the millennium development goal (MDG) of reducing child mortality to 34 per 1000 live births by 2015. Accordingly, Africa could significantly reduce the number of infants who are dying from common childhood diseases if mothers adhere to exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months. “The advantages of breastfeeding exclusively are well documented as breast milk contains anti-bacterial and anti-viral agents as well as high levels of Vitamin A that protects infants against diseases,” Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Health and Child Care National PMTCT and HIV Care and Treatment Co-ordinator, Dr Angela Mushavi said. It is critical to note that approximately 1.3 million deaths could be prevented each year globally if infants...

Lazarus Sauti Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development has devised a template which has been distributed to stakeholders with the aim of getting more accurate information on gender based violence (GBV). The template is being distributed to the Zimbabwe Republic Police, the Victim Friendly Courts, religious organisations, health institutions, the department of social welfare and other organisations that deal with cases of gender based violence. An official from the Ministry, Innocent Ncube said the template will also provide statistics, classify the forms of gender based violence and highlight the root causes for the compilation of monthly, quarterly and annual reports, adding that the ministry is also raising awareness on referral pathways so that stakeholders know which institutions to refer the victim to after handling the case. “We as a ministry might not have the capacity in some cases of domestic violence, but we have got the capacity ...

Lazarus Sauti United Nations Secretary General Ban ki Moon has dismissed the notion that there is increased tension between the UN and Africa stemming from the slow pace of Security Council reforms and disagreements over how to proceed over Kenya’s trials at the International Criminal Court (ICC). He said the relationship between UN and Africa is a strong partnership in which Africa remains the number one priority for the UN. Moon also said, “The ICC is an independent international justice organisation whose work and mandate is distinct from that of the UN and their mandate and principles should be fully upheld and respected.”