Lazarus Sauti

Lazarus Sauti Abstract Knowledge Management and Intellectual Property play a central role in socio-economic development of any country. This is so because they are connected, and knowledge as an intellectual capital is critical in innovation systems which are the basis for socio-economic transformations. Accordingly, this paper will explore knowledge management and intellectual property, their connection and their potential in stimulating economic development in Zimbabwe. Key terms : Knowledge; Knowledge Management; Intellectual Property; Socio-economic development. Background There is a definite connection between knowledge management and Intellectual Property. This is so because company employees are the creative force that generates the knowledge that can be mined for possible Intellectual Property. This also means knowledge management and intellectual property are two crucial ingridients in the development matrix of any country. To fully explore the respective roles of ...

Lazarus Sauti News that Angelina Jolie, Special Envoy of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, appeared visibly moved and close to tears at the recently held ‘End Sexual Violence in Conflict’ summit in London, which she co-hosted with United Kingdom Foreign Secretary William Hague should move governments in African countries to also act and stop sexual violence in war. According to media reports, Jolie’s eyes welled up as she listened to victims of sexual assault speak about their experiences and spent time with them afterwards, discussing the issues they face. Struggling to contain her emotions, Jolie also dedicated the conference to a rape victim she recently met in Bosnia. “She (the victim) felt that having had no justice for her particular crime, in her particular situation, and having seen the actual man who raped her on the streets free, she really felt abandoned by the world,” Jolie said. Zainab Hawa Bangura, the United Nations Special Representat...

Lazarus Sauti It was only when Alice Zvoushe lost her first born child at five months that she discovered she was HIV positive. The child, a boy, died from pneumonia soon after being admitted to hospital. But Alice (not her real name) is from the subsistence farming communities around Shamva, and by the time she was able to travel the 25km into town, her son was already gravely ill, despite her efforts and those of her family to care for him. “Of course, I have heard about AIDS and how it kills people, but I never thought my child would die from it, especially as I am still quite healthy,” Alice told this writer recently. “It was only when I brought my child to hospital that I learnt he was suffering from pneumonia as a result of the HIV virus, which he contracted from me. “If only I had known about the government’s mother-to-child AIDS prevention campaign, I could have been tested when I was pregnant and my son could have lived,” she says, sadly recalling how she ha...

Lazarus Sauti Former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan once said poverty devastates families, communities and nations. It causes instability and political unrest and fuels conflict. This statement is correct and since poverty is pervasive across Africa, the continent is in trouble. Like cancer, poverty is the most dangerous threat to Africa and her citizenry. The World Bank eLibrary records that more than 290 million people live on less than $1 per day. This is sad as most of the affected people are Africans, and this is despite the fact that countries within and across Africa are blessed with abundant natural and human resources. Former South African President Thabo Mbeki believes poverty is the greatest cause of suffering across the globe. Mbeki once said extreme poverty is the world’s biggest killer and the greatest cause of ill health and suffering. The International Monetary Chief Christine Lagarde also believes that the continent of Africa is rising b...

Lazarus Sauti According to the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, an organisation dedicated to supporting the use of food fortification and other strategies aimed at improving the health and nutrition of populations at risk, too many families around the world are not getting enough vital nutrients in their diet. Supporting the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, the United Nations public health arm, the World Health Organisation, estimates that more than two billion people lack key vitamins and minerals, particularly vitamin A, iodine, iron and zinc. This lack of vital nutrients in diet is holding back communities especially in African countries as children do not develop fully, parents cannot work, and too much money is spent on the medical treatment of nutrition-related health problems. Helen Keller International, an organisation that combats the causes and consequences of blindness and malnutrition by establishing programs based on evidence and research in v...

Lazarus Sauti Tom Butler, global head of mining at the World Bank/International Finance Corporation, believes infrastructure development is at the heart of the next step in Africa’s development. Sharing the same sentiments, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific noted that infrastructure development is crucial to economic growth and regional economic co-operation. “The provision of adequate infrastructure, along with macroeconomic stability and a long-term development strategy, is one of the necessary conditions for sustainable economic and social development,” noted the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. Giving emphasis to the significance of infrastructure development, the Program Infrastructure Development for Africa states that infrastructure plays a key role in economic growth and poverty reduction. The Program Infrastructure Development for Africa further said lack of infrastructure affects p...