By Esther Chisola
NGOCC has asked Vice-President Mutale Nalumango to consider retracting her “imita ufole” remarks stressing that she should provide context to the statement so that it does not undermine years of advocacy against teenage pregnancy, responsible motherhood and sexual and reproductive health rights.
During Vice-President’s question and answer session in Parliament last Friday, Vice-President Nalumango jokingly urged women to fall pregnant saying, “imita ufole”, promising them monthly payments by the government through the Ministry of Community Development and Social Services, an initiative aimed at taking care of mothers.
But in a statement, Non-governmental Gender Organisations’ Coordinating Council (NGOCC) chairperson Beauty Katebe stated that such a statement from the Vice-President would encourage girls and young women to fall pregnant in order to get paid by government.
“As NGOCC, we are aware of the various Social Protection Programmes that Government has in place including the Social Cash Transfer, Food For Work and others aimed at mitigating the negative impacts of poverty at household level,” she stated.
“These initiatives assist vulnerable households meet basic needs and we commend government on that score. We also note that households are selected based on specific criteria, often considering factors like poverty level, disability, and household composition.”
Ketebe acknowledged various initiatives the government had put in place but disagreed with the manner Nalumango passed on the message to the public.
“While anecdotal evidence shows that the individuals and households accessing these Social Protection initiatives have seen notable improvement in their lives, including reduced hunger and better school attendance for children, we disagree with the manner in which Vice-President Nalumango passed on the message on the floor of the house as it may be construed as encouraging women to fall pregnant disregarding the circumstances surrounding each woman,” she stated. “As the women’s movement, we have been concerned with the high numbers of teenage pregnancies and child marriage in the country. Through protracted advocacy efforts the country introduced the re-entry policy allowing girls to go back to school after leaving for reasons such as pregnancy and early marriage.”
Katebe stated that NGOCC had continued to sensitise communities about the importance of education and the need to avoid teenage pregnancy.
“Our worry, therefore, is that, with such a comment coming from the Vice President of this country, girls and young women would be encouraged to fall pregnant in order to get paid by the government,” she stated. “Not too long ago, NGOCC condemned the demeaning remarks against women, attributed to the Zambia Must Prosper (ZMP) President Mr. Kelvin Fube Bwalya during the launch of their party Manifesto on 27th August 2024. Mr. Bwalya was quoted objectifying women and suggesting that they are tools for childbearing and population growth.”
She further called on those in charge of decision making to be careful with the kind of statements they make.
“Like we have stated before, we expect people holding decision making and influential positions to know that the statements they make in the public domain have a very strong bearing in shaping perceptions and behaviors of the citizens. As NGOCC, we reached out to Vice President Nalumango on the “imita ufole” remark,” stated Katebe. “Our hope is that Vice President Nalumango will retract her statement and provide context to this matter so that it does not undermine years of advocacy against teenage pregnancy, responsible motherhood and Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights.”
