FROM September 3 to 5, 2014, I was privileged to attend an important meeting dubbed ‘The Status of Integration of Cross-Cutting Issues in Capital Projects: The Case of the Construction of the Kazungula Bridge’.

The meeting took place at Protea Hotel in Livingstone with participants coming from Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Zambia and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Road Development Agency (RDA), media and civil society.

The meeting was called to look at how best to respond to the health challenges that will come about when construction of the Kazungula Bridge starts.
On behalf of the UN resident coordinator Janet Rogan, Ian Milimo, who is in charge of health, HIV and development at UNDP in Lusaka, said the UN had looked forward to this important gathering.

He said the main goals of the Kazungula Bridge construction project were the three zeros, smart investments to end HIV and AIDS and sustaining the multi-sectoral response to HIV and AIDS through shared responsibility.

Mr Milimo said the prevalence of HIV in the Southern African region remained at unacceptably high levels and that there were many known drivers, but one relates particularly to the influx of workers associated with construction and subsequent operation of large capital projects – typically large capital projects.
“In our region, it is difficult to think of any such big project beside Kazungula Bridge. Its ramifications go beyond the countries represented here to vibrate concern in DRC, South Africa and Tanzania.

“Given that this project is still in its infancy and given our level of knowledge of entry points and the desirable state of intervention, we have the opportunity through early intervention to implement and document cross-cutting best practices, using this project as a case study,” he said.

In the case of Zambia, the Government has prioritised infrastructure development for inclusive growth, making the country literally a construction site with huge ambitious investments such as the Link Zambia 8000 and others shaping up across the country.

These capital projects are a strategy for job creation, poverty reduction and, ultimately, inclusive economic growth.

He said from the perspective of the UN Joint Team in Zambia, they looked forward to an HIV response that was sustainably imbedded in national and regional development cooperation frameworks and joint projects. We aspire to project management practice where the following are a reality: 1. Cross-border collaboration on mainstreaming HIV and related Gender issues among the neighbouring countries is integrated within existing health-related cross-border cooperation.

2. Locally sustainable financing of smart response to HIV and related Gender issues that is anchored within local development plans and implementation frameworks.

3. And that both behaviours, both populations left out and contexts (hotspots) of unsafe sexual interactions are taken on board in totality, with local understanding of underlying drivers of the epidemic.

In his welcoming remarks, Livingstone Mayor Milford Maambo said although the focus is on the Kazungula Bridge which is not in Livingstone, the development will have a direct impact on the tourist capital in as far as HIV and general health is concerned.

For example, over 2,000 workers are expected to be engaged during the construction period of the bridge plus the other facilities such as the one-stop border post.
Clearly, the existing health facilities in Kazungula might not cope with such a number and Livingstone is likely to carry part of the burden. This will have an impact on Livingstone’s health services.

Mr Maambo said furthermore, Livingstone is the nearest entertainment hub to the project site and also offers good accommodation.
These dynamics, in addition to Livingstone being a tourist capital and a border town are expected to further compound the HIV situation which is the highest in the country at 25.3 per cent.

It is in this context that I appeal to you that as you plan for the integration of HIV and gender into that project, always consider and factor the surrounding districts because they will be impacted.

Several other presentation from various experts were made during meeting including a field tour of the construction site in Kazungula and I hope next week, I can still inform you the reader on the tour and especially the recommendations to come out of the meeting.

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