. Lungu

By JULIUS PHIRI   –
FIRST Lady Esther Lungu has arrived in the United States of America for a series of high-level meetings in Dallas, Texas and New York.
Ms Lungu will participate in the meetings alongside US First Lady Michelle Obama and former First Lady Laura Bush.
Ms Lungu was received by Zambia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UN) Mwaba Kasese-Bota at JFK International Airport at the weekend.
She was by yesterday expected in Dallas where she was invited by the George W Bush Institute to participate in high-profile engagements with other First Ladies focusing on women empowerment, health, technology and other sectors.
This is according to a statement issued by first secretary for Press and public relations at Zambia’s Permanent Mission to the UN, Chibaula Silwamba yesterday.
He said Ms Obama and Ms Bush would jointly moderate an interactive discussion scheduled for tomorrow.
Ms Lungu is registered to speak at the invest in women forum, a discussion to be moderated by Ms Cherie Blair, who is wife of former British prime minister Tony Blair and founder of Cherie Blair Foundation for Women at the Bush Centre Auditorium.
Other speakers at the event are Intel Corporation corporate affairs vice-president Shelly Esque, founder and CEO of ARZU Project Hope Connie Duckworth and Opportunity International Global CEO Vicki Escarra.
Ms Lungu would also attend the Pink Ribbon, Red Ribbon and Public Private Partnership panel meeting where former US president George W Bush would make remarks.
Mr Silwamba said other meetings Ms Lungu would participate in were the First Ladies roundtable on improving maternal and child health in Africa and the technology and innovative training focusing on Facebook and Google best practices.
Mr and Ms Bush would then host a dinner for the First Ladies.
On return to New York, Ms Lungu would participate in a series of meetings, including those on Women and the New Sustainable Development Agenda on Friday this week, Forum of African First Ladies Against Cervical Cancer to be held this weekend, and Organisation of African First Ladies Against HIV/AIDS on Monday next week.
The reception will be hosted by the UN Secretary General’s Wife Ban Son Taek on September 29 and the First Ladies Technical Advisors Fellowship on October 1 on the sidelines of the 70th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Since assuming office on January 25 this year, Ms Lungu has received accolades for leading various initiatives to promote the empowerment of women, girls, the disabled and other needy people as well as lobbying for public and private sector-led provision of health and social support to communities across Zambia