2nd october 2019.
As the chairman of Platform Zambia, I was honored with the invitation of the Embassy.
It was a great pleasure to meet Her Excellency prof. Esther Munalula Nkandu.
The meeting was also attended bij Counsellor Mr. Donovan Zyambo, Mrs Zulu Yombe, 1st secretary for trade and Mrs. Phyllis Chilekwa, secretary of the ambassador.
I’ve experienced a very warm welcome and within no time our conversation was open, lively and most informative. In her capacity as a professor in Health science, she has a very wide and wise vision on development matters. We agreed that development matters should be approached from a global point of view, as we are all interlinked on global issues of key aspects of life, of which health is a supreme example.
The ambassador was very pleased to hear, that as Platform Zambia we have an open, critical, but certainly very warm hearted approach and view towards Africa and Zambia in particular. She was truly very pleased to hear, that our originally Dutch Platform has, since last year, developed a lively connection with the Zambians living in Belgium. She emphasized her wonderful experiences in many universities, where large groups of students from all over the world manage to quickly understand each other and successfully cooperate as brothers and sisters.
She sees so many new, creative and good developments and so much new potential in Zambia and she really hopes to be able to help to make this visual in the global realm of the world and particularly the media. In her view, the media too often focus on the aspects that have a challenge character and sometimes seem to omit to picture the beautiful, inventive and colorful events.
Zambia has a great potential for agriculture and tourism and she hopes, a holistic approach that may serve many aspects and needs in one go, will eventually succeed.
Agriculture and tourism could reinstall the balance between urban and rural areas, services and people.
Developments in Zambia are speeding up and we concluded that it’s very important to encourage that everybody gets a ticket for this ‘development-train’. We emphasized that we should stay in close connection with the younger generations who will eventually carry and carry-out the responsibility for welfare, progress and benefit in Zambia.
She emphasized to be very happy with the theme of the Zambia day on the 4th of April 2020 in Eindhoven: ‘the role of the women in Zambia’. Everywhere in the world there is a great need for equality and cooperation between and appreciation of the role of man and women. Her Excellency prof. Esther Munalula Nkandu confirmed to be present at our Zambia conference day and said to feel happy and honored to do the official opening speech.
Joep van Dongen
Chairman Platform Zambia.