Giardiasis: Livestock and Companion Animals

Giardia spp. are flagellates that are found in the intestinal tract of humans and domestic and wildlife animals, including birds and amphibians, worldwide. The genus Giardia comprises several species which are morphologically similar. Giardia infections have been reported widely in livestock and companion animals with varying prevalence in different parts of the world. Giardiasis, the disease cause by Giardia, may result in numerous episodes of diarrhoea, especially in young animals, which in turn adversely affect production resulting in economic loses. The affected animals may also act as a source of zoonotic infections. Evidence of infection in both animals and humans of Giardia duodenalis especially of assemblage A and B has firmly established giardiasis as a zoonotic disease. The zoonotic assemblage A and B have been reported in livestock (cattle, sheep, goats, pigs) and companion animals (dogs, cats, horses). However, questions regarding the direct transmission of Giardia from domestic animals to humans still need to be explored. Appropriate prevention and control measures are cardinal in preventing both animal and human infections. This chapter discusses G. duodenalis infection and the disease including treatment options in livestock and companion animals

Risk factors for infection with soil transmitted helminths, <i>Cryptosporidium spp.,</i> and <i>Giardia duodenalis</i> in children enrolled in preschools in Kafue District, Zambia

Intestinal parasitic infections are common among children worldwide. This study was aimed at determining risk factors for infection with soil transmitted helminths, Cryptosporidium spp., and Giardia duodenalis, among children in preschools. The study was in two parts: a cross-sectional study in which data were collected from 403 children from 10 preschools and a longitudinal study in which 100 children from four preschools from the previous 10 were selected. Prevalence of Ascaris lumbricoides was 12.0%, while that of hookworm was 8.3%. Overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium and G. duodenalis was 28.0% and 29.0%, respectively. Low education level of parent/guardian was a significant risk factor for A. lumbricoides (OR = 2.35, 95% CI: 1.02–5.41; P=0.04), while roofing types other than corrugated iron sheets were found to be protective for G. duodenalis infection in both bivariate and multivariate analyses (multivariate: OR = 0.67, 95% CI: 0.45–0.99; P=0.04). Low socioeconomic level was found to be protective for Cryptosporidium spp. infection in multivariate analysis (OR = 0.59, 95% CI: 0.35–0.99; P=0.04). In the longitudinal study, none of the factors were associated with either infection. These findings may have implications for other preschools in other districts in Zambia

African Moral Fibre as the Lost Glory in Combating Violence against Women

Africa, like any other society, embodies moral responsibilities that govern the way society is to be ruled. These morals, which are embedded in people’s belief systems and worldviews, are transmitted from generation to generation. The gendered nature of these morals can be reflected in the way women and girls are protected and respected in their communities. Since the holistic mothering roles of women are viewed as the highest order of society, heinous crimes like violating a woman are seen as taboo in that society. Among the Tonga people of Zambia, where this study is located, raping or beating a woman is considered inhuman, and those men who are involved in such acts are brought before the chiefs to receive punishment from their fellow men. In some cases, such perpetrators not only receive physical disciplining, but also are meant to pay the family of the girl a prescribed number of cows as compensation for their crimes. Later, they also need to participate in a ritual of cleansing to purify the community. Therefore, the concept of “protecting women” is perceived as a form of moral responsibility by the community. This paper aims to reflect on how the weakening of this glorious cultural tradition has left many women and girls exposed to all forms of abuse. The paper will use the narrative approach as its methodology, while feminist cultural hermeneutics and the community’s moral responsibilities will be used as the two theoretical frameworks of the research

Violence against Women and Girls in Africa in the absence of Ubuntu

Ubuntu is the African cultural propensity to display empathy, equality, integrity, peaceful coexistence, and humanism for the purpose of establishing and sustaining a fair and compassionate community. The word “Ubuntu” is derived from the Nguni (isiZulu) proverb Umuntu Ngumuntu Ngabantu, which means “a person is a person because of or through others” (Tutu, 2004, pp. 25-26). Across African cultures, the ideology of Ubuntu emphasizes interconnection, shared humanity, and the collective understanding that stems from a profound connection (Mbiti, 1969). Ubuntu is the awareness of a collective innate tendency to embrace fellow individuals and to cooperate and act with the greater purpose of collective betterment. The essential purpose is concerned with the establishment and preservation of positively reinforcing and strengthening relationships that respect the individual\u27s right to dignity (Nussbaum, 2003, p. 2). In the absence of Ubuntu, sociocultural trajectories in Africa frequently fail to integrate and uphold equality, necessitating the establishment of a solid foundation for our shared humanity. Traditional African cultures are increasingly eroding. Violence against women and children is common to humanity regardless of culture, tradition, political landscape, or the environmental economic context. The focus on Africa in this issue of thirteen articles addresses how women and girls across the continent have become victims of violence. The articles argue that African cultures must embrace the philosophy of Ubuntu. This special issue aims to illustrate that an individual and communal adherence to the ethical norms of Ubuntu can be the path for accomplishing the desired expansion and reinforcement of realistic societal and human flourishing

Whose Body Whose Language? A Feminist Critique of the Construction of Discourses on a Woman’s Body in African Religious Spaces and its Effect on Well-being

The autonomy of a woman’s body and the space it occupies in many religious spaces appears to be embedded in a contested terrain. An African woman’s body is located in a space that seems to be safely controlled in order to save it from its supposed vulnerability. Such interventions have been championed by many factors such as colonialism, patriarchy, and religio-cultural ideologies derived from different religious traditions such as African Traditional Religions and Christianity. Within these interventions the female body seems to be silent, spoken for, acted upon, amidst situations that locate it in subordinated hierarchies of society. These hierarches appear to be carefully secured by the patriarchal rhetoric that cuts across the secular and religio-cultural traditions. This paper is a critique of how religions such as Christianity and African Religions construct women’s bodies which in turn affects their wellbeing in society. The paper uses discourse analysis to argue that although women’s bodies have power to control and challenge systems both in societal and spiritual realm as is argued by scholars these bodies are still perceived as subordinate to patriarchal control. Hence, the paper concludes, with a need for urgency in analyzing the way in which women’s bodies are located in religious spaces and its effect to women’s identity and wellbeing

Religion as Situated Knowledge for Social Transformation: The Case of the Mashobye Women’s Manyano of Limpopo Province

Religion as a form of situated knowledge has historically influenced a gendered conception and acquisition of knowledge. As one of the dominant voices in society, it has created and maintained social hierarchies by discriminating the equal identity, interest and experiences of women. As a result, emerging ideologies, historical and socio-cultural factors normalized thought patterns of particularly an inferior and dependent perspective about women. In most of the African countries, missionary and colonial teaching undermined women’s indigenous knowledge on food production and experiences as heads of households. Through the Victorian family model, women were removed from participating in agriculture to the domestic sphere where they had to perform duties of housewifery. In case of transforming a situation of poverty, hunger and diseases prevalent in Sub Saharan Africa and rural areas of South Africa in particular, religion constrained processes of positive knowledge construction as women’s roles and activities were mostly limited to private space. The aim of this paper is to explore ways in which the Women’s Manyano organization can be an agent of transformation to communities of women in the rural area for food autonomy and maternal health

African women, hospitality and HIV/AIDS : the case of the Mothers' Union of St. Margaret's United Church of Zambia.

Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2005.The problem of African women's hospitality has not been well handled in most churches in Africa. Although many churches seem to attach great value to African women's hospitality, there are still a lot of situations related to African women's hospitality that have been dehumanising and oppressive to African women both in the church and in the society. Issues such as the HIV/AIDS pandemic, economic hardship and sexuality have all affected African women's practice of hospitality. The fact that problems related with African women's hospitality surface within the church goes to show that this kind of hospitality needs to be re-examined by the Church if it has to be free and liberative to African women. Despite all these effects, African women themselves have valued and accepted hospitality as part of their calling in their service to God. The aim of this thesis is to discuss African women's hospitality from an African woman theologian's perspective. Writing as an African woman theologian, the researcher was able to bring out some of the effects of African hospitality to African women. Apart from hospitality being an African way of life and a virtue that needs to be embraced by both African culture and Christianity, hospitality is also viewed as a' command from God to all the Jews and Christians. On the other hand it is also important to mention that hospitality is a gift from God in that there are people who are gifted in extending their acts of hospitality to others. Hospitality as a concept, which has been practiced mainly by women in most African societies has impacted many dimensions of life especially in the Christian faith where African women's hospitality has been viewed as God's command to God's people. Although there is some literature produced on hospitality, the researcher noted with special interest that not much literature has been covered from the theological side on the issue of African women's hospitality and HIV/AIDS. The study was undertaken in the United Church of Zambia with the Mothers' Union group of St. Margaret Church of Kitwe. Among many others, the study reviewed the need for enculturation and contextualization of the African culture and the gospel. Chapter one is the introduction to the study. This includes the background to and motivation for the study, statement of the problem, the methodology used to collect data and the literature review. Chapter two brings out the historical background of hospitality both from the Biblical and African concept. The chapter shows African women's practice of hospitality in all these aspects and how their practises impacted the communities and people who lived at that time. Chapter three looks at different ways African women express their acts of hospitality. The effects of this expression of hospitality are also discussed. The other issues that have been covered are the response of African women theologians' to African women's practise of hospitality. Chapter four examines how HIV/AIDS has affected the practise of African women's hospitality and how these women who continue to offer hospitality under HIV/AIDS conditions cope with the risks involved in the practice. Chapter five analyses the research findings using cultural hermeneutics of Kanyoro 2000 as the frame of reference. Chapter six concludes African women's understanding of hospitality. This chapter states that African women's hospitality is a gift from God and women who are involved in this practice should be encouraged to do so. However, there is need for the church and community to re-examine the practice and look out for oppressive structures that are destructive to the African women's practice of hospitality. The chapter has also called on the church to be supportive to African women in their practise of hospitality

Culture, gender, and HIV and AIDS : United Church of Zambia's response to traditional marriage practices.

Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.In the wake of HIV and AIDS in Africa, culture has been identified as central to HIV prevention, care, and support. Therefore, scholars have argued that HIV intervention in communities should focus on cultural practices rather than just individual behaviour. Researchers have also taken note of the interconnectedness between religion and culture in Africa. Therefore the African theologian, Mercy Oduyoye, proposed the term ‘religioculture.’ In the light of this connection, it has become crucial to examine not just cultural practices but the response of religion to cultural practices in the context of HIV. Given that Zambia is a Christian country, this qualitative empirical study sought to examine the response of a church, the United Church of Zambia (UCZ), to traditional marriage practices that I consider to be harmful in the context of HIV. Traditional marriage practices such as child marriage and widowhood inheritance were analysed through gendered theological perspectives. The study was located in the United Church of Zambia in the towns of Mufulira and Kitwe in the Copperbelt Province of Zambia. The reason for choosing the practices of widowhood inheritance and child marriage as the areas of focus was twofold: first, throughout history and in the current context, the church and society’s perception of these two practices has been ambiguous. Depending on the time and event in history, the practices were seen as either a norm or a problem. In this study, I have questioned the extent to which this historical ambiguity towards these traditional marriage practices has contributed to the way in which the church today is responding to these culture practices. The second reason for choosing these two marriage practices was to highlight how the institution of marriage has been challenged in the context of HIV and AIDS. When marriage ceases to be a safe practice for couples, how should the church respond to the harmful cultural practices associated with marriage, especially in the context of HIV and AIDS? The question that this study posed, therefore, was: What role has the United Church of Zambia played in either promoting or discouraging harmful marriage practices in the context of HIV and AIDS? The methodology used to answer this question included: semi- structured interviews, openended in-depth interviews, Contextual Bible Study, and focus group discussions as forms of data collection from: church leaders, lay people, widows, girls involved in child marriage, and members of the Marriage Guidance Committee. Thereafter, the data was thematically ii analysed using the theory of African feminist cultural hermeneutics. The study is divided into eight chapters, each chapter answers one of the objectives of the study. Through the use of the tools for data collection stated above, the study drew a number of conclusions. Firstly, it was established that indeed child marriage and widowhood inheritance are contributing factors to the spread of HIV. Secondly, the Marriage Guidance Programme of the United Church of Zambia was identified as a point of entry in re-examining the theology of marriage that is contextual and holistic in the United Church of Zambia. Thirdly, the church’s ambivalence with regard to harmful marriage practices in the context of HIV and AIDS was attributed to people’s belief systems about their cultures which are embedded in their worldviews. Overall, the study has shown that there is a need for an analysis of culture within the church which can enable it to respond to harmful cultural practices in the context of HIV

Perceptions of genetically modified maize (as food aid) by the people in Chongwe and Magoye districts, Zambia.

Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2006.Zambia is one of the Southern African countries that experienced drought between 2001 and 2003. As a result the country had low levels of maize harvest, which is the country's main staple food. The Zambian population depends on maize for both household food security and cash. For this reason the Government of Zambia appealed for help from the international community in order to meet the shortfall of maize with a view to feeding its starving population, particularly in the rural areas. In response to the government's appeal, World Food Programme, (WFP) a United Nations Food agency brought assistance in the form of 27,000 tonnes of genetically modified (GM) maize into the country in July 2002. The Zambian government, however, rejected GM maize in both grain and milled forms, citing health, environmental and trade concerns with the European Union. Thus the focus of the research was to understand, on one hand the government's action of rejecting GM maize as food aid, while on the other hand accepting that drought-stricken small-scale farmers would go hungry as a result of this decision. Understanding the perceptions of government action was therefore essential to understanding the situation the situation fully. In other words, was it a good scientifically based government decision, or was it one made for political gain? Moreover, the purpose of this research was to present arguments about the safety and benefits of Genetic Modification technology for the world, particularly the developing countries. The findings of the study were that the levels of GM technology awareness in Zambia low among technocrats and too low among the rest of the population. To this end, government officials, relevant NGOs and small scale farmers were interviewed. In addition, small scale farmers in Chongwe and Magoye participated in focus group discussions. The findings were that although the Chongwe community experienced drought in their area, they were of the view that the government was justified in rejecting the GM maize from 2001-12 because they did not want to contaminate their land which they regarded as very suitable for farming. On the contrary, the Magoye people were among the communities that had been anxious to get food and were therefore not happy with the government's decision. The hunger suffered at the time in this community caused them to loot the government stores of GM Maize (provided as food aid) before the government could recall the stocks. The issue of access to the GM maize was apparently more important than debating on the potential impacts that might have occurred to their community. Other findings were the Zambian government's decision to reject GM maize (as food aid) impacted negatively, both economically and socially, in these areas. The majority of small-scale farmers experienced food shortages and resorted to various coping strategies such as picking wild-fruits and roots in the bush in order for them to survive

Editorial: Religion and Social Responsibility

In our decolonising, digitalising, and neo- and post-colonial world, the scholarly focus on ‘Religion and Social Responsibility’ is here to stay. As Smit (this issue) cogently points out, it has become common purchase not only within traditional socially-minded religious discursive traditions such as the historical Social Gospel Movement, the Catholic Church’s socially conscious and social justice statements and programmes since at least the eighteenth century, and the large variety of missionary movements of the nineteenth century, but that it has also been embraced by more conservative sectors of global religious society. Following the wide variety of social responsibility programmes developed and implemented – with a variety of measures of success – by the capitalist business sectors of the world since the mid-twentieth century, social responsibility programmes as forms of social intervention, or, for the purposes of social transformation and social and economic develop-ment, have become common cause for many institutions. With this issue of Alternation, we wish to place this item firmly on the scholarly agenda of not only institutions of higher learning, but also religious organisations across the religions. We also affirm the socially conscious engagement of society by the business and corporate world. After all, it is these sectors that not only drive the world economy and world development, but also, as individuals and companies, benefit the most from a continuously developing world political and socio-cultural economy