Inonge Mbikusita-Lewanika

"For the past six years, the economy has grown by 5%, and I expect it to reach 6% this year. Previously, only one province produced copper, but now a second province is producing both copper and gold. We also have reserves of cobalt, uranium, and precious stones. Zambia is therefore rich in minerals, and we are actively inviting investors. Many have already come, driving economic growth and creating jobs. The economic outlook is very positive, and both the World Bank and IMF are pleased with our progress."

"A portion of the economic growth resulted from improved management of financial resources. This enabled Zambia to reach the completion point for the HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries) Initiative for debt relief, thanks to greater transparency within the Ministry of Finance and more effective management of budget allocation and spending."

"Yes, tourism is one of the quickest ways to create jobs. Zambia has 19 game parks, and we even sell lions! Tourism also builds connections and fosters friendships, with some tourists eventually becoming investors."

"Yes, malaria claims more lives than HIV/AIDS, with too many people affected. However, the good news in Zambia is that malaria deaths have been reduced by nearly 50% through the use of mosquito nets."

"The first administration made great strides in educating more women. However, now many women are staying home to focus on their families, which often prevents them from completing Grade 12."

"Begin with education and ensure that entrepreneurship is encouraged, as God created each of us uniquely."

"How can we balance the country's leadership when there aren't enough women reaching Grade 12?"

"We need the government to empower women by developing their capacity and providing them with opportunities to acquire leadership skills."

"I was brought up by politicians, and my parents were active in the politics of the country. My mother did a lot of work with women and trying to improve the lot of women. She demonstrated her own participation in public life, first of all by going to school--and not only to primary school, but to a higher school, which was very rare in those days. And then she also was a professional woman. She was a teacher. She was a founding member of YWCA in Zambia. She was the first woman in Northern Rhodesia--that's what Zambia was called before--to register as a voter, the first African woman to do that."

"My father was the first president of the African National Congress of Zambia. And my grandfather, you may be interested to know, was the patron of actually the South African African National Congress in 1912. So I come from a political family. And my father was a member of Parliament. Our parents brought us up to listen to news, so we did have an idea when we were growing up of what was happening out in the world, which I found interesting. But at an early age--I was 13, 14--after watching my father being in politics, I decided that I didn't want to be a politician."

"So I went to school in Zambia and did all my college and university education here in America. And I went back to Zambia and taught at Evelyn Hone College of Further Education. And I did a lot of community work as an NGO[sic]: YWCA, Red Cross, and the Zambia Preschool Association. And then I came back later for my Ph.D. at New York University, where I studied early childhood education and teacher education. And then I went back to Zambia, taught at the university, continued to do a lot of work with children and young people and women, and then UNICEF [United Nations Children's Fund] invited me to work for them in Nairobi."