A matched case-control study was carried out to identify the factors associated with the nutritional status of children in Livingstone district, Zambia. A trained field researcher collected data on demographic, feeding practices and socio-economic factors in matched groups of underweight children and normal weight children from the mothers/caregivers of the children. Interviews, using a structured pre-tested questionnaire, were used to obtain the data. All children aged from six to fifty-nine months admitted at Livingstone General Hospital during the months of October to December, 2003 with a weight for age below &ndash / 2SD from the median of the reference population formed the underweight children (cases). The total was 47 children. The cases were then matched according to sex and age to 47 normal weight children attending the under five clinic at Livingstone General Hospital during the same months, with a weight for age above &ndash / 2SD from the median of the reference population (controls). The final sample was 94 children. Weights were recorded using the same scale in the outpatient&rsquo / s department prior to admission and during the under five clinic session. Interviews then took place in a separate room after the clinic nurse had attended them. A separate visit was then made to the homes of the children on a different day. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were used to measure strengths of associations. Results revealed that the basic causes of underweight were the poor economic state of the country, unfavorable policies and insufficient government support in the areas of health, education, agriculture, housing and employment. Underlying causes were inadequate access to food, inadequate care of children, poor access to health services and unhealthy living environments, while immediate causes were poor food intake and disease. Low educational and literacy levels of the mothers/caregivers, unemployment and lack of sufficient finances to access basic necessities such as food, housing and health contributed to underweight.

The purpose of this study was to identify the physical needs of the elderly with regard to physiotherapy services in the Livingstone district in Zambia. The objectives were to determine the knowledge of the elderly on the role of physiotherapy in the care of the elderly / the barriers to utilization of the services / the prevalence of physical problems and it also examined associations between education, knowledge and utilization of physiotherapy services in the district.

With the increase in the number of persons suffering from HIV/AIDS, physiotherapists are often required to treat these patients who present with respiratory and neurological complications. Although physiotherapists are at a lower risk of HIV infection in the workplace than nurses and doctors, it is necessary to determine their knowledge and perceptions of the risks, fears of HIV transmission and their attitudes towards patients with the disease. The aim of the study was to determine the physiotherapists knowledge of, and their attitudes towards patients with HIV/AIDS. It also explored whether the physiotherapists knowledge influences attitudes towards HIV/AIDS patients in Lusaka, Zambia.

A study entitled `Phenomenological study of ageing amongst the older persons in Zambia' was undertaken with the purpose of gaining an understanding of the ageing phenomenon within the Zambian context and provide frameworks that could be used by policy-makers and health professionals to formulate guidelines or interventions relevant to the lived experiences of older persons and the meaning attached to ageing or being old, and consequently maintain or improve the quality of life of older persons of Zambia. The objectives of the study were to describe (1) the lived experiences of the older persons of Zambia, and (2) the meaning they attached to ageing or being old within the Zambian context. A transcendental phenomenological design within the qualitative naturalistic approach was used to guide the research process and to assist the researcher to reach the purpose and objectives of the study. Focus group and in-depth individual interviews were conducted to generate data from twenty-seven (27) informants. Fifteen (15) informants participated in the focus group interviews and twelve (12) in in-depth individual interviews. In total, 24 in-depth individual interviews were conducted in term of two interviews per informants, and two focus group interviews. Data collection covered a period of three months. Coliazzi (1978) and Giorgi (1985) techniques for qualitative data analysis were used and verbatim excerpts form the transcribed interviews were used to support the themes that emerged from data and to provide a richer picture of the situation. Three frameworks derived from the findings of this study: (1) framework of the lived experiences of older persons of Zambia, (2) framework of the meaning of ageing or being old and (3) framework for understanding ageing within the Zambian context. The researcher believed that these frameworks would make a meaningful contribution toward the understanding and the development of policies and interventions that would assist in enhancing or maintaining the quality of life of older people of Zambia. The main findings of the results of this study indicated three most significant dimensions of the lived experiences of the older persons (health, socio-economic and psychosocial) that need to be taken into account when planning for any programs or interventions aimed at maintaining or improving the quality of life of older persons of Zambia. These interventions and programs should also address the negative feelings or meanings attached to the above experiences. The main findings of the results of this study also showed that the meaning of being old or ageing in Zambia does not depend on the health, socio-economic and psychosocial living experiences of the older person but it depends largely on the inner values of the older persons, such as spiritual, emotional and cultural beliefs. This means that maintaining or improving the quality of life of older persons in Zambia would require comprehensive programs or interventions that should take into account the health, socio-economic, psychosocial, spiritual, emotional and cultural needs of the older people. / Health Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Health Studies)

Public Service Television remains a key institution of democratisation in the context of emerging democracies in Africa, especially with the advent of liberalisation and commercialisation of the media. The democratic changes taking place in Zambia require a genuine public service broadcasting television that will promote pluralism in the public sphere. Among the many available strategies and mechanisms for fostering a sustainable democratic and cultural environment, public service broadcasting is still the best. This study set out to examine representation of political issues and debates during election campaign on ZNBC television news to assess the extent to which it plays a role as a public broadcaster in the mediation of pluralistic politics. Election news on television, in line with the public sphere argument was found to be essential for investigating the nature of public service television from the point of view of impartiality, universality and diversity. Using both qualitative and quantitative methods the study has confirmed the hypothesis that the role of a public service television in the mediation of pluralistic politics is compromised by ZNBC's partial and unbalanced coverage of elections. As a result ZNBC, as a public service broadcaster is undermining the very democracy it is expected to promote. Public service television should take new forms if it is to be recognised and appreciated by the public as a genuine, open and democratic public sphere. I therefore recommend that a system of license fee for viewers be introduced. Secondly, government should increase funding into public service television to supplement revenue from license fee and advertising. Thirdly, I recommend the appointment of an independent board whose members will be appointed for a fixed term, by public nomination and a process of public hearing, according to publicly available criteria, which guarantees diversity of political, ethnic, social and professional background. Fourthly I suggest the formation of an Election News Coverage Committee comprising of journalists, academicians, the church and civic organisation that will formulate and implement editorial policy on election coverage and above all monitor and the coverage of elections on ZNBC television news.

The "tabloid TV" genre, like tabloid newspapers has been chastised for depoliticising the public by causing cynicism, and lowering the standards of rational public discourse. Such criticisms are not always based on a close interrogation of the reasons for the popularity of such a genre amongst its consumers. The "tabloid TV" news genre is a relatively new phenomenon in Zambia and in the African context in general. This study is an investigation of the rise in popularity of the Zambian television station, Muvi TV. It is a reception study of Lusaka (capital city) viewers, particularly the working class community, who make up the majority of the TV stations' audience. Members of this social group who have hitherto been marginalised from mainstream media discourses were interviewed. In particular, the study explores the meanings obtained from the content of Muvi TVs' tabloidised main evening news and its relevance to their everyday lived experiences. The TV station gives prominence to "micro-politics of everyday life", alongside "serious" stories albeit in a more lurid, sensationalised and personalised manner. In undertaking this investigation, the study draws primarily on qualitative in-depth interviews - focus group and individual. These techniques unearth the manner in which the viewers decode the messages and appropriate the meanings into their lived experiences. The study establishes that the popularity of Muvi TV is due to the emphasis on human-interest stories epitomised by tabloid journalism values. The working class majority is able to relate and identify with these stories, and attaches greater believability to the station's news as compared to the public broadcaster, the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC). As such, Muvi TV can be seen to fulfil a political function despite its sensationalised approach.

This study explores the relative importance of the media in influencing the electoral choices of a small group of Zambians, namely Evelyn Hone College students in Lusaka who participated in the December 2001 elections in Zambia. The study investigates the interplay of mediation between the lived cultural experiences of the sample of students and the impact of media messages. Students at Evelyn Hone College come from different ethnic groupings, social classes, religions and regions. They are exposed to both the state and the privately owned media, which represent a range of political viewpoints. The outcome of the December 2001 elections in Zambia gave the impression that people in urban areas in Zambia were less likely to vote on ethnic lines because they had easy access to different media, ranging from print to electronic, which provided them with diverse information about the political scene, and probably shaped their electoral choices. Conversely, their counterparts in the rural areas appeared to vote along ethnic lines, seemingly because of lack of exposure to the media. It was also assumed that most people in rural areas were not as modernized as their urban counterparts who were more exposed to enlightened sources of information such as professional groups and other elite social institutions which helped them to shape their political opinions than most rural people. The study attempts to establish to what extent the media impacted on the selected sample of urban students in the choice of their presidential candidates in the December 2001 elections in Zambia. The study further investigates to what extent other factors such as ethnic inclinations and other social predispositions influenced them in their choice of the candidates. The interviewees for this study were randomly drawn from a population of Evelyn Hone College students that voted in the December 2001 presidential elections in Zambia. The sample consisted of 30 randomly selected students who were purposely stratified in three focus groups of ten each. Each stratum represented the approximate ethnic equivalence of one of the presidential candidates who contested the December 2001 elections.

Text in English / Autonomy) which brought about the ownership of the Church by Zambians,was a turning point for the life, ministry and mission of the RCZ. Gerdien Verstraelen-Gilhuis (1982) has done a very thorough objective historical study from the perspective of looking at the scope for African leadership and initiative in the history of a Zambian mission Church. This is up to Umwini (April 1966 ). On the other hand Foston Dziko Sakala has examined ( MTh- Church History. Thesis Unisa 1996 ) the development of theological education since the missionary era. A critical analysis is therefore necessary on how the RCZ reacted and continues to react to some of the missiological challenges posed to it after Umwini. Our second purpose is to point out certain challenges which must be pondered seriously by upcoming theologically sensitive young ministers of the Gospel in the RCZ, who desire to have 'a truly African, Contextual Reformed Church In Zambia', indeed a Church that is contextually consistent with the' writing on the wall'. The political independence (1964) of Zambia from the British colonialists created an environment were the RCZ demanded for its autonomy from the Dutch Reformed Church missionaries from South Africa who had established and were running the church with all its services in education and health since 1899. challenge to the Christian Church. The consequent developments politically from colonialism to multi- party politics (which did not live long - 1964 to 1968) to one party participatory democracy( from 1 968 to 1993 ) and since 1994 up to the time of writing this dissertation, to a liberalised economic market system and democratic governance and the declaration of Zambia as a Christian nation all pose specific challenges to the Church's mission. Political, cultural and social changes of Zambia have given a clear on the mission and life of the Reformed Church In Zambia. The Zambian environment has not been the same before and after its political independence and consequently the mission of the RCZ has had its various challenges before and after umwini. It was no longer missionaries directly responsible for determining the mission and growth of the RCZ, it was and has been Zambian people themselves. / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / M. Th. (Missiology)

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This research reports on two action research case studies of participatory materials development in two rural community contexts in Zambia, namely Chiawa and Nalusanga. It aims to explore and articulate the relationships between community-based environmental education and participatory materials development in the WWF Zambia Education Project context; clarify participatory materials development processes by identifying the roles of different ‘actors’ in these processes and identify and analyse the contextual and other factors that may influence development and use of environmental education materials in rural communities. These aims were explored by means of a number of action research cycles of inquiry in the two communities. The study also articulates the significance of considering ambivalent globalising influences such as international conferences, debates, overseas development aid, national policies and how these shape and influence materials development work in a local context. In order to gain more insight into the local contexts, I developed contextual profiles on the two communities. These capture the contextual factors that influenced the participatory materials development processes. They include issues such as language, ethnicity, literacy, power relations and the local social economy, amongst others. Although this study has been predominately guided by the socially critical orientation to research and education, I have drawn on aspects of other research orientations. I have also explored some of the emerging critiques of the socially critical orientation. The findings of this study reveal the different roles participants can play in participatory materials development; participatory materials development processes as a learning process; the dynamics of participation in an African context; the role of language and literacy in materials development; the need for open-ended process models of learning amongst adult learners and the importance of merging expert and local knowledge in participatory materials development. This study opens up possibilities for further exploration of participatory materials development processes within the WWF ZEP context and beyond.