Health and gender

Extension support for women has
promoted such markets
as vegetables and poultry

HIV and malaria, as well as a host of other health problems, are crippling rural capacity to sustain basic food and income needs in Zambia. Markets that drive family members apart, especially where risks of disease infection increases, contribute to this problem, as do lack of economic empowerment for women and inadequate supply of drugs and health information. COMACO promotes markets that allow transactions to take place in the community so family members do not have to travel long distances to cash >cheques and increase chances of disease infection in town centers. COMACO is also committed to working with rural health clinics to assist with the delivery of drugs by using its trading centre trucks as they make regular trips to collect farmer commodities from local trading depots. COMACO is especially interested in seeing markets develop that help women become more financially secure to help with child care in terms of nutrition and health care. Over 800 women are now participating in poultry and vegetable production groups and many are farmer group members and trade with their local depot to seek better prices for their farm commodities. Efforts to make these depots learning centres about a broader range of livelihood issues, including health care and disease prevention, are part of COMACO future workplans.