African First Ladies have been challenged to lead the war against social challenges bedeviling the continent.
The Zimbabwe’s First Lady, Auxillia Mnangagwa said they should come together to help fight diseases, illiteracy and economic backwardness among other social ills.
She was speaking on Friday in Ruiru, Kiambu County during celebrations to mark World Diabetes Day when she accompanied Kiambu Governor’s wife, Susan Wangare and the area MP, Simon King’ara.
To improve access to health services, the First Lady said that periodic clinical sessions should be planned so as to achieve maximum reach in the community.
“Diabetes is a killer disease to our people everywhere across the world. With diseases, no nation can thrive and because we want our people alive to better and offer workforce to their countries, everyone should make an initiative to go and get tested,” said Mnangagwa.
She hailed Kenya’s First Lady, Margret Kenyatta for championing mother-child healthcare through her Beyond Zero Campaign.
Wangare said that Kiambu County is strongly committed to the successful outcome of the Beyond Zero campaign initiative to ensure no preventable deaths of mothers and children occurred so as to promote a healthy and HIV free generation and to eliminate inequalities in access to health services.
She lamented that the current county statistics depicting about six percent of the adults above 40 years in the county lived with diabetes that is mainly attributed to unhealthy diet, little or no physical activity and obesity.
By Lucy Wangai
