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Inside Kafue by Howard Bland
A while back
now, it seemed only a matter of time before a feature showcasing the
many towns of Zambia, with their differing characteristics and
histories that make them unique from one another, be introduced to
the Lowdown. Now, having organised a town-an-issue policy, we
can finally get the ball rolling with our first entry, Kafue.
Being situated
off the main road linking Lusaka to the South, you would be forgiven
to simply bypass it, completely oblivious to its very existence. But
Kafue has a lot going on, certainly enough to unjustify turning a
blind eye. Most noticeable is the industrial presence, where I would
find massive rows of industrial estates, their structures rusted and
in an eyesore condition with no exceptions to note. A shame
considering the utterly beautiful hilly landscape that surrounds the
area, made all the more gorgeous from the greening effects of the
rainy season. Trying to enter the gates of one building in
particular, specialising in textiles, was a feat in itself, and more
of the same was to be said for my second attempt at a building
further on. Furthermore no signs of managers or
management was to be seen; in both cases the people who presumably
worked there had little clue as to what they should be doing to
assist. Even when I was clearly asking for business, coaxing anyone
to take some action towards this potential buyer proved futile. With
little progress being made, it seemed time to move on.
It wasn’t to
get much better further on in the main town; an assimilation of busy
locals, always on the move, and plenty of market places. The main
problem is simply the terrible road conditions, practically no
proper tarmac of any kind and pot holes that were almost the end of
my two-wheel drive. Lack of any road-side drainage systems meant
pools of rain water to drive through when pulling into any places of
interest. It is unfortunate the
neglect to Kafue’s infrastructure, be it the roads or buildings,
including a nursery school/chapel further on that desperately needed
some attention. An ensemble of church-goers having to perform their
service outside the crusty walls of the main building put that into
perspective.
Locals were
ever-present and generally friendly; perhaps they thought the
constant displays of nonsensical advertising to be found written
across their rundown buildings, including an amusing drive-thru that
no car could reach, had pulled in potential customers. Sadly not,
rather it was some fresh smoked fish being sold on the roadside that
concerned me, this being, of course, their (the fish’s) mating
season and a ban on fishing still in place. Either
 way,
I was assured they had not been fished from the Kafue River, but
rather the Zambezi; how that justifies things, I’m not sure.
But again, if
there’s one problem that Kafue needs to sort out, it’s the neglect
to its buildings and roads, along with the organisation of its
industrial market. Though despite this, Kafue is just one of many
Zambian towns with great potential, whether it be for its industrial
market, the buildings are already there after all, or for tourism,
being close to the river and having the beautiful location that it
does. And just as is with many other towns, Kafue is a long way off
from realising that potential. The sooner some heavy-duty work can
be done, the better chance Kafue will have of stabilising itself so
it can begin
moving forward in terms of business, economical status and
popularity among locals and tourists alike.
Photographs by
www.info-zambia.com
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February
2007