Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia (CIDRZ) has hosted it’s first-ever Men’s Conference for its employees as a deliberate gesture of taking care of Men’s health and wellness.
The hybrid conference, attended by about 250 CIDRZ male employees, gave them a safe space for open discussions on men’s topics and a getaway from the hustle and bustle of office life. Critical topics discussed ranged from spirituality, mental health, men’s health-seeking behaviours and reproductive health.

In opening the Conference, CIDRZ Human Resource Director Mwansa Lombe said the concept of hosting a CIDRZ men’s conference was inspired by the realisation that men rarely share their issues or challenges, and in many cases they are stressed to a breaking point, leading to mental health issues.

She added that with all the men’s conference memes that flood social media during Valentine’s Day, hosting a Men’s Conference sounded like a great idea.

“With all those memes on social media, we thought to ourselves, Why not a men’s conference? Why not allow the men to come together and talk about the things that really concern them in a safe space,” Ms. Lombe said.

Speaking at the same conference, CIDRZ Deputy Chief Executive Officer Nana Appiah Qua-Enoo said he was pleased with the concept of the Men’s Conference and hoped it was the first of many to come.

He said “men rarely had time to talk about issues that affect them and ended up experiencing mental health issues silently”. He urged the participants to freely discuss issues that affect men, without being constrained by the presence of bosses in the audience.

The event, which was held under the theme “Taking Care of a CIDRZ Man”, was graced by insightful presentations from Rev. Msidi, Dingaan Njobvu, Dr Michael Silumbe, Dr Maria Akami Sichembe and CIDRZ’s Dr. James Zulu with a scintillating performance by the legendary Danny Kaya.