Zambia: The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) Surgeon General (SG) Lieutenant General Mtshaveni Peter Maphaha has said that understanding the capability of the Zambia Defence Force Medical Services would enhance the interoperability of the two Defence Forces as they engage in joint operations at the regional level.
Lt Gen Maphaha said that is why he prioritized his goodwill visit to Zambia after his appointment as Surgeon General of SANDF in 2020. He said Zambia and South Africa share more than a cordial relationship but close brotherly ties dating many decades.
He said this when he paid a courtesy call to the Zambia Air Force Command at Zambia Air Force (ZAF) Headquarters on Monday, 17 July 2023.
Lt Gen Maphaha further disclosed that his visit to Zambia offered an opportunity to actualize and explore more areas of possible mutual cooperation in improving the healthcare delivery services in the two Defence Forces.
“The human body is the same the world over; therefore, training and expected capabilities should not be different,” he said.
He also said that his visit would result in signing technical agreements that would enable the SANDF to cooperate with the Zambia Defence Force in exchange programmes for medical experts and advanced professional training opportunities for personnel.
And speaking at the same time Acting Air Force Commander, Maj Gen Oscar Nyoni, said the relationship between Zambia and South Africa has grown over the years, resulting in closer engagements and fortified friendship, which yielded mutual benefits for the Zambia Defence Force and the SANDF.
Maj Gen Nyoni also said that the ZAF was ready to partner with SANDF, especially in training opportunities in Aviation Medicine and other critical advanced training medical courses for ZAF personnel. He emphasized the importance of an efficient military healthcare delivery service to the success of military operations in the region.
The Surgeon General, the head of Military Health Services in the SANDF, is expected to tour Maina Soko Medical Center and the Defence School of Health Sciences in Lusaka.