📰 Zambia · page 3

Zambia is a landlocked country in southern Africa, with a tropical climate, and consists mostly of high plateaus with some hills and mountains, dissected by river valleys.167 At 752614 km2, it is the 39th-largest country in the world.168 The country lies mostly between latitudes 8° and 18°S, and longitudes 22° and 34°E.169

Zambia is drained by two major river basins: the Zambezi/Kafue basin in the centre, west, and south covering about three-quarters of the country; and the Congo basin in the north covering about one-quarter of the country.170 An area in the northeast forms part of the internal drainage basin of Lake Rukwa in Tanzania.171

In the Zambezi basin, there are rivers flowing wholly or partially through Zambia: the Kabompo, Lungwebungu, Kafue, Luangwa, and the Zambezi, which flows through the country in the west and then forms its southern border with Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe.172 Its source is in Zambia and it diverts into Angola, and a number of its tributaries rise in Angola's central highlands.173 The edge of the Cuando River floodplain (not its main channel) forms Zambia's southwestern border, and via the Chobe River.[62]174

Two of the Zambezi's longest and largest tributaries, the Kafue and the Luangwa, flow mainly in Zambia.175 Their confluences with the Zambezi are on the border with Zimbabwe at Chirundu and Luangwa town respectively.176 Before its confluence, the Luangwa River forms part of Zambia's border with Mozambique.177 From Luangwa town, the Zambezi leaves Zambia and flows into Mozambique, and eventually into the Mozambique Channel.178

In Eastern Zambia the plateau which extends between the Zambezi and Lake Tanganyika valleys is tilted upwards to the north, and so rises imperceptibly from about 900 m in the south to 1200 m in the centre, reaching 1800 m in the north near Mbala.179 These plateau areas of northern Zambia have been categorised by the World Wildlife Fund as a large section of the Central Zambezian miombo woodlands ecoregion.[63]180

The Luangwa Valley splits the plateau in a curve north-east to south-west, extended west into the heart of the plateau by the deep valley of the Lunsemfwa River.181 Hills and mountains are found by the side of some sections of the valley, including in its north-east the Nyika Plateau (2200 m) on the Malawi border, which extend into Zambia as the Mafinga Hills, containing the country's highest point, Mafinga Central (2339 m).[64]182

Climate

Main article: Climate of Zambia

Zambia is located on the plateau of Central Africa, between 1000 and 1600 m above sea level.183 The average elevation of 1200 m gives the land a generally moderate climate.184 The climate of Zambia is tropical, modified by elevation.185 In the Köppen climate classification, most of the country is classified as humid subtropical (Cfa) or tropical wet and dry (Aw), with stretches of semi-arid steppe climate (BSh) in the south-west and along the Zambezi valley.186

The two main seasons are the rainy season (November to April) corresponding to summer, and the dry season (May/June to October/November), corresponding to winter.187 The dry season is subdivided into the cool dry season (May/June to August), and the hot dry season (September to October/November).188 The modifying influence of altitude gives the country subtropical weather rather than tropical conditions during the cool season of May to August.[65]189

Biodiversity

Main article: Wildlife of Zambia

In 2015, Zambia was reported to have approximately 12,505 identified species: 63% animal species, 33% plant species and 4% bacterial species and other microorganisms.[66]190

There are an estimated 3,543 species of wild flowering plants, consisting of sedges, herbaceous plants and woody plants.[67]191 The Northern and North-Western provinces of the country have the highest diversity of flowering plants.192 Approximately 53% of flowering plants are rare and occur throughout the country.[68]193

A total of 242 mammal species are found in the country, with most occupying the woodland and grassland ecosystems.194 The Rhodesian giraffe and Kafue lechwe are some subspecies that are endemic to Zambia.[69]195

Roughly 490 known fish species, belonging to 24 fish families, have been reported in Zambia, with Lake Tanganyika having the highest number of endemic species.[70]196

Politics

Main article: Politics of Zambia

Politics in Zambia takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the president of Zambia is head of state and head of government in a pluriform multi-party system.197 The government exercises executive power, while legislative power is vested in the government and parliament.198

Zambia became a republic upon attaining independence in October 1964.199 From 2011 to 2014, Zambia's president had been Michael Sata, until Sata died on 28 October 2014.[71]200 After Sata's death, Vice President Guy Scott, a Zambian of Scottish descent, became acting president.201 Presidential elections were held on 22 January 2015.202 A total number of 11 presidential candidates contested in the election and On 24 January 2015, it was announced that Edgar Chagwa Lungu had won the election to become the 6th President.203 He won 48.33% of the vote, a lead of 1.66% over his closest rival, Hakainde Hichilema, with 46.67%.[72]204 Nine other candidates got less than 1% each.205 In August 2016 Zambian general election president Edgar Lungu won re-election in the first round of the election.206 The opposition had allegations of fraud and the governing Patriotic Front (PF) rejected the allegations made by opposition UPND party.[73]207

In the 2021 general elections, characterised by a 70% voter turnout, Hakainde Hichilema won 59% of the vote, with his closest rival, incumbent president Edgar Chagwa Lungu, receiving 39% of the vote.[74]208 On 16 August Edgar Lungu conceded in a TV statement, sending a letter and congratulating president-elect Hakainde Hichilema.[75][76]209 On 24 August 2021, Hakainde Hichilema was sworn in as the new president of Zambia.[77]210

Military

Main article: Zambian Defence Force

In 2019, Zambia signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.[78]211

Law and human rights

See also: Human rights in Zambia, LGBT rights in Zambia, Zambian nationality law

The government has prosecuted critics using the legal pretext that they had incited public disorder.212 Libel laws are used to suppress free speech and the press.[79]213

Same-sex sexual activity is illegal for males and females in Zambia.[80][81]214 A 2010 survey revealed that 2% of Zambians find homosexuality to be morally acceptable.[82]215 In December 2019, it was reported that United States Ambassador to Zambia Daniel Lewis Foote was "horrified" by Zambia's jailing of same-sex couple Japhet Chataba and Steven Samba.216 After an appeal failed and the couple was sentenced to 15 years in prison, Foote asked the Zambian government to review both the case and the country's anti-homosexuality laws.217 Foote faced a backlash and cancelled public appearances after he was threatened on social media, and was subsequently recalled after Lungu declared him persona non grata.[83]218

In 2026, the Zambian government was criticized for abruptly postponing a major international human rights conference, RightsCon, just seven days before it was set to be held in Lusaka.219 The conference was ultimately cancelled when further communication revealed the Zambian government was requiring, apparently by request of Chinese officials, the moderation and exclusion of presenters from Taiwan.220 Commentators raised concerns about censorship and rising threats to civil society. [84][85][86]221

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Zambia

As of the 2022 Zambian census, Zambia's population was 19,610,769.[87]222

The main ethnic groups in Zambia are Bemba 3.3 million (33.6%), Nyanja 1.8 million (18.2%), Tonga 1.7 million (16.8%), North-Western peoples 1 million (10.3%), Lozi (Barotse) 770,000 (7.8%), Mambwe 580,000 (5.9%), Tumbuka 500,000 (5.1%), Lamba 165,000 (2%), Asians 11,900 and Europeans 6,200.[88]223

Zambia is one of the most highly urbanised countries in sub-Saharan Africa, with 44% of the population concentrated along the major transport corridors, while rural areas are sparsely populated.224 The fertility rate was 6.2 as of 2007 (6.1 in 1996, 5.9 in 2001–02).[89]225

Largest towns

Further information: List of cities and towns in Zambia* The onset of industrial copper mining on the Copperbelt in the late 1920s triggered rapid urbanisation. Although urbanisation was overestimated during the colonial period, it was substantial.[90] Mining townships on the Copperbelt soon dwarfed existing centres of population and continued to grow rapidly following Zambian independence. Economic decline in the Copperbelt from the 1970s to the 1990s has altered patterns of urban development, but the country's population remains concentrated around the railway and roads running south from the Copperbelt through Kapiri Mposhi, Lusaka, Choma and Livingstone.

Ethnic groups

Zambia nominally includes approximately 73 ethnic groups,[91][92] although in practice there are fewer distinct groups.[92]226 Most Zambians are Bantu-speaking.[91]227 The three largest ethnolinguistic groups are the Bemba, Nyanja (also called the Chewa), and Tonga; four smaller groups are the Kaonde, Lozi, Luanda, and Luvale.[92]228 In 2010, the population was estimated to be 21% Bemba, 13.6% Tonga, 7.4% Chewa, 5.7% Lozi, 5.3% Nsenga, 4.4% Tumbuka, 4.0% Ngoni, and 38.6% other.[91]229 The Bemba group is predominant in the Northern, Luapula, and Copperbelt provinces; the Nyanja in the Eastern and Central provinces; the Tonga in the Southern and Western provinces; and the Lozi in the Western Province.[91]230 The Tumbuka minority lives in the Luangwa River valley in the east.[93]231 No single ethnolinguistic group is predominant in the North-Western Province,[91] which is sparsely populated.[92]232

In addition to the linguistic dimension, tribal identities are relevant in Zambia.[92]233 These tribal identities are often linked to family allegiance or to traditional authorities.234 The tribal identities are nested within the main language groups.[94]235

Immigrants, mostly British or South African, as well as some white Zambian citizens of British descent, live mainly in Lusaka and in the Copperbelt in northern Zambia, where they are either employed in mines, financial and related activities or retired.236 There were 70,000 Europeans in Zambia in 1964, but many since left the country.[53]237

Zambia has a small but economically important Asian population, most of whom are Indians and Chinese.238 This minority group has a massive impact on the economy controlling the manufacturing sector.239 An estimated 80,000 Chinese were reported to reside in Zambia in 2006.[95]240 In recent years, several hundred dispossessed white farmers have left Zimbabwe at the invitation of the Zambian government, to take up farming in the Southern province.[96][97]241

According to the World Refugee Survey 2009 published by the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, Zambia had a population of refugees and asylum seekers numbering approximately 88,900.242 The majority of refugees in the country came from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (47,300 refugees from the DRC living in Zambia in 2007), Angola (27,100; see Angolans in Zambia), Zimbabwe (5,400) and Rwanda (4,900).[98]243 Zambians are generally welcoming towards foreigners.244

Beginning in May 2008, the number of Zimbabweans in Zambia began to increase significantly; the influx consisted largely of Zimbabweans formerly living in South Africa who were fleeing xenophobic violence there.[99]245 Nearly 60,000 refugees live in camps in Zambia, while 50,000 are mixed in with the local populations.246 Refugees who wish to work in Zambia must apply for permits, which can cost up to $500 per year.[98]247

Religion

Further information: Religion in Zambia

Zambia is officially a "Christian nation" under the 1996 constitution, but recognizes and protects freedom of religion.[100]248 Zambia is the only African nation to designate Christianity as a state religion.[101]249 The Zambia Statistics Agency in 2022 estimates that 98.0% of Zambians are Christian, with 74.5% Protestant, 17.9% Catholic and 5.6% Jehovah's Witnesses.[102]250 The Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops is the Catholic episcopal conference.[103]251 Many Zambian Christians are syncretic, combining indigenous religious traditions with Christianity.[103]252 The largest Protestant denominations are the Anglicans, evangelicals, and Pentecostals.[103]253

Christianity arrived to Zambia through European colonialism, and its wide variety of sects and movements reflect changing patterns of missionary activity; for example, Catholicism came from Portuguese Mozambique in the east, while Anglicanism reflects British influences from the south.254 Following its independence in 1964, Zambia saw a greater influx of other church missions from across the world, particularly North America and Germany.255 In subsequent decades, Western missionary roles have been assumed by native believers (except for some technical positions, such as physicians).256 After Frederick Chiluba, a Pentecostal Christian, became president in 1991, Pentecostal congregations expanded considerably around the country.[104]257