The territory of Northern Rhodesia was administered by the [British] South Africa Company from 1891 until it was taken over by the UK in 1923. During the 1920s and 1930s, advances in mining spurred development and immigration. The name was changed to Zambia upon independence in 1964. In the 1980s and 1990s, declining copper prices, economic mismanagement and a prolonged drought hurt the economy. Elections in 1991 brought an end to one-party rule, but the subsequent vote in 1996 saw blatant harassment of opposition parties. The election in 2001 was marked by administrative problems with three parties filing a legal petition challenging the election of ruling party candidate Levy MWANAWASA. The new president launched an anticorruption investigation in 2002 to probe high-level corruption during the previous administration. In 2006-07, this task force successfully prosecuted four cases, including a landmark civil case in the UK in which former President CHILUBA and numerous others were found liable for more than USD 41 million. MWANAWASA was reelected in 2006 in an election that was deemed free and fair. Upon his abrupt death in August 2008, he was succeeded by his Vice President Rupiah BANDA, who subsequently won a special presidential by-election in October 2008. Under President BANDA, the Task Force on Corruption was abolished, President CHILUBA and his wife were acquitted in their criminal cases, and the government declined to register the UK civil verdict.

Southern Africa, east of Angola, south of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

15 00 S, 30 00 E

Africa

slightly larger than Texas

0 km (landlocked)

none (landlocked)

tropical; modified by altitude; rainy season (October to April)

mostly high plateau with some hills and mountains

copper, cobalt, zinc, lead, coal, emeralds, gold, silver, uranium, hydropower

1,560 sq km (2008)

105.2 cu km (2001)

periodic drought; tropical storms (November to April)

air pollution and resulting acid rain in the mineral extraction and refining region; chemical runoff into watersheds; poaching seriously threatens rhinoceros, elephant, antelope, and large cat populations; deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; lack of adequate water treatment presents human health risks

landlocked; the Zambezi forms a natural riverine boundary with Zimbabwe

African 99.5% (includes Bemba, Tonga, Chewa, Lozi, Nsenga, Tumbuka, Ngoni, Lala, Kaonde, Lunda, and other African groups), other 0.5% (includes Europeans, Asians, and Americans) (2000 Census)

Bemba (official) 30.1%, Nyanja (official) 10.7%, Tonga (official) 10.6%, Lozi (official) 5.7%, Chewa 4.9%, Nsenga 3.4%, Tumbuka 2.5%, Lunda (official) 2.2%, Kaonde (official) 2%, Lala 2%, Luvale (official) 1.7%, English (official) 1.7%, other 22.5% (2000 Census)

Christian 50%-75%, Muslim and Hindu 24%-49%, indigenous beliefs 1%

13,881,336 (July 2011 est.)

3.062% (2011 est.)

44.08 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)

12.61 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)

-0.84 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)

LUSAKA (capital) 1.413 million (2009)

470 deaths/100,000 live births (2008)

5.98 children born/woman (2011 est.)

4.8% of GDP (2009)

0.055 physicians/1,000 population (2006)

1.9 beds/1,000 population (2008)

urban: 87% of population

rural: 46% of population

total: 60% of population

urban: 13% of population

rural: 54% of population

total: 40% of population (2008)

urban: 59% of population

rural: 43% of population

total: 49% of population

urban: 41% of population

rural: 47% of population

total: 51% of population (2008)

13.5% (2009 est.)

980,000 (2009 est.)

45,000 (2009 est.)

14.9% (2007)

1.3% of GDP (2008)

republic

9 provinces; Central, Copperbelt, Eastern, Luapula, Lusaka, Northern, North-Western, Southern, Western

24 October 1964 (from the UK)

Independence Day, 24 October (1964)

24 August 1991; amended in 1996 to establish presidential term limits

mixed legal system of English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in an ad hoc constitutional council

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal

unicameral National Assembly (158 seats; 150 members are elected by popular vote, 8 members appointed by the president, to serve five-year terms)

Supreme Court (the final court of appeal; justices are appointed by the president); High Court (has unlimited jurisdiction to hear civil and criminal cases)

Alliance for Democracy and Development or ADD [Charles MILUPI]; Forum for Democracy and Development or FDD [Edith NAWAKWI]; Heritage Party or HP [Godfrey MIYANDA]; Movement for Multiparty Democracy or MMD [Rupiah BANDA]; National Restoration Party or NAREP [Elias CHIPIMO]; Party of Unity for Democracy and Development or PUDD [Dan PULE]; Patriotic Front or PF [Michael SATA]; Reform Party [Nevers MUMBA]; United Democratic Alliance or UDA (a coalition of RP, ZADECO, PUDD, and ZRP); United Liberal Party or ULP [Sakwiba SIKOTA]; United National Independence Party or UNIP [Tilyenji KAUNDA]; United Party for National Development or UPND [Hakainde HICHILEMA]; Zambia Democratic Congress or ZADECO [Langton SICHONE]; Zambian Republican Party or ZRP [Benjamin MWILA]

NA

ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUSCO, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

green field with a panel of three vertical bands of red (hoist side), black, and orange below a soaring orange eagle, on the outer edge of the flag; green stands for the country's natural resources and vegetation, red symbolizes the struggle for freedom, black the people of Zambia, and orange the country's mineral wealth; the eagle represents the people's ability to rise above the nation's problems

African fish eagle

Zambia's economy has experienced strong growth in recent years, with real GDP growth in 2005-10 about 6% per year. Privatization of government-owned copper mines in the 1990s relieved the government from covering mammoth losses generated by the industry and greatly increased copper mining output and profitability to spur economic growth. Copper output has increased steadily since 2004, due to higher copper prices and foreign investment. In 2005, Zambia qualified for debt relief under the Highly Indebted Poor Country Initiative, consisting of approximately USD 6 billion in debt relief. Poverty remains a significant problem in Zambia, despite a stronger economy. Zambia's dependency on copper makes it vulnerable to depressed commodity prices, but record high copper prices and a bumper maize crop in 2010 helped Zambia rebound quickly from the world economic slowdown that began in 2008. A high birth rate, relatively high HIV/AIDS burden, and market distorting agricultural policies have meant that Zambia's economic growth has not dramatically decreased the stubbornly high poverty rates.

$20.04 billion (2010 est.)

$18.63 billion (2009 est.)

$17.5 billion (2008 est.)

$16.19 billion (2010 est.)

7.6% (2010 est.)

6.4% (2009 est.)

5.7% (2008 est.)

$1,500 (2010 est.)

$1,400 (2009 est.)

$1,400 (2008 est.)

5.46 million (2010 est.)

14% (2006 est.)

50% (2000 est.)

64% (2006)

50.8 (2004)

52.6 (1998)

20.7% of GDP (2010 est.)

19.9% of GDP (2010 est.)

-3.3% of GDP (2010 est.)

26.7% of GDP (2010 est.)

26% of GDP (2009 est.)

8.5% (2010 est.)

13.4% (2009 est.)

8.39% (31 December 2009)

14.49% (31 December 2008)

20.92% (31 December 2010 est.)

22.06% (31 December 2009 est.)

$1.455 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$1.069 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$3.77 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$2.983 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$3.061 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$2.581 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$2.817 billion (31 December 2010)

$2.346 billion (31 December 2007)

$1.186 billion (31 December 2006)

corn, sorghum, rice, peanuts, sunflower seed, vegetables, flowers, tobacco, cotton, sugarcane, cassava (tapioca), coffee; cattle, goats, pigs, poultry, milk, eggs, hides

copper mining and processing, construction, foodstuffs, beverages, chemicals, textiles, fertilizer, horticulture

11.2% (2010 est.)

9.597 billion kWh (2008 est.)

7.614 billion kWh (2008 est.)

96 million kWh (2008)

279 million kWh (2008 est.)

190 bbl/day (2010 est.)

16,000 bbl/day (2010 est.)

360 bbl/day (2009 est.)

17,570 bbl/day (2009 est.)

0 bbl (1 January 2011 est.)

0 cu m (2009 est.)

0 cu m (2009 est.)

0 cu m (2009 est.)

0 cu m (2009 est.)

0 cu m (1 January 2011 est.)

$464.6 million (2010 est.)

-$404 million (2009 est.)

$7.251 billion (2010 est.)

$4.319 billion (2009 est.)

copper/cobalt 64%, cobalt, electricity; tobacco, flowers, cotton

Switzerland 51.3%, China 20.3%, South Africa 9.2%, Democratic Republic of the Congo 4.6% (2010)

$4.71 billion (2010 est.)

$3.413 billion (2009 est.)

machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, electricity, fertilizer, foodstuffs, clothing

South Africa 35%, Democratic Republic of the Congo 23.5%, Kuwait 8.9%, China 5.6% (2010)

$2.094 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$1.892 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$3.461 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$3.049 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$NA

$NA

Zambian kwacha (ZMK) per US dollar -

4,823.6 (2010)

5,046.1 (2009)

3,512.9 (2008)

3,990.2 (2007)

3,601.5 (2006)

90,100 (2010)

4.947 million (2010)

state-owned Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) operates 1 TV station and is the principal local-content provider; several private TV stations are available; multi-channel subscription TV services are obtainable; ZNBC operates 3 radio networks; about 2 dozen private radio stations also broadcasting; relays of at least 2 international broadcasters are accessible in Lusaka and Kitwe (2007)

.zm

14,771 (2010)

816,200 (2009)

94 (2010)

oil 771 km (2010)

2,250 km (includes Lake Tanganyika and the Zambezi and Luapula rivers) (2010)

Mpulungu

Zambian National Defense Force (ZNDF): Zambia Army, Zambia Air Force, National Service (paramilitary youth organization) (2011)

18-27 years of age for male and female voluntary military service (16 years of age with parental consent); no conscription; Zambian citizenship required; mandatory HIV testing upon enlistment; mandatory retirement for officers at age 65 (Army, Air Force) (2011)

1.8% of GDP (2005 est.)

in 2004, Zimbabwe dropped objections to plans between Botswana and Zambia to build a bridge over the Zambezi River, thereby de facto recognizing a short, but not clearly delimited, Botswana-Zambia boundary in the river

transshipment point for moderate amounts of methaqualone, small amounts of heroin, and cocaine bound for southern Africa and possibly Europe; a poorly developed financial infrastructure coupled with a government commitment to combating money laundering make it an unattractive venue for money launderers; major consumer of cannabis