Republic of CAPITAL: FLAG: The flag is green, with a tricolor of dark red, black, and orange vertical stripes at the lower corner of the fly, topped by a golden flying eagle. ANTHEM: Stand and Sing for Zambia. MONETARY UNIT: The kwacha (k) of 100 ngwee replaced the Zambian pound (z £) on 15 January 1968. There are coins of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 50 ngwee, and notes of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, and 500 kwacha. K1 = $0.00022 (or $1 = k4,549.58) as of 2005.
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES: The metric system is used. HOLIDAYS: New Year's Day, 1 January; Youth Day, 11 March; Labor Day, 1 May; African Freedom Day, 24 May; Heroes' Day, 1st Monday after 1st weekend in July; Unity Day, Tuesday after Heroes' Day; Farmers' Day, 5 August; Independence Day, 24 October;, 25 December. Movable religious holidays include Good Friday and Easter Monday. TIME: 2 pm = noon GMT. A landlocked country in south central Africa, Zambia has an area of 752,614 sq km (290,586 sq mi), with a maximum length of 1,206 km (749 mi) e –w and a maximum width of 815 km (506 mi) n –s. Comparatively, the area occupied by Zambia is slightly larger than the state of. Bounded on the ne by, on the e by Malawi, on these by and Zimbabwe, on the s by Zimbabwe,, and (South West Africa), on the w by, and on the w and n by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC), Zambia has a total boundary length of 5,664 km (3,519 mi).
Zambia's capital city, Lusaka, is located in the south central part of the country. Most of the landmass in Zambia is a high plateau lying between 910 and 1,370 m (3,000 –4,500 ft) above sea level. In the northeast, the Muchinga Mountains exceed 1,800 m (5,900 ft) in height. Elevations below 610 m (2,000 ft) are encountered in the valleys of the major river systems. Plateau land in the northeastern and eastern parts of the country is broken by the low-lying Luangwa River, and in the western half by the Kafue River. Both rivers are tributaries of the upper, the major waterway of the area. The frequent occurrence of rapids and falls prevents through navigation of the Zambezi.
There are three large natural lakes —Bangweulu, Mweru, and Tanganyika —all in the northern area. Lake Tanganykia is the largest with an area of about 12,770 sq km (32,893 sq mi).
Lake Bangweulu and the swamps at its southern end cover about 9,840 sq km (3,799 sq mi) and are drained by the Luapula River. Kariba, one of the world's largest manmade lakes, is on the southern border; it was formed by the impoundment of the Zambezi by the construction of the Kariba Dam.
Although Zambia lies within the tropics, much of it has a pleasant climate because of the altitude. Temperatures are highest in the valleys of the Zambezi, Luangwa, and Kafue and by the shores of Lakes Tanganyika, Mweru, and Bangweulu. There are wide seasonal variations in temperature and rainfall. October is the hottest month. The main rainy season starts in mid-November, with heavy tropical storms lasting well into April. The northern and northwestern provinces have an annual rainfall of about 125 cm (50 in), while areas in the far south have as little as 75 cm (30 in).
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May to mid-August is the cool season, after which temperatures rise rapidly. September is very dry. Daytime temperatures may range from 23 ° to 31 °c (73 –88 °f), dropping at night to as low as 5 °c (41 °f) in June and July.
Lusaka, at 1,250 m (4,100 ft), has an average minimum of 9 °c (48 °f) and an average maximum of 23 °c (73 °f) in July, with averages of 17 °c (63 °f) and 26 °c (79 °f), respectively, in January; normal annual rainfall is 81 cm (32 in). Most of the territory is plateau and the prevailing type of vegetation is open woodland or savanna. Acacia and baobab trees, thorn trees and bushes, and tall perennial grasses are widespread, becoming coarser and sparser in the drier areas to the south. To the north and east grows a thin forest.
The southwest has forests of Zambian teak (Baikiaea plurijuga). The national parks and game reserves, such as the Kafue National Park, conserve the wildlife threatened by settlement. The Cookson's wildebeest, Senga Kob, Thornicroft giraffe, and red lechwe are unique to Zambia. The many varieties of buck include kudu, impala, duiker, and sten.
In Luangwa Valley can be found giraffe, zebra, rhinoceros, elephant, baboon, monkey, hyena, wolf, and lion. Among the nocturnal animals are serval and civet cat, genet, and jackal. Other mammals include the honey badger, ant bear, rock rabbit, wart hog, and bush pig. Zambia has a wealth of bird life, including the eagle, gull, tern, kingfisher, swift, redwing, lark, babbler, sunbird, weaver, red-billed quelea (in Luangwa Valley), stork, goose, plover, skimmer, bee-eater, wagtail, sparrow, swallow, thrush, shrike, nightingale, dove, nightjar, and an occasional ostrich. White pelican, flamingo, heron, ibis, and the crowned crane are found in the game reserves.
As of 2002, there were at least 233 species of mammals, 252 species of birds, and over 4,700 species of plants throughout the country. There are more than 150 recorded species of reptiles, including 78 species of snakes and 66 of lizards. Among them are the crocodile, tortoise, turtle, terrapin, gecko, agama, nonvenomous python, mamba, viper, and adder.
The range of species of fish is also wide and includes bream, snoutfish, butterfish, tigerfish, bottlenose, gorgefish, mudfish, catfish, barbel, 'vundu,' squeaker, whitebait, perch, carp, bass, and 'utaka' (of the sardine type). Insect types number in the thousands, and many are peculiar to the area. The Copperbelt region and the swamps of Lake Bangweulu are especially rich in insect life. Both traditional and modern farming methods in Zambia involve clearing large areas of forest. As of 1985, the nation had lost 699 sq km (270 sq mi) of forestland, mainly to slash-and-burn agriculture but also to firewood gathering and charcoal production. Consequent erosion results in the loss of up to 3 million tons of topsoil annually. The exclusive cultivation of a single crop on agricultural land and the use of fertilizers threaten the soil and contribute to acidification.
The Copperbelt region, Zambia's mineral-extraction and refining center has been polluted by contaminants including acid rain. The buildup of toxins in the soil near many smelters poses a threat to food crops.
Air pollution is caused by vehicle emissions and -powered industrial plants. Lack of adequate water-treatment facilities contributes to the prevalence of bilharziasis and other parasitic infections.
Water pollution arises from contamination by sewage and toxic industrial chemicals. The nation has 80 cu km of renewable water sources, of which 77% of annual withdrawals is used for farming and 7% for industry. Roughly 90% of Zambia's city dwellers and 36% of the people living in rural areas have access to improved water sources.
Wildlife is endangered in some areas by hunting and poaching, although the National Parks and Wildlife Act (1982) mandates automatic imprisonment for trading illicitly in elephant tusks and rhinoceros horns. According to a 2006 report issued by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), the number of threatened species included 11 types of mammals, 12 species of birds, 1 species of amphibian, 4 types of mollusks, 3 species of other invertebrates, and 8 species of plants. Threatened species include the African wild dog, the black rhinoceros, the pond heron, and white-winged crake. The population of Zambia in 2005 was estimated by the United Nations (UN) at 11,227,000, which placed it at number 73 in population among the 193 nations of the world. In 2005, approximately 3% of the population was over 65 years of age, with another 45% of the population under 15 years of age. There were 100 males for every 100 females in the country.
According to the UN, the annual population rate of change for 2005 –2010 was expected to be 1.9%, a rate the government viewed as too high. With support from international organizations, the country sought to reduce its fertility rate, which stood at 5.8 births per woman in 2005. The projected population for the year 2025 was 15,798,000. The population density was 15 per sq km (39 per sq mi). The UN estimated that 35% of the population lived in urban areas in 2005, and that urban areas were growing at an annual rate of 2.32%.
The capital city, Lusaka, had a population of 1,394,000 in that year. Population estimates for other cities included Ndola (374,757), Kitwe (363,734), Kabwe (219,600), Chingola (211,755), and Mufulira (204,104). The main urban concentrations were in the Copperbelt mining complex. The prevalence of HIV/AIDS has had a significant impact on the population of Zambia. The UN estimated that 17% of adults between the ages of 15 –49 were living with HIV/AIDS in 2005. The epidemic causes higher death and infant mortality rates, and lowers life expectancy. Before independence, the size of the European population waxed and waned with the fortunes of the mining industry.
During the political upheavals of the mid-1960s, many Europeans in the mining industries left Zambia. As of 1999, there were nearly 200,000 refugees in Zambia. Most were from Angola; the rest were from the DROC,,, and other African countries. There were 377,000 migrants living in Zambia in 2000, including refugees. By the end of 2004 there were 17,307 refugees and 84 asylum seekers in Zambia. However, in that same year over 39,000 Angolan refugees had been assisted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Zambia, as well as, over 49,000 refugees from the DROC, and over 3,000 refugees from Rwanda. Also in 2004, 111 Zambians sought asylum in.
The net migration rate in 2005 was estimated as zero migrants per 1,000 population. The government views the migration levels as satisfactory. The African community, close to 99% of Zambia's total population, is composed of various Bantu groups. (The term 'Bantu' refers roughly to all peoples in whose language the root ntu means 'man.' ) The Bemba group —37% of the African population —inhabits the Northern and Copperbelt provinces. Other African societies include the Tonga (19%), Lunda (12%), Nyanja (11%), Mambwe (8%), and Lozi or Barotse (7%).
In all, there are at least 73 different African societal classifications. The Europeans, accounting for about 1% of the population, are mainly of British stock, either immigrants or their descendants from the or South Africa. Other European groups include those of Dutch, Italian, and Greek descent. Counting Asians, mainly migrants from the Indian subcontinent, and people of mixed race, other non-Africans constitute only about 0.2% of the population. Some 80 different languages have been identified, most of them of the Bantu family.
For educational and administrative purposes, seven main languages are recognized: Bemba, Lozi, Lunda, Kaonda, Luvale, Tonga, and Nyanja. Bemba, with its various dialects, is widely spoken in northern Zambia and is the lingua franca in the Copperbelt. The Ila and Tonga tongues predominate in the Southern Province. English is the official language.
An estimated 87% of the population professes some form of. Another 1% are either or Hindu. The majority of are either Roman Catholics or Protestants. There has also been a surge in new Pentecostal churches, which have attracted many young followers. Muslims tend to be concentrated in parts of the country where Asians have settled —along the railroad line from Lusaka to Livingstone and in the eastern province. A 1996 amendment to the constitution declared the country a Christian nation while providing for freedom of religion in practice.
Some members of the Muslim community have complained of discrimination since the country was declared a Christian nation. They claim they cannot freely teach and practice; however, other Muslim organizations state they have not experienced any restrictions on their activities. Religious groups must register with the government in order to operate legally; however, all applications for registration are reportedly approved without discrimination. Various ecumenical groups have formed to promote interfaith dialogue and to discuss national political concerns. These include the Zambia Episcopal Conference, the Christian Council of Zambia, and the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia. Almost all of Zambia's industries, commercial agriculture, and major cities are located along the rail lines, which are often paralleled by highways. The Zambia Railways system consists of 2,173 km (1,349 mi) of track, all of it narrow gauge.
The rail link with the Atlantic via the Katanga and railways to Lobito Bay in Angola has been affected by instability in Angola since the mid-1970s. Construction began in October 1970 on the Tazara railway, a 1,860-km (1,156-mi) line linking Dar es Salaam in Tanzania with Kapiri Mposhi, north of Lusaka; intended to lessen Zambian dependence on the former white-minority regimes of South Africa and the former Rhodesia (presently Zimbabwe), the line (890 km/553 mi of which is in Zambia) was completed and commissioned in July 1976. Equipment and operational problems have kept the railway from reaching its full potential, however, and rail cargo links with South Africa and Mozambique ports, passing through Zimbabwe, remain important for Zambian commerce. Zambia had 66,781 km (41,498 mi) of roadway in 2002. The principal routes were: the Great North Road (809 km/503 mi), running from Kapiri Mposhi through Tanzania to Dar es Salaam, with a connecting road in Zambia from Kapiri Mposhi south to Livingstone (Maramba); the Great East Road (586 km/364 mi), from Lusaka to Chipata and thence to the Malawi border, with a connecting road (583 km/362 mi) from Mongu to Lusaka; the Zaire Border Road, from Kapiri Mposhi on the Great North Road through the Copperbelt region to Katanga, DROC; and the Kafue-Harare (Zimbabwe) road. Road services continue to play an important role in transporting copper and general cargo to and from Dar es Salaam.
Transport services on the main routes also are provided by the National Transport Corp. Of Zambia, the state-owned freight and passenger transport service. The United Bus Co. Of Zambia is the largest passenger carrier. In 2003, there were 114,300 registered motor vehicles, including 68,500 passenger cars. In 2004, there were an estimated 109 airports, but only 10 of which had paved runways as of 2005.
Lusaka International is the principal airport. State-owned Zambia Airways is the national airline. Zambia Airways provides international service from Lusaka to several African and European countries, as well as domestic service to 17 Zambian centers. In 2003, about 51,000 passengers were carried on scheduled domestic and international flights.
There are 2,250 km (1,398 mi) of waterways, including Lake Tanganyika, and the Zambezi and Luapula rivers. Mpulungu on Lake Tanganyika is Zambia's only port and receives goods supplied through Tanzania. There are several fishing harbors on Kariba Lake. The history of Zambia before the 19th century can be studied only through archaeology and oral traditions.
Iron working and agriculture were practiced in some parts of Zambia by about ad 100. By ad 900, mining and trading were evident in southern Zambia. Between the 15th century (or possibly earlier) and the 18th century, various groups of Bantu migrants from the southern Congo settled in Zambia. By the beginning of the 19th century, three large-scale political units existed in Zambia, in three different types of geographic environment.
On the northeast plateau between the valleys of the Luapula and Luangwa, the Bemba had established a system of chieftainships; the Lunda kingdom of Kazembe was in the Luapula Valley; and the kingdom of the Lozi was in the far west, in the floodplain of the upper Zambezi. During the 1970s, Zambia played a key role in the movement toward black majority rule in Rhodesia. Zambia's border with Rhodesia was closed from 1973 to 1978 by Kaunda in retaliation for Rhodesian raids into Zambia; the raids were intended to impede the infiltration of Patriotic Front guerrillas into Rhodesia from their Zambian bases.
The emergence of independent, black-ruled Zimbabwe eased the political pressure, but a drastic decline of world copper prices in the early 1980s, coupled with a severe drought, left Zambia in a perilous economic position. The continuing civil war in Angola also had repercussions in Zambia, bringing disruption of Zambian trade routes and casualties among Zambians along the border. A South African air raid near Lusaka on 19 May 1986 was aimed at curbing Zambia's support for black nationalist groups in exile there. Later in the year, Kaunda supported Commonwealth sanctions against South Africa but did not take action himself, since Zambia was heavily dependent on imports from South Africa. Riots, the worst since independence, broke out on 9 December 1986 in protest against the removal of subsidies for cornmeal, which had caused the price to rise by 120%; 15 people were killed, hundreds were injured, and hundreds of shops were looted. Peace returned two days later when Kaunda restored the subsidy and nationalized the grain-milling industry. He also ruled thenceforth with state of emergency powers.
Reduction in government spending in order to reduce the deficit had been demanded by the International Monetary Fund, along with the devaluation of the currency, as a condition for extending new loans to enable Zambia to pay for essential imports. On 1 May 1987, Kaunda rejected the IMF conditions for a new financing package of about $300 million. He limited payments on the foreign debt to well under 10% of export earnings and established a new fixed currency rate of eight kwacha to the dollar.
This did little to improve the economy or the popularity of Kaunda and UNIP. By early 1989, Zambia, in consultation with the IMF and the World Bank, developed a new economic reform plan. Serial Number In Datagridview Vb Net Savefiledialog on this page. In early 1991, Zambia qualified for World Bank assistance for the first time since 1987, although this was later suspended. By 1990, a growing opposition to UNIP's monopoly of power had coalesced in the Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD). A number of UNIP defectors and major labor leaders came together to pressure Kaunda to hold multiparty elections. In December 1990, after a tumultuous year that included riots in Lusaka and a coup attempt, Kaunda signed legislation ending UNIP's legal monopoly of power. After difficult negotiations between the government and opposition groups, Zambia enacted a new constitution in August 1991.
It enlarged the National Assembly, established an electoral commission, and allowed for more than one presidential candidate. Candidates no longer were required to be UNIP members. In September, Kaunda announced the date for Zambia's first multiparty parliamentary and presidential elections in 19 years. On 31 October and 1 November 1991, the 27-year long state of emergency was terminated. Chiluba (MMD) defeated Kaunda, 81% to 15%. The MMD won over 125 of the 150 elected seats in the Assembly. UNIP won 25 seats, although UNIP swept the Eastern Province, winning 19 seats there.
Despite the change of government, the economy still sputtered. Chiluba's austerity measures may have been popular with Zambia's creditors, but not with its people. Likewise, his privatization plans alarmed the unions, his original base of support. Chiluba's MMD in power became autocratic and corrupt. Kaunda, his family, and UNIP officials were harassed. The press began to criticize Chiluba's government and Chiluba lashed back.
An Anticorruption Commission investigated three senior cabinet ministers suspected of abuse of office. UNIP remained the principal target of Chiluba's wrath.
In February 1993, a document known as 'Operation Zero Option' was leaked to the press. Allegedly written by Kaunda loyalists, it called for a campaign of strikes, riots and crime to destabilize the government. On 4 March 1993, government declared a three-month state of emergency and detained 26 UNIP members, including three of Kaunda's sons. Chiluba lifted the state of emergency on May 25 and released all but eight of the detainees, whom he charged with offenses from treason to possession of seditious documents. Throughout the 1990s, Zambia continued to face troubles in its attempts to modernize its economy and to reform its political system.
Despite liquidation of the government's huge stake in the nation's industrial sector, and implementing a drastic austerity program to reduce its budget deficit, the country saw only marginal growth. Further, despite the promise of fresh beginnings in 1991, the country momentarily reverted to one-party rule under Chiluba as the MMD fraudulently won huge victories in the November 1996 elections prompting foreign donors to suspend aid payments briefly in early 1997. Subsequently, a campaign mounted by Chiluba and his party to amend the constitution to allow a third term was defeated. In the election of 27 December 2001, Chiluba's handpicked candidate Levy Mwanawasa was elected president with 29% of the vote; the MMD picked up 68 of 150 seats in the National Assembly. The vote was ruled flawed by international and local poll monitors —mainly on grounds of misuse of state funds and vote buying.
An opposition petition to the Supreme Court alleged that the elections were rigged. In an overture for national unity, or perhaps a bid to save his presidency, Mwanawasa named nine opposition members of parliament to his cabinet in February 2003.
The move provoked a constitutional crisis when Mwanawasa refused to back down against a High Court ruling that the appointments were unconstitutional. Opposition parties expelled the members of parliament from the National Assembly. Later that month the Supreme Court declined a petition by former president Chiluba seeking immunity from prosecution under the government's anticorruption drive. Chiluba was accused of abuse of office and 60 counts of theft during his ten-years in office.
In May 2003, under pressure from church, women's and other civil society groups, Mwanawasa conceded to the formation of a constituent assembly to review the constitution. Civic groups contended that the current document grants the executive far-reaching powers, which groups say is at odds with their vision for a people-driven constitution. Activist opponents of the president's vision for the constitutional review process took to wearing green ribbons and honking their horns on Fridays. Levy Mwanawasa attempted to root out corruption in Zambia unlike the increasingly apparent corruption of the later years of Frederick Chiluba's time in office.
Chiluba was arrested by Mwanawasa's government and charged with several counts of embezzlement and corruption, firmly quashing initial fears that President Mwanawasa would turn a blind eye to the allegations of his predecessor's corrupt practices. However, his early zeal to root out corruption waned, with key witnesses in the Chiluba trial leaving the country. The Constitutional Review Commission set up by Mwanawasa also hit some turbulence, with arguments as to where its findings should be submitted leading to suspicions that he has been trying to manipulate the outcome.
Nevertheless, Zambian people view Mwanawasa's rule as a great improvement on Chiluba's corrupt regime. In recent years, the government has considered participation in a future free trade area as part of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) arrangement. Food security and care for AIDS orphans and vulnerable children were also on the policy agenda. The government had also commenced the repatriation of some 5,000 Rwandan refugees.
An estimated 1.2 million Zambians are positive, with 21.5% of adults aged between 15 and 49 years infected with the virus. Around 86% of Zambians are classified as poor, which impacts nutritional status. Lingering fallout from crop failures and drought in the sub-region in 2001-2002 required targeted food aid for some 60,000 persons, down from a high of 2.7 million in 2002. From 1953 to 1963, Northern Rhodesia was a protectorate under the jurisdiction of the British crown, within the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. On 24 October 1964, it became an independent republic. The constitution of January 1964 was amended in 1968 and in 1972, when it was officially announced that Zambia would become a one-party 'participatory democracy,' with the sole party the ruling United National Independence Party. A new constitution was drafted and received presidential assent in August 1973.
Under the 1973 constitution, the president of the Republic of Zambia was head of state, commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and president of the UNIP. Once chosen by the ruling party, the president had to be confirmed by a majority of the electorate, but there was no limitation on the length of the president's tenure in office. The prime minister was the leader of government business and an ex officio member of the UNIP Central Committee. As provided in the constitution, the Central Committee consisted of not more than 25 members, 20 to be elected at the party's general conference held every 5 years, and 3 to be nominated by the president, who was also a member. Cabinet decisions were subordinate to those of the UNIP Central Committee. The parliament consisted of the president and a National Assembly of 125 elected members, but all Assembly members had to be UNIP members, and their candidacy had to be approved by the party's Central Committee.
The constitution also provided for a House of Chiefs of 27 members. A Bill of Rights guaranteed the fundamental freedom and rights of the individual, but if at any time the president felt the security of the state threatened, he had the power to proclaim a state of emergency. Indeed, Zambians lived under a state of emergency for 27 years. In August 1991, a new constitution was promulgated. The president is now elected directly by universal suffrage and may serve a maximum of two five-year terms. The National Assembly has 150 directly elected members with up to eight appointed by the president, also for five-year terms. Since 2 January 2002, President Levy Mwanawasa served as head of state with Vice President Enoch Kavindele (4 May 2001) and on 4 October 2004 a new vice president was appointed, Lupando Mwape.
The next presidential elections were scheduled for December 2006. African nationalism began to rise in Northern Rhodesia after. African welfare associations, founded before the war, developed rapidly into political organizations. In 1946, representatives from 14 welfare societies formed the Federation of Welfare Societies.
In 1948, the federation was reconstituted as the Northern Rhodesia Congress. It became the North Rhodesian African National Congress (ANC) in 1951 under the leadership of Harry Nkumbula. In 1958, dissatisfaction with Nkumbula's leadership gave rise to a breakaway movement led by the party's secretary-general, Kenneth Kaunda. Kaunda formed the Zambia African National Congress, which was declared illegal the following year. In 1960, the United National Independence Party (UNIP) was formed under Kaunda's leadership.
UNIP received a majority of the popular votes in the 1962 elections and formed the first government after independence. The ANC became the chief opposition party. In 1967, the United Party (UP) was formed by Nalumino Mundia, a Lozi who had been dismissed from the cabinet in 1966. Its support came mainly from Barotseland in the southwest, where the UP promised to restore the power of the chiefs. After violence erupted in the Copperbelt, Kaunda banned the UP as a 'threat to public security and peace,' and Mundia and his principal officers were arrested.
In August 1968, the UP was declared illegal. Mundia was released in 1969, joined the UNIP in 1974, and was named prime minister in 1981. In the general elections of December 1969, the UNIP won 81 seats in the National Assembly, the ANC 23, and independents 1. Kaunda was reelected president.
The elections were followed by violence and political unrest. At the opening of the new Assembly, the speaker refused to recognize the ANC as the official opposition.
With the proclamation of a one-party state in December 1972, UNIP became the only legal party in Zambia. The ANC was assimilated into UNIP; the United Progressive Party, formed in August 1971, was summarily disbanded by the government, and its founder, Simon Kapwepwe, briefly arrested.
On 5 December 1973, the first presidential elections held under the new constitution brought the reelection of Kaunda to a third term with 85% of the vote. Voters also filled the 125 elective seats in the National Assembly. In 1975, the UNIP declared its ranks open to former followers of banned parties, but in 1978 candidacy was restricted to those with five years' continuous UNIP membership.
National Assembly and presidential elections were held in December 1978, with Kaunda, again unopposed, receiving 80.5% of the vote. In the elections of October 1983, Kaunda's share of the total rose to 93%. A total of 766 candidates ran for the 125 Assembly seats. Republic of COUNTRY OVERVIEW LOCATION AND SIZE.
A landlocked state located in southern Africa, east of, Zambia has an area of 752,614 square kilometers (290,584 square miles) and a total land boundary of 5,664 kilometers (3,520 miles). Comparatively, Zambia is slightly larger than. Zambia's capital city,, is located in the southern center of the country's territory.
The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa estimated Zambia's population at 9,133,000 in 2000, a notable rise from the 1995 level of 8,081,000. In 2000 the birth rate stood at 41.9 births per 1,000 population while the death rate was 22.08 deaths per 1,000.
With similar annual growth rates, the population will stand at 13,201,000 in 2015 and 21,965,000 in 2050. Zambians of African descent constitute 98.2 percent of the population, and 1.1 percent are European. In 1998, 39 percent of Zambians lived in urban habitats —one of the highest levels of urbanization in Africa.
The HIV/AIDS epidemic is a considerable problem in Zambia with 19 percent of the working age population infected. It is estimated that 99,000 Zambians died from in 1999 whilst those with infection who were still alive at the end of 1999 numbered 870,000.
These deaths and levels of infection are not only important in themselves but have extremely negative social and economic costs. The drawn-out nature of death from AIDS means that many of the population (predominantly women) who could be productively employed have to provide long-term care for the dying. In addition, by 1999 the cumulative number of orphans created since the epidemic began in the mid-1980s reached 650,000. This raises the problem of the development and guidance of Zambia's children.
OVERVIEW OF ECONOMY The mining of copper dominates Zambia's national economy. A central legacy of the colonial period (.
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