Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bordered to the north by Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique to the southeast, Zimbabwe and Botswana to the south, Namibia to the southwest, and Angola to the west. The capital city of Zambia is Lusaka, located in the south-central part of Zambia. The population is concentrated mainly around Lusaka in the south and the Copperbelt Province to the north, the core economic hubs of the country.
On 24 October 1964, Zambia became independent of the United Kingdom and prime minister Kenneth Kaunda became the inaugural president. Kaunda's socialistUnited National Independence Party (UNIP) maintained power from 1964 until 1991. Kaunda played a key role in regional diplomacy, cooperating closely with the United States in search of solutions to conflicts in Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), Angola, and Namibia. From 1972 to 1991 Zambia was a one-party state with UNIP as the sole legal political party under the motto "One Zambia, One Nation" coined by Kaunda. Kaunda was succeeded by Frederick Chiluba of the social-democraticMovement for Multi-Party Democracy in 1991, beginning a period of socio-economic development and government decentralisation. Zambia has since become a multi-party state and has experienced several peaceful transitions of power.
Zambia contains abundant natural resources, including minerals, wildlife, forestry, freshwater, and arable land. In 2010, the World Bank named Zambia one of the world's fastest economically reformed countries. The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) is headquartered in Lusaka. (Full article...)
The Zambezi River at the junction of Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana
The Zambezi (also spelled Zambeze and Zambesi) is the fourth-longestriver in Africa, the longest east-flowing river in Africa and the largest flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa. Its drainage basin covers 1,390,000 km2 (540,000 sq mi), slightly less than half of the Nile's. The 2,574 km (1,599 mi) river rises in Zambia and flows through eastern Angola, along the north-eastern border of Namibia and the northern border of Botswana, then along the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe to Mozambique, where it crosses the country to empty into the Indian Ocean.
Image 16Nsima (top right corner) with three types of relish. (from Zambia)
Image 17Enormous Ba-Ila settlement. These communities have been of interest to mathematicians due to their fractal pattern design. (from History of Zambia)
Image 18The geopolitical situation during the Rhodesian Bush War in 1965 – countries friendly to the nationalists are coloured orange. (from Zambia)
Image 20Batonga fisherwomen in Southern Zambia. Women have played and continue to play pivotal roles in many African societies. (from Zambia)
Image 21Ancient (but graffitied) Rock Art in Nsalu Cave, Kasanka National Park in North-Central Zambia. (from Zambia)
Image 22Inside the palace of the Litunga, ruler of the Lozi. Due to the flooding on the Zambezi, the Litunga has two palaces one of which is on higher ground. The movement of Litunga to higher land is celebrated at the Kuomboka Ceremony (from Zambia)
Image 23A drawing of Lunda houses by a Portuguese. The size of the doorways relative to the building emphasizes the scale of the buildings. (from History of Zambia)
Image 24Drawing of the ruler of Lunda, Mwata Kazembe, receiving Portuguese in the royal courtyard in the 1800s (from History of Zambia)
Image 25Zambia map of Köppen climate classification. (from Zambia)
Image 26Batonga fisherwomen in Southern Zambia. Women have played and continue to play pivotal roles in many African societies. (from Zambia)
Image 28Ancient (but graffitied) Rock Art in Nsalu Cave, Kasanka National Park in North-Central Zambia. (from Zambia)
Image 29Three young Ngoni chiefs. The Ngoni made their way into Eastern Zambia from KwaZulu in South Africa. They eventually assimilated into the local ethic groups. (from History of Zambia)
Image 34Seated female Staffs of office (Kibango), were displayed by Luba kings. In Luba society, women's bodies were considered the ultimate vessels of spiritual power. (from History of Zambia)
Image 35The major Nkana open copper mine, Kitwe. (from Zambia)
Image 37Zambia map of Köppen climate classification. (from Zambia)
Image 38A drawing of Lunda houses by a Portuguese visitor. The size of the doorways relative to the building emphasizes the scale of the buildings. (from Zambia)
Image 39An 1864 photograph of the Scottish explorer and missionary David Livingstone. (from Zambia)
Image 40The Kalonga of the Chewa today descends from the Kalonga (rulers) of the Maravi Empire. (from History of Zambia)
Image 42Tribal and linguistic map of Zambia (from Zambia)
Image 43Inside the palace of the Litunga, ruler of the Lozi. Due to the flooding on the Zambezi, the Litunga has two palaces one of which is on higher ground. The movement of Litunga to higher land is celebrated at the Kuomboka Ceremony (from Zambia)
Image 44Three young Ngoni chiefs. The Ngoni made their way into Eastern Zambia from KwaZulu in South Africa. They eventually assimilated into the local ethnic groups. (from Zambia)
Image 45S.M Chisembele, Cabinet Minister Western Province. (from History of Zambia)
Image 47Three young Ngoni chiefs. The Ngoni made their way into Eastern Zambia from KwaZulu in South Africa. They eventually assimilated into the local ethnic groups. (from Zambia)
Image 54Inside the palace of the Litunga, ruler of the Lozi. Due to the flooding on the Zambezi, the Litunga has two palaces one of which is on higher ground. The movement of Litunga to higher land is celebrated at the Kuomboka Ceremony (from History of Zambia)
Image 61The geopolitical situation during the Rhodesian Bush War in 1965 – countries friendly to the nationalists are coloured orange. (from Zambia)
Image 62An 1864 photograph of the Scottish explorer and missionary David Livingstone. (from Zambia)
Image 63A drawing of Lunda houses by a Portuguese visitor. The size of the doorways relative to the building emphasizes the scale of the buildings. (from Zambia)
Image 64The kalonga (ruler) of the AChewa today descends from the kalonga of the Maravi Empire. (from Zambia)
Image 65Drawing of the ruler of Lunda, Mwata Kazembe, receiving Portuguese in the royal courtyard in the 1800s (from Zambia)
This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.
Kundalila Falls
Central Province is one of Zambia's ten provinces. The provincial capital is Kabwe, which is the home of the Mulungushi Rock of Authority. Central Province has an area of 94,394 km (58,654 mi). It borders eight other provinces and has eleven districts. The total area of forest in the province is 9,095,566 ha (22,475,630 acres), and it has a national park and three game management areas. The first mine in the region was opened up in 1905 making the then Broken Hill town the first mining town. In 1966, the town's name was reverted to its indigenous name - Kabwe (Kabwe-Ka Mukuba) meaning 'ore' or 'smelting'.
As of 2010, Central Province had a population of 1,307,111, comprising 10.05% of the total Zambian population. The literacy rate stood at 70.90% against a national average of 70.2%. Bemba was the most spoken language with 31.80% speaking it, and Lala was the majority clan in the province, comprising 20.3% of population. Central Province contains 20.64% of the total area of cultivated land in Zambia and contributes 23.85% of the total agricultural production in the country, with wheat being the major crop. (Full article...)