2^nd International Student Conference on AIDS and United Nations Millennium Development Goals

Profile of the Host Country: Zambia

| Location | History | Government | People | Land | Economy |

Location

Zambia is in Southern Central Africa. It has an estimated population of 10 million. The country covers a total of 752,614 sq km (290,584 mil). She boarders the Congo, in the north, Tanzania in the north east, Malawi and Mozambique on the east, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia in the south and Angola to the west.

Lusaka is the largest city and it also serves as the nations’ capital. Zambia lies between 22°E and 33°E and 8°S and 18°S. It ranks as one of the world's largest producers of copper.

Zambia was formerly ruled by the United Kingdom (UK) as a British protectorate called Northern Rhodesia. From 1953 to 1963, it formed part of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland with Nyasaland (now Malawi) and Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). Zambia became an independent nation in 1964. Lusaka is its capital and largest city.

Zambia takes its name from the Zambezi River, which forms most of its southern border. Mighty Victoria Falls, one of the world's most beautiful waterfalls, lies on the river. The great Kariba Dam, one of the world's largest hydroelectric projects, and Kariba Lake also are located on the Zambezi, serving both Zambia and Zimbabwe.

History
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In 1851, the Scottish missionary David Livingstone crossed the Zambezi from the south. He spent nearly 20 years exploring the region.

In 1897, Cecil Rhodes's British South Africa Company named the area Northern Rhodesia. In 1924, the British government took over the administration of Northern Rhodesia and appointed a governor. Copper had been mined in the area for hundreds of years. The discovery of large copper ore deposits during the late 1920's brought a rush of Europeans to the area. Ten years later, mining was an important industry.

In 1953, the United Kingdom formed a federation of Northern Rhodesia, Southern Rhodesia, and Nyasaland. The Africans opposed the federation, because the European minority controlled the government in Southern Rhodesia. The UK dissolved the federation in 1963. On Oct. 24, 1964, Northern Rhodesia became the independent nation of Zambia. Kenneth Kaunda was elected president in 1964. He was re-elected in 1968, 1973, 1978, 1983, and 1988. From 1972 to 1990, the UNIP was the only legal political party in Zambia.

Southern Rhodesia came to be called Rhodesia after the federation was dissolved. In 1965, Rhodesia declared its independence. Relations between Zambia and Rhodesia became severely strained, because Rhodesia's white minority government refused to give the African majority a greater voice in government.

Zambia experienced serious economic problems in the 1970's and 1980's. In 1973, Rhodesia prohibited Zambia from shipping goods across its territory, eliminating one of Zambia's main outlets to the sea. Rhodesia soon lifted the ban. But until 1978, Zambia refused to ship goods across Rhodesia. In 1980, blacks gained control of Rhodesia's government, and the country's name was changed to Zimbabwe. Relations improved between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Zambia's economy suffered from low worldwide market prices for copper and a reduction of the country's copper ore reserves.

In 1990, Zambia legalized opposition political parties. Multiparty elections were held in 1991. Frederick Chiluba, head of the MMD, was elected president. He defeated Kaunda in the election. The MMD also won a majority of seats in the National Assembly. Chiluba was re-elected president in 1996. Chiluba stepped down in the 2001 The current President of Zambia is Levy Mwanawasa,SC who came to power in the 2001 elections that were held in Zambia.

Government:
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The country is headed by a President, who is also the chief of state and head of government. The legislative branch consists of a 150-seat national assembly. The National Assembly, the country's legislature, consists of 150 members. The president appoints a vice president and a Cabinet from the Assembly to help run the day-to-day affairs of the government. The people elect the president and the members of the Assembly are elected by popular vote for five years. Zambia is divided into nine provinces with the Lusaka province hosting Lusaka, the nations’ capital.

People:
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Most Zambians are black Africans who speak Bantu languages. There are more than 70 ethnic groups represented and eight major local languages spoken in Zambia are Bemba, Tonga, Lozi, Nyanja, Luvale, Lunda and Kaonde. Many Zambians  also speak English, the official language.

In remote parts of the country the people live in circular, grass-roofed huts, and raise crops on the surrounding land. However, the development of mining has caused thousands of Zambians to move to mining towns. Maize is the main food. A favorite dish is nshima, a thick porridge made from maize. The people plant their crops in November and December.

The majority of Zambians are Christians, but traditional local beliefs still have a strong hold on the village people. However, the use of traditional medicine, and old customs such as polygamy (marrying several wives) and bride price (paying the parents for a bride), are slowly dying out in the towns.

Most Zambian children attend primary school. But only a fifth of them go to secondary school. Zambia has two universities, the University of Zambia, was founded in 1965 and found in the capital Lusaka and the Copperbelt University found in the mining city of Kitwe.. Zambia also has trade and technical schools.

Land:
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Most of Zambia is flat and covered with trees and bushes. It lies on a plateau about 1,200 meters above sea level. The plateau is broken by the 2,100-metre Muchinga Mountains in the northeast.

Because of its altitude, Zambia has a milder climate than might be expected. The hot season lasts from September to November. Midday temperatures then range between 27 and 38 °C. From November to April, Zambia has a rainy season. Storms flood the rivers by March. From May to August, temperatures range from 16 to 27 °C. Northern Zambia gets about 130 centimeters of rainfall a year. The south gets 50 to 75 centimeters.

Economy:
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Copper accounts for more than 70 per cent of Zambia's export earnings. Four large copper mines and several smaller mines lie in an area called the copperbelt, along Zambia's border with Congo (Kinshasa). Valuable amounts of cobalt are obtained as by-products of copper mining. Zambia large coal deposits near Kariba Lake. The production of copper products is the country's most important manufacturing activity. Maize is the country's most important farm product. Other leading crops include cassava, coffee, millet, sorghum, sugar cane, and tobacco.

Zambia has no outlet to the sea. Railways connect the country with seaports in Angola, Mozambique, and Tanzania. The railway to Angola passes through Congo (Kinshasa), and the one to Mozambique passes through Zimbabwe.

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