Zambia

The Republic of Zambia is a landlocked country in southern Africa. It borders the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania on the north-east, Malawi on the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Namibia to the south, and Angola on the west. Formerly Northern Rhodesia, the country is named after the Zambezi river.

Demographics

Zambia's population comprises of about 72 Bantu-speaking ethnic groups but almost 90% of Zambians belong to the 7 main ethnolinguistic groups,which are the Bemba, Nyanja-Chewa, Tonga, Lunda, Luvale, Kaonde and Lozi. Many ethnic groups are very small and not as well known. Most Zambians are subsistence farmers. The predominant religion is Christianity which is the official national religion. Expatriates, mostly British (about 15,000) or South African, live mainly in Lusaka and in the Copperbelt in northern Zambia, where they are employed in mines and related activities. Zambia also has a small but economically important Asian population, most of whom are Indians. In recent years over 300 dispossesed white farmers left Zimbabwe at the invitation of the Zambian government and have taken up farming in the southern region. The country is 44% urban. The HIV/AIDS epidemic is ravaging Zambia. Nearly 1 million Zambians are HIV positive or have AIDS. An estimated 100,000 have died in 2004. Over a half-million Zambian children have been orphaned. Life expectancy at birth is just under 40.

Related Topics:
Expatriate - Asia - India

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