Zambia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Republic of Zambia Flag Coat of arms Motto:  "One Zambia, One Nation" Anthem:  Stand and Sing of Zambia, Proud and Free Capital and largest city Lusaka 15°25′S 28°17′E / 15.417°S 28.283°E / -15.417; 28.283 Official languages English Recognised regional languages Bemba Tonga Lozi Lunda Luvale Kaonde Nyanja Chewa Ethnic groups (2003) 21.5% Bemba 11.3% Tonga 5.2% Lozi 5.1% Nsenga 4.3% Tumbuka 3.8% Ngoni 2.9% Chewa 1.1% White 44.8% others Demonym Zambian Government Representative democratic presidential republic  -  President Michael Sata  -  Vice-President Guy Scott Legislature National Assembly Independence  -  from the United Kingdom 24 October 1964   -  Current constitution 24 August 1991  Area  -  Total 752,618 km2 (39th) 290,587 sq mi   -  Water (%) 1 Population  -  2012 estimate 14,309,466 (70th)  -  2010 census 13,092,666  -  Density 17.2/km2 (191st) 44.5/sq mi GDP (PPP) 2012 estimate  -  Total $23.967 billion  -  Per capita $1,721 GDP (nominal) 2012 estimate  -  Total $20.517 billion  -  Per capita $1,473 Gini (2010) 57.5 high HDI (2011)  0.430 low · 164th Currency Zambian kwacha (ZMW) Time zone CAT (UTC+2)  -  Summer (DST) not observed (UTC+2) Drives on the left Calling code +260 ISO 3166 code ZM Internet TLD .zm

Zambia /ˈzæmbiə/, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west. The capital city is Lusaka, located in the south-central part of the country. The population is concentrated mainly around Lusaka in the south and the Copperbelt Province to the northwest.

Originally inhabited by Khoisan peoples, the region which comprises modern Zambia was colonised during the Bantu expansion of the thirteenth century. After visits by European explorers in the eighteenth century, Zambia became the British protectorate of Northern Rhodesia towards the end of the nineteenth century. For most of the colonial period, the country was governed by an administration appointed from London with the advice of the British South Africa Company.

On 24 October 1964, the country became independent of the United Kingdom and then-prime minister Kenneth Kaunda became the inaugural president. Kaunda's socialist United National Independence Party (UNIP) maintained power from the 1964 until 1991. From 1972 to 1991 Zambia was a single-party state with the UNIP as the sole-legal political party, with the goal of uniting the nation under the banner of 'One Zambia, One Nation'. Kaunda was succeeded by Frederick Chiluba of the social-democratic Movement for Multi-Party Democracy in 1991, during which the country saw a rise in social-economic growth and increased decentralisation of government. Chiluba selected Levy Mwanawasa as his successor; Mwanawasa presided over the country from January 2002 until his death in August 2008, and is credited with initiating a campaign to reduce corruption and increase the standard of living. After Mwanawasa's death, Rupiah Banda presided as Acting President before being elected president in 2008. He is the shortest serving president, having held office for only three years. Patriotic Front party leader, Michael Chilufya Sata defeated Banda in the 2011 elections.

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.