Zambia

C

Environmental Issues

Zambia is one of the most industrialized countries in Africa, and air pollution and the resulting acid rain are growing problems. The lack of adequate water-treatment facilities presents substantial health risks to the population.

Wetlands, including floodplains, swamps, and mudflats, make up about 6 percent of Zambia’s area, although none are adequately protected from degradation. Only about 42.2 percent (1995) of the land is forested, mostly with open woodland. Deforestation takes place at a rate of about 1 percent per year. Some important habitats are endangered, such as mountain areas in the northeast.

National forest makes up about 9 percent of the land. In addition, there are 19 national parks that protect about 8 percent of the country’s land, although game management areas and protected forests cover more than 20 percent of the land. Threats to protected land include brushfires, agricultural encroachment, prospecting and mining activities, hydroelectric development, habitat destruction due to local overpopulation of some game species, and poaching, especially of elephant and rhinoceros.

Zambia has ratified international environmental agreements concerning biodiversity, climate change, endangered species, hazardous wastes, the ozone layer, and wetlands. Regionally, the country participates in the African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.

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III

Population

Zambia’s population, predominantly rural, is made up of more than 70 ethnic groups, many of them Bantu-speaking. Most groups are small; the largest are the Bemba, Nyanja, and Tonga peoples.

A

Population Characteristics

The population of Zambia at the time of the 1990 census was 7,818,447. A 2007 estimate was 11,477,447, giving the country an overall population density of 16 persons per sq km (40 per sq mi); much of the northeast and west is sparsely inhabited.

B

Political Divisions and Principal Cities

Zambia is divided into nine provinces, each governed by a minister appointed by the president. Lusaka, the capital, had a population (2000 estimate) of 1,640,000. Other major centers are Ndola (374,757), Kitwe (376,124), Mufulira (204,104), and Luanshya (186,372), all in the copper belt.

C

Religion and Language

About 80 percent of the people of Zambia are Christian; many of them adhere to independent churches which combine elements of Christianity and African religions. Most of the remainder follow traditional religions. More than 70 African languages are spoken, including Bemba, Lozi, Luvale, Tonga, and Nyanja. The official language is English.

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