Zambia

Country	Zambia
Capital	Lusaka
Continent	Africa
Currency	Zambian kwacha(ZMW)
Languages	English, Bemba, Tonga, Lozi, Lunda, Luvale, Kaonde, Nyanja & Chewa

Lusaka

Currency Exchange

Information

Introduction

The territory of Northern Rhodesia was administered by the [British] South Africa Company from 1891 until it was taken over by the UK in 1923. During the 1920s and 1930s, advances in mining spurred development and immigration. The name was changed to Zambia upon independence in 1964. In the 1980s and 1990s, declining copper prices and a prolonged drought hurt the economy. Elections in 1991 brought an end to one-party rule, but the subsequent vote in 1996 saw blatant harassment of opposition parties. The election in 2001 was marked by administrative problems with three parties filing a legal petition challenging the election of ruling party candidate Levy MWANAWASA. The new president launched an anticorruption investigation in 2002 to probe high-level corruption during the previous administration. In 2006-07, this task force successfully prosecuted four cases, including a landmark civil case in the UK in which former President CHILUBA and numerous others were found liable for USD 41 million. MWANAWASA was reelected in 2006 in an election that was deemed free and fair. Upon his abrupt death in August 2008, he was succeeded by his Vice President Rupiah BANDA, who subsequently won a special presidential election in October 2008.

[+] Geography

[+] People

[+] Government

Country Name

Conventional long form: Republic of Zambia
Conventional short form: Zambia
Former: Northern Rhodesia

Government Type

republic

Capital

Name: Lusaka
Geographic coordinates: 15 25 S, 28 17 E
Time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions

9 provinces; Central, Copperbelt, Eastern, Luapula, Lusaka, Northern, North-Western, Southern, Western

Independence

24 October 1964 (from the UK)

National Holiday

Independence Day, 24 October (1964)

Constitution

24 August 1991; amended in 1996 to establish presidential term limits

Legal system

Based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in an ad hoc constitutional council; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

Chief of state:President Rupiah BANDA (since 19 August 2008); Vice President George KUNDA (since 14 November 2008); note - President BANDA was acting president during the illness leading up to the death of President Levy MWANAWASA on 18 August 2008, he was then elected president on 30 October 2008 to serve out the remainder of MWANAWASA's term; the president is both the chief of state and head of government Head of government: President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Hamid KARZAI (since 7 December 2004); First Vice President Mohammad FAHIM Khan (since 19 November 2009); Second Vice President Abdul Karim KHALILI (since 7 December 2004)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly
(For more information visit the World Leaders website)
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 30 October 2008 (next to be held in 2011); vice president appointed by the president; note - due to the death of former President Levy MWANAWASA, early elections were held to identify a replacement to serve out the remainder of his term
Election results: Rupiah BANDA elected president; percent of vote - Rupiah BANDA 40.1%, Michael SATA 38.1%, Hakainde HICHILEMA 19.7%, Godfrey MIYANDA 0.8%, other 1.3%

Legislative branch

unicameral National Assembly (158 seats; 150 members are elected by popular vote, 8 members appointed by the president, to serve five-year terms)
Elections: last held on 28 September 2006 (next to be held in October 2011)
Election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - MMD 72, PF 44, UDA 27, ULP 2, NDF 1, independents 2; seats not determined 2

Judicial branch

Supreme Court (the final court of appeal; justices are appointed by the president); High Court (has unlimited jurisdiction to hear civil and criminal cases)

Political Parties and Leaders

Forum for Democracy and Development or FDD [Edith NAWAKWI]; Heritage Party or HP [Godfrey MIYANDA]; Movement for Multiparty Democracy or MMD [vacant]; Party of Unity for Democracy and Development or PUDD [Dan PULE]; Patriotic Front or PF [Michael SATA]; Reform Party [Nevers MUMBA]; United Democratic Alliance or UDA (a coalition of RP, ZADECO, PUDD, and ZRP); United Liberal Party or ULP [Sakwiba SIKOTA]; United National Independence Party or UNIP [Tilyenji KAUNDA]; United Party for National Development or UPND [Hakainde HICHILEMA]; Zambia Democratic Congress or ZADECO [Langton SICHONE]; Zambian Republican Party or ZRP [Benjamin MWILA]

Political pressure groups and leaders

International organization participation

AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US

Chief of mission: Ambassador Inonge MBIKUSITA-LEWANIKA
Chancery: 2419 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
Telephone: [1] (202) 265-9717 through 9719
FAX: [1] (202) 332-0826

Diplomatic representation from the US

Chief of mission: Ambassador Donald E. BOOTH
Embassy: corner of Independence and United Nations Avenues, Lusaka
Mailing address: P. O. Box 31617, Lusaka
Telephone: [260] (211) 250-955
FAX: [260] (211) 252-225

Flag description

Green field with a panel of three vertical bands of red (hoist side), black, and orange below a soaring orange eagle, on the outer edge of the flag; green stands for the country's natural resources and vegetation, red symbolizes the struggle for freedom, black the people of Zambia, and orange the country's mineral wealth; the eagle represents the people's ability to rise above the nation's problems