Zambia: Quick Facts

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Last updated

Nov. 8, 2026

News •

How civil servant layoffs and restructuring of agencies are raising opposition concerns in Zambia • Nov. 6, 2026, 9:31 AM ET (Deutsche Welle)

Zambia under Hichilema: Is the country sliding into autocracy? • Oct. 23, 2026, 3:00 AM ET (Deutsche Welle)

NWSL's Zambia internationals to miss action due to US CDC restrictions • Oct. 16, 2026, 6:08 PM ET (USA Today)

Facts

Also Known As	Northern Rhodesia • Republic of Zambia
Head Of State And Government	President: Hakainde Hichilema
Capital	Lusaka
Population	(2026 est.) 22,445,000
Form Of Government	multiparty republic with one legislative house (National Assembly [269¹])
Official Language	English
Official Religion	none²
Official Name	Republic of Zambia
Total Area (Sq Km)	752,612
Total Area (Sq Mi)	290,585
Monetary Unit	Zambian kwacha (K)³
Population Rank	(2026) 61
Population Projection 2030	22,904,000
Density: Persons Per Sq Mi	(2026) 77.2
Density: Persons Per Sq Km	(2026) 29.8
Urban-Rural Population	Urban: (2022) 40.2% • Rural: (2022) 59.8%
Life Expectancy At Birth	Male: (2022) 64 years • Female: (2022) 69 years
Gni (U.S.$ ’000,000)	(2024) 25,927
Gni Per Capita (U.S.$)	(2024) 1,220
¹Includes 40 proportional representation seats for women (20), youth (15), and persons with disabilities (5) and 3 seats for the vice president, speaker, and first deputy speaker. It does not include up to 11 nonelective seats that may be appointed by the president.²Zambia is a Christian nation per the preamble of a constitutional amendment.³The Zambian kwacha was redenominated on January 1, 2013.

Photos

Map of Zambia and its surrounding countries in southern Africa, showing Zambia's national borders in bold red, major cities such as Lusaka, Ndola, Kitwe, and Livingstone, and neighboring countries including Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Namibia. A small inset map highlights Zambia's location on the African continent.

Victoria Falls Bridge

Map of southern Africa highlighting Zambia in tan, with its capital Lusaka marked. Neighboring countries including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Angola are labeled in black. Surrounding oceans are also shown.

Physical map of Zambia highlighting major rivers, lakes, swamps, and national parks. Key features include the Zambezi River, Kafue Flats, Bangweulu Swamps, Lake Bangweulu, Lake Mweru, Lake Kariba, Victoria Falls, and national parks such as Kafue, South Luangwa, and North Luangwa. Surrounding countries-Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Namibia-are also labeled.

Map showing the location of Lake Tanganyika in East Africa, bordered by Tanzania to the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, Burundi to the north, and Zambia to the south. Surrounding features include national parks, game reserves, and nearby major lakes such as Lake Victoria and Lake Rukwa.

Aerial view of the Zambezi River winding through green and brown landscape in Zambia, Africa, with scattered clouds and distant horizon.

Zambia: Lake Bangweulu

Aerial view of the Zambezi River flowing toward Victoria Falls, with mist rising from the falls and dense forest on both sides, marking the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe.

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