This profile is taken from the SADC website.

BRIEF HISTORY
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 task force in 2002, but the government has yet to make a prosecution. The Zambian leader was reelected in 2006 in an election that was deemed free and fair. Zambia is also a member of ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

GEOGRAPHY
Southern Africa, east of Angola

CLIMATE
Tropical; modified by altitude; rainy season (October to April)

TERRAIN
Mostly high plateau with some hills and mountains.

NATURAL RESOURCES
Copper, cobalt, zinc, lead, coal, emeralds, gold, silver, uranium, hydropower.

POPULATION
11,502,010

ETHNIC GROUPS
African 98.7%, European 1.1%, other 0.2%.

NATIONALITY
Noun: Zambian(s)
Adjective: Zambian

LANGUAGES
English (official), major vernaculars - Bemba, Kaonda, Lozi, Lunda, Luvale, Nyanja, Tonga, and about 70 other indigenous languages.

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

GOVERNMENT TYPE
Republic

CAPITAL CITY
Lusaka.

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

INDEPENDENCE
24 October 1964 (from 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.

EXECUTIVE BRANCH
Chief of state: President Levy MWANAWASA (since 2 January 2002); Vice President Rupiah BANDA (since 9 October 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Levy MWANAWASA (since 2 January 2002); Vice President Rupiah BANDA (since 9 October 2006)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 28 September 2006 (next to be held in 2011); vice president appointed by the president
Election results: Levy MWANAWASA reelected president; percent of vote - Levy MWANAWASA 43.0%, Michael SATA 29.4%, Hakainde HICHILEMA 25.3%, Godfrey MIYANDA 1.6%, Winright NGONDO 0.8%

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH
Unicameral National Assembly (158 seats; 150 members are elected by popular vote, eight members are appointed by the president, to serve five-year terms)
Elections: last held 28 September 2006 (next to be held in 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
All Peoples Congress Party [Winright NGONDO, president]; Forum for Democracy and Development or FDD [Edith NAWAKWI, president]; Heritage Party or HP [Godfrey MIYANDA]; Liberal Progressive Front or LPF [Roger CHONGWE, president]; Movement for Multiparty Democracy or MMD [Levy MWANAWASA, president]; Patriotic Front or PF [Michael SATA]; Party of Unity for Democracy and Development or PUDD [Dan PULE, president]; Reform Party [Nevers MUMBA, president]; United Liberal Party [Sakwiba SIKOTA, president]; United National Independence Party or UNIP [Tilyenji KAUNDA, president]; United Party for National Development or UPND [Hakainde HICHILEMA, president]; Zambia Democratic Congress or ZADECO [Langton SICHONE, president]; Zambian Republican Party or ZRP [Benjamin MWILA]

FLAG DESCRIPTION
Green 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.

ECONOMY BRIEF
Despite progress in privatization and budgetary reform, Zambia's economic growth in 2005-06 remained somewhat below the 6%-7% per year needed to reduce poverty significantly. Privatization of government-owned copper mines relieved the government from covering mammoth losses generated by the industry and greatly improved the chances for copper mining to return to profitability and spur economic growth. Copper output has increased steadily since 2004, due to higher copper prices and the opening of new mines. The maize harvest was again good in 2005, helping boost GDP and agricultural exports. Cooperation continues with international bodies on programs to reduce poverty, including a new lending arrangement with the IMF in the second quarter of 2004. A tighter monetary policy will help cut inflation, but Zambia still has a serious problem with high public debt.

AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS
Corn, sorghum, rice, peanuts, sunflower seed, vegetables, flowers, tobacco, cotton, sugarcane, cassava (tapioca), coffee; cattle, goats, pigs, poultry, milk, eggs, hides.

INDUSTRIES
Copper mining and processing, construction, foodstuffs, beverages, chemicals, textiles, fertilizer, horticulture.

EXPORT COMMODITIES
Copper/cobalt 64%, cobalt, electricity; tobacco, flowers, cotton.

IMPORT COMMODITIES
Machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, electricity, fertilizer; foodstuffs, clothing.

CURRENCY CODE
Zambian kwacha (ZMK).

INTERNET COUNTRY CODE
.zm