Economy of Zambia
- Agriculture: 22 %
- Industry: 29%
- Services: 48.9 %
Economic Development
The economy of Zambia every year since 2004 grew by 5.2 percent. The copper exports rose high investment, since 2000, to 550,000 tonnes, representing an increase of 80 percent. Inflation was at the end of the financial year, ie on 31 March 2006 at 10.3 percent. The rainy season was good. ( The table lists data of the financial year 2005 as the not yet fully available for 2006. )
General
Agriculture and mining are the main economic sectors in Zambia. The mining is based on the mining of copper and cobalt and their smelting in the Copperbelt, a mining area in the north, with major cities such as Kitwe, Ndola and Mufulira. Services and industry are still underdeveloped. You are limited to a few cities such as Kafue, Lusaka, Mazabuka, Kitwe. Despite all efforts, Zambia remains one of the poorest countries in the world: in 2003, the share of the population with less than one U.S. dollar per day to 64 per cent ( see also Table: The highest poverty worldwide).
Since 1994, the Zambian economy has undergone a dramatic transformation from centralized state economy towards the private sector. This process is far from complete. But there is with the Lusaka Stock Exchange, a stock market, the banking sector was albeit with significant frictions adapted to the changed conditions and reduces the state share holdings to below blocking minorities. State enterprises are to be found only sporadically run by the private sector. However, government influence is still felt everywhere. Finally, the managers who have been trained at the National Institute of Public Administration, still in management positions.
80 percent of the population is employed in agriculture, another 14 % in mining. The copper industry is a major source of GDP and government revenues. Copper and cobalt control more than 75 percent ( 1997) of the Zambian export revenue, while another 3 percent are generated by other mining products such as gold, uranium and precious stones. The strong importance of copper mining Zambia was hit hard since the 1970s by the declining world market prices. Thus, the copper production fell from 755,000 tons in 1969 to 260,000 t ( 1999) returned, representing a global market share of 2.1 percent and Zambia 1999, at number twelve of the copper- producing countries. Due to the rising price of copper production could again be increased to 550,000 t in 2005. In the mining industry, Zambia is currently about 37,000 people are employed. This is the copper industry, the most important private employer. Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines, which the state owns 85 percent, is still the biggest company in this sector.
Agriculture
Zambia has first-class agricultural land, but only 10 percent are used. For decades, agricultural investments were only inserted in corn growing, what a sensible diversification and thus the dissemination of knowledge in farming methods as well as in marketing and processing of other agricultural products such as coffee or cotton prevented effectively. Seed, fertilizer, transportation served the state only as a basis for interventions in terms of its objectives.
With the fall in copper prices from the 1970s, the country fell into economic crisis. The supporting economic sector of the country simply collapsed almost completely. This was followed by import controls. The government made sure that the Zambian agricultural production were marketed only in the domestic power and blocked production of agricultural products for the world market, and therefore the development of a new broad economic structure.
As of 1991 forced the IMF and World Bank several reforms, including the privatization of the copper not only production, but also the supplier to the agricultural economy. Nevertheless, until now the government influence in the distribution of seeds and fertilizers is present everywhere. The change from a command economy to a market economy is far from complete.
Privatisation has borne good fruit not only because the state agencies were only sold for lucrative areas and broke to other parts just gone. Weak regions, especially hard to reach, suddenly stood there without any care. In Bangweulubassin and in the upper Zambezi provinces has led to impoverishment. In addition, price variations were used principally at the expense of farmers. There were also high inflation and high lending rates. The government, in turn, pays attention today only on the maize production and exerts itself in all other areas in the laisser faire. This drives does not advance.
Land ownership
There are two types of land: Customary and State land. Customary land is regulated by the Land Act of 1995, which assumed the traditional chiefs in their areas. It accounts for 94 percent of the country. The remaining six percent are owned by the state and relate mainly to the country's railway lines.
The Customary land is in turn divided into land without title deeds and land in private ownership. Land without title deeds make up 90 percent of the Zambian territory. Privately owned land is bought from former state-owned and is focused in and around the cities in productive agricultural areas and the areas of copper mining. These four percent of Zambian territory offer a lot of conflict because most wild settlers without money have to give the new owners for land acquisition. Wild settlers have no rights, but are incensed when they go empty when the real-estate speculation. This in turn is not politically unintentionally.
Infrastructure
The main routes are the railway line in the Zambia Railways and the paved roads of Zimbabwe in the Republic of South Africa. About it runs almost the entire foreign trade of Zambia. Since 1976, Zambia to the port Dar es Salaam in Tanzania through the Tanzania - Zambia Railway ( TAZARA ), the Tanzam highway and an oil pipeline connected.
The internal infrastructure is divided into paved roads, gravel roads and paths. With asphalt roadways are the streets of Sesheke to Livingstone, from there via Lusaka to the Copperbelt and to Chipata, Lundazi, Isokwe, the Tanzam Highway north of Kapiri Mposhi after Nakonde as well as the branch of Mpika according to Mpulungu and the Chinese Road between Serenje and Nchelenge provided.
The remaining roads are precarious for the most part. Perifere or geographically difficult districts as Kaputa, Chama, Chiengi, Luwingu, Chilubi, Milenge, Lufwanyama, Kabompa, Chavuma, Zambesi, Lukulu, Kalabo, Senanga Shangombo are virtually unattainable. Bridges exist almost no, average speeds below 20 km / h there normal, all-wheel drive is essential. These districts are predominantly supplied by a makeshift bicycle transportation. To ensure that the market access for the residents of these districts is in fact limited to Subsistenzergänzung.
For the remaining districts that at least their bomas ( capitals ) are accessible by gravel roads with tractor-trailers and buses. This limits the economically relevant market access to the areas immediately adjacent to the road. Only the cattle in the west of Zambia is independent, since the herds can be driven without any way.
Electricity is available in the mining and industrial centers. It is designed for 220 volts, 50 hertz, and English plug. Zambia can export electricity. A new line leads to Chavuma, another is to be built on Chitapa and Lundazi up to Malawi. The Bangweulubassin and the adjacent areas are not connected to the mains, although hydropower would be abundant. Similarly, up to Chavuma all districts in the Zambezi provinces without electricity.
A supply of drinking water is available in the cities, but no longer in the periphery. In the villages fountains are found only in agricultural economic importance of the place, as in a wide area around the Kaufeauen. In the north and west of Zambia mainly river water is used, resulting in the corresponding infections with it.
Each district capital, called boma has a hospital, primary and secondary schools, the latter mostly with boarding. Quality and features of these devices is highly variable. The number of additional, scattered in the district secondary schools is completely different.