Zambia, in the centre of southern Africa, has abundant mineral resources and the potential to become a ‘prosperous middle-income country, according to the government’s Vision 2030 plan. However, Zambia is dependent on international commodity prices, especially for copper.
In 1976, copper prices plummeted as fuel prices rose, forcing Zambia to resort to heavy borrowing. In the 1990s, Zambia adopted Structural Adjustment Programmes in an attempt to turn the economy around, however these tended to exacerbate poverty.
Zambia was governed as a one-party state between independence in 1964 and the emergence of a multi-party democracy in the 1990s. The country is making fair progress towards its Millennium Development Goals, despite high prevalence of HIV, malaria and TB and the fact that an estimated 25 per cent of the population has had no formal education.
The majority of people live in rural areas and are subsistence farmers, yet there is increasing urbanisation. As people have moved to the towns, traditional community life with its safety nets for the poorest families has broken down. Farming is dependent on predictable rains, which are failing more frequently.