Zambia (2004) | Reunion (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 provinces; Central, Copperbelt, Eastern, Luapula, Lusaka, Northern, North-Western, Southern, Western | none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 46.1% (male 2,419,361; female 2,401,538)
15-64 years: 51.1% (male 2,684,001; female 2,667,528) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 132,166; female 157,842) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 31.3% (male 121,119; female 115,501)
15-64 years: 62.8% (male 233,607; female 240,502) 65 years and over: 5.9% (male 18,036; female 26,406) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | corn, sorghum, rice, peanuts, sunflower seed, vegetables, flowers, tobacco, cotton, sugarcane, cassava (tapioca); cattle, goats, pigs, poultry, milk, eggs, hides; coffee | sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn |
Airports | 109 (2003 est.) | 2 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 10
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 99
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 62 under 914 m: 32 (2004 est.) |
- |
Area | total: 752,614 sq km
land: 740,724 sq km water: 11,890 sq km |
total: 2,517 sq km
land: 2,507 sq km water: 10 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Texas | slightly smaller than Rhode Island |
Background | The territory of Northern Rhodesia was administered by the 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 a far-reaching anti-corruption campaign in 2002, which resulted in the prosecution of former President Frederick CHILUBA and many of his supporters in late 2003. Opposition parties currently hold a majority of seats in the National Assembly. | The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration, supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians, gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route. |
Birth rate | 38.99 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 20.17 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $896.7 million
expenditures: $1.142 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
revenues: $1.26 billion
expenditures: $2.62 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998) |
Capital | Lusaka | Saint-Denis |
Climate | tropical; modified by altitude; rainy season (October to April) | tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 207 km |
Constitution | 24 August 1991 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Zambia
conventional short form: Zambia former: Northern Rhodesia |
conventional long form: Department of Reunion
conventional short form: Reunion local long form: none local short form: Ile de la Reunion former: Bourbon Island |
Currency | Zambian kwacha (ZMK) | euro (EUR) |
Death rate | 24.35 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 5.49 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $5.281 billion (2003) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Martin George BRENNAN
embassy: corner of Independence and United Nations Avenues mailing address: P. O. Box 31617, Lusaka telephone: [260] (1) 250-955 FAX: [260] (1) 252-225 |
none (overseas department of France) |
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 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | the Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe boundary convergence is not clearly defined or delimited | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $651 million (2000 est.) | $NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France |
Economy - overview | Despite progress in privatization and budgetary reform, Zambia's economic growth remains below the 5% to 7% necessary 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 increased in 2003 and is expected to increase again in 2004, due to higher copper prices. The maize harvest doubled in 2003, helping boost GDP by 4.0%. Cooperation continues with international bodies on programs to reduce poverty, including a new lending arrangement with the IMF expected in the second quarter, 2004. A tighter monetary policy will help cut inflation, but Zambia still has a serious problem with fiscal discipline. | The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.458 billion kWh (2001) | 1.005 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 1.75 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 7.751 billion kWh (2001) | 1.08 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 55.5%
hydro: 44.5% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Zambezi river 329 m
highest point: unnamed location in Mafinga Hills 2,301 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution and resulting acid rain in the mineral extraction and refining region; chemical runoff into watersheds; poaching seriously threatens rhinoceros, elephant, antelope, and large cat populations; deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; lack of adequate water treatment presents human health risks | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
- |
Ethnic groups | African 98.7%, European 1.1%, other 0.2% | French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian |
Exchange rates | Zambian kwacha per US dollar - 4,733.77 (2003), 4,398.59 (2002), 3,610.93 (2001), 3,110.84 (2000), 2,388.02 (1999) | euros per US dollar - 1.06 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Levy MWANAWASA (since 2 January 2002); Vice President Lupando MWAPE (since 4 October 2004); 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 Lupando MWAPE (since 4 October 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government 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; election last held 27 December 2001 (next to be held NA December 2006); vice president appointed by the president election results: Levy MWANAWASA elected president; percent of vote - Levy MWANAWASA 29%, Anderson MAZOKA 27%, Christon TEMBO 13%, Tilyenji KAUNDA 10%, Godfrey MIYANDA 8%, Benjamin MWILA 5%, Michael SATA 3%, other 5% |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Gonthier FRIEDERICI (since NA)
head of government: President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | copper 55%, cobalt, electricity, tobacco, flowers, cotton | sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%, (1993) |
Exports - partners | UK 26.7%, South Africa 21.6%, Tanzania 13.9%, Switzerland 8.1% (2003) | France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $8.596 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4.174 billion (1999 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 15.3%
industry: 27.9% services: 56.9% (2003) |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 19% services: 73% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $800 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,600 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2003 est.) | 2.5% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 S, 30 00 E | 21 06 S, 55 36 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; the Zambezi forms a natural riverine boundary with Zimbabwe | this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean |
Highways | total: 66,781 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1999 est.) |
total: 2,724 km
paved: 1,300 km (including 73 km of four-lane road) unpaved: 1,424 km (1994) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.1%
highest 10%: 41% (1998) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for moderate amounts of methaqualone, small amounts of heroin, and cocaine bound for Southern Africa and possibly Europe; a poorly developed financial infrastructure coupled with a government commitment to combating money laundering make it an unattractive venue for money launderers | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, electricity, fertilizer; foodstuffs, clothing | manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products |
Imports - partners | South Africa 48.3%, Zimbabwe 12.8%, UK 5.9%, UAE 4.3% (2003) | France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2000) |
Independence | 24 October 1964 (from UK) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Industries | copper mining and processing, construction, foodstuffs, beverages, chemicals, textiles, fertilizer, horticulture | sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction |
Infant mortality rate | total: 98.4 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 105.6 deaths/1,000 live births female: 90.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 8.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.89 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 21.4% (2003 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | FZ, InOC, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 460 sq km (1998 est.) | 120 sq km (1998 est.) |
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) | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 4.59 million (2003) | 309,900 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 85%, industry 6%, services 9% | agriculture 13%, industry 12%, services 75% (2000) |
Land boundaries | total: 5,664 km
border countries: Angola 1,110 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 1,930 km, Malawi 837 km, Mozambique 419 km, Namibia 233 km, Tanzania 338 km, Zimbabwe 797 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 7.08%
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 92.9% (2001) |
arable land: 13.2%
permanent crops: 2% other: 84.8% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), major vernaculars - Bemba, Kaonda, Lozi, Lunda, Luvale, Nyanja, Tonga, and about 70 other indigenous languages | French (official), Creole widely used |
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 | French law |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (150 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 27 December 2001 (next to be held NA December 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - MMD 45.9%, UPND 32.4%, UNIP 8.8%, FDD 8.1%, HP 2.7%, PF 0.7%, ZRP 0.7%, independents 0.7%; seats by party - MMD 68, UPND 48, UNIP 13, FDD 12, HP 4, PF 1, ZRP 1, independents 1; seats not determined 2 |
unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004); Regional Council - last held 15 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PCR 19, UDF 9, RPR 8, various right-wing candidates 4, various left-wing candidates 5 note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, UMP 1, PCR 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 35.18 years
male: 35.19 years female: 35.17 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 73.43 years
male: 70.03 years female: 77 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write English
total population: 80.6% male: 86.8% female: 74.8% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 88.9% male: 87% female: 90.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, east of Angola | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar |
Map references | Africa | World |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Zambian National Defense Force (ZNDF): Army, Air Force, Police, National Service | no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $42.6 million (2003) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.9% (2003) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,477,494 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 198,341 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,310,814 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 101,116 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 6,795 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 24 October (1964) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Zambian(s)
adjective: Zambian |
noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)
adjective: Reunionese |
Natural hazards | periodic drought, tropical storms (November to April) | periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano |
Natural resources | copper, cobalt, zinc, lead, coal, emeralds, gold, silver, uranium, hydropower | fish, arable land, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | oil 771 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Agenda for Zambia or AZ [Inonge MBIKUSITA-LEWANIKA]; Forum for Democracy and Development or FDD [Christon TEMBO]; Heritage Party or HP [Godfrey MIYANDA]; Liberal Progressive Front or LPF [Roger CHONGWE, president]; Movement for Multiparty Democracy or MMD [Levy MWANAWASA, acting president]; National Leadership for Development or NLD [Yobert SHAMAPANDE]; National Party or NP [Dr. Sam CHIPUNGU]; Patriotic Front or PF [Michael SATA]; Zambian Republican Party or ZRP [Benjamin MWILA]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Gwendoline KONIE]; United National Independence Party or UNIP [Francis NKHOMA, president]; United Party for National Development or UPND [Anderson MAZOKA] | Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jean-Claude FRUTEAU]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 10,462,436
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2004 est.) |
755,171 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 86% (1993) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.47% (2004 est.) | 1.47% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Mpulungu | Le Port, Pointe des Galets |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 19, FM 5, shortwave 4 (2001) | AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001) |
Railways | total: 2,173 km
narrow gauge: 2,173 km 1.067-m gauge note: includes 891 km of the Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) (2003) |
0 km |
Religions | Christian 50%-75%, Muslim and Hindu 24%-49%, indigenous beliefs 1% | Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: facilities are aging but still among the best in Sub-Saharan Africa
domestic: high-capacity microwave radio relay connects most larger towns and cities; several cellular telephone services in operation; Internet service is widely available; very small aperture terminal (VSAT) networks are operated by private firms international: country code - 260; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network international: radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 88,400 (2003) | 268,500 (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 241,000 (2003) | 197,000 (September 2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 9 (2002) | 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | mostly high plateau with some hills and mountains | mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast |
Total fertility rate | 5.14 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.53 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 50% (2000 est.) | 36% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | 2,250 km
note: includes Lake Tanganyika and the Zambezi and Luapula rivers (2003) |
none |