Zambia - At a Glance

Nothern Rhodesia was renamed Zambia after independence from the UK in 1964. Severe riots in 1991 resulted in scores of killings and the fruition of a multiparty system. A nascent democracy, Zambia is now governed under a constitution. Predominantly an agricultural economy, 85% of Zambians work on the country's relatively infertile soil as subsistence farmers. Zambia is also the third largest miner of copper in the world. Despite privatization and budgetary reforms, inflation and unemployment remain high. Seventy-three percent of the people live below the poverty line. In 1999 about 870,000 Zambians were estimated as living with HIV/AIDS. In 2000, Zambia qualified for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative.