The People

Zambia is a large landlocked country located in Southern Central Africa. With approximately twelve million inhabitants (UN2007) it is quite sparsely populated.

The eight countries with whom we share borders are; The Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and Angola. Since most of the national boundaries in this part of the world were drawn up by politicians relatively recently and many of the people are traditionally migratory by custom there is plenty of tribal overlap from country to country. As an example of this the people of the Luangwa Valley, where our camps are based in the east of the country, are from the same tribal background and speak the same language as most of the population of Malawi.

The population in Zambia comprises over 70 ethnic groups, but there are six major tribes; Lozi, Bemba, Luvale, Nyanja, Tonga and the Kaonde. The peoples of Zambia are renowned to be very friendly and welcoming; visitors to the country are invariably touched by the warmth with which they are greeted.

Zambians are peace-loving by nature. The fact that there are so many different ethnic groups and tribes means that there is no power struggle between larger more dominant groups leading to the type of unrest that has been seen in other African countries over the years.

The majority of the country’s population live in the urban centres. Lusaka is the capital city boasting a population of nearly three million. The Copperbelt is the name given to the small cluster of mining towns to the north of Lusaka close to the Congolese boarder. Copper mining in this area has dominated the economy for several decades and the mines employ large numbers.

Zambia is a Christian nation with some 80% of the population belonging to a Christian faith. Faith has always been very important and many of the churches will combine modern day religious practices with more traditional animist beliefs.

• 10 Nights South Luangwa Safari
• The Luwi River Trail - Exclusive Adventure
• Luangwa Lion cubs - Family Safaris
• A Week on the Wildside
• Luangwa Forever - With Norman Carr Safaris
• Rivers & Rainbows
• Green Season Birding
• Sleep-out Zambian Safari
• 12 nights Falls Bush and Beach
• 12 nights Exclusive Zambia and Malawi
• Best of Zambia
• Zambia in a Week
• A Zambian Honeymoon

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