CyberProp for Properties in the Zambia

The butterfly in the heart of Africa.

Land of the legendary African walking safari, home of the Victoria Falls, the wild Zambezi River, breath-taking lakes and wetlands, a profusion of birds, abundant wildlife, and raw, pulsating wilderness, .......all in one friendly country.

Acknowledged as one of the safest countries in the world to visit, Zambia's welcoming people live in peace and harmony. The Wildlife is superb and some of the finest Safaris on the planet are available from our fine lodges and safari companies.

Blessed with 17 magnificent waterfalls apart from the spectacular Victoria Falls, Zambia offers tours to 'cascade followers' into the remote undeveloped rural areas where you can get a glimpse of village life. Zambia has the largest water resources in the whole of southern Africa with 5 massive lakes and plentiful rivers offering excellent fishing. Wide range of hi-action activities from the legendary Walking Safari deep in the wilderness, to world class River Rafting, Bungi into the deep gorge below the Victoria Falls, Abseiling, Canoeing Safaris down the Zambezi, River Surfing, excellent Tiger Fishing and breath-taking African sunsets.

Described by the Kololo tribe living in the area in the 1800’s as ‘Mosi-oa-Tunya’ - ‘the Smoke that Thunders’ and in more modern terms as ‘the greatest known curtain of falling water’, Victoria Falls are a spectacular sight of awe-inspiring beauty and grandeur on the Zambezi River, bordering Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Columns of spray can be seen from miles away as 546 million cubic meters of water per minute plummet over the edge (at the height of the flood season) over a width of nearly two kilometers into a deep gorge over 100 meters below. The wide basalt cliff, over which the falls thunder, transforms the Zambezi from a wide placid river to a ferocious torrent cutting through a series of dramatic gorges.

Facing the Falls is another sheer wall of basalt, rising to the same height and capped by mist-soaked rain forest. A path along the edge of the forest provides the visitor who is prepared to brave the tremendous spray with an unparalleled series of views of the Falls.

One special vantage point is across the Knife edge bridge, where visitors can have the finest view of the Eastern Cataract and the Main Falls as well as the Boiling Pot where the river turns and heads down the Batoka Gorge. Other vantage points include the Falls bridge and the Lookout Tree which commands a panoramic view across the Main Falls.

Zambia has one of the lowest population to land ratio’s in Africa. Only 10 million people in a country half the size of Europe. The employment opportunities offered in the post independence era in the copper mines and associated industries led to a strong rural-urban migration. The result has been to make Zambia one of the most urbanised countries in Africa. About one fifth of the population lives on the Copperbelt to the north of the capital, but the biggest concentration of people is in Lusaka itself with an estimated population of over 2 million. This has resulted in massive tracts of uninhabited land across the country.

Zambia’s contemporary culture is a blend of values, norms, material and spiritual traditions of more than 70 ethnically diverse people. Most of the tribes of Zambia moved into the area in a series of migratory waves a few centuries ago. They grew in numbers and many travelled in search of establishing new kingdoms, farming land and pastures.

Before the colonial period, the region now known as Zambia was the home of a number of free states. Each having comprehensive economic links with each other and the outside world along trade routes to the east and west coast of Africa. The main exports were copper, ivory and slaves in exchange for textiles, jewellery, salt and hardware.

During the colonial period, the process of industrialisation and urbanisation saw ethnically different people brought together by economic interests. This, as well as the very definite influence of western standards, generated a new culture without conscious effort of politically determined guidelines.

Many of the rural inhabitants however, have retained their indigenous and traditional customs and values. After Independence in 1964, the government recognised the role culture was to play in the overall development of a new nation and began to explore the question of a National identity.

Institutions to protect and promote Zambia’s culture were created, including the National Heritage Conservation Commission. Private museums were also founded and cultural villages were established to promote the expression of artistic talents.

The principle urban centres, Lusaka, Livingstone and the towns on the Copperbelt are where most of the rural people head when they make the decision to leave their villages. The transition may not be an easy one, especially as the motivation is to find work and very often they are disappointed. The impact on the cities has been immense. A ring of shanty towns around the peripheries, with no electricity or adequate sanitation increases both disease and crime. But the shanties are filled with a people who have made a fine art out of surviving with very little. Home industries spring up everywhere from tailors, cobblers, vegetable sellers, money exchangers, to hundreds of walking salesmen selling anything from frying pans, electric plugs and batteries to fruit, vegetables and nuts. The unemployment figure is currently about 60%.

But despite the dirt and discomfort of the city, the allure is still powerful. The countryside may be healthier, more open and free, but to many of the rural young, it is monotonous compared with the action and energy of the big city. The massive markets that have developed are a world within a world in the cities. Thousands of little wooden stalls crammed together selling a wide variety of goods in an endless shanty shopping mall. The mood in the markets is very lively, serving as a social meeting place as well.

The impact on rural villages will have long term detrimental effects as it is mostly young men under 25 that leave, leaving the women folk to raise children, tend to the fields and eke out a living by themselves, since little money is made in the cities so little is ever sent back. Fewer traditional farmers are making a living by agriculture and crop output for the nation is reducing as a consequence.

Zambia faces an enormous challenge to cope with this trend, not only to lure people back to the country to cultivate the land, but to ensure the people who won’t leave the cities, are gainfully employed.

There is also a burgeoning well educated middle and wealthy class, white collar workers and entrepreneurs. Many women are in management positions or have their own companies and several are in government.