This project is the result of a collaboration between TERREDELSUD and Associazione "EVA" onlus - 37, Via Carmine - 94100 Enna - Italy 

Whoever would like to have more information or contribute in any way can write to nelmondo@terredelsud.org  to receive all the details they need.

Geography and politics

Republic of Zambia

Geography and politics 
Republic of Zambia 

Surface: 752.813 Km² 
Inhabitants: 9.770.000 (2001 estimate) 
Density: 13 inhabitants/Km² 

Form of government: Presidential republic 
Capital: Lusaka (1.317.000 inhabitants.) 
Other cities: Ndola 375.000 inhab., Kitwe 350.000 inhab. 
Ethnic groups: Bemba 40%, Tonga 15%, Ngoni 15%, others 30% 
Bordering countries: Democratic republic of Congo to the NORTH, Tanzania to the NORTHEAST, Malawi to the EAST, Mozambique to the SOUTHEAST, Zimbabwe and Namibia to the SOUTH, Angola to the WEST

Principal mountains: Makutu Mountains 2164 m 
Principal rivers: Zambesi 1550 Km (the Zambia part, total 2736 Km), Kafue 960 Km 
Principal lakes: Lake Bangweulu 5000 Km² on average, Lake Mweru 4920 Km², Lake Tanganica 2100 Km² (the Zambia part, total 32,893 Km²) 
Principal islands: - 
Climate: Tropical 

Language: English (official), Bantu dialects 
Religion: Christian 63%, Animist 27%, Hindu 8%, Muslim 2% 
Currency: Zambian Kwacha

The Territory 

Zambia is a country of sub-Saharan Africa. From an administrative point of view, it is divided into nine Provinces and 71 Districts. The population is estimated at around 10 million people, of which 50% are below 18 years of age. 43% of the population lives in the urban and suburban areas. 

Since independence, obtained in 1964, Zambia has become one of the poorest countries in the world. According to the World Bank, 80% of Zambian families live below the poverty line, that is to say, they do not have an income which is enough to satisfy their daily basic necessities.

There are many factors that contribute to causing this state of poverty. 

At the time of independence from British domination, obtained in 1964, the income deriving from the copper mines seemed to promise a prosperous future for the country. But the excessive trust in the sale of copper, which represents 80/90% of the exports of Zambia, has shown itself to be the weak point of the national economy. 

The economic decline began in the seventies with the fall of the price of copper and the increase of the price of oil. The government started to get heavily into debt with banks and international institutions, but the management of these debts had a devastating impact on the economy of the country and the standard of living of the population. Between 1976 and 1986, the per-capita income in Zambia decreased by 25%. 

After almost thirty years of one-party government by the United National Independence Party, based on socialism and a welfare state, there is now a system of government based on democracy, the Movement for a Multiparty Democracy, based on the free market. 

The old regime left an economy in crisis, an inefficient bureaucratic apparatus, an enormous foreign debt and a healthcare system close to collapse. 

The new government has introduced radical changes, the principal ones being the introduction of the free market, the privatization of almost all the sectors of the national economy, the decentralization of the public sector and an ambitious program of reform for education and health. 

The effect of this change in the short term has been devastating, and life has become harder and harder for millions of people. 

The "Program of Structural Adjustment" which has been put into effect has brought the closure or privatization of the inefficient state-controlled structures. As a result, this has led to the retirement and the dismissal of many workers and the consequent increase of unemployment. A lot of firms have been forced to close because they were not competitive. 

The elimination of the system of government supported prices for basic groceries has caused an increase in the economic needs of families. The prices have kept on climbing even if salaries have remained very low. 
The introduction of taxes in public services like education and the health have burdened families with additional costs which they had never had to face previously. 

TITLE:

PROJECT FOR THE PROMOTION OF AGRICULTURE AND SELF-DEVELOPMENT

Agricultural support for the area of Silangwa, where the CIF (the principal authority of the area) has given five hectares of land in the territory surrounding the clinic of the Dr. Cristina Fazzi to the project which fights against child malnutrition, which the doctor heads. Some people of the area will be educated on the use of agricultural tools and the cultivation of the land by volunteers of the association, who will set up "an agricultural college". Their salary will be in part money and in part agricultural products. The rest will be given to families with children suffering from severe malnutrition. The aim is to help the people of the area to make use of the products of their own land.

Description of the Initiative:

The project is structured to last one year (renewable) and will be set up in Silangwa (territory of Miengwe), in the territory of king Nkambo of the Lamba Tribe. The activities will be developed in close collaboration with the "Mayo-Mwana Project", project promoted by Associazione onlus "EVA", an affiliate of the "Rainbow" project of Associazione "Papa Giovanni XXIII."

General objectives of the Project:

1 - promotion of self-development 
2 - promotion of agriculture 
3 - promotion and development of the rural economy 
4 - primary prevention of malnutrition, that is to say, the reduction of the causes of malnutrition; 
5 - development of local human resources in the rural area. 

Specific Objectives of the project:

Means for the attainment of the objectives 

- Training courses for the local workers 
- Cultivation of corn on 5 hectares of land
- Production of corn flour on site 
- Supplying corn flour to the nutritional program of the "Mayo-Mwana Project" 
- Animation and education activity in the territory of the "Mayo-Mwana Project" 

Indicators for the attainment of the objectives 

- the number of participants in the training courses.
- the quantity of corn and flour produced on site. 
- the reduction of malnutrition in the area of the project; 
- the number of participants in the education and animation activities.