Zambia, officially called the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in southern Africa. Despite improvements in recent years, economic growth in the country is unable to support the high rate of population growth and the burden of HIV-related issues. Here are 10 facts about poverty in Zambia:

Top 10 Facts about Poverty in Zambia

1. In Zambia, over 50 percent of people live below the poverty line.
2. Over 70 percent of the total population lives on less than one dollar a day by the year 2000.
3. Due to high food prices coupled with extreme poverty, families spend 64 percent of this income on basic food needs.
4.  The effects of poverty are seen in children’s development. More than one-third of Zambia’s under five years population is stunted due to malnutrition.
5. Lack of access to nutritious food also poses a problem. High consumption of unhealthy diets, including an over-reliance on maize, has led to the problem of obesity, particularly for young women.
6. Poverty is worst in rural Zambia, where 88 percent of people live below the poverty line.
7.  Disparities between rural and urban areas are also considerable, with 64 percent of urban Zambians having access to safe water, compared to 27 percent for their rural counterparts.
8. Even in urban Zambia, approximately 70 percent of urban dwellers live in slums.
9. Zambia’s population is rapidly growing at 2.8 percent per year. Due to its large younger population entering reproductive age, even more stress is expected to be placed on demand for jobs, healthcare, and other services.
10. While still low, Zambia’s ranking on the Human Development Index has increased significantly, from 167 to 141 out of 188 in the span of a year.

While the burdens of disease and geographical restraints have made it difficult for Zambia to pull itself out of poverty, improvements in both qualities of life and the economy will hopefully lead to shrinking poverty in Zambia in the coming years.

– Alexi Worley

Photo: Flickr