Republic of Zambia Systematic Country Diagnostic
Zambia has successfully raised its average annual gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate since the early 2000s. Between 2004 and 2014, it averaged 7.4 percent per year. This success was driven by an improvement in the macroeconomic indicators (re...
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| Format: | Report |
| Language: | English |
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2018
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/290011522954283481/Zambia-Systematic-Country-Diagnostic http://hdl.handle.net/10986/29702 |
| Summary: | Zambia has successfully raised its
average annual gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate
since the early 2000s. Between 2004 and 2014, it averaged
7.4 percent per year. This success was driven by an
improvement in the macroeconomic indicators (relative to the
1980s and 1990s), debt relief, heavy investment in the
social sectors (by the government and cooperating partners),
and a large increase in mining and agricultural production
since 2004. This success raised average p Rapid urbanization
has been accompanied by a decrease in urban poverty
incidence, but masks sluggish growth in small towns and
cities. After a decade of de-urbanization in the 1990s,
urbanization has been an important driver of change over the
past 15 years. However, from 2000 to 2014, urban growth in
Zambia has been significantly more focused on the capital
city than the average for Sub-Saharan Africa. The annual
population growth of Lusaka is over twice the average for
Sub-Saharan Africa (1 percent). In contrast, the share of
secondary towns in Zambia is growing more slowly than in the
rest of Africa (by only 0.7 percent in Zambia compared with
1.8 percent elsewhere). These disparities may exacerbate
uneven territorial development, as small towns and cities
play a crucial role in strengthening the links among firms;
between firms and consumers; and within local, provincial,
national, and international supply chains. er capita incomes
after decades of economic volatility since the country’s
independence in 1964. The current development model being
pursued has imposed environmental and resource liabilities.
Agricultural growth has been based on increasing land use
rather than improved productivity, leading to rapid
deforestation. Mining activities have resulted in pollution,
and Zambia also faces high and growing climate change
impacts. Copper price volatility also continues to challenge
macroeconomic and fiscal management. Debt levels have soared
to risky levels only 12 years after the Heavily Indebted
Poor Country (HIPC) and the Multilateral Debt Relief
Initiative (MDRI) programs provided US$6.5 billion of debt
relief from 2005. |
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