The Economic History of Zambia

Working paper number: 28
Author(s): Jeremy Seekings and Alfred Tembo
Unit: IDCPPA

Abstract:

From the 1930s the economic history of Zambia has been dominated by the fortunes of its copper industry. In the middle of the twentieth century, copper- mining generated rapid export-led economic growth, raising real GDP per capita three-fold and transforming Zambia into a semi-industrial economy. At independence, Zambia had a higher GDP per capita than almost any other country in Sub-Saharan Africa apart from South Africa. Over the thirty-five years from 1965, however, Zambia’s economy contracted, reducing GDP per capita by one half. This collapse followed the decline in value of copper exports, as production shrank (especially as a share of global production) and the copper price fell. The weak demand for copper combined with government mismanagement. Only in the 2000s did the economy begin to grow again.