Lusaka

Coordinates: 15°25′S 28°17′E / 15.417°S 28.283°E / -15.417; 28.283

Lusaka
Downtown Lusaka,2003
Location of Lusaka
Coordinates: 15°25′S 28°17′E / 15.417°S 28.283°E / -15.417; 28.283
Country	Zambia
Province	Lusaka
Established	1905
City status	August 25, 1960
Government
- Mayor of Lusaka	Steven Chilatu
Area
- Total	70 km2 (27 sq mi)
Elevation	1,300 m (4,265 ft)
Population (2007)
- Total	3,100,000
Time zone	SAST (UTC+2)
Area code(s)	(1)
Website	http://www.lcc.gov.zm/ - Lusaka City Council

Lusaka is the capital and largest city of Zambia. The two main languages spoken in Lusaka are English and Nyanja. It is located in the southern part of the central plateau of the country, at an elevation of 1300 m (4256 ft). It has a population of 3,100,000 (2007 estimate) and is considered one of the fastest growing (in terms of population) cities in Africa. It is a commercial centre as well as centre of government, and the four main highways of Zambia radiate north, south, east and west from it.

Government and administration

As national capital, Lusaka is the seat of the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government, epitomised by the presence there of the National Assembly (parliament), State House (office of the President), and the High Court. Parliament is situated at the Parliament complex, which features a 15-storey eye-catching copper blanketed building. The city is also capital of Lusaka Province, the smallest and second most populous of the country's nine provinces, and forms an administrative district run by Lusaka City Council. In 2007, the mayor is Steven Chilatu (PF), and the deputy Mayor is Mary Phiri.

History

Lusaka was the site of a village named after its headman Lusaka, which, according to history, was located at Manda Hill, near where the Zambia's National Assembly building now stands. In the Nyanja language, Manda means graveyard. The area was expanded by European (mainly British) settlers in 1905 with the building of the railway.

In 1935, due to its fairly central location, its situation on the railway and at the crossroads of the Great North Road and Great East Road, it was chosen to replace Livingstone as the capital of the British colony of Northern Rhodesia.

After the federation of Northern and Southern Rhodesia in 1953, it was a centre of the independence movement amongst some of the educated elite that led to the creation of the Republic of Zambia. In 1964, Lusaka became the capital of the newly independent Zambia.

In recent years, Lusaka has become a popular urban settlement for Zambians and tourists alike. Its central nature and fast growing infrastructure sector has increased donor confidence and as such Zambians are seeing signs of development in the form of job creation, housing, etc. Consequently, it is thought that with proper and effective economic reforms, Lusaka as well as Zambia as a whole will develop considerably. Lusaka is home to a diverse community of foreigners, many of whom work in the aid industry as well as diplomats, representatives of religious organizations and some business people.

Education

Lusaka has some of the finest schools in Zambia, including the International School of Lusaka, Rhodes park school, Baobab College and American International School.

Culture

Street in Lusaka

Independence Stadium

Lusaka National Museum

foreground: Great East Road background:Manda Hill Shopping Centre

The city centre includes several blocks west of Cairo Road, around which lie the New City Market and Kamwala Market, a major shopping area, as well as the Zintu Community Museum. Further east lies the government area, including the State House and the various ministries, around the Cathedral Hill and Ridgeway areas. Suburbs around Lusaka include the uptown Sunningdale, Kabulonga, Woodlands, Jesmondine, Northmead, Olympia Park, Roma, Kalundu, Chelston, Avondale, Rhodes Park, Prospect Hill, Longacres, Fairview, Thorn Park, Twinpalm, Villa Elizabetha. Other residential areas are Kabwata (a working class area, home to the Kabwata Cultural Centre), Madras, Matero, Mtendendere, Chaisa, Chawama, Kalingalinga, Chipata Compound, Garden Compound, Bauleni, Helen Kaunda, Kaunda Square (stage one and stage two). One of the main streets and points of interest upon business is the street of Cairo Road named by John Floria Couvaras of the Couvaras family. Cairo road is home to some of the tallest buildings in Zambia, including the sky-piercing Findeco House.

Points of interest

Attractions include Lusaka National Museum, the Political Museum, the Zintu Community Museum, the Freedom Statue, the Zambian National Assembly, the Agricultural Society Showgrounds (known for their annual agricultural show), the Moore Pottery Factory, the Lusaka Playhouse theatre, a cinema, the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in , a cenotaph, a golf club, the Lusaka Central Sports Club, and the zoo and botanical gardens of the Munda Wanga Environmental Park. The city is also home to the University of Zambia. Along Great East Road are the two largest shopping malls in Zambia, Arcades shopping Mall and Manda Hill shopping Mall.

List of mayors

• Morris Doe
• Ralph Rich
• Jack Fischer
• Richard Sampson
• Fisho Mwale
• John Kabungo
• Patrick Kangwa
• Susan Nakazwe
• Stephen Chilatu

Airport

Lusaka International Airport

The city is home to Lusaka International Airport and lies on the railway line from Livingstone to Kitwe. This airport is the hub of Zambezi Airlines. Zambezi airlines offers flights to Johannesburg, Ndola and Dar-es-salaam. Lusaka International Airport is used as a public and military airport. There is also an old airport nearer to the center of the city that is no longer used by civilians, but occasionally used by the president.

Sister cities

• Dushanbe, Tajikistan, since 1966
• Los Angeles, United States, since 1968
• Izhevsk, Russia. ^[1]

See also

Africa portal

References

• FallingRain Map - elevation = 1270m (Red dots are railways)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Lusaka

• Lusaka City Council
• Zambia Tourism page on Lusaka
• Map of Lusaka
• Visit Zambia Campaign
• Lusaka Social Centre
• Lusaka Times
• Zambia Online
• Schools and Colleges of Lusaka
• The Lowdown, Zambia's leading "What's on?" magazine