Zambia Geography - 2024

Location

Southern Africa, east of Angola, south of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Geographic coordinates

15 00 S, 30 00 E

Map references

Africa

Area

total: 752,618 sq km

land: 743,398 sq km

water: 9,220 sq km

Area - comparative

almost five times the size of Georgia; slightly larger than Texas

Area comparison map:

Land boundaries

total: 6,043.15 km

border countries (8): Angola 1,065 km; Botswana 0.15 km; Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,332 km; Malawi 847 km; Mozambique 439 km; Namibia 244 km; Tanzania 353 km; Zimbabwe 763 km

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Climate

tropical; modified by altitude; rainy season (October to April)

Terrain

mostly high plateau with some hills and mountains

Elevation

highest point: Mafinga Central 2,330 m

lowest point: Zambezi river 329 m

mean elevation: 1,138 m

Natural resources

copper, cobalt, zinc, lead, coal, emeralds, gold, silver, uranium, hydropower

Land use

agricultural land: 31.7% (2018 est.)

arable land: 4.8% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 26.9% (2018 est.)

forest: 66.3% (2018 est.)

other: 2% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

1,560 sq km (2012)

Major lakes (area sq km)

fresh water lake(s): Lake Tanganyika (shared with Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, and Burundi) - 32,000 sq km; Lake Mweru (shared with Democratic Republic of Congo) - 4,350 sq km; Lake Bangweulu - 4,000-15,000 sq km seasonal variation

Major rivers (by length in km)

Congo river source (shared with Angola, Republic of Congo, and Democratic Republic of Congo [m]) - 4,700 km; Zambezi river source (shared with Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique [m]) - 2,740 km
note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth

Major watersheds (area sq km)

Atlantic Ocean drainage: Congo (3,730,881 sq km)
Indian Ocean drainage: Zambezi (1,332,412 sq km)

Major aquifers

Upper Kalahari-Cuvelai-Upper Zambezi Basin

Population distribution

one of the highest levels of urbanization in Africa; high density in the central area, particularly around the cities of Lusaka, Ndola, Kitwe, and Mufulira as shown in this

Natural hazards

periodic drought; tropical storms (November to April)

Geography - note

landlocked; the Zambezi forms a natural riverine boundary with Zimbabwe; Lake Kariba on the Zambia-Zimbabwe border forms the world's largest reservoir by volume (180 cu km; 43 cu mi)