Author: thedigitalphilatelist

Since independence, a much stronger emphasis was given to wildlife conservation, particularly as public interest had grown and safari tourism showed itself to have a high potential. From only one National Park before independence, Zambia reserved twenty-nine million hectares of land for wildlife conservation including nineteen National Parks and thirty-one…

Farming in Zambia was predominantly rain-fed with only 1% of the potential agricultural land irrigated. Maize was the main food and cash crop, followed by sorghum and cassava. However, production of almost all crops didn’t meet needs and much of the food of Zambia was imported and maize was impacted…

Zambia was considered to have an abundant water supply for the Southern African region. However, with the growing demand on water for industrial and domestic use, it was expected that Zambia could experience severe water shortages. It was believed the shortage would be exacerbated by industrial pollution spoiling – especially…

Zambia’s vegetation was predominantly open miombo woodland covering about 80% of the country. The miombo is a two-storeyed woodland comprising an open mixture of shrubs, relatively slow-growing trees of moderate height, and tall grasses; it varied widely in composition although most of the trees were deciduous. The vegetation supported a rich…

In pre-independence times, a considerable commitment and effort was invested in soil conservation. Conservation works were constructed on arable lands in both reserves and state lands. Most of the cultivated fields were contoured, and storm drains, windbreaks, banks or terraces etc. were common. Catchment plans were operated and implemented. Good…