Zambia is a landlocked country in Southern Africa, bordered by the Democratic Republic of Congo. Its 13.8 million people mostly live in and around the capital city of Lusaka. Its primary export is copper, and its largest tourist attraction is Victoria Falls, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Christianity is the dominant religion, but Islam, Hinduism, and indigenous religions are also represented.
Life expectancy is one of the lowest in the world, with the average being 49 years for men and 50 years for women; this is primarily due to high infant and child mortality rates, as well as the HIV/AIDS epidemic that continues to this day. Unlike most of its neighbors, Zambia is politically stable in that it has avoided the war and social upheaval common to African countries in postcolonial times.
Zambia is a country of young people, with the majority of the population under the age of 18 (53.4 per cent). The estimated median age is 16.7 years, which is one of the lowest in the region and globally.
Many of these children are affected by both monetary and non-monetary poverty – an estimated 54.5 percent of the population lives below the national poverty line. In Zambia, 40.9 percent of children suffer from at least three deprivations or more (e.g. lacking access to nutrition, education, health, water, sanitation, adequate housing). 36 per cent of children in Zambia are both monetarily poor and multi-dimensionally deprived. The situation is further compounded by high population growth, with a fertility rate of 4.7 children per woman leading to an annual population growth rate of 3.2 per cent
About 59.4 percent of children live in poor households with 45.4 percent living in extreme poverty.
There are an estimated 800,000 school-aged children that are out of school. Access to early childhood education is low with only 26 per cent of children entering Grade 1 with any such experience.
Approximately 1 in 3 females and 2 in 5 males between 18-24 years experienced physical violence prior to the age of 18, and 20 percent of males and 16 percent of females reported experiencing emotional violence.
With 29 per cent of women aged 20-24 married before the age of 18, Zambia has one of the highest rates of child marriage in Africa.
