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Population
of the total, with urbanization steadily
increasing. The basin’s population is
expected to increase modestly, at the same
rate as the national populations, as no
substantial immigration into the Zambezi
basin is anticipated. Population growth in
the region has been moderate because the
AIDS pandemic has had some impact on the
reproductive age group (SADC and ZRA 2007).
However, the situation is changing as the
impact of HIV and AIDS is declining in most
Zambezi basin states.
The population of the Zambezi River Basin was
almost 31.7 million in 1998. This represented
about one-third of the total population of 100
million in the eight basin countries at the time.
Ten years later, in 2008, the basin population
reached 40 million, with 7.5 million living in the
urban centres (SADC and ZRA 2007).
The total population of the eight countries
of the Zambezi basin is expected to reach
168 million by 2025. The basin population is
projected at 47 million, about 30 per cent
The livelihood of riverine communities is largely dependent on fishing.
Fishing village, Cahora Bassa.
Table 1.1. Area and Population of the Zambezi Basin
Country
Angola
Botswana
Malawi
Mozambique
Namibia
Tanzania
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Total
As%of
total area
of country
20.5
3.3
93.4
20.5
2.1
2.9
76.8
55.2
24.5
Area of
country in
Basin
(sqkm)
256 500
19 100
110 700
163 800
17 100
27 300
577 900
215 800
1 388 200
Total area
of country
(sqkm)
1 246 700
581 730
118 484
799 390
824 290
945 087
752 614
390 759
5 659 054
As % of
total area
of Basin
18.47
1.38
7.97
11.8
1.23
1.97
41.63
15.55
100
2025 popu-
lation (000)
UNmedium
projection
950 080
16 500
18 071 955
6 187 455
82 438
2 200 420
11 979 610
11 674 065
51 161 960
Total
National
Population
2000
13 399 000
1 651 000
10 475 000
17 240 000
1 900 000
31 900 000
9 886 000
11 696 000
98 147 000
% of
National
Population
in Basin
36.63
.073
96.67
23.15
3.35
3.92
65.52
67.11
Projected
National
Population
2025
25 940 000
2 270 000
18 695 000
26 730 000
2 460 000
56 090 000
18 285 000
17 395 000
167 865 000
Popu-
lation in
the Basin
1998*
487 200
12 000
9 821 400
3 991 870
60 890
1 271 920
7 046 250
9 050 000
31 741 530
Sources: Spatial data from Hirji
et al.
2002, Deconsult 1998, SADC and SARDC 2008.
© ZACPRO