Zambia is a landlocked mineral dependent country in Southern Africa whose history is intimately entwined with the copper mining industry. Having gained Independence from Britain in 1964 at the height of a copper boom, the country experienced a slow and painful economic decline over the next quarter century. However, following a traumatic and protracted process of economic adjustment through the 1990s and early 2000s, Zambia s economic potential is now better than it has been at any time since Independence.
This book, which contains a set of rigorous but accessible essays by a range of Zambian and international scholars, seeks to examine the challenges and opportunities that currently face Zambian policymakers as they seek to harness the country s valuable natural assets to broad-based and sustainable economic growth over the coming decades. Written in a non-technical manner by leading scholars in the field, the chapters address key challenges in the areas of natural resource manage