Additionally to the Zambia Urban Sector Profile, the Lusaka Urban Sector Profile is completed and published on the web now.  The profile reflects results of the city and national consultation that were conceived as a partnership platform, co-developed with the Ministry of Local Government and Housing, the Lusaka City Council, the Ministry of Finance, CARE International, Lusaka Water and Sewerage Company Ltd., parastatal organizations such as the National Housing Authority, and the non-governmental organization Zambia Low-Cost-Housing-Programme. The consultations also served to promote inter-agency collaboration that integrates a wide range of urban actors in response mechanisms.
Lusaka, the capital city of Zambia, dominates the country’s urban system and accounts for 32 percent of the total urban population in the country. Lusaka’s central location, in addition to its capital city status, gives it strategic importance, as it is easily accessible from all parts of the country. As uncovered through the RUSPS assessment, Lusaka is experiencing typical urban challenges associated with developments such as population growth, high levels of urbanization and unemployment. At the same time, urban planning for Lusaka has been inadequate due to insufficient resources at the Lusaka City Council (LCC). Major consequences for the city include the lack of serviced land, complex procedures and poor record keeping regarding land ownership and land use, inadequate human resources, the slow pace in issuing security of land tenure, the failure of master planning, an increase in illegal settlements and political interference in land allocation. In addition, urban poverty is reflected by the fact that informal settlements are expanding faster than the rest of the city. All of these mushrooming informal settlements are similar in that they lack adequate shelter, essential infrastructure as well as inadequate access to water and sanitation facilities. Thus, the situation in the unplanned urban settlements makes its residents vulnerable to epidemics. |
