# Zambia and Zimbabwe compared Zambia and Zimbabwe side by side: 41 shared sourced indicators across 9 domains, and the 1 events their chronicles record of each other. Canonical: https://terralore.co/compare/zmb-vs-zwe Updated: 2026-08-10 (latest of the two dossiers' refreshes and the two chronicles' verification dates) Two sourced records set beside each other — nothing on this page was written for the pair. Every figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two national dossiers; every event is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle. Figures are compared, never graded. A "—" is an absence in the source data, never a zero; each value shows its own observation year — vintages differ by indicator and nation. ## Formation - Zambia: 24 October 1964 — Zambia becomes independent of Britain - Zimbabwe: 18 April 1980 — Zimbabwe becomes independent of Britain ## Economy | Metric | Zambia | Observed | Zimbabwe | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | GDP | $25 B | 2024 | $42 B | 2024 | | GDP per capita | $1,187 | 2024 | $2,497 | 2024 | | GDP growth | 3.8% | 2024 | 1.7% | 2024 | | Inflation | 15.0% | 2024 | 104.7% | 2022 | | Trade openness | 62.5% | 2024 | 41.5% | 2024 | ## Society | Metric | Zambia | Observed | Zimbabwe | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Population | 21 m | 2024 | 17 m | 2024 | | Life expectancy | 66.5 yrs | 2024 | 63.1 yrs | 2024 | | Urban population | 45.5% | 2024 | 39.9% | 2024 | | Fertility rate | 4.0 | 2024 | 3.7 | 2024 | ## Governance | Metric | Zambia | Observed | Zimbabwe | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Voice & accountability | 49.7 | 2024 | 34.8 | 2024 | | Political stability | 64.2 | 2024 | 48.5 | 2024 | | Government effectiveness | 41.0 | 2024 | 32.1 | 2024 | | Regulatory quality | 48.2 | 2024 | 36.3 | 2024 | | Rule of law | 47.3 | 2024 | 36.1 | 2024 | | Control of corruption | 38.6 | 2024 | 22.5 | 2024 | ## Health | Metric | Zambia | Observed | Zimbabwe | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Health spending | 6.0% | 2023 | 2.9% | 2023 | | Physicians | 0.32 | 2022 | 0.14 | 2023 | | Under-5 mortality | 48.4 | 2024 | 64.7 | 2024 | | Measles immunisation | 88.0% | 2024 | 90.0% | 2024 | | Safe drinking water | — | — | 25.5% | 2024 | ## Education | Metric | Zambia | Observed | Zimbabwe | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Adult literacy | 71.8% | 2024 | 93.2% | 2019 | | Education spending | 4.1% | 2023 | 0.4% | 2023 | | Primary enrolment | 115.6% | 2024 | 93.1% | 2024 | | Secondary enrolment | 56.8% | 2024 | 52.4% | 2013 | | Tertiary enrolment | 4.0% | 2012 | 7.7% | 2024 | ## Technology | Metric | Zambia | Observed | Zimbabwe | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | R&D spending | 0.3% | 2008 | — | — | | Researchers (per million) | 42 | 2008 | 95 | 2012 | | Internet users | 17.1% | 2024 | 41.6% | 2024 | | Mobile subscriptions | 109 | 2024 | 94 | 2024 | | High-tech exports | 1.5% | 2024 | 2.8% | 2024 | ## Geography | Metric | Zambia | Observed | Zimbabwe | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Land area | 743,390 km² | 2023 | 386,850 km² | 2023 | | Forest area | 59.5% | 2023 | 44.7% | 2023 | | Agricultural land | 32.1% | 2023 | 41.8% | 2023 | | CO₂ per capita (t) | 0.5 | 2024 | 0.8 | 2024 | | Renewable energy | 83.0% | 2021 | 82.4% | 2021 | ## Resources | Metric | Zambia | Observed | Zimbabwe | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Resource rents | 35.3% | 2021 | 6.4% | 2021 | | Oil rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.0% | 2021 | | Mineral rents | 28.2% | 2021 | 4.2% | 2021 | | Forest rents | 6.8% | 2021 | 1.8% | 2021 | | Electricity access | 51.1% | 2023 | 62.0% | 2023 | | Copper (mined) | 940 kt | 2025 | — | — | | Lithium (mined) | — | — | 28.0 kt | 2025 | ## Military | Metric | Zambia | Observed | Zimbabwe | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Military burden | 1.3% | 2024 | 0.4% | 2024 | | Defense spending | $350 M | 2024 | $98 M | 2024 | | Armed forces | 16,000 | 2020 | 51,000 | 2020 | Each metric is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/.md). Full dossiers: https://terralore.co/country/ZMB.md and https://terralore.co/country/ZWE.md. ## Entangled histories (1 event) Events in which either nation's sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the record exactly as its own chronicle carries it, with that chronicle's sources. - c. 1966–1979: **The liberation war (Second Chimurenga)** — Guerrilla forces of ZANU (ZANLA) and ZAPU (ZIPRA), based in Mozambique and Zambia, waged an escalating war against the Rhodesian state through the 1970s. (from the Zimbabwe chronicle; sources: Rhodesian Bush War (Second Chimurenga); Zimbabwe: History; Robert Mugabe) ## Sources - World Development Indicators — World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://data.worldbank.org - Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) — Worldwide Governance Indicators / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators - Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) — WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.who.int/data/gho - Child mortality & immunisation estimates (UN IGME and WHO/UNICEF, via World Bank WDI) — UNICEF and WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://childmortality.org - R&D statistics (UNESCO UIS, via World Bank WDI) — UNESCO Institute for Statistics / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://uis.unesco.org - ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) — ITU / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics - Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 — U.S. Geological Survey · Public domain (U.S. Government work) · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.usgs.gov/centers/national-minerals-information-center - Military Expenditure Database (via World Development Indicators) — SIPRI / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://www.sipri.org/databases/milex Chronicle references are cited inline above and resolve in full at https://terralore.co/country/ZMB/chronicle.md and https://terralore.co/country/ZWE/chronicle.md. 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