Zambia’s New Copperbelt: An opportunity for societal transformation and economic development in the Northwestern Province

The report examines the 'New Copperbelt' in Zambia's Northwestern Province, highlighting a significant gap between the country's strong formal mining laws and their practical implementation. While large-scale investments from companies like First Quantum Minerals and Barrick Gold drive economic growth, they have also caused heavy metal contamination in rivers and exacerbated social inequalities. The document finds that community engagement often lacks meaningful consent, and the benefits of mining are unevenly distributed, with women and girls facing disproportionate burdens including increased unpaid labour and gender-based violence.

• Zambia's Northwestern Province (NWP) has become a major hub for copper and cobalt mining, with the sector contributing approximately 12% to the national GDP. Major operations include the Kansanshi Mine, operated by First Quantum Minerals (FQM) and ZCCM Investment Holdings, and the Lumwana Mine, operated by Barrick Mining Corporation.
• Mining activities in the NWP have caused severe environmental degradation, specifically heavy metal contamination (including cadmium, chromium, cobalt, copper, iron, and lead) in the Kabompo, Solwezi, and Kifubwa Rivers, which threatens biodiversity and human health.
• There is a persistent disconnect between Zambia's legislative framework—such as the Mines and Minerals Development Act (No. 13 of 2022)—and its actual enforcement. Regulatory bodies like the Minerals Regulation Commission and the Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA) suffer from a skills deficit and lack of resources, leading to inadequate monitoring and enforcement of environmental standards.
• Community engagement processes often fail to meet Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) standards. Consultations are frequently described as procedural and high-level, failing to allow community priorities to shape project design, while benefit-sharing mechanisms remain inconsistently monitored.
• Mining has created significant gender-based disparities. Women face increased unpaid labour due to the pollution of water sources and agricultural land, while the influx of male workers has been linked to higher rates of gender-based violence, harassment, and sex work.
• The Barrick Lumwana Trust, established in 2005, is cited as a more successful model of community resource management than fragmented Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) efforts, as it combines traditional leadership with community-elected representatives to serve approximately 200,000 people.
• While the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) provides valuable national-level data on revenues and contracts, this information is rarely translated into accessible formats for local communities, hindering local-level accountability.

APA

Good Governance Africa (n.d.). Zambia’s New Copperbelt: An opportunity for societal transformation and economic development in the Northwestern Province. https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2026/02/GGA-SATrust-Zambia-Report.pdf

Chicago

Good Governance Africa. Zambia’s New Copperbelt: An opportunity for societal transformation and economic development in the Northwestern Province. n.d. https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2026/02/GGA-SATrust-Zambia-Report.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Good Governance Africa |title=Zambia’s New Copperbelt: An opportunity for societal transformation and economic development in the Northwestern Province |url=https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2026/02/GGA-SATrust-Zambia-Report.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{goodgovernanceafricandzambias, author = {{Good Governance Africa}}, title = {{Zambia’s New Copperbelt: An opportunity for societal transformation and economic development in the Northwestern Province}}, institution = {Good Governance Africa}, url = {https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2026/02/GGA-SATrust-Zambia-Report.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }