The Zambian Defence Force is the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...

. It consists of the

Zambian Army The Zambian Army, is the land military branch of the Zambian Defence Force. Like all branches of the Zambian military, citizens of the nation are required to register at 16 years old, and citizens can join at 16 years old with parental consent or ...

, the

Zambian Air Force The Zambian Air Force (ZAF) is the air force of Zambia and the air operations element of the Zambian Defence Force. Following the creation of the Republic of Zambia in 1964, the former Northern Rhodesia Air Force was renamed as the Zambian Air ...

, and the

Zambia National Service The Zambia National Service, abbreviated ZNS, is part of the Zambian Defence Force whose primary objective is to train Zambian citizens in agriculture and craft skillsit was formed in 1963 as a Army, Land Army before it was renamed to Zambia Nation ...

. The defence forces were formed at Zambian independence on 24 October 1964, from constituent units of the dissolved

Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation or CAF, was a colonial federation that consisted of three southern African territories: the Self-governing colony, self-governing British colony of Southe ...

Armed Forces. During the 1970s and 1980s, it played a key role in a number of regional conflicts, namely the

South African Border War The South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence, and sometimes denoted in South Africa as the Angolan Bush War, was a largely asymmetric conflict that occurred in Namibia (then South West Africa), Zambia, and Angol ...

and

Rhodesian Bush War The Rhodesian Bush War, also called the Second as well as the Zimbabwe War of Liberation, was a civil conflict from July 1964 to December 1979 in the unrecognised country of Rhodesia (later Zimbabwe-Rhodesia). The conflict pitted three for ...

. Being a

landlocked country A landlocked country is a country that does not have territory connected to an ocean or whose coastlines lie on endorheic basin, endorheic basins. There are currently 44 landlocked countries and 4 landlocked list of states with limited recogni ...

Zambia has no navy, although the Zambian Army maintains a

maritime patrol {{Unreferenced, date=March 2008 Maritime patrol is the task of monitoring areas of water. Generally conducted by military and law enforcement agencies, maritime patrol is usually aimed at identifying human activities. Maritime patrol refers to ac ...

unit for maintaining security on inland bodies of water.'Zambia Army Commando Unit splits, forms Marine Unit', ''Lusaka Voice'', 18 February 2015, accessed 5 February 2017,

History

Background and independence

The Zambian Defence Force had its roots in the

Northern Rhodesia Regiment The Northern Rhodesia Regiment (NRR) was a multi-battalion British colonial regiment raised from the protectorate of Northern Rhodesia. It was formed in 1933 from elements of the Northern Rhodesia Police, which had been formed during Company r ...

, a

multi-ethnic Mixed race people are people of more than one race or ethnicity. A variety of terms have been used both historically and presently for mixed race people in a variety of contexts, including ''multiethnic'', ''polyethnic'', occasionally ''bi-ethn ...

military unit which was raised by the British colonial government and had served with distinction during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In 1960, the constituent colonies of

Northern Rhodesia Northern Rhodesia was a British protectorate in southern Africa, south central Africa, now the independent country of Zambia. It was formed in 1911 by Amalgamation (politics), amalgamating the two earlier protectorates of Barotziland-North-West ...

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing British Crown colony in southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally kn ...

, and

Nyasaland Nyasaland () was a British protectorate located in Africa that was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Between 1953 and 1963, Nyasaland was part of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasala ...

were amalgamated into a self-governing

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

dependency known as the

. When the federation was dissolved three years later, the assets and personnel of its armed forces were integrated with those of its successor states, including Northern Rhodesia, which subsequently gained independence as Zambia. For example, Zambia received half the federal armoured car squadron as well as some light patrol aircraft. Zambia also inherited the command structures of the

Regiment as well as the Northern Rhodesian Air Wing, which formed the basis for the new Zambian Army and Zambian Air Force, respectively. Relations almost immediately soured between Zambia and Southern Rhodesia, now known simply as ''Rhodesia'', which had issued its own unilateral declaration of independence (UDI) in 1965. Reports that Rhodesian security forces had occupied

Kariba Dam The Kariba Dam is a double curvature concrete arch dam in the Kariba Gorge of the Zambezi river basin between Zambia and Zimbabwe. The dam stands tall and long. The dam forms Lake Kariba, which extends for and holds of water. Construction Th ...

prompted Zambian President

Kenneth Kaunda Kenneth David Kaunda (28 April 1924 – 17 June 2021), also known as KK, was a Zambian politician who served as the first President of Zambia from 1964 to 1991. He was at the forefront of the struggle for independence from British rule. Dissat ...

to mobilise the ZDF for the first time and deploy troops to the border. The ZDF was withdrawn when Kaunda received a guarantee that Zambia's supply of Kariba power would not be interrupted. Nevertheless, military tension between the two nations remained high, and border incidents resulting in civilian deaths occurred. In November 1966, Rhodesian troops fired across the border and killed a Zambian woman on the north bank of the

Zambezi River The Zambezi River (also spelled Zambeze and Zambesi) is the fourth-longest river in Africa, the longest east-flowing river in Africa and the largest flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa. Its drainage basin covers , slightly less than hal ...

. In January 1973, Zambian troops fired on a South African police patrol boat on the Zambezi. Shortly afterwards, Defence Minister Grey Zulu ordered that the ZDF return to the border in force. Later in the month Kaunda brought the first of several complaints before the

United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the Organs of the United Nations, six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international security, international peace and security, recommending the admi ...

charging that Rhodesian security forces were violating Zambia's sovereignty and territorial integrity with South African support. Tensions flared again when Zambian troops fired across the border and killed two Canadian tourists on the Rhodesian side of

Victoria Falls Victoria Falls ( Lozi: ''Mosi-oa-Tunya'', "The Smoke That Thunders"; Tonga: ''Shungu Namutitima'', "Boiling Water") is a waterfall on the Zambezi River in southern Africa, which provides habitat for several unique species of plants and animal ...

in May 1973. The increasing prospect of war with Rhodesia posed several unique security dilemmas for the ZDF. Firstly, Zambia lacked the manpower or conventional hardware necessary to provide a suitable deterrent to a Rhodesian incursion. It also remained dependent on a relatively small pool of white senior officers and technical personnel. After 1967 Kaunda's government began replacing them with foreign officers on contract, ostensibly to minimise the potential for conflicts of loyalty. Between 1967 and 1970 the majority of officers in the ZDF were seconded from the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

. In 1971, the ZDF was finally prepared to appoint its first black army and air force commanders. Due to the white community's close ties with Rhodesia and South Africa, white Zambians were subsequently barred from voluntary enlistment and granted a blanket exemption from conscription. Around September 1967, Kaunda made two requests to the United States for equipment for the Zambian Army, including long-range

missile In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously unguided rocket i ...

systems, but was rebuffed. More successful were Zambia's attempts to acquire its first combat aircraft, a number of

Aermacchi MB-326 The Aermacchi or Macchi MB-326 is a light military jet trainer designed in Italy. Originally conceived as a two-seat trainer, there have also been single and two-seat light attack versions produced. It is one of the most commercially successf ...

and

SIAI-Marchetti SF.260 The SIAI-Marchetti SF.260 (now Leonardo SF-260) is an Italian light aircraft which has been commonly marketed as a military trainer and aerobatics aircraft. The SF.260 was designed by Italian aircraft designer Stelio Frati, while production wo ...

s sourced from Italy; the first black Zambian Air Force pilots were trained by Italian instructors between 1966 and 1969. Italy also sold the ZDF helicopters and towed artillery.

Involvement in regional conflicts, 1968–80

During the 1970s, Zambia began providing sanctuary for a number of revolutionary and militant political movements dedicated to overthrowing colonial and white minority rule elsewhere on the African continent. Guerrilla armies based in exile in Zambia included the

People's Liberation Army of Namibia The People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN) was the military wing of the South West Africa People's Organisation (SWAPO). It fought against the South African Defence Force (SADF) and South West African Territorial Force (SWATF) during the Sout ...

(PLAN) and the

Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army (ZIPRA) was the military wing of the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU), a Marxist–Leninist political party in Rhodesia. It participated in the Rhodesian Bush War against white minority rule of Rhodes ...

(ZIPRA). These movements ultimately embroiled the ZDF in their own internal power struggles as well as direct clashes with foreign troops carrying out preemptive strikes. In 1968, the ZDF skirmished with Portuguese troops which had pursued a number of Angolan or Mozambican insurgents into Zambia. In September 1975, Zambian troops became locked in a firefight with

insurgents An insurgency is a violent, armed rebellion against authority waged by small, lightly armed bands who practice guerrilla warfare from primarily rural base areas. The key descriptive feature of insurgency is its asymmetric nature: small irreg ...

of the

Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (ZANLA) was the military wing of the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), a militant African nationalist organisation that participated in the Rhodesian Bush War against white minority rule of Rhod ...

(ZANLA). The ZDF killed eleven ZANLA insurgents and later expelled that movement from Zambian soil. A year later, nearly two thousand disaffected PLAN insurgents in Zambia launched a mutiny which became known as the "Shipanga Affair". The army was forced to marshal several battalions to subdue the dissidents. In response to Zambia's increasingly open support for PLAN, South Africa sponsored a force of

Kaonde Kaonde (''kiiKaonde'') is a Bantu language spoken primarily in Zambia but also in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kaonde and its dialects are spoken and understood by perhaps 350,000 people or more. It is estimated that approximately 2.3% ...

-speaking dissidents under Adamson Mushala, known as the Zambian Democratic Supreme Council (DSC). The DSC maintained a low level insurgency in Zambia's North-Western and

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

Provinces. Mushala's guerrillas sabotaged infrastructure, skirmished with the ZDF, and collected intelligence on PLAN movements inside Zambia. They were trained by

South African special forces Insurgency in Cabo Delgado, The South African Special Forces Brigade, colloquially known as the Recces, is South Africa's principal Special forces, special operations unit, specialising in various types of operations including; counter-insurge ...

and instructors recruited from the Portuguese Directorate-General of Security. In 1973, an army unit killed a hundred of the guerrillas by ambushing them as they attempted to cross the Zambezi near the Caprivi Strip. Mushala was largely inactive until early 1976, when his guerrillas skirmished twice with the ZDF and hijacked an army payroll. As a result of the new challenges posed by the Mushala insurgency and the presence of foreign militants, the ZDF underwent an extensive reorganisation and adopted a new unified command structure. It was renamed the ''Zambian National Defence Force'' (ZNDF) in 1976. A prevailing feature of the new ZNDF was its adoption of a third branch known as the Zambian National Service. The objective of the Zambian National Service was to provide basic military instruction to all Zambian citizens in the event they needed to be mobilised as reservists during wartime. The ZNDF became increasingly politicised, with the ruling

United National Independence Party The United National Independence Party (UNIP) is a political party in Zambia. It governed the country from 1964 to 1991 under the socialist presidency of Kenneth Kaunda, and was the sole legal party in the country between 1973 and 1990. On 4 A ...

(UNIP) forming party branches in the barracks and introducing a number of political education programs for military personnel. Under the UNIP, the ZNDF was not subject to public audit or parliamentary oversight. This was justified under the pretext that the ZNDF's development was tied to the exigencies of wartime. Between 1977 and 1980 military tension with South Africa and Rhodesia continued to escalate, resulting in a renewed spate of border incidents. In 1977, the ZNDF bombarded Rhodesian positions near

with rocket and mortar fire. The reasons for the attack were disputed but the Zambian government maintained that the troops involved had been deliberately provoked by Rhodesian forces into firing. Around March 1978, the ZNDF claimed to have been involved in repelling a Rhodesian raid on a ZIPRA training camp. It also assisted PLAN insurgents during a raid on a South African military base in the

Caprivi Strip The Caprivi Strip, also known simply as Caprivi, is a geographic salient protruding from the northeastern corner of Namibia. It is surrounded by Botswana to the south and Angola and Zambia to the north. Namibia, Botswana and Zambia meet at a sin ...

. South Africa retaliated by shelling several ZNDF positions near the border, and Rhodesia began targeting ZNDF outposts. Growing Zambian war weariness was a significant factor in Kaunda's influencing the guerrilla movements in Rhodesia to seek peace, resulting in a negotiated end to that conflict. Kaunda also bowed to South African pressure and ordered PLAN to close its rear base facilities in Zambia by 1979. At the same time, the ZNDF embarked on a 70 million kwacha modernisation program with assistance from the Soviet Union. The Soviets provided the Zambian Army with tanks, wheeled armored vehicles, and technical instruction on especially generous terms; the Zambian Air Force received its first fighter aircraft in the form of a

Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-21; NATO reporting name: Fishbed) is a supersonic jet aircraft, jet fighter aircraft, fighter and interceptor aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan, Mikoyan-Gurevich OKB, De ...

squadron at the same time.

End of the Cold War and reforms

In October 1980, two ZNDF officers, Brigadier Godfrey Miyanda and Colonel Patrick Mkandawire were arrested for planning a

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

with the support of an exiled Congolese insurgent movement, the

Front for Congolese National Liberation The Congolese National Liberation Front (french: Front de libération nationale congolaise, FLNC) is a political party funded by rebels of Katangese origin and composed of ex-members of the Katangese Gendarmerie. It was active mainly in Angola an ...

(FLNC). The plot involved arming the FLNC with ZNDF weaponry and later providing that movement with rear operating bases in Zambia as a reward for their efforts if the coup succeeded. The ZNDF and the police apprehended the conspirators before they had opportunity to set the coup in motion and later raided the FLNC's base camp, detaining most of the insurgents. Due in part to the extreme secrecy surrounding the ZNDF's budget and the refusal of the

UNIP The United National Independence Party (UNIP) is a political party in Zambia. It governed the country from 1964 to 1991 under the socialist President (government title), presidency of Kenneth Kaunda, and was the sole legal party in the country ...

to allow parliamentary debate on the topic, a number of problems concerning military funding were covered up rather than addressed. For example, the facilities at ZNS training camps were so inadequate that typhoid outbreaks became common among recruits. This was due to lack of funds to filter the camps' drinking water. After a particularly serious typhoid outbreak between 1980 and 1981, the government was forced to suspend and later stop the compulsory national service programme. In November 1982, the ZNDF killed Adamson Mushala in an ambush outside Solwezi, although his followers continued to carry out operations under the leadership of Alexander Saimbwende. The DSC continued to pose a sufficient threat that an Italian mineral survey team had to be evacuated from Northwestern Province in 1984 after being targeted by the guerrillas. Nevertheless, the erosion of South African support ensured that its forces remained small and poorly armed. Mushala and later Saimbwende turned to ivory poaching to sustain their war effort against the ZNDF. As the

Mozambican Civil War The Mozambican Civil War ( pt, Guerra Civil Moçambicana) was a civil war fought in Mozambique from 1977 to 1992. Like many regional African conflicts during the late twentieth century, the Mozambican Civil War possessed local dynamics but was a ...

intensified, the ZNDF had to contend with a number of armed incursions by

Mozambican National Resistance RENAMO (from the Portuguese , ) is a Mozambican political party and militant group. The party was founded with the active sponsorship of the Rhodesian Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) in May 1977 from anti-communist dissidents opposed ...

(RENAMO) insurgents, who raided Zambian border towns in search of food and other supplies. The ZNDF made it a policy to pursue RENAMO into neighbouring Mozambique in hot pursuit if necessary. In 1988, a second coup d'état attempt was planned, this time by Lieutenant General Christian Tembo and at least three other senior army officers. The conspirators were detained before they could carry it out, but this temporarily jeopardised relations between the Zambian government and the army. The end of the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

brought a number of changes to the Zambian political situation and the ZNDF. The ZNDF remained heavily in debt with the former Soviet bloc for military equipment it had purchased in the 1980s, as well as interest accrued. The army in particular was badly affected by the collapse of its Soviet technical training program, which left much of its heavy weapons unserviceable. Following mass protests over President Kaunda's decision to cut subsidies for maize meal and double maize prices in 1990, Captain Mwamba Luchembe single-handedly seized the national radio station and announced a coup d'état. Luchembe held the radio station for only two hours before being arrested. Kaunda's unpopularity led to demonstrations in support of Luchembe, however, and the same day the president announced he would seek a referendum on democratic multi-party elections. Kaunda granted a blanket amnesty to his political opponents as he prepared to accept the return of multi-party elections, which would shortly thereafter end his term of almost three decades. Among those who received

amnesty Amnesty (from the Ancient Greek ἀμνηστία, ''amnestia'', "forgetfulness, passing over") is defined as "A pardon extended by the government to a group or class of people, usually for a political offense; the act of a sovereign power offici ...

was Alexander Saimbwende, who surrendered to the government and ended the DSC insurgency. The 1991 general elections brought

Frederick Chiluba Frederick Jacob Titus Chiluba (30 April 1943 – 18 June 2011) was a Zambian politician who was the second president of Zambia from 1991 to 2002. Chiluba, a trade union leader, won the country's multi-party presidential election in 1991 as th ...

and his opposition

Movement for Multi-Party Democracy The Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) also known as New Hope MMD is a political party in Zambia. Originally formed to oust the previous government, MMD controlled an absolute majority in parliament between 1991 and 2001, when its past lead ...

to power and ushered in a period of reforms for the ZNDF. The Chiluba government dismantled the ZNDF's unified command structure and allowed the army, ZNS, and air force to revert to independent commands. The system of political patronage introduced to the ZNDF by Kaunda was also abandoned. A general demobilisation programme was instituted in the army, and parliament gained the ability to debate defence expenditure. The Chiluba government immediately formed a Public Accounts Committee to reduce financial irregularities in the ZNDF, most of which were linked to corruption and abuse of the ministerial tender system. Zambia's 1991 constitution formally reinstated the title ''Zambian Defence Force'' for the armed forces. In October 1997, Captain

Steven Lungu Steven Lungu (Captain Steven Lungu aka Captain Solo) (6 January 1962, at Mansa General Hospital in Mansa, Zambia, Mansa, Zambia – 11 August 2012) was a former Zambia Army Captain who in 1997 together with the late captain Jack Chiti 1997 Zamb ...

seized control of the national radio station and announced a coup d'état. Lungu dismissed the chiefs of the army and police and announced that he was forming a new Government of National Redemption. He gave President Chiluba an ultimatum of three hours to surrender or face death. Loyal ZDF troops responded by storming the radio station, capturing Lungu and five other coup plotters. In early August 2022, the government announced that it would recruit up to 5,000 military personnel by October of the same year.

Command

In 1976 Zambia adopted a unified command system, in which the three Service Chiefs reported to a

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

of the 'Zambian National Defence Force' (ZNDF). The Commander of Zambia Air Force at the time, Air Commodore Peter Zuze, was promoted to Lieutenant-General and appointed as Deputy Commander of the ZNDF. However, the Zambia Air Force and Zambia National Service resented this system because Army officers filled most senior appointments in the ZNDF and the system was ended in 1980. The country then reverted to the command system inherited at independence where Service Chiefs report to the Head of State through a Minister of Defence.Chewe, Innocent (2014) An Examination of Professionalism in the Zambia Army, thesis presented to the Faculty of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master Of Military Art and Science, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA613529 The current (2021) Command is: - President and Commander-in-Chief:

Hakainde Hichilema Hakainde Hichilema (born 4 June 1962) is a Zambian businessman, farmer, and politician who is the seventh and current president of Zambia since 24 August 2021. After having contested five previous elections in 2006, 2008, 2011, 2015 and 2016 ...

(from 24th August 2021) - Defence Minister: Ambrose Lwiji Lufuma (from 27 August 2021) -

Permanent Secretary A permanent secretary (also known as a principal secretary) is the most senior Civil Service (United Kingdom), civil servant of a department or Ministry (government department), ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day ...

for Defence: Norman Chipakupaku - Commander Zambia Army: Lieut.-General Dennis Sitali Alibuzwi (from 29th August 2021) - Deputy Commander Zambia Army: Major-General Geoffrey Zyeele (from 29th August 2021) - Commander Zambia Air Force: Lieut.-General Collins Barry ((from 29th August 2021) - Deputy Commander Zambia Air Force: Major General Oscar Nyoni - Commandant Zambia National Service: Lieut.-General Patrick Kayombo Solochi - Deputy Commandant Zambia National Service: Major-General Reuben Mwewa - Commandant Defence Services and Staff Training College: Brigadier General Benson Musonda.

Zambia Army

Organisation

The current Army organisation is: Three

infantry brigades Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

- * 1 Brigade, Lusaka * 2 Brigade,

Kabwe Kabwe is the capital of the Zambian Central Province and the Kabwe District, with a population estimated at 202,914 at the 2010 census. Named Broken Hill until 1966, it was founded when lead and zinc deposits were discovered in 1902. Kabwe also ...

(during July 2016 the Brigade Commander was Brigadier Martin Banda) * 3 Brigade,

Ndola Ndola is the third largest city in Zambia and third in terms of size and population, with a population of 475,194 (''2010 census provisional''), after the capital, Lusaka, and Kitwe, and the second largest in terms of infrastructure development aft ...

(during March 2017 the Brigade Commander was Brigadier Laston Chabinga) With the following units: * 64 Armoured Regiment (tank). U.S. State Department

International Military Education and Training International Military Education and Training (IMET) is the title of a United States security assistance program, a type of student exchange program. History Congress established the IMET program in the International Security Assistance and Arms ...

records from FY-2006 indicate a Zambian officer attended from 64 Armoured Regiment at Mikango Barracks, east

Lusaka Lusaka (; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zambia. It is one of the fastest-developing cities in southern Africa. Lusaka is in the southern part of the central plateau at an elevation of about . , the city's population was ab ...

. * 17 Cavalry Regiment (armoured reconnaissance) * 10 Medium Regiment, Kalewa Barracks, Ndola (also given as an artillery regiment/brigade of two Fire Direction Artillery Battalions and one Multiple Rocket Launchers battalion) * 1 Engineer Regiment, Mufulira * 6 Construction Regiment, raised March 2017? * 1 mechanised battalion * 6 light infantry battalions, titled 1 to 6 Battalions Zambia Regiment * 1 Commando Battalion (special forces), Ndola * 48 Marine Unit, Kawambwa, raised July 2015. * 3 reserve infantry battalions (7 to 9 Battalions Zambia Regiment) * Support units (logistics, transport, medical, ordnance, electrical and mechanical engineering) * Specialist schools (armour, artillery, engineers and signals)

Equipment

Small arms

RPG-7 The RPG-7 (russian: link=no, РПГ-7, Ручной Противотанковый Гранатомёт, Ruchnoy Protivotankoviy Granatomyot) is a portable, reusable, unguided, shoulder-launched, anti-tank, rocket-propelled grenade launcher. ...

Jones, Richard D. ''Jane's Infantry Weapons 2009/2010''. Jane's Information Group; 35 edition (January 27, 2009). . *

FN FAL The FAL (a French acronym for (English: "Light Automatic Rifle")), is a battle rifle designed in Belgium by Dieudonné Saive and manufactured by FN Herstal (simply known as FN). During the Cold War the FAL was adopted by many countries of th ...

Heckler & Koch G3 The Heckler & Koch G3 (''Gewehr'' 3) is a 7.62×51mm NATO, select-fire battle rifle developed in the 1950s by the German armament manufacturer Heckler & Koch (H&K) in collaboration with the Spanish state-owned design and development agency CET ...

AKM The AKM () is an assault rifle designed by Soviet small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1959. It is the most ubiquitous rifle of the Kalashnikov rifles. It was developed as a replacement to the AK-47 introduced a decade prior. Introduced ...

AK-47 The AK-47, officially known as the ''Avtomat Kalashnikova'' (; also known as the Kalashnikov or just AK), is a gas operated, gas-operated assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian s ...

Sterling submachine gun The Sterling submachine gun is a British submachine gun (SMG). It was tested with the British Army in 1944–1945 as a replacement for the Sten but it did not start to replace it until 1953. A successful and reliable design, it remained as stan ...

DShK The DShK 1938 (Cyrillic: ДШК, for russian: Дегтярёва-Шпагина Крупнокалиберный, Degtyaryova-Shpagina Krupnokaliberny, links=no, "Degtyaryov-Shpagin large-calibre") is a Soviet heavy machine gun with a V-shaped but ...

PK machine gun The PK (russian: Пулемёт Калашникова, transliterated as ''Pulemyot Kalashnikova'', or "Kalashnikov's machine gun"), is a belt-fed general-purpose machine gun, chambered for the 7.62×54mmR rimmed cartridge. Designed in the Sov ...

Vehicles and towed artillery

Zambia Air Force

The Zambia Air Force is a small air force that developed from the Northern Rhodesian Air Wing as well as the former Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland Air Force. In recent years the aircraft inventory has largely been updated with Chinese aircraft reflecting the increasing closeness between the Zambian Defence Force and China. During 1999 eight

Karakorum-8 The Hongdu JL-8 (Nanchang JL-8), also known as the Karakorum-8 or K-8 for short, is a two-seat intermediate jet trainer and a light attack aircraft designed in the People's Republic of China by China Nanchang Aircraft Manufacturing Corporatio ...

jet trainers were delivered and in 2006 the Zambia Air Force received two

Xian MA60 The Xian MA60 (新舟60, ''Xīnzhōu liùshí'', "Modern Ark 60") is a turboprop-powered airliner produced by China's Xi'an Aircraft Industrial Corporation under the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). The MA60 is a stretched version ...

and five

Yakovlev Yak-12 The Yakovlev Yak-12 (russian: Яковлев Як-12, also transcribed as Jak-12, NATO reporting name: "Creek") is a light multirole STOL aircraft used by the Soviet Air Force, Soviet civilian aviation and other countries from 1947 onwards. ...

transport aircraft from China. During March 2012 a further eight K-8 were received. Four

Harbin Z-9 The Harbin Z-9 ( NATO reporting name "Haitun", for Dolphin) is a Chinese military utility helicopter with civilian variants. It is a licensed variant of the French Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin, and is manufactured by Harbin Aircraft Manufacturin ...

helicopters were delivered in June 2012, with a further four delivered by March 2013 (when one of the new aircraft was lost in an accident, see below).'Zambian Air Force Z-9 crashes', DefenceWeb, 14 March 2013. In April 2014 six

Hongdu L-15 The Hongdu JL-10, also initially known as Hongdu L-15 Falcon, is a supersonic advanced jet trainer and light combat aircraft developed by Hongdu Aviation Industry Corporation (HAIC). It is used by the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) ...

Falcon supersonic lead-in fighter/trainer jets were ordered from China, the first arriving in December 2015. Around the same time orders were placed for six SIAI-Marchetti SF.260TW trainer aircraft, one

Alenia C-27J Spartan The Alenia C-27J Spartan is a military transport aircraft developed and manufactured by Leonardo's Aircraft Division (formerly Alenia Aermacchi until 2016). It is an advanced derivative of Alenia Aeronautica's earlier G.222 (C-27A Spartan in ...

transport aircraft, and a number of Russian-made

Mil Mi-17 The Mil Mi-17 ( NATO reporting name: Hip) is a Soviet-designed Russian military helicopter family introduced in 1975 (Mi-8M), continuing in production at two factories, in Kazan and Ulan-Ude. It is known as the Mi-8M series in Russian servic ...

helicopters. These orders were expected to be delivered during 2016.

Recent aircraft losses

* On 13 March 2013 a

helicopter crashed while attempting to land at Lusaka City Airport. The pilot, Major Misapa Mukupa, was killed, and the co-pilot, Lieutenant Kenneth Chilala, was injured. The helicopter was taking part in Youth Day celebrations and it was suggested the accident was caused by a national flag attached to the aircraft coming loose and then entangled in the tail rotor. * On 15 January 2014 a Saab MFI.17 Supporter trainer crashed some 40 km from Livingstone. Both crew were killed.'Deputy Zambian Air Force Chief killed in MFI-15 crash', DefenceWeb, 20 May 2014. * On 19 May 2014 a Saab MFI.15 crashed in Lusaka West. Both crew were killed. The crew were the Deputy Commander ZAF, Major-General Muliokela Muliokela, and Colonel Brian Mweene. * On 14 September 2015 an Agusta-Bell AB.205 helicopter crashed near Sinazongwe, apparently while returning from taking Defence Minister Richwell Siamunene on a private trip. Five people were injured. * On 28 March 2022 two Zambian Air Force pilots, Colonel Lyson Siame, and Second Lieutenant Kalasa Bwalya, were killed when their SF-260TW aircraft (registration AF-545) crashed 38 kilometres north of Harry Mwaanga Nkumbula International Airport near Livingstone.

Zambia National Service

The Zambia National Service is a defence wing that is mandated to train citizens to serve the republic, develop infrastructure and enhance national food security and contribute to the social economic development. Zambia National Service (ZNS) personnel have been included in peacekeeping contingents deployed by Zambia to the United Nation's MINUSCA mission in the Central African Republic. Six months of training for 400 youths was planned for 2016. This was to include 200 males to be trained at Chiwoko ZNS Training Centre, Katete, Eastern Province, and 200 females to be trained at the Kitwe ZNS training camp.

United Nations Peacekeeping Missions

Zambia has been an active participant in several UN peacekeeping operations, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. Zambian personnel have been fated to be caught up in some of the more dramatic incidents of recent UN Peacekeeping in Africa: witnessing the Kibeho Massacre in Rwanda during April 1995; having large numbers of Zambian peacekeepers taken hostage by rebels in Sierra Leone during 2000; and with troops caught up in fighting between Sudanese and South Sudanese forces in the contested Abyei area during May 2011.Mbao, E. (2011) 'Zambia defends Abyei peacekeepers', ''Africa Review'' (Kenya), 6 June 2011, accessed 20 December 2016, Despite these crises Zambian forces have generally performed well and earned a reputation as effective peacekeepers. UN missions which have seen the deployment of battalions of Zambian troops, or other significant contingents, include the following. UNAVEM III (United Nations Angola Verification Mission III, February 1995 to June 1997) A Zambian battalion was deployed to southern Angola, based in the town of Menongue. Seven Zambian peacekeepers died during the UNAVEM III deployment.UN Peacekeeping, Fatalities by Nationality and Mission - up to 30 November 2018, accessed 2 January 2019, UNAMIR (United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda) Three Zambian fatalities. UN Peacekeeping, Fatalities by Nationality and Mission - up to 31 October 2016, accessed 18 November 2016, UNAMSIL (United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone) Thirty-four Zambian fatalities. * Zambatt 1, deployed April 2000. Shortly after deployment some 200 Zambian peacekeepers were taken hostage by rebels and some were later murdered. * Zambatt 2. * Zambatt 3 (Lt. Col. MS Sitwala). On 5 January 2002 six personnel were killed and another 12 injured in an accidental explosion while transferring surrendered mortar bombs to storage. * Zambatt 4, deployed mid-2002, 830 strong. * Zambatt 5. * Zambatt 6. * Zambatt 7 (Col. John Siame) – 821 personnel; deployed February 2004 to ...UNAMSIL, 2004, ‘SRSG Decorates Zambian Peace Keepers with UN Peace Medal’, press release, 28 May. (Note: Sgt sMegani Forry died of natural causes during deployment, early 2004.) UNMIS (United Nations Mission in the Sudan) Three Zambian fatalities. Four Zambian peacekeepers were wounded on 10 May 2011, shortly before the independence of South Sudan and before an outbreak of fighting when the Zambians were criticised for not better protecting civilians. * Zambatt 1 - Deployed for six months, to June 2010. * Zambatt 2 - 523 personnel strong; deployed June 2010. MINUSCA (United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic) * Zambatt 1 (Lt. Col. Kelvin Chiyangi), 750 personnel, including 50 Special Forces, deployed 30 April 2015 to April 2016. * Zambatt 2, deployed 22 April 2016. * Zambatt 3 (Lt. Col. John Banda), 750 personnel. Undertook pre-deployment training under Zambian, United States and British instructors, before deploying in April 2017. * Zambatt 4 (Lt. Col. Ngosa), deployed during April 2018. * Zambatt 5 (Lt. Col. Tembo ) was to deploy in mid-2019. * Zambatt 6 (Lt. Col. Paul Sapezo) was scheduled to deploy to the Central African Republic in 2020. * Zambatt 7 (Lt. Col Jeff Mwanahing’ombe) deployed in 2021 and returned home durind September 2022. * Zambatt 8 deployed to the CAR during September 2022. During 2017 Warrant Officer 2 Boyd Chibuye died whilst deployed in the Central African Republic. On 4 December 2017 a Zambian police member of the UN mission was reported injured in an attack by anti-Balaka fighters in Bria, northern CAR. One Mauritanian policeman was killed and two others injured in this attack. Staff Sergeant Derrick Sichilyango of the Zambian Contingent was killed in a road traffic accident in November 2018. Staff Sergeant Patrick Simasiku Wamunyima and Staff Sergeant Alex Mudenda Musanda, both serving with MINUSCA, died during 2019 and were honoured on the 2020 International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers with the posthumous award of the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal.

SADC Missions

SAPMIL (SADC Preventive Mission in the Kingdom of Lesotho) During November 2017 a small

Southern Africa Development Community The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is an inter-governmental organization headquartered in Gaborone, Botswana. Its goal is to further regional socio-economic cooperation and integration as well as political and security coopera ...

(SADC) standby force was deployed to Lesotho to assist that country through an internal security crisis following the assassination of the Lesotho Defence Force Commander, Lieut.-General Khoantle Motšomotšo, on 5 September 2017. This SADC force included a 207-strong military element which had a Zambian Deputy Commander and which included 36 infantry and nine logistics personnel from Zambia. The mission wrapped up in November 2018 after successfully stabilising the Kingdom.'AU conducts an Assessment on the SADC Preventive Mission in Lesotho (SAPMIL)', Relief Web, 9 February 2018, https://reliefweb.int/report/lesotho/au-conducts-assessment-sadc-preventive-mission-lesotho-sapmil

Notes

References

{{Authority control Military of Zambia Armies by country