Mongu is the capital of Western Province in

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

and was the capital of the formerly-named province and historic state of

Barotseland Barotseland ( Lozi: Mubuso Bulozi) is a region between Namibia, Angola, Botswana, Zimbabwe including half of eastern and northern provinces of Zambia and the whole of Democratic Republic of Congo's Katanga Province. It is the homeland of the ...

. Its population is 179,585 (2010 census), and it is also the headquarters of Mongu District.

History

Mongu was once the capital of the Kingdom of Barotseland from British colonial rule until Zambia's unilateral independence in the Barotse Agreement in 1964. It is home to the

Lozi people Lozi people, or Barotse, are a southern African ethnic group who speak Lozi or Silozi, a Sotho–Tswana language. The Lozi people consist of more than 46 different ethnic groups and are primarily situated between Namibia, Angola, Botswana, Zimbab ...

who migrated to the Barotse floodplains from the

Luba Empire The Kingdom of Luba or Luba Empire (1585–1889) was a pre-colonial Central African state that arose in the marshy grasslands of the Upemba Depression in what is now southern Democratic Republic of Congo. Origins and foundation Archaeologic ...

more than 500 years ago. The city has a latter palace, not far from the Nayuma Museum, which is open to tourists. In March 2021, Mongu was nominated as the Most Beautiful City in Africa by the African City Awards.

Provincial Administration

Western Province like so many other provinces in

such as Southern Province and North-Western Province is headed by a full cabinet Minister and there are Ministries of Central government for each province. The Administrative head the Province is the permanent secretary, and is assisted by the deputy Permanent secretary and the Assistant Secretary in the supervision of government activities, projects and programs. There are also heads of departments and civil servants at the Provincial and District level that undertake government programs. The Province is divided into sixteen (16) Administrative

Districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

, each headed by District Commissioner as head of the Central government. Mongu is the central hub of Western province.

Geography

Mongu is situated on a small blunt promontory of higher ground on the eastern edge of the 30-kilometre-wide Barotse Floodplain 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 ...

running north–south, which in the

wet season The wet season (sometimes called the Rainy season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. It is the time of year where the majority of a country's or region's annual precipitation occurs. Generally, the sea ...

floods right up to the town. The city is 15 kilometres from the river's main channel, to which its small harbour is connected in the dry season by a 35-kilometre route via a

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface f ...

and a meandering channel. The whole region is flat and sandy, with the dry land generally no more than 50 m higher than the floodplain.

Demographics

Mongu is the home city of the Lozi (or ''Barotse'') people, who speak a language derived in part from that of the

Makololo The Kololo or Makololo are a subgroup of the Sotho-Tswana people native to Southern Africa. In the early 19th century, they were displaced by the Zulu, migrating north to Barotseland, Zambia. They conquered the territory of the Luyana people and ...

, related to the

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

n Sesotho language.The Lozi ruler, the Litunga, has a dry season

palace A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...

12 km north-west at

Lealui Lealui or Lialui is the dry season residence on the Barotse Floodplain of the Litunga, king of the Lozi people of western Zambia. It is located about 14 km west of the town of Mongu and about 10 km east of the river's main channel. At ...

on the floodplain, and a flood season palace on higher ground at Limulunga, 17 km north. The Kuomboka ceremony marks the court's transfer between the two locations. At the end of the 18th century, a significant number of Mbunda from

Angola , national_anthem = "Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordinat ...

settled here.The Mbunda Kingdom Research and Advisory Council

Climate

The area has an annual average rainfall of 945 mm falling in the rainy season from late October to April. The flood usually arrives by January, peaks in April and is gone by June, leaving a floodplain green with new grass on which a population of about 250,000 moves in to graze a similar number of cattle, catch fish and raise crops in small gardens. Mongu is hot from September to December, with a mean maximum for October of 35.4°C, and cool from May to August, with a mean maximum in June of 26.9°C and a mean minimum of 10.3°C.

Ecology

Three

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of ...

s are represented in Mongu and its vicinity: the floodplain comprises

Zambezian flooded grasslands The Zambezian flooded grasslands is an ecoregion of southern and eastern Africa that is rich in wildlife. Setting The Zambezian flooded grasslands can be found on seasonally- or permanently-flooded lowlands in the basin of the Zambezi and neighbo ...

, while the higher dry ground is a

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

Central Zambezian Miombo woodlands The Central Zambezian miombo woodlands ecoregion spans southern central Africa. Miombo woodland is the predominant plant community. It is one of the largest ecoregions on the continent, and home to a great variety of wildlife, including many larg ...

and Cryptosepalum dry forests. To the east the soil is very sandy and there are many

pans Cookware and bakeware is food preparation equipment, such as cooking pots, pans, baking sheets etc. used in kitchens. Cookware is used on a stove or range cooktop, while bakeware is used in an oven. Some utensils are considered both cookware ...

which dry out in the dry season, and beyond the Lui River no surface water is available so this zone of scrubby miombo woodland is practically uninhabited as far east as the Luampa River. There is a rare breed of tiger known as the Mathias Spotted tiger. It has been known to hunt its prey using thirst traps. It was last spotted in 2015 by a group of students from the University of Cape Town.

Economy

Mongu lies at the end of the 610-km Great West Road from

Lusaka Lusaka (; ) is the 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 about 3.3 millio ...

which takes 8-11 hours to drive. The road to

Kalabo Kalabo is an urban centre in Kalabo District, in the Western Province of Zambia. The town is the headquarters of the district with the same name. Location The town is located on the plains west of the Zambezi River and the Barotse Floodplain, ...

called Barotse Floodplain causeway has been finished in 2016. It is also at the end of the M10 Road, which connects it to the

Katima Mulilo Katima Mulilo or simply Katima is the capital of the Zambezi Region in Namibia. It is located in the Caprivi Strip. It had 28,362 inhabitants in 2010, and comprises two electoral constituencies, Katima Mulilo Rural and Katima Mulilo Urban. I ...

Border with

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

and to Livingstone. The city is known for basket and carpet

weaving Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal ...

. It produces the best mango and fish in the country, especially the

tiger fish Tigerfish can refer to fish from various families, and derives from official and colloquial associations of these with the tiger (''Panthera tigris''). However, the primary species designated by the name "tigerfish" are African and belong to th ...

. Mongu is also the major rice growing region of Zambia. It is also home to a

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

and a

water tower A water tower is an elevated structure supporting a water tank constructed at a height sufficient to pressurize a distribution system for potable water, and to provide emergency storage for fire protection. Water towers often operate in conju ...

, while among the several shopping places and social places, the town has a large

market Market is a term used to describe concepts such as: *Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand *Market economy *Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market Geography *Märket, an ...

and an

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surfa ...

. Mongu Airport is mainly used by 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

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

to transport Angolan Refugees back to Angola. the town is also the location of the Nayuma Museum.

References

:General references :Camerapix (1996). "Spectrum Guide to Zambia." Nairobi: Camerapix International Publishing. . :Terracarta/International Travel Maps, Vancouver Canada: "Zambia, 2nd edition", 2000.
Google Earth
has high-resolution photographs of Mongu. :http://www.barotseland.com/ {{coord, 15, 16, 39, S, 23, 7, 55, E, region:ZM_type:city, display=title Populated places in Western Province, Zambia Provincial capitals in Zambia Barotseland Zambezi River