Nakonde is a town in the
Muchinga Province
Muchinga Province is one of the ten provinces of Zambia. It is located in the northeast of the country and borders with Tanzania in the north, Malawi in the east, Eastern Province in the south, Central Province in the southwest, Luapula Province ...
of
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 ...
, on the border with
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
. It is at the northern end of Zambia's
Great North Road (
T2 Road). It is the principal commercial and political headquarters of
Nakonde District and the district headquarters are located here.
Location
Nakonde sits directly across
Tunduma
Tunduma is a town in Songwe Region, Tanzania, on the border between Tanzania and Zambia. It has border posts for both the Tanzam Highway and the TAZARA railway (for which it has a station) linking the two countries. It is located 103 km southwe ...
, in Tanzania's
Songwe Region
Songwe Region (''Mkoa wa Songwe'' in Swahili) is a region of Tanzania created on 29 January 2016 from the western half of Mbeya Region. Its capital is Vwawa.
Geography
Songwe Region borders the countries of Zambia and Malawi to the south: Tun ...
, separated by the international border between Zambia and
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
. It is located on the
Great North Road, about , north-east of
Lusaka, the capital and largest city of Zambia.
It is the last Zambian town on the
Cape to Cairo Road, also known as the Pan-African Highway, which goes from
Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
to
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...
.
This is approximately , by road, north of
Mpika
Mpika is a town in the Muchinga Province of Zambia, lying at the junction of the M1 Road to Kasama and Mbala and the Tanzam Highway ( Great North Road) to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in the north-east and Lusaka in the south-west. It also has a r ...
, the largest city in the province.
The geographical coordinates of the town are: 09°19'38.0"S, 32°45'30.0"E (Latitude:-9.327222; Longitude:32.758333).
The average
elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § Ver ...
of Nakonde is about , above sea level.
Roughly to the west is
Chozi.
Overview
Nakonde lies on the main Highway that connects Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, to
Kapiri Mposhi
Kapiri Mposhi is a Zambian town, seat of the Kapiri Mposhi District, Central Province. Located north of Lusaka, it stands on the Great North Road and is significant for the railway connection between Zambia Railways line from Kitwe to Lusaka an ...
,
Isoka, through Nakonde and on to
Tunduma
Tunduma is a town in Songwe Region, Tanzania, on the border between Tanzania and Zambia. It has border posts for both the Tanzam Highway and the TAZARA railway (for which it has a station) linking the two countries. It is located 103 km southwe ...
and
Dar es Salaam, in neighboring
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
. The town is a busy border crossing with both rail and road traffic.
The
TAZARA Railway
The Tazara Railway, also called the Uhuru Railway or the Tanzam Railway, is a railway in East Africa linking the port of Dar es Salaam in east Tanzania with the town of Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia's Central Province. The single-track railway is ...
passes through the town.
Three banks maintain branches in Nakonde;
Barclays Bank of Zambia,
Atlas Mara Bank Zambia Limited
Atlas Mara Bank Zambia Limited (AMBZL), commonly referred to as Atlas Mara Bank Zambia, is a commercial bank in Zambia. It is licensed by the Bank of Zambia, the central bank and national banking regulator. AMBZL was established on 1 December 201 ...
and
Zambia National Commercial Bank.
It is estimated that 85 percent of Zambia's exports transit through Nakonde. However, inadequate housing, poor road infrastructure, lack of readily available
grid electricity,
inadequate supply of potable water, an under-developed sewerage system, poor schools and the absence of a post-secondary educational institution (university), are some of the challenges facing the town.
Population
As of February 2006, the population of Nakonde was estimated at approximately 10,652 people.
See also
*
TAZARA Railway
The Tazara Railway, also called the Uhuru Railway or the Tanzam Railway, is a railway in East Africa linking the port of Dar es Salaam in east Tanzania with the town of Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia's Central Province. The single-track railway is ...
References
External links
Nakonde-Tunduma one-stop border in pilot phase{unreliable source, date=November 2018 As of 3 February 2017.
Populated places in Muchinga Province
Tanzania–Zambia border crossings