Kazungula is a village in the far north of

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

, 8 km east of the town of Kasane. It lies on the south bank of the Chobe and

Zambezi The Zambezi (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 half of t ...

rivers.

Etymology

The name Kazungula is derived from the sausage tree ('' Kigelia africana''), known locally as ''mzungula''.

Geography

Kazungula is located near the

quadripoint A quadripoint is a point on Earth where four distinct political territories meet. The territories can be of different types, such as national and provincial. In North America, several such places are commonly known as Four Corners (disambiguatio ...

where the borders of

Zambia Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...

Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...

and

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

meet. The

Kazungula Bridge Kazungula Bridge is a road and rail bridge over the Zambezi, Zambezi River between the countries of Zambia and Botswana at the town of Kazungula. The and bridge, which has a longest span of , links the town of Kazungula in Zambia with Botswana ...

crosses the Zambezi and connects Kazungula to a border town in Zambia, also named

Kazungula Kazungula is a small border town in Zambia, lying on the north bank of the Zambezi River about west of Livingstone on the M10 Road. At Kazungula, the territories of four countries (Zambia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Namibia) come close to mee ...

. Travellers may also cross the Zambezi on the Kazungula Ferry, or drive to another border town named

in Zimbabwe, via the Kazungula Road crossing.

History

At confluence of the Chobe and

rivers, Kazungula has been a crossing point of the latter for centuries, connecting

Central Africa Central Africa (French language, French: ''Afrique centrale''; Spanish language, Spanish: ''África central''; Portuguese language, Portuguese: ''África Central'') is a subregion of the African continent comprising various countries accordin ...

and

Southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost region of Africa. No definition is agreed upon, but some groupings include the United Nations geoscheme for Africa, United Nations geoscheme, the intergovernmental Southern African Development Community, and ...

. Kazungula was where

David Livingstone David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, and an explorer in Africa. Livingstone was married to Mary Moffat Livings ...

and other mid-19th century European explorers first saw the Zambezi before crossing it to present-day Zambia. Locals historically crossed the Zambezi on traditional canoes named mekoro, crafted from sausage trees. Modern commercial boats were not used in Kazungula until 1884, when pieces of a pontoon boat were imported from

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

and assembled locally. The importance of Kazungula as a centre of transport diminished following the 1905 opening of the road and rail bridge at

Victoria Falls Victoria Falls (Lozi language, Lozi: ''Mosi-oa-Tunya'', "Thundering Smoke/Smoke that Rises"; Tonga language (Zambia and Zimbabwe), Tonga: ''Shungu Namutitima'', "Boiling Water") is a waterfall on the Zambezi River, located on the border betwe ...

. However, it remained an important hub for the movement of goods and migrant labourers. Kazungula was the administrative centre of

Chobe District Chobe District is an administrative district in the northern part of Botswana, with the headquarters in Kasane. In 2001 it was merged with Ngamiland, and until 2006 it shared with Ngamiland the North-West District Council as local government. C ...

from 1909 to 1921. The colonial authority of the local

resident magistrate A resident magistrate is a title for magistrates used in certain parts of the world, that were, or are, governed by the British. Sometimes abbreviated as RM, it refers to suitably qualified personnel—notably well versed in the law—brought int ...

was expanded to Eastern Caprivi in November 1914, following its capture from German West Africa during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Kazungula ceased being the administrative centre of Chobe District when the resident magistrate's residence was moved to nearby Kasane in 1921. From 1935 to 1969, Kazungula was a recruitment post for the Witwatersrand Native Labour Association (WENELA), which recruited workers for South African gold mines. Starting in the 1960s, Kazungula became a frequent escape route for anti-colonial fighters fleeing to Zambia from Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. In 2021, the

was opened to replace the Kazungula Ferry as the primary means of crossing the Zambezi.

Demographics

The 2011 census recorded a population of 4,133 residents and a labour force of 2,013 workers, with 3 languages spoken among the populace.

References

{{Reflist North-West District (Botswana) Villages in Botswana Botswana–Zambia border crossings Botswana–Zimbabwe border crossings