A medium sized town of around 40 000 people, Zambezi is the capital of the Zambezi district. The Zambezi River runs through the town, physically emphasizing the divide between the two tribes which live here. The smaller Luvale-speaking tribe on the western bank, and the larger Lunda-speaking tribe opposite. Such is the rivalry between the two tribes, that the Roman Catholic Church has separate services for their respective congregations. The divide appears to stem from colonial times, when the British District Commissioner for the region, used to play the tribes off against each other.

The town was previously named Balovale, after the dominant chief of the Luvale tribe, but was renamed after Zambian independence in an effort to limit rivalry between the two tribes. To this day, the two tribes do not get along, and children are even taught in English to avoid conflict in school. In spite of this rivalry, there is relative peace in the bustling town.

Except for spectacular views over the Zambezi River, there are no tourist attractions in town. About 30 km north, in one of the most remote areas of Zambia, you’ll find a Capuchin mission and hospital in Chinyingi. They do much good work for the poorest local communities, providing medical assistance and spiritual guidance to those in need. Of special interest is the 280 m long footbridge, constructed by Father Crispin Valeri in the 70s, after he saw five people drown trying to cross the river to get medical help. He begged for donations from the copper mines in the Copperbelt, and used unskilled labour from the local community to erect the bridge. Today the bridge is still standing strong and is one of only four to stretch across the Zambezi without any supports. The others are the Victoria Falls Bridge and the Otto Beit Bridge, both spanning the river between Zambia and Zimbabwe, and the Samora Machel Bridge, in the town of Tete in northwest Mozambique. All three are engineering feats, built from concrete with skilled labour and machinery.

ACCOMMODATION:
There is a hotel in the town. (Mar-2019).

EMERGENCY SERVICES:
Tow-in services: +27(0)97 473 7848 / +260(0)96 676 1647 (Based in Lusaka). (2019).

Hospital contact is for Chitokoloki Mission hospital. There is also the Zambezi District Hospital. (Mar-2019).

NOTE: Visitors to Zambia are advised to have their own personal travel insurance. Local police, hospitals, clinics etc. cannot be relied upon.
Please note that any emergency numbers indicated on our data will be for the local police, hospital, clinic etc. and most of the times, don't work. Many tourism sites show the numbers like 999 for police, they often don’t work.

If you have a medical problem when in Zambia, Specialty Emergency Services has a Call Centre (24 hours). Phone them on 737. This company has offices in Livingstone, Lusaka and Kitwe. But they will fly anywhere to assist if visitors have the right insurance. If you want to check your insurance, contact SES on [email protected]. (http://ses-zambia.com/).

FUEL:
There is one fuel stop in the town but often unreliable so travellers are advised to travel with sufficient fuel reserves. Mar-2019).

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