By Zambian Economist Analyst
GDP growth hit 7.7% in Q1 2026, and agriculture was not the only story. Information, communication and entertainment expanded at double-digit rates, faster than the harvest that made the headlines.
The Quarter That Changed the Story
Zambia’s GDP growth accelerated to 7.7% in the first quarter of 2026, up sharply from 2.1% in the final quarter of 2025, an over one-year high. Above-average rainfall drove a strong agricultural rebound, the usual headline explanation. Less noticed: information and communication, alongside entertainment and recreation, expanded at double-digit rates over the same period, growing faster than agriculture itself.
What Is Actually in That Number
Zambia’s information and communication sector covers mobile networks, internet service providers, fintech platforms and the mobile money infrastructure that now underpins everyday transactions from market trading to utility bill payments. Entertainment and recreation captures the more visible side of the same shift: streaming, gaming, events and the creator-driven content economy that has grown alongside smartphone penetration and cheaper data.
Retail Demand Is Rising Too
Rebounding retail sales amid low inflation signalled robust domestic demand over the same period, while goods exports rose strongly. Taken together, the Q1 2026 numbers describe an economy where growth is no longer coming from a single source. Agriculture supplied the scale, but technology and consumer-facing digital services supplied a disproportionate share of the acceleration.
| Quarter | GDP growth | Notable driver |
|---|---|---|
| Q4 2025 | 2.1% | Baseline, pre-harvest |
| Q1 2026 | 7.7% | Agriculture rebound; double-digit ICT and entertainment growth |
Business Implications
For telecoms, fintech and media businesses, the sectoral data confirms what usage trends already suggested: digital services are one of the fastest-growing parts of the Zambian economy, not a peripheral one. That argues for treating connectivity infrastructure and digital payments as core economic policy, not a technology side issue.
Investor Implications
A one-quarter acceleration built partly on rainfall is not, on its own, evidence of a structural shift. But a technology and entertainment sector growing in double digits alongside agriculture suggests Zambia’s digital economy has reached a scale where it now visibly moves the national growth number, not just individual company results.
Key Takeaways
- Zambia’s GDP growth accelerated to 7.7% in Q1 2026, from 2.1% in Q4 2025.
- Information and communication, and entertainment and recreation, both grew at double-digit rates.
- Retail sales and goods exports also strengthened, pointing to broader domestic demand.
Related reading: Zambia’s 7.7% GDP Growth: Why It Doesn’t Feel Like It and Zambia Mobile Money Levy 2026: What It Actually Costs You
