By The Zambian Economist Analyst | Analysis by Dr Kelvin Kamayoyo, Technical Advisor for African Rivers | 21 October 2026

Walk through Lusaka at ten in the morning this week. The minibus is a furnace, the market a sauna, the office a kiln with computers. The sun does not shine, it scorches. “The Super El Niño has found most African cities defenceless and they are now sweating,” said Dr Kelvin Kamayoyo, Technical Advisor for African Rivers, in an assessment published on 21 October 2026. His argument is that the defencelessness is not an accident of geography. We made ourselves defenceless. We cut the defence down with chainsaws and called it development.

The numbers behind the sweat are official. On 8 October 2026 the World Meteorological Organization reported that sea-surface temperatures in the central and eastern tropical Pacific are forecast to reach exceptional levels, with the Niño 3.4 anomaly projected at roughly plus 3.7 degrees Celsius between October and December (WMO, 2026a). The seasonal outlook for October to December points to below-normal rainfall across most of southern Africa, with above-normal temperatures over the same period (WMO, 2026b). The South-West Indian Ocean Climate Outlook Forum added that South Africa, southern and central Mozambique, Malawi and south-western Madagascar face drier conditions with increased risks of drought, water shortages and food insecurity (WMO, 2026c).

On the street, that forecast has already landed. Operational outlooks for the week of 21 October 2026 show daytime highs of 34 to 39 degrees Celsius in Lusaka and Maputo with prolonged extreme ultraviolet radiation, and 30 to 34 degrees in Kinshasa under high humidity. This extends the warning this publication carried earlier this month on what a super El Niño does to the world’s rivers: the same event that stresses the Zambezi and the Kafue is now baking the cities built on their banks.

Cities that cook their own people

Most African cities today have fewer trees and no working conservation parks. This is visible from any taxi window in Lusaka, Harare, Nairobi, Kinshasa or Dar es Salaam. In two decades, canopy has been replaced with concrete. Trees that took forty years to grow were felled in forty minutes for a plot, a car park or a perimeter wall. Conservation parks that served as the lungs of the city have been excised, encroached or converted into housing estates. What remains is a shadeless, dusty grid that traps heat.

The size of that trap is measured. Deforested urban centres can experience temperatures 5 to 7 degrees Celsius hotter than surrounding rural vegetated areas through the urban heat island effect (IPCC, 2023). A Lusaka homeowner who cut the musamba in the yard to pave parking bought an oven. A township that lost its street trees to charcoal bought a slower one. This runs against the case this publication has made before, that trees are the nerves of planet earth, and the nerves have been cut city by city.

Dr Kamayoyo reaches for literature to explain the collective shrug. In The Great Derangement, Amitav Ghosh described modern society responding to extreme climate events with denial, distraction and disbelief, treating heat and floods as abnormal episodes rather than the new reality (Ghosh, 2016). People watch the city get hotter every year and still cut the last tree, as if the science were fiction. Rachel Carson had made the same point about removing natural buffers a half-century earlier in Silent Spring: when the ecological balance goes, nature retaliates and the urban poor suffer first (Carson, 1962).

Waste is the second stove

Heat is only half of the urban diagnosis. Most African cities also run poor waste systems, and the two problems compound. Decomposing organic waste generates methane, a greenhouse gas that traps heat, while blocked drains cause flash floods in the rainy season and stagnant contamination in the dry season (UNEP, 2024). Low river flows increase the concentration of pollutants and cut dissolved oxygen, directly threatening public health (UNEP, 2024).

Victor Hugo called the sewers the conscience of the city in Les Misérables: a city that does not clean itself, and does not provide air, light and green space for its poor, poisons itself (Hugo, 1862). Lusaka’s own experience with cholera outbreaks in dense, low-lying settlements where drains and shallow wells share the same ground is the local proof. The throwaway economy that Annie Leonard described in The Story of Stuff, which pushes waste onto the poorest neighbourhoods, is not an imported theory either (Leonard, 2010). It is the operating model of many an African dumpsite.

The economics of keeping nature alive

Dr Kamayoyo’s positive programme is a nature-based economy: an economy that makes money because nature is healthy, not in spite of it. Formally, it is an economic system that derives sustainable livelihoods, jobs and GDP from the protection, restoration and sustainable management of ecosystems, rather than from their depletion (UNEP, 2024). Instead of cutting a forest once to sell charcoal, a city keeps the forest and earns continuously from clean water, tourism, honey, fruits, carbon credits, cooler streets and fertile soils.

Vandana Shiva made the same case from Indian soil decades ago in Staying Alive: communities that kept their forests alive earned more and survived longer than those who sold the forest once (Shiva, 1988). Robert Bullard’s research on environmental justice showed the distribution problem, that the poorest communities live nearest the polluting facilities and in the most treeless parts of town (Bullard, 1990). And Ebenezer Howard’s Garden Cities of To-Morrow set out the planning answer in 1902: towns with a permanent green belt, affordable housing and integrated nature are cooler, healthier and more productive (Howard, 1902).

What African cities must do now

Dr Kamayoyo’s prescription is survival infrastructure, not decoration.

The civic precedent exists. Wangari Maathai’s Green Belt Movement showed that ordinary people can push back desertification and urban heat by planting indigenous trees and reclaiming environmental governance, tree by tree, park by park (Maathai, 2006). Chinua Achebe’s lesson in Things Fall Apart is the warning side of the same coin: when a community abandons its own norms and institutions for land and trees, it cannot resist external shocks (Achebe, 1958).

What it means for business, investors and policy

For business: heat is already a cost. Outdoor and informal-sector workers lose productive hours, refrigeration and cooling bills rise, and a shaded premises is worth more than a paved one. Developers who plant and retain indigenous trees on new estates are selling the cheapest climate adaptation available. Waste processors, composters and recyclers have a growing raw material stream that councils currently burn or bury.

For investors: urban forestry, carbon credits from restored municipal land, eco-tourism within city catchments and circular waste ventures are all revenue lines that depend on nature staying alive, which is the definition of a nature-based economy (UNEP, 2024). El Niño years will keep pricing the alternative.

For policy: the four measures above cost less than one season of heat-related health expenditure, load shedding compensation and flood repairs. Zambia’s commitments under its climate agenda and the continental guidance on riverine buffers (UNEP, 2024) give the legal cover. What has been missing is enforcement against construction in wetlands and on river sources.

We have spent twenty years building shadeless cities. Now we are sweating inside them. Super El Niño has found us defenceless because we deforested our defence. As Maathai put it, we are called to do something, however small, and the cumulative action restores the defence (Maathai, 2006). Plant or perish. Plan or roast.

For comments, contact the researcher and author on email: kamayoyokm@gmail.com

References

Achebe, C. (1958) Things Fall Apart. London: Heinemann. | Bullard, R.D. (1990) Dumping in Dixie. Boulder: Westview Press. | Carson, R. (1962) Silent Spring. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. | Ghosh, A. (2016) The Great Derangement. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. | Howard, E. (1902) Garden Cities of To-Morrow. London: Swan Sonnenschein. | Hugo, V. (1862) Les Misérables. Paris: A. Lacroix. | IPCC (2023) Climate Change 2023: Synthesis Report. Geneva: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. | Leonard, A. (2010) The Story of Stuff. New York: Free Press. | Maathai, W. (2006) Unbowed: A Memoir. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. | Shiva, V. (1988) Staying Alive. London: Zed Books. | UNEP (2024) Africa Water Quality Outlook: Rivers Under Pressure. Nairobi: United Nations Environment Programme. | Weather25 (2026) Maputo and Luanda 7 day weather forecast, 21 October 2026. | Weather.com (2026) Kinshasa Live Weather & Forecast, 21 October 2026. | WMO (2026a) WMO El Niño/La Niña Update, 8 October 2026. Geneva: World Meteorological Organization. | WMO (2026b) Seasonal Forecast Referenced in WMO Update: October-December 2026. Geneva: World Meteorological Organization. | WMO (2026c) El Niño Will Unleash Multiple Hazards in South-West Indian Ocean Region. Geneva: World Meteorological Organization.

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By The Zambian Economist Analyst

Health Minister Prof. Roma Chilengi has conducted a spot check at Livingstone University Teaching Hospital to assess healthcare delivery, the availability of essential medicines and medical supplies, and the condition of its facilities, according to the Ministry of Health.

The Ministry published the update on 21 October 2026 alongside a video of the visit. It described the inspection as part of the Government’s efforts to improve access to quality care.

The announcement does not say whether particular medicines were unavailable, which facilities required attention, or what instructions followed the inspection. Those details are needed before the visit can be treated as evidence of better services.

What was the Livingstone hospital spot check assessing?

The stated scope covered the services patients receive, stocks of essential medicines and medical supplies, and the general state of the hospital’s facilities. These are connected parts of care: a consultation may still leave a patient with further costs or another journey if the prescribed medicine or required service is unavailable.

That is an explanation of why the inspection matters, rather than a finding about conditions at Livingstone University Teaching Hospital. The Ministry’s published caption does not provide a facility-level assessment.

Why medicine availability matters to household budgets

When a patient has to obtain medicine elsewhere, the cost can extend beyond the price at a pharmacy. There may be another transport fare, time away from work, or a relative’s time spent accompanying them. For someone running a small business, hours spent making repeat trips can also mean hours away from customers.

No household-cost estimate accompanied this visit, and there is no basis in the announcement for calculating those expenses at Livingstone. The practical question for follow-up reporting is whether patients can complete the care they need without avoidable additional journeys.

What would show whether the inspection led to action?

A useful public update would identify any problems found, explain who is responsible for addressing them and give a date for checking progress. If no shortages or facility problems were identified, publishing the scope and results would still help readers understand what was checked.

For medicine stocks, an availability figure needs a definition: which medicines were assessed, on what date, and over what period? A snapshot of supplies on one day cannot, by itself, establish whether patients have been able to obtain them consistently.

For hospital services, readers would benefit from an account of any interruptions and the steps taken to resolve them. None of these measures has been announced in the Ministry’s caption; they are suggested tests for assessing the outcome.

The public-finance question is what reaches patients

For health managers and policymakers, the visit is an opportunity to compare the position reported through administrative systems with what is happening at a hospital. Any response should be matched to the problem actually established, whether that concerns supplies, equipment or the organisation of services.

The announcement contains no new procurement award or spending commitment. Suppliers and investors should therefore avoid reading the inspection as a notice of new contracts.

The next useful story is the result: what was found and, where action was needed, what changed for patients.

Explore our Health & Lifestyle coverage and Leadership & Governance hub. Related reporting: Zambia’s 2025 audit and health-sector arrears. Find organisations in our business directory and upcoming discussions in our events listings.

Source: Ministry of Health Zambia’s official video announcement, 21 October 2026. Household-cost and accountability discussion: The Zambian Economist’s analysis.

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By The Zambian Economist Analyst

The Drug Enforcement Commission says it has apprehended four people following an operation involving officers in Kazungula and Livingstone over the alleged unlawful importation of 100 boxes of Benylin with Codeine.

In a statement dated Wednesday, 21 October 2026, DEC Public Relations Officer Allan Tamba said the medicines had been concealed inside a truck. The Commission described the operation as a controlled delivery.

What DEC alleges

DEC identified one of those apprehended as Chekani Phiri, 41, of Chibombo District. It said his apprehension was connected to the alleged unlawful importation of the consignment.

The Commission also named Sibeso Mubita, 39, Mwangelwa Keyana, 40, and Aubrey Mubita, 19, all of Livingstone District.

According to DEC, the three were apprehended after allegedly receiving 15 of the 100 boxes from Phiri and transferring them into a Honda Fit. Those 15 boxes form part of the reported 100-box consignment; they are not an additional seizure.

DEC said the truck, the Honda Fit and the medicines had been seized. It said the four suspects were being held in custody to assist with further investigations into what it described as a supply syndicate.

Investigation is continuing

The account is DEC’s version of events. Apprehension and seizure do not establish guilt, and the allegations have not been determined by a court.

The statement does not provide a court date, a charge-sheet reference or responses from the suspects. It also does not give a verified monetary value for the consignment or a confirmed count of individual bottles. A box count should not be converted into a retail value or bottle total without those details.

Why medicine supply chains matter

DEC urged the public to avoid illicit business activities, saying unlawful medicine importation and distribution threaten public health and Zambia’s social and economic development.

The business issue extends to whether a medicine’s source and route to the customer can be checked. The Zambia Medicines Regulatory Authority describes licensed premises as facilities authorised to manufacture, store, distribute, dispense or sell regulated products. Its public registers provide routes to information on medicines and establishments.

For customers, a familiar product name alone does not establish that a particular consignment was imported or supplied lawfully. Equally, this statement concerns an allegation of unlawful importation and supply. It does not establish that the seized products were counterfeit, contaminated or expired.

For legitimate businesses moving or selling medicines, clear supplier records and verifiable authorisations help make transactions traceable. The DEC statement does not allege wrongdoing by every trader, transporter or pharmacy handling the brand.

DEC calls for public cooperation

The Commission thanked members of the public and stakeholders for assisting efforts to detect crime. It encouraged people to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities to DEC.

Members of the public should pass concerns to the authorities rather than confront people or circulate unverified accusations. Further reporting on this case should follow confirmed investigative or court developments.

Read more in Leadership & Governance and Health & Lifestyle. Related reporting: ACC and Irish Rule of Law International discuss financial-crime capacity.

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By The Zambian Economist Analyst

The Zambia Meteorological Department has warned of severe heat conditions across Zambia during an alert period running from 20 to 24 October 2026. Its advice is to reduce exposure, stay hydrated and protect people who are particularly vulnerable to high temperatures.

The advisory, issued at 15:40 CAT on Tuesday, 20 October, says a tropical warm airflow from the east is influencing Zambia’s weather and is expected to remain active throughout the forecast period.

For a market trader, construction worker or farmer, the warning raises a practical problem: how to keep earning while avoiding prolonged exposure to the heat. A safer working day may mean moving heavier tasks to cooler hours and making water and shaded breaks part of the job.

What does the alert say?

The department describes the expected conditions as severe heat caused by prolonged high temperatures. The bulletin does not give maximum temperatures for individual districts or quantify likely losses to farming or business.

It advises people to drink plenty of water, limit strenuous outdoor activities, particularly during peak afternoon hours, and keep cool in shaded or well-ventilated places. Cool showers are among the options it lists where available.

The alert also asks healthcare facilities to prepare for increased cases of heat-related illness and urges particular protection for children and older people. The department says it will continue monitoring weather patterns and sharing updates alongside the Disaster Risk Management Division.

Why heat becomes an income problem

Someone paid by the day or dependent on daily sales may find it difficult to stop working during the hottest hours. Yet continuing strenuous activity without adequate rest or water can put health at risk.

The World Health Organization’s guidance on workplace heat stress explains that the strain on workers depends on physical effort, environmental conditions and clothing. Air temperature alone does not capture the full exposure: humidity, direct sunlight and air movement also matter.

For Zambia’s informal businesses, the economic risk is straightforward. Illness can interrupt trading and add treatment or transport costs to a household budget. That is a possible consequence of exposure, rather than a measured loss from this particular alert.

Our reporting on the pressures on informal workers’ incomes shows why additional disruptions deserve attention. People with limited cash reserves have less room to absorb time away from work.

What employers and market managers can do

Businesses should assess which tasks expose workers to the most heat and whether demanding outdoor work can be moved away from peak afternoon hours. Ready access to safe drinking water and a shaded place to rest can make the advisory more practical.

Supervisors can make sure workers know the warning signs and can report feeling unwell promptly. Market committees can check whether traders and customers have access to shade and water, especially in exposed trading areas.

These are practical responses to the alert, rather than new legal requirements announced in the bulletin. A market stall, building site and enclosed workshop will need different arrangements.

When should you seek medical attention?

The Meteorological Department advises immediate medical attention if someone experiences dizziness, confusion or fainting. Stop the activity and move the person to a cooler place while arranging help. Do not leave them alone.

The WHO describes heatstroke as a medical emergency. MedlinePlus advises against giving anything by mouth to an unconscious person.

Households should check on children, older relatives and people who need help keeping cool or obtaining water. WHO advises never leaving children or dependent adults alone in parked vehicles.

Livestock and fish feed need protection too

The advisory asks livestock owners to provide animals with enough water and shade. It also calls for proper storage of fish feed during the hot weather.

For farmers, that means checking watering arrangements and storage conditions before problems develop. Follow the feed supplier’s storage instructions and seek veterinary or extension advice where animals show signs of distress.

The bulletin does not forecast specific crop failures or livestock deaths. Those outcomes should not be assumed from the warning. The immediate task is to reduce avoidable exposure and keep essential farm routines working.

Shade is also an investment

Over the longer term, covered trading spaces, suitable trees and better ventilation can make workplaces more usable during hot weather. Our analysis of trees, food security and livelihoods considers why protecting shade and the local environment has economic value.

For this alert period, households and businesses need measures they can use now. Check daily weather updates, plan demanding tasks for cooler hours where possible and make sure vulnerable people can reach water and a cooler place.

More coverage: Health & Lifestyle and Business & Economy.

Image: Traders and shoppers at Chisokone Market, Kitwe. Archive photograph used to illustrate outdoor trading, not conditions during this alert. Photograph: Edu-Tourist / Flickr, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0; cropped. The photograph retains its Creative Commons licence.

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By The Zambian Economist Analyst

The Ministry of Health has started restructuring its headquarters by sending 123 officers back to the stations they were originally posted to. Health Minister Professor Roma Chilengi announced the move in a statement issued to ZNBC News, saying an internal assessment had established that the officers were serving at headquarters under temporary administrative arrangements outside the approved 2021 establishment.

The approved headquarters structure provides for 403 positions. Chilengi said the exercise is meant to bring the ministry into compliance with that staffing framework and to improve efficiency in the health sector. The returning officers are expected to add to staffing at frontline health facilities and decentralised administrative centres.

The announcement comes less than a month after Chilengi, the former Director General of the Zambia National Public Health Institute, was sworn in as Health Minister.

What did the Ministry of Health announce?

What is an approved establishment, and why does it matter?

In Zambia’s public service, an establishment is the approved list of positions an institution may fill, each tied to a grade and a budget line. It tells the Treasury how many people to pay and tells managers where those people should be working.

When an officer is paid against a post at a district hospital but works in Lusaka, the payroll and the duty station no longer match. The hospital carries a vacancy that is not shown as one, and headquarters carries staff its structure does not provide for. Sending the 123 officers back to their official pay points closes that gap on paper and, if they report, in practice.

The statement does not say how long the officers had been at headquarters, which departments they were working in, or how the temporary arrangements were first approved.

What does this mean for clinics and hospitals?

The ministry expects the move to strengthen staffing at frontline facilities and decentralised administrative centres. How much difference it makes on the ground depends on who the 123 officers are. If a large share are clinical staff, such as nurses, clinical officers or pharmacists, their return adds direct capacity to facilities. If most are administrative staff, the effect will fall mainly on provincial and district health offices.

The ministry has not published a breakdown by cadre or by province. Staffing at rural facilities has been a long-running concern, and the Civil Service Commission has been validating volunteer health workers for recruitment into the public service, so the distribution of these returning officers will be watched closely by health unions and district managers.

The second phase: a qualifications check at headquarters

Chilengi said the ministry will assess the qualifications and competencies of everyone occupying positions within the approved headquarters establishment. Officers who lack the required academic, professional or technical qualifications for their current roles will be reassigned to operational stations that correspond with their verified credentials.

This phase could affect more people than the first. It applies to staff who are inside the approved structure but may not meet the requirements of the post they hold. The statement does not give a timeline, say who will carry out the assessment, or say whether posts freed up at headquarters will be advertised.

What does it mean for the wage bill?

The redeployment is not a retrenchment. The officers keep their jobs and return to their official pay points, so the exercise does not by itself reduce the number of people on the government payroll or the ministry’s salary costs.

Its fiscal value lies in matching spending to service. Personal emoluments are the largest single item in most ministries’ budgets, and pressure on the public service wage bill has been a recurring theme this year, from the Emoluments Commission’s salary harmonisation work to the Cabinet’s 2027 budget priorities. A health worker paid to staff a rural clinic is better value when that worker is at the clinic.

What it means for business and development partners

Suppliers, contractors and private health providers that deal with the ministry’s headquarters may find some familiar contacts gone. The statement does not say how the files handled by the departing officers will be handed over. Development partners that fund health programmes through the ministry will want the same answer, along with assurance that programme units are staffed within the approved structure.

Questions the statement leaves open

• How many of the 123 officers are clinical staff, and which provinces are they returning to?
• By when must the officers report to their stations?
• Will they receive transfer or relocation support?
• How many of the 403 approved headquarters positions are currently filled?
• When will the qualifications assessment start, and who will conduct it?

What happens next

The redeployment has started. The next markers to watch are the timetable and method for the qualifications assessment, any figures the ministry releases on where the officers have reported, and whether other ministries carry out similar checks against their own approved establishments.

Related: Hichilema Swears In Four Ministers: Haimbe Returns at Foreign Affairs, Musokotwane Retained at Finance.

Related: Hichilema Nominates Five MPs, Including Ex-Foreign Minister Haimbe.

Related: Civil Service Commission Nears Completion of Volunteer Health Worker Validation.

Related: Zambia’s Emoluments Commission Opens ZCAS Salary Harmonisation as Wage Bill Pressure Builds.

Related: Cabinet Sets 2027 Budget Priorities: Growth, Jobs and Tax Compliance.

Hub: Leadership & Governance | Health & Lifestyle.

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The spinal tap of doom

Let’s talk about lumbar punctures, or as some of us call them, “the spinal tap of doom.”

There’s a serious misconception out there that people die from them. So naturally, when doctors suggested one for me, I thought, “This is it. Lord, take the wheel.”

Five lumbar punctures in five months

When I first started experiencing anxiety, panic attacks, and dissociation, I didn’t know what was going on. I just knew I felt weird. And because I didn’t understand mental health (like many people, I thought mental illness only meant what we saw in the streets), I kept going back to the hospital describing my physical and psychological symptoms.

Long story short: I ended up doing five lumbar punctures in just five months.

Yep. Five. For what turned out to be… anxiety and PTSD.

After every test (blood work, CT scans, spinal taps) results came back “normal.” But nothing felt normal. So naturally, I thought: “This must be spiritual.”

Finding the words for what I was living with

Eventually, I took matters into my own hands and started researching. That’s when I came across the words: anxiety, panic attacks, PTSD, derealization. Finally, it all made sense.

I went to Chainama Hills Hospital, saw a psychologist, and was diagnosed with PTSD, something I had no idea I was living with.

Changing the narrative

Mental health is deeply misunderstood and often overlooked. There’s a lot of ignorance, and I was once part of that statistic. But now I’m passionate about changing the narrative. These symptoms are real and they can be debilitating. But if you’re going through it, whether anxiety, panic attacks or depression, you are not alone.

Shout-out to Malango Goma Yombwe, who lifted me up when I hit rock bottom after that fifth lumbar puncture. Yes, I had back pain and headaches afterward, but spoiler alert: I’m still alive.

To God be the glory.

Let’s keep talking about mental health. Someone out there needs to hear your story.

Nenne Sharon Mwale
Mental health activist

Related coverage

• DEC takes drug and mental health education to church camp meetings
• A Strong Kwacha and the Price of Medicine: Why It Is Not Reaching You
• Zambia’s Cancer Diseases Hospital Reopens Radiotherapy Wing After Five-Year Closure

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When the Drug Enforcement Commission wanted to reach young people in Western Province last month, it did not set up a roadblock or a courtroom. It went to church. Through its Education and Counselling Department, the Commission joined the Seventh-day Adventist and Catholic camp meetings held from 23rd to 29th August 2026, slotting drug prevention sessions between the prayers and reflections that anchor the annual gatherings.

What happened at the camp meetings

Camp meetings bring church members together for days of worship, teaching and fellowship, and they draw some of the largest youth audiences any institution in rural Zambia can assemble. The ECD team used that platform for structured sessions on drug and substance use, run alongside the normal programme rather than apart from it.

The subject matter went beyond the usual warnings. Officers walked the youths through the connection between substance use and mental health, naming depression, anxiety, suicide and self-harm as conditions that travel with prolonged alcohol, tobacco and cannabis use. Those three, the Commission says, remain the substances most commonly abused by young Zambians.

Why the mental health link matters

For years, Zambia’s drug conversation has run on two separate tracks: the police track, measured in arrests and seizures, and the health track, measured in admissions to Chainama and other psychiatric services. The DEC’s camp meeting sessions join the two. A young person who hears that cannabis can worsen anxiety, or that drinking deepens depression, is being given a reason to stay clear that has nothing to do with the fear of a cell.

The format mattered as much as the content. The Commission describes the sessions as highly interactive, with youths asking questions and sharing their own experiences. Prevention messaging that survives contact with an audience’s real life, rather than being recited at it, is the only kind that tends to change behaviour.

The church as a delivery channel

The choice of venue is the quieter story here. In much of rural Zambia the state’s footprint is thin, but churches run schools, clinics, youth clubs and camps with volunteer armies and weekly attendance figures most ministries would envy. A commission that pairs its enforcement mandate with an education arm that can walk into those networks buys reach it could not otherwise afford.

It also buys trust. Youths who would never attend a police-organised lecture will sit through a session their congregation has endorsed, sandwiched into a week they already chose to attend. The Commission says it remains committed to educating, empowering and engaging communities, particularly young people, and the camp meetings show what that looks like in practice.

What to watch

The test of sensitisation programmes is never the workshop itself; it is what happens months later, in the choices of the people who sat through it. Watch for two things: whether the DEC extends the church partnership to other provinces and denominations, and whether its counselling lines begin reporting more young people seeking help voluntarily, which is the outcome this kind of outreach is designed to produce.

More reporting on Zambia’s institutions and public policy is collected in our Leadership and Governance hub.

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Related: The Truth About Lumbar Punctures, and My Unexpected Journey Through Five of Them.

LUSAKA – The Zambia Meteorological Department has warned of windy and slightly cooler conditions across parts of Zambia from Monday, 24 August to Sunday, 30 August 2026.

The Department said a high-pressure system over the Indian Ocean is driving a strong and relatively moist south-easterly airflow across the country. The system is expected to remain dominant throughout the forecast period, producing stronger winds and a slight fall in temperatures.

Cloud cover and light rain forecast in six provinces

Cloudy weather is forecast over Lusaka, Central, Eastern and Muchinga provinces, as well as northern parts of Luapula and Northern provinces.

Light rain is also expected in northern parts of Luapula and Northern provinces. The advisory does not provide uniform temperature or rainfall figures for every affected district, so local conditions may vary.

The warning follows an earlier spell of cold and windy weather this month. Residents should use the Department’s daily forecasts for district-level changes rather than assuming the same conditions will occur everywhere.

What should residents do during the cooler weather?

Residents have been advised to wear warm clothing, particularly during cooler nights and early mornings.

Children, older people and those with respiratory conditions should avoid prolonged outdoor activity where cold air, dust or strong winds could aggravate existing health problems.

Parents and guardians should supervise children around open fires, braziers and other heating equipment. These heat sources can cause serious burns when children are left unattended.

Wind warning for boats and motorists

Water transport users have been urged to exercise extreme caution because strong winds can create hazardous conditions on lakes, rivers and other water bodies.

Operators should check the latest local forecast before departure and avoid travelling when conditions appear unsafe.

Motorists have been advised not to park under trees. Strong winds could bring down branches, damaging vehicles or injuring people nearby.

Businesses operating from temporary or open-air structures should monitor changing conditions and secure loose materials that could be blown into roads or public spaces.

Department to continue monitoring conditions

The Zambia Meteorological Department said it would continue monitoring weather patterns and issuing updates in collaboration with the Disaster Risk Management Division.

Conditions may vary by district. Residents should follow the Department’s official website and daily bulletins throughout the week.

How are the wind and cooler temperatures affecting your area?

Source: Zambia Meteorological Department, as reported in the current ZNBC weather update. Featured photograph: Timothy A. Gonsalves/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Related coverage

• Zambia Warned of Colder, Windy Conditions From 11 to 15 August
• Zambia Weather Bulletin: Cool Mornings and Windy Conditions Expected

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Update, 26 September: the Met Department has issued a new warning for thunderstorms and strong winds from 27 September to 2 October.

By The Zambian Economist Analyst

Photo by The Zambian Economist Analyst

The road ahead looks open, the sky is pale and only a few vehicles are visible. It is the sort of Lusaka morning that can persuade a driver there is plenty of time.

That impression can be costly.

Lusaka can develop heavy traffic quickly if you miss the right time to leave home. A quiet road can fill within minutes as school runs, staff buses, minibuses, delivery vehicles, motorcycles and private cars join the morning movement.

The difference between leaving early and leaving slightly late may be the difference between reaching the office calmly and spending part of the morning watching brake lights.

A cool start to Tuesday

At the time of writing, Lusaka was experiencing a cool morning of about 15°C, with clouds and sunshine. Tuesday is expected to become warmer, reaching approximately 25°C, before temperatures fall to around 16°C later in the day. The forecast points to hazy sunshine. Readers can check the latest Lusaka forecast from the UK Met Office. The Zambian Economist has also published a related cold and windy weather advisory for 11 to 15 August.

Residents should dress warmly during the morning. A jersey, light jacket or coat will help, particularly for children, older people, early-shift workers and commuters using open vehicles or motorcycles.

Layered clothing is the sensible choice. The afternoon may feel considerably warmer, so wear something that can be removed and carried easily once the temperature rises.

Motorcyclists should protect their hands and chest from the morning air. Parents should ensure that children waiting for school transport are properly covered. Anyone leaving home before sunrise should expect the coldest part of the day.

Lusaka traffic can change before you realise it

The photograph captures a broad road with light traffic and good forward visibility. It also shows why motorists should not treat an open stretch as permission to increase speed.

Vehicles may stop along the roadside. Motorcycles can appear between lanes. Pedestrians may cross where drivers do not expect them. A minibus can slow down suddenly to collect a passenger, while another motorist may change lanes without sufficient warning.

Tuesday traffic is shaped by several journeys taking place at the same time:

• Parents taking children to school.
• Employees travelling to offices and industrial areas.
• Traders moving towards markets and roadside trading points.
• Delivery vehicles supplying shops and restaurants.
• Public-service vehicles collecting passengers.
• Contractors transporting workers and building materials.
• Government and private-sector meetings beginning in the central business district.

Traffic pressure can build on major approaches such as Great North Road, Kafue Road, Mumbwa Road and Leopards Hill Road. Movement also tends to slow around busy junctions and commercial areas connected to Cairo Road, Lumumba Road, Independence Avenue, Addis Ababa Drive, Church Road and the surrounding central business district.

This is not a live traffic incident report. Conditions can differ from one junction to another, so drivers should check a live navigation service or obtain an update from someone already on the route before leaving.

Tuesday morning traffic tips

Leave before the pressure builds

Give yourself an additional 20 to 30 minutes where possible. Leaving early is usually cheaper than driving aggressively after becoming late.

The extra time also allows a motorist to deal with an unexpected queue, roadworks, a slow-moving truck, a school-zone delay or a minor mechanical problem without taking dangerous risks.

Check the full journey before starting

Do not wait until you are already in traffic to look for another route. Check your preferred road, one alternative and the conditions near your destination.

An alternative route is useful only when it genuinely saves time. If every driver diverts through a residential road, that route may become congested too.

Keep a safe following distance

Cool or hazy mornings can affect visibility. Windscreens may also be dusty, misted or marked.

Leave enough distance to stop safely. Tailgating rarely shortens a journey, but it increases the chance of a collision that can delay hundreds of other road users.

Avoid unnecessary roadside stops

Do not stop on the carriageway or shoulder unless it is necessary and safe. A stationary vehicle can become difficult to see in weak morning light.

If your vehicle develops a problem, move as far away from moving traffic as safely possible, activate hazard lights and use the appropriate warning equipment.

Watch for motorcycles, cyclists and pedestrians

Motorcycles can be difficult to see beside larger vehicles. Check mirrors and blind spots before changing lanes.

Drivers should also slow down near bus stops, schools, markets and trading areas. People may step onto the road while looking for transport or attempting to cross between vehicles.

Do not use the phone while driving

A message can wait. Lusaka’s traffic requires constant attention because the road environment can change within seconds.

If a call is urgent, use a lawful hands-free arrangement or stop at a safe place away from moving traffic.

Be patient with public transport

Minibuses and buses carry many of the people who keep Lusaka working. Drivers should expect them to stop frequently, but public-service drivers also have a duty to pull over safely and avoid blocking active lanes.

Road courtesy saves more time than competition.

Check the vehicle before entering traffic

A Tuesday morning is a poor time to discover that the car has little fuel, low tyre pressure or a weak battery.

Before leaving, check:

• Fuel or available electric range.
• Tyres.
• Lights and indicators.
• Windscreen visibility.
• Engine temperature and warning lights.
• Driving licence and other required documents.

The rhythm of weekday Lusaka

A weekday morning in Lusaka begins long before many office doors open.

Bread is being delivered. Mobile-money booths are preparing float. Market traders are arranging stock. Security guards are handing over shifts. Restaurants are preparing breakfast, while construction workers gather near worksites.

At bus stops, commuters calculate whether to wait for a cheaper ride or take the first available option. Parents negotiate school drop-offs before turning towards their workplaces. Informal traders position themselves where pedestrian movement is strongest.

By the time offices open, a large part of the city has already completed several hours of work.

Tuesday has its own character. Monday is often occupied by planning, inboxes and meetings. Tuesday is when many organisations expect visible progress. Suppliers follow up on purchase orders. Sales teams return to clients. Accountants process payments. Entrepreneurs check whether the week’s early enquiries are becoming actual business.

This creates movement across the city, from the central business district and industrial areas to shopping centres, markets, government offices and residential neighbourhoods.

What traffic costs businesses

Congestion is more than a transport problem. It is a business expense.

A delivery vehicle trapped in traffic consumes fuel without producing revenue. A late employee loses productive time. A missed appointment may delay a sale. Perishable goods can lose value while being transported.

Small businesses often feel these costs most because they have fewer vehicles, smaller cash reserves and limited staff cover.

Employers should therefore treat commuting and delivery time as part of operational planning.

Schedule deliveries outside the busiest periods

Where customer requirements allow, move stock after the morning rush and before the evening build-up.

Combining several deliveries into one properly planned journey may reduce fuel use and vehicle wear.

Confirm meetings before travelling

A short call or WhatsApp message can prevent an unnecessary trip across Lusaka. Confirm that the client is available, the office is open and the person responsible for the decision will attend.

For a brief discussion, a phone or video call may be more efficient.

Group appointments by location

Avoid booking one meeting in the central business district, another across town and a third back near the starting point.

Group appointments by area. The result may be fewer kilometres, lower fuel expenditure and more time available for customers.

Give customers realistic arrival times

Do not promise a delivery time that depends on every road being clear. Customers are usually more understanding when delays are communicated early.

A business that provides honest updates can protect trust even when traffic interrupts the schedule.

Use the early morning commercially

Businesses serving commuters should prepare before customers arrive.

Breakfast outlets can package quick meals. Mobile-money agents should check float early. Fuel stations and convenience shops should prepare for short, high-volume transactions. Pharmacies, bakeries and roadside retailers can use WhatsApp status updates to tell customers what is available before the morning rush.

Protect working capital

Tuesday is also a useful day to examine cash flow before the week becomes too busy.

Business owners should check:

• Payments expected from customers.
• Supplier obligations falling due.
• Stock that is selling slowly.
• Fuel and transport expenses.
• Mobile-money, banking and payment charges.
• Orders that require deposits before work begins.

Revenue is not the same as cash available. A business can appear busy and still struggle if customers are slow to pay.

A practical Tuesday plan

For employees, the morning objective should be simple: arrive safely, settle quickly and identify the work that must be completed before lunch.

For business owners, Tuesday is a good day to follow up on quotations sent on Monday. Do not send a vague message asking whether the customer has “seen the quote”. Ask whether the price, delivery period or payment terms require clarification.

For sales teams, begin with the prospects most likely to make a decision. For retailers, examine Monday’s sales and restock items that moved quickly. For service businesses, confirm appointments and collect deposits where required.

Employers can also reduce unnecessary traffic exposure by allowing some administrative work to begin remotely where the job permits it. A worker who completes an early report from home and travels after the busiest period may lose less time than one who spends the same hour in a queue.

That arrangement will not suit every workplace, but it is worth considering where performance can be measured by completed work rather than physical presence alone.

Courtesy remains part of the solution

Lusaka’s traffic cannot be improved by road construction alone. Driver behaviour matters.

Blocking an intersection may save one vehicle a few seconds while delaying an entire line of traffic. Using the shoulder as an unofficial lane creates danger. Refusing to allow another vehicle to merge often causes further braking behind it.

The morning journey should not become a contest. Every person on the road is trying to reach work, school, a customer, a patient or a family responsibility.

A little patience can prevent an accident and keep traffic moving.

The morning outlook

Lusaka is waking to a cool Tuesday that should become warmer later. Dress warmly for the morning, carry a removable outer layer and allow more travelling time than the open road in the photograph might suggest.

Leave home before pressure builds. Drive defensively. Watch for motorcycles and pedestrians. Confirm appointments before crossing the city. If you run a business, plan deliveries and customer visits around the time lost in traffic.

The road may look empty now. Miss your departure time, however, and Lusaka can remind you very quickly that it is a busy capital city.

Advisory note

Traffic, road and weather conditions can change without notice. Motorists should follow lawful instructions from the Zambia Police Service and the Road Transport and Safety Agency, observe road signs and check live traffic information before travelling. Weather-sensitive readers should consult an updated forecast. The business observations in this feature are general information and do not constitute financial, investment, legal or professional advice.

WARNING! All rights reserved. This material and all other digital content on this website may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed, in whole or in part, without the prior express permission of The Zambian Economist. Where permission is granted, the content must be clearly credited to “The Zambian Economist,” with “www.zambianeconomist.com” prominently displayed.

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The Department attributed the conditions to a high-pressure system over the Indian Ocean that is driving strong, moist and cool air across Zambia. It said the system was expected to remain active throughout the forecast period, producing windy conditions in different parts of the country.

Six provinces expected to become cooler

The advisory identifies Western, Lusaka, Central, Southern, Eastern and Muchinga provinces as areas where temperatures are expected to fall.

The Department did not provide uniform temperature figures for every affected district in the statement supplied for this report. Conditions may therefore vary by location, and residents should follow provincial and daily forecasts for more precise information.

Independent forecast data reviewed by The Zambian Economist also indicated cooler daytime and overnight conditions in several provincial centres during the period, particularly from 13 to 15 August. The Zambia Meteorological Department remains the authoritative national source for warnings and updates.

Public advised to dress warmly

The Department advised members of the public to wear warm clothing, particularly during cooler nights and early mornings.

People with respiratory conditions, children and older persons have been advised to limit exposure to dust and use appropriate protective measures where necessary.

Parents and guardians were also urged to supervise children closely and keep them away from open fires, braziers and other heating sources to reduce the risk of burn injuries.

Strong winds may make water transport hazardous

People using boats and other forms of water transport have been advised to exercise extreme caution because windy conditions may make travel on lakes, rivers and other water bodies hazardous.

Operators should monitor local conditions and official instructions before beginning a journey. The national advisory does not replace location-specific guidance from authorities responsible for particular water bodies.

Election Day falls within the forecast period

The warning covers Thursday, 13 August, when Zambia is scheduled to hold its General Election. Voters, polling staff, observers and security personnel may therefore need to prepare for cooler mornings, wind and dust in affected areas.

People planning to spend time outdoors should dress in layers and secure lightweight personal items. Vendors and small businesses operating from temporary stalls should secure umbrellas, signs and other loose materials, while ensuring that their activities comply with local and electoral requirements.

The weather advisory does not indicate that voting will be disrupted. The practical impact will depend on the strength and timing of the conditions in each locality.

Department continuing to monitor conditions

The Zambia Meteorological Department, which operates under the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment, said it would continue monitoring weather patterns and issuing updates in collaboration with the Disaster Risk Management Division.

Members of the public should follow the Department’s official website and bulletins for updated forecasts, warnings and changes to the expected conditions.

Source: Zambia Meteorological Department advisory covering 11 to 15 August 2026. Additional forecast checks were conducted for selected provincial centres. Featured image is illustrative and does not depict conditions in Zambia.

Latest update: Zambia Braces for Windy, Cooler Weather Until August 30

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