The Zambezi River

Much has been said, written, and passed from generation to generation, about the Nile River, north east of Africa. There is yet another river that has transformed the lives of eight southern African nations – The Zambezi River, just as Egypt, Ethiopia, down to the Congo, have been transformed by the Nile River. The Zambezi River is the fourth largest river in Africa after the Nile River, Congo River, and the Niger River. The Zambezi is 2,693km long, feeding 16 smaller rivers in Zambia, Angola, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi, and Namibia.

Throughout its course, the Zambezi River winds through numerous cultures, political boundaries and varying climates. In some places, its flow appears as a placid lake, while in others, it is a busy display of tumbling rapids and waterfalls. Eighty percent of more than 42 million people residing in the river's basin depend on agriculture for their livelihood. One-third of the population relies on healthy fisheries for food.

Source
The river rises in a black marshy dambo in north-western Zambia, in undulating miombo woodland, quite dense in parts, about 1,500 m (4,900 ft) above sea level. Eastward of the source, the watershed between the Congo and Zambezi basins is a well-marked belt of high ground, falling abruptly north and south, and running nearly east-west. This distinctly cuts off the basin of the Lualaba (the main branch of the upper Congo) from that of the Zambezi. In the neighbourhood of the source the watershed is not as clearly defined, but the two river systems do not connect.

Exploration
The Zambezi region was known to medieval geographers as the Empire of Monomotapa, and the course of the river, as well as the position of Lakes Ngami and Nyasa, were given broadly accurately in early maps. These were probably constructed from Arab information.

The first European to visit the upper Zambezi was David Livingstone in his exploration from Bechuanaland between 1851 and 1853. Two or three years later he descended the Zambezi to its mouth and in the course of this journey discovered the Victoria Falls. During 1858–60, accompanied by John Kirk, Livingstone ascended the river by the Kongone mouth as far as the Falls, and also traced the course of its tributary the Shire and reached Lake Malawi.

Dams & Lakes
Several dams and reservoirs provide power and employment for the people of the region. Spectacular natural features like Btoka Gorge and Victoria Falls—one of the seven wonders of the world—attract recreational and wildlife enthusiasts from around the globe. Zambezi is the source of the Kariba Dam, and contributes to the Cabora Basa Dam, and Lake Malawi.

Wildlife
While important to local economies and human livelihoods, competing demands among agriculture, power generation, tourism and other land-based activities have taken a toll on the Zambezi's ecological health—especially aquatic life. The river supports large populations of many animals. Hippopotamuses are abundant along most of the calm stretches of the river, and many crocodiles are also present. Monitor lizards are found in many places. Bird life is abundant, with species including heron, pelican, egret and African Fish Eagle present in large numbers.

Riverine woodland also supports many large animals, such as buffalo, zebras, giraffes and elephants. However, below Kariba and Cahora Bassa dams, the cessation of annual flooding has seen the area of this habitat greatly reduced and a corresponding reduction in the populations of the large mammals.

Tourism
Between Mongu and Livingstone, several safari lodges cater for tourists who want to fish for exotic species, and many also catch fish to sell to aquaria. Several parts of the river are also very popular tourist destinations. Victoria Falls receives over 1.5 million visitors annually, while Mana Pools and Lake Kariba also draw substantial tourist numbers.

The Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya (the Smoke that thunders), part of the Zambezi River, is a waterfall situated in southern Africa between the countries of Zambia and Zimbabwe. The falls are, by some measures, the largest waterfall in the world, as well as being among the most unusual in form, and having arguably the most diverse and easily seen wildlife of any major waterfall site.

The Kariba Dam is a hydroelectric dam in the Kariba Gorge of the Zambezi river basin between Zambia and Zimbabwe. It is one of the largest dams in the world at 128 m high and 579 m long.

Mana Pools is a wildlife conservation area in Western Zimbabwe constituting a National Park. It is a region of the lower Zambezi River in Zimbabwe where the flood plain turns into a broad expanse of lakes after each rainy season. As the lakes gradually dry up and recede, the region attracts many large animals in search of water, making it one of Africa's most renowned game-viewing regions.

Mana means ‘four’ in Shona, in reference to the four large permanent pools formed by the meanderings of the middle Zambezi. These 2,500 square kilometres of river frontage, islands, sandbanks and pools, flanked by forests of mahogany, wild figs, ebonies and baobabs, is one of the least developed National Parks in Southern Africa.

Fishing & Life
Fish serve as a vital link in the Zambezi River ecosystem, and represent a staple in the diet of millions of people. Fish also fuel local economies throughout the basin. Communities by the river fish extensively from it, and many people travel from far afield to fish. Some Zambian towns on roads leading to the river levy unofficial 'fish taxes' on people taking Zambezi fish to other parts of the country. As well as fishing for food, game fishing is a significant activity on some parts of the river.