Zambia marked 62 years of independence on 24 October 2026, with President Hakainde Hichilema paying tribute to the heroes who won the nation's freedom and calling on citizens to work hard for a future of accelerated growth under the Grow Zambia Agenda.
In his message on the eve of the anniversary, the President honoured the men and women who raised the national flag on 24 October 1964, when Zambia secured what he called the sovereign right to define its own destiny, according to LusakaTimes.com.
One Zambia, One Nation, One People
The celebrations ran under the theme “Zambia at 62: Our journey, our growth, our future”, with the President hosting guests from across society at State House, State House reported. Mr Hichilema reflected on a journey of peace, unity, stability and progress built on the motto One Zambia, One Nation, One People.
“Tomorrow marks 62 years since our forefathers and mothers lifted our national flag, with pride and determination,” President Hichilema said.
He honoured Kenneth David Kaunda, Harry Mwaanga Nkumbula, Simon Mwansa Kapwepwe, Alexander Grey Zulu, Humphrey Mulemba, Nalumino Mundia, Mama Julia Chikamoneka and Mama Betty Chilombo Chilunga, among others, for their courage and sacrifice, a tribute also reported by Mwebantu.
“We have held elections and seen smooth transitions of leadership. Through every challenge, the spirit of One Zambia, One Nation, One People, has kept us united,” he said.
From stabilisation to accelerated growth
Turning to the economy, the President celebrated Zambians as a smart, hard-working people. He singled out the resilience of farmers, the hard work of miners, the creativity of youth, the courage of the armed forces, the resourcefulness of women and the tenacity of entrepreneurs.
Young people drew his warmest praise. He recalled that they fought for independence and for democracy.
“Today, they are the backbone of our economy, our innovators and our leaders,” President Hichilema said.
The Grow Zambia Agenda is designed to move the economy from stabilisation to accelerated growth.
“We want to produce more maize, more wheat and more copper,” the Head of State said. The country, he added, is generating more electricity, attracting more tourists and facilitating more exports, while safeguarding the vulnerable and building strong institutions.
He also called on citizens to protect Zambia's abundant natural resources and use them sustainably for present and future generations. That is a message that speaks to the heart of national sovereignty: our copper, our maize, our power, in Zambian hands and serving Zambian interests first.
“We are a family made up of unique cultures from all corners of our country, but united as one country. When we face challenges, we do not break. We come together,” Mr Hichilema said.
“We stood tall through every storm,” he added, urging Zambians to look to the future with confidence and to recommit themselves to hard and smart work, discipline, integrity and service. He closed by calling on the nation to celebrate responsibly and in peace, an appeal echoed by the Diggers.
Zambia, the cradle of Southern African liberation
This anniversary also recalls a chapter of the national story that reaches far beyond our borders. Zambia is often described as the cradle of Southern African liberation movements, and that title was earned with Zambian blood.
When Kaunda became Zambia's first President in 1964, much of Southern Africa remained under white minority rule. South Africa was under apartheid. Zimbabwe, then Rhodesia, was governed by a white minority regime, while Namibia remained under South African control.
Kaunda believed Zambia's freedom was bound to that of its neighbours. Rather than settle into the comfort of its own independence, the young nation opened its doors to the movements fighting for theirs.
The African National Congress established its main headquarters in exile in Lusaka under Oliver Tambo, directing its campaign against apartheid for years from the Zambian capital. Zimbabwe's liberation movements, ZAPU and ZANU, operated from Zambian soil, and SWAPO, fighting for Namibia's independence, found a base here too.
Zambia paid heavily for that choice. On 19 October 1978, Rhodesian forces launched Operation Gatling, an offensive against Zimbabwean liberation camps at Chikumbi near Lusaka and at Mkushi. Hundreds were killed, among them women and children. The exact death toll remains disputed to this day.
In April 1979, Rhodesian commandos raided the Lusaka residence of Zimbabwean liberation leader Joshua Nkomo, bringing the war to the heart of the capital. Zambia's transport infrastructure also came under attack, disrupting trade and squeezing a landlocked state whose copper exports depended on routes through the very regimes its guests were fighting.
Kaunda held his course. He kept supporting the liberation movements while pursuing diplomatic solutions to the conflicts on Zambia's borders.
“We put our lives on the chopping board”
That record gives weight to remarks President Hichilema made months ago, when he spoke out against xenophobic attacks in South Africa and expressed concern that South Africans would turn against Zambians and others who had stood with them during the liberation struggle.
“We fought with South Africans. We put our lives on the chopping board,” he said then.
“Some of our military people died, civilians died, together with South Africans. Why should we separate ourselves now, now that you have the freedom?”
He described that question as homework that South Africans must mark, and mark properly.
The history is there for anyone who cares to look: the camps at Chikumbi and Mkushi, a raided home in Lusaka, trade routes cut by hostile neighbours. Zambia gave sanctuary, resources and support while absorbing military attacks and economic pressure. Zimbabwe won its independence in 1980, Namibia followed in 1990, and in 1994 South Africa held its first democratic elections, closing the apartheid chapter the ANC had fought from its Lusaka headquarters.
That legacy carries a warning for the present: stay alert to people and outside influences seeking to divide Africans. Division was a tool of colonial rule used to weaken African societies, while cooperation across borders became one of the foundations of the struggle that eventually freed Zimbabwe, Namibia and South Africa.
Zambians celebrate Independence Day with that legacy in full view. The freedom many Southern African nations now enjoy was built in part on the sanctuary Lusaka once gave, and no one should be allowed to forget it.
FAQ
When did Zambia gain independence?
Zambia gained independence on 24 October 1964, when the national flag was raised and the country secured the sovereign right to define its own destiny.
What is the theme of Zambia's 62nd independence anniversary?
The theme is “Zambia at 62: Our journey, our growth, our future”.
What is the Grow Zambia Agenda?
It is President Hichilema's plan to move the Zambian economy from stabilisation to accelerated growth, producing more maize, more wheat and more copper, generating more electricity and facilitating more exports.
Which liberation movements were based in Zambia?
The African National Congress of South Africa, Zimbabwe's ZAPU and ZANU, and Namibia's SWAPO all operated from Zambian soil during the liberation struggle.