Zambia provides a blueprint for rural development worldwide
(March 2025) Zambia is embracing technology. But it wants to do it right, ensuring that its digitalization is comprehensive and complete, and that none of its people are left behind, especially those in traditionally underserved rural communities.
“In order to bring in a digital economy, we had to ensure that all parts of the country were connected,” said Dr. Brilliant Habeenzu, Zambia’s Permanent Secretary of Technology and Science. That was particularly crucial to key industries such as agriculture, manufacturing, mining, and tourism.
In an interview with Transform Talks, Dr. Habeenzu noted that Zambia also has an ICT policy and an Artificial Intelligence strategy, regulatory blueprints that point the way forward for this fast-growing country.
Zambia’s partner in connectivity is Huawei. “We want every village to become smart,” said Wind Li, CEO of Huawei’s Global Public Sector Business Unit. “If every village becomes smart, then Zambia will become smart.”
During a visit by the Zambian president to Huawei’s headquarters two years ago, the company agreed to launch a smart village project – with Muchila in Namwala District, Southern Province, being selected as the pilot location. Today, Namwala District has a mini-solar grid powering a school, a clinic, and teachers’ residences. Muchila is also connected to the world with a RuralStar communications tower that provides wireless coverage to residents.
Digitalizing a country involves a constant process of adaptation. Central to the success of that process is the integration of connectivity, smart education technology, and maintaining reliable electric power.
“When we started to do an analysis of Muchila, we found that you need to provide services, not just connectivity,” said Li. “We built the towers [telecommunication base stations], and also the solar panels that supply electricity for them.”
Once a certain level of digital infrastructure is in place, things can take off quickly. Li noted that, in China, people in the countryside sell fruits and vegetables through TikTok and other online platforms. Zambia, he predicted, will soon be doing the same thing – a prospect that was hard to imagine until recently.
