Zambia ─ The First 50 Years, Reflections of an Eyewitness

On 24 October 1964, the Republic of Zambia was formed, replacing the territory which had formerly been known as Northern Rhodesia. Fifty years on, Andrew Sardanis provides a sympathetic but critical insider's account of Zambia, from independence to the present. He paints a stark picture of Northern Rhodesia at decolonisation and the problems of the incoming government, presented with an immense uphill task of rebuilding the infrastructure of government and administration – civil service, law, local government and economic development.

Sardanis was a minister at the heart of the government and later a highly successful entrepreneur. As a friend and colleague of many of the most prominent names in post-independence Zambia – from the presidencies of founding leader Kenneth Kaunda to the incumbent Michael Sata – he uses his unique eyewitness experience to provide an inside view of a country in transition. He looks at the highs and lows of Zambia's political development: a purposeful beginning followed by many blunders; confusion, at times bordering on chaos, interspersed with flashes of sensible action and good work.

This book provides a detailed examination of the major events in Zambia's history since independence and their effect on the country's development and progress, based on Sardanis's in-depth knowledge of Zambia and its people and the inner workings of its government.

Andrew Sardanis was born and educated in colonial Cyprus, worked as a journalist and spent his life in Northern Rhodesia, later Zambia, where he developed his business interests, including work with multinationals, and was a member of the legislature and government. He is the author of Africa: Another Side of the Coin and A Venture in Africa (both I.B.Tauris).