ABSTRACT
Zambia has some of the richest deposits of copper and cobalt in the world. Gigantic industrial mines have until recently been premier exporters of high-grade copper to industrial economies of the West as well as Japan and China. To add to that great resource advantage, Zambia has the reputation of being one of the most stable countries in Africa. In 1975 Zambia was one of the few non-oil exporting nations with a substantial balance-of-payments surplus. By 1985 the country was deeply in debt and behind in repayment of interest on the external loans. Although Zambia is known to have great agricultural potential, tsetse infestation, unreliable rainfall in certain areas, and high internal production costs have slowed down the development of commercial agriculture. Much of the discussion of Zambia's achievements and problems centers on the personality of Kenneth Kaunda. Not only has he dominated domestic politics since 1964 but he is also the symbol of Zambia's complex and contentious foreign policies.
