Access to electricity in Zambia
Zambia: Access to electricity was 2.7% in 2016. ▲ Rising
Access to electricity in Zambia, 1990–2016
Source: World Bank Global Electrification Database 2013. Measured in % of rural population.
Analysis
Zambia recorded 2.7% for access to electricity in 2016.
The figure is down 28.2% on the previous year and down 37.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, access to electricity in Zambia peaked at 5.0% in 2001 and was at its lowest, 1.0%, in 1993.
Zambia ranks 192nd of 201 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 26 years of available data.
Access to electricity in Zambia, year by year
| Year | % of rural population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 1.8% | — |
| 1992 | 3.1% | +72.2% |
| 1993 | 1.0% | -67.1% |
| 1994 | 1.6% | +58.2% |
| 1995 | 2.2% | +36.3% |
| 1996 | 1.5% | -31.8% |
| 1997 | 3.3% | +122.1% |
| 1998 | 2.0% | -40.0% |
| 1999 | 4.4% | +119.2% |
| 2000 | 2.2% | -49.8% |
| 2001 | 5.0% | +125.1% |
| 2002 | 2.9% | -41.5% |
| 2003 | 3.0% | +3.4% |
| 2004 | 3.1% | +3.3% |
| 2005 | 4.4% | +42.0% |
| 2006 | 4.2% | -3.7% |
| 2007 | 3.0% | -29.2% |
| 2008 | 3.9% | +31.0% |
| 2009 | 3.8% | -3.6% |
| 2010 | 3.1% | -18.2% |
| 2011 | 3.5% | +13.6% |
| 2012 | 3.4% | -4.0% |
| 2013 | 3.2% | -4.5% |
| 2014 | 3.8% | +17.8% |
| 2015 | 3.7% | -2.6% |
| 2016 | 2.7% | -28.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 2.3% | 1.0% | 4.4% | 9 |
| 2000s | 3.6% | 2.2% | 5.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.3% | 2.7% | 3.8% | 7 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
More reference data data for Zambia
- Spring temperature anomalies -0.0386 (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies -0.018 (2026)
- Country level monthly temperature anomalies 0.3261 (2026)
- Exchange rate, new LCU per USD extended backward, period average 19.51 (2026)
- Exchange rate, old LCU per USD extended forward, period average 19.51 (2026)
- Official exchange rate, LCU per USD, period average 19.51 (2026)
- Universal right to vote in practice 2 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 0.5273 (2025)
- Winter temperature anomalies -0.2981 (2025)
- Consumer price index 483.32 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is access to electricity in Zambia?
- Access to electricity in Zambia was 2.7% in 2016, according to World Bank Global Electrification Database 2013.
- What is the highest access to electricity recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 5.0% in 2001.
- What is the lowest access to electricity recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.0% in 1993.
- How does Zambia rank for access to electricity?
- Zambia ranks 192nd out of 201 countries with data for 2016.
- Is access to electricity rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 37.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zambia data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank Global Electrification Database 2013, published as part of Access to electricity (% of rural population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Access to electricity is the percentage of rural population with access to electricity.