Lukulu District & Town
Lukulu town is the main Centre of Lukulu District which is the poorest of seven Districts within the Western Province of Zambia. The Western Province is itself the poorest and least developed Province of Zambia.
The people of Lukulu suffer great deprivations, and Lukulu can only be accessed by one very poorly maintained dirt road of 200kms to the nearest tarred surface.
The main access road in Lukulu during the wet season
Only two High Schools (located adjacent to each other) within the town of Lukulu, and 75 Government Primary (plus in the region of 25 community Schools) serve the entire population of the District which is around 90 000 people dispersed over an area of approximately 300 kms by 180 kms with no roads.
The people live in mud and grass huts within rural village structures, and move on foot, or minimally by oxcart or bicycle.
Typical houses within the local villages
Motorised transport is limited to a few traders, a small number of Government employees, Government and Mission vehicles. Village households have little or no access to clean water, but carry it long distances from local streams, except for a limited number of boreholes. It is largely a non-cash economy of subsistence agriculture on poor sandy soils, with bartering of local produce. The mighty Zambezi river which flows through the area provides for local subsistence fishing activities and is a key transport route for the people by means of hand-made dug-out canoes. One poorly resourced small hospital, together with 13 Rural Health Centres provide what support they can for the medical needs of the entire District.
Employment is limited to teachers, nurses and a few other small Government Administrative Departments. These would earn on average in the region of between US $ 250 -$ 500 per month. A few traders have developed small shops and businesses to cater for local basic needs.
Main street and one of two gravel roads in Lukulu