Zambia Targets Record 3 Million Tourists and $1 Billion Economy in 2026

The government of Zambia has formally declared its most ambitious tourism targets in history, announcing at the media launch of the Zambia Travel Expo (ZATEX) 2026 that it intends to attract between 2.5 and 3 million international visitors this year — and to build a $1 billion tourism industry by 2031. The declaration, delivered by Tourism Minister Rodney Sikumba, represents a fundamental reimagining of Zambia’s economic identity: a nation long defined by its copper mines now staking its future on wildlife, waterfalls, and wilderness.

The ambition is grounded in genuine momentum. In 2025, Zambia recorded 2.3 million international arrivals — its strongest performance in years — and the government has moved quickly to build on that foundation. The 2026 tourism sector budget has been raised to K1.5 billion (Zambian Kwacha), with funds earmarked for infrastructure development, wildlife management, and intensified marketing campaigns. ZATEX 2026 itself — scheduled for June 4–6 at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka — is expected to host 150 exhibitors including 24 small and medium enterprises, and 40 international buyers.

The Case for Zambia

Zambia is, in many ways, the great underrated safari destination of Southern Africa. While Zimbabwe and South Africa draw the headlines, Zambia’s national parks offer some of the continent’s most authentic and crowd-free wildlife encounters. South Luangwa National Park is widely regarded as one of the finest wildlife sanctuaries in the world, famous for its large concentrations of elephants, hippos, leopards, and lions, as well as a thriving walking safari tradition that originated here. Lower Zambezi National Park offers the unique experience of canoeing alongside wildlife on one of Africa’s great rivers.

And then, of course, there is Victoria Falls. Shared with Zimbabwe, the falls — known locally as Mosi-oa-Tunya, ‘the smoke that thunders’ — is one of the seven natural wonders of the world and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Zambian side of the falls, centred on Livingstone, offers travellers an adventure tourism hub with white-water rafting, bungee jumping, gorge swings, and helicopter flips over the cascading curtain of water.

Infrastructure Investment and Accessibility

For years, the knock on Zambia has been logistics: limited direct international flights, patchy road infrastructure in remote areas, and a shortage of mid-range accommodation options outside the top safari camps. The government’s K1.5 billion budget injection directly targets these pain points. Wildlife management investment will protect and expand the game populations that draw visitors in the first place, while infrastructure spending is expected to improve road access to key parks and develop secondary tourism corridors beyond the established circuit of Livingstone, South Luangwa, and Lower Zambezi.

Air connectivity is also improving. South African Airways Country Director Mildred Chalikulima, speaking at the ZATEX launch, underscored the importance of regional airline collaboration, noting that joint marketing and cross-border tourism initiatives between South Africa and Zambia create stronger combined offerings. For international travellers, this means more convenient routing options through Johannesburg’s O.R. Tambo International Airport — Africa’s busiest hub — into Lusaka and Livingstone.

ZATEX 2026: The Trade Engine

The Zambia Travel Expo serves as the commercial engine of the country’s tourism growth strategy. Acting CEO of the Zambia Tourism Agency, Abigail Shansonga, described ZATEX as a ‘flagship platform driving Zambia’s competitiveness as a tourism destination,’ and the numbers bear this out. The 2025 expo attracted 103 exhibitors and 28 international buyers; the 2026 edition is expected to grow significantly, with enhanced structured business-to-business engagement designed to facilitate deal-making and expand market access for local tourism enterprises.

For industry professionals, ZATEX is essential. It brings together lodge owners, tour operators, airline representatives, government officials, and international buyers in a focused environment where commercial relationships are formed and bookings begin. For the 24 small and medium enterprises among the 2026 exhibitors, it represents an extraordinary opportunity to access global markets that would otherwise be out of reach.

Zambia’s Diversification Mandate

Zambia’s Eighth National Development Plan (8NDP) identifies tourism as a strategic sector capable of driving inclusive economic growth and reducing the country’s historic dependence on copper mining revenues. The importance of this diversification cannot be overstated. Commodity price volatility has left Zambia economically exposed for decades; a thriving, job-rich tourism sector offers a fundamentally different economic model — one that distributes value across communities, preserves natural ecosystems, and generates foreign exchange without depleting finite resources.

The Tourism Council of Zambia’s chairperson, Glyden Mungaila, has been vocal about ZATEX’s role in this transformation, describing it as an essential platform for demonstrating to the world that Zambia is open for business, investment, and extraordinary travel experiences.

What Travellers Should Know

For individual travellers, Zambia’s ambitious 2026 push is unambiguously good news. More investment means better camps and lodges, more professional guiding operations, and improved visitor services across the country. Zambia operates in one of Africa’s most competitive safari markets, and the government is clearly intent on matching the quality of the product to the extraordinary quality of the wildlife experiences on offer.

Visa-on-arrival is available to most nationalities, and the KAZA Univisa — shared with Zimbabwe — allows dual-country exploration on a single document, making the combination of Zambia’s national parks and the Victoria Falls region even more accessible. Yellow fever vaccination is required for entry, and anti-malaria precautions are recommended for most park areas.

With a record-breaking year in its sights and serious government investment behind it, 2026 may well be the year that Zambia steps fully out of the shadows and into the global safari spotlight.

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