SETTLEMENT STUDIES IN ZAMBIA

Learners should be able to:

 State the types of settlements and describe factors influencing their location
 Distinguish rural and urban settlement
 Classify urban settlement according to size and functions
 Identify factors responsible for rapid urbanisation
 Analyse problems and possible solutions to urbanization
 Describe the internal structure of towns
 Explain the factors influencing urban spread (sprawl)
 Describe the effects of urban spread
DEFINITION OF A SETTLEMENT
A settlement is a place where people live
FACTORS INFLUENCING LOCATION OF SETTLEMENTS

 Relief land form – Flat land attracts settlements

 Climate – Temperatures and rainfall when these are favourable settlements develop
 Diseases – discourage settlements
 Soil fertility – Fertile soils attract settlements
 Availability of water from rivers, lakes also attract settlements
 Road, railway and water transport attract settlements
 Government policy leading to establishment of settlement schemes, relocation of
settlement determines location of settlements

SETTLEMENT PATTERNS

 A settlement pattern refers to the way various homesteads are distributed within a
particular area. Settlements maybe a mixture of these patterns;
1. Linear settlements
A type of settlement where people settle and build homes formed in a straight
line along a road, river and a valley. It is also known as ribbon settlement
 2. Dispersed settlement
These are settlements where individual buildings lie isolated or apart from one
another. This type of settlement is most common in rural areas where the
population is sparse. They are also called isolated settlements

3. Nucleated settlement
A type of settlement pattern which has homesteads clustered around a central
place called nucleus. It could be a water source, road junction, and school or
health facilities. These settlements are also called clustered settlements

TYPES OF SETTLEMENTS
There are two types of settlements namely:
a) Rural settlement – A country side human habitation consisting of single
homesteads or huts that make up a village
 FACTORS WHICH INFLUENCE DEVELOPMENT OF RURAL SETTLEMENT

 Water supply – rural areas are located near water bodies such as rivers, lakes, springs.
They are located where water is easily obtained for domestic and fishing purposes
 Rural settlements are located on fertile land that is suitable for agriculture
 Rural settlements are also located in areas where there are raw materials such as wood,
stone, rope grass for construction
 Places infested by pests and diseases such as tsetse flies, mosquitoes discourage
settlements
 Areas with medium rainfall (800-1200mm) attract rural settlements
 Temperatures should not be too high or too low (18-24 c) to attract rural settlements
 Some rural settlements have been established due to religious establishments
 Gentle and undulating relief such as plateaus, plains which favour good drainage for
agriculture also attract rural settlements
 Government policy that promotes agricultural settlements and resettlement schemes
 Good transportation network provided by roads, railway also attract rural settlements
URBAN SETTLEMENTS
A town or city habitat made up of a large number of houses and people numbering at
least 5,000 and has many functions
REASONS FOR THE GROWTH OF TOWNS
 Availability of natural resources such as minerals
 Availability of agricultural products or other raw materials
 Location of settlements in relation to transport and communication
 Functions of settlements and other economic activities
The services offered by a town are its functions. There are many functions of a town and
these range from;
I. ADMINISTRATION – Most of the towns and cities are administrative centres.
They govern areas around them. For example, Lusaka is the capital city of
Zambia. Chipata (Eastern), Choma (Southern), Kabwe (Central) are the
provincial capital /headquarters towns for the named provinces
II. MINING– Most towns on the copper belt are mining towns due to the
availability of minerals for example Kitwe and Chingola
III. AGRICULTURE – Zambia is an agricultural country as such most towns are
centres for surrounding agricultural communities. For instance areas around the
line of rail from Livingstone to copper belt, Mkushi and parts of Eastern
province. Industries which use agricultural raw materials are often located in
such towns, For example Choma milling company in Choma( Maize Milling)
IV. MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES – Manufacturing of different goods take
place in most towns and cities such as Lusaka, Livingstone and many others
V. COMMUNICATION – Towns grow where transport and communication are
well developed. For example along the line of rail and the great roads. Kapiri
Mposhi is an example of a town that has grown due to development of road and
rail. It’s a route focus ( point where roads and /or railways converge).It is a
centre for the railways from southern and East Africa that is Tanzania – Zambia
railway authority
VI. TRADE – All towns are trading centres where a number of products are sold
such as vegetables, fruits and other agricultural products. Examples of border
trading centres are Nakonde and Chirundu
VII. TOURISM – Some towns developed due to tourist attractions found in such
areas. An example is Livingstone who houses a lot of tourist attractions
URBANIZATION
The growth and spread of towns and town life OR increase of a country’s
population percentage living in urban areas/towns
FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE URBANISATION
 Lack of jobs in rural areas – formal jobs due to lack of industries
 Dislike of the traditional ways of life such as initiation ceremony,
witchcraft
 Poverty – Lack of food due to degradation of lands, drought and floods
 Limited land to settle in rural areas
 Looking for modern life styles such as entertainment and recreation
 Search for employment, better education and medical facilities
 Urban blight for example electricity and better houses
PROBLEMS OF URBANISATION
 Shortage of employment leading to social vices such as crime and
prostitution
 Shortage of accommodation leading to creation of shanty compounds
 Shortage of social facilities such as health and education
 Many people have less access or no access to services such as piped
water and proper sanitation
 There is overcrowding in streets and shop corridors
 Poverty and low standard of living
 Increase in street vending due to shortage of spaces in markets
 Noise pollution due to large crowds in city centres and market places
 Urban sprawl creates land shortages leading to man/animal conflict
 Land and depletion of forests
 Poor sanitation ( as councils cannot cope with garbage removal )
resulting in disease outbreaks
 Traffic congestion due to increase in population especially during rush
hours
 Shortage of entertainment facilities
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS TO URBANISATION
 Increase housing units by building schemes like Ben Mwiinga in Lusaka,
Silverrest, kalulushi scheme and many others
 Giving loans and mortgages for people to build houses
 Upgrading squatter settlements by building roads, drainages
 Creating and offering plots in site and services
 Developing strong policies and regulations to control squatting
 Improving waste collection through the council and private enterprises
 Encouraging entrepreneurship and creation of industries through
initiatives like Citizen Economic Empowerment Commission and
Cooperatives
 Upgrading and building hospitals, schools and stadiums
 Recreation of skills centres for street kids such as OYDC
 Promoting investment in mining, tourism, manufacturing to enhance job
creation
 Building by – pass routes and ring roads for through traffic such as Kafue round about in Lusaka
INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF A TOWN
A town is made up of different areas or zones where different activities take place. For example,
there are areas where people shop or conduct business, areas where industries are located and
areas where people live. Models have been developed to help us understand the shape of towns
and its land use
MODELS OF URBAN LAND USE
CONCENTRIC MODEL

This model is common in most towns or cities. It has rings for specific functions. For example the
inner most ring is known as the Central Business district (CBD). Other rings are the industrial
area, residential area and agricultural area
CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT(CBD)
 The centre of the town is known as the CBD. A number of shops, business centres and
offices are found in this area.
 It is the centre of activities and rentals are very high
 Tall buildings are common to maximize use of space
 Rentals and land value fall with distance from the centre
 Most accessible part of town as transport routes meet there
 Few people live here hence deserted at night
 It is overcrowded and congested during pay time
 The CBD for Lusaka is the area between Cairo road and Lumumba road
IDUSTRIAL AREA
 This is the area where most industries and factories are located
 The industrial area is usually located close to a good road and railway system for
easy transportation of raw materials and finished goods
 The area is also located away from the CBD and residential areas
RESIDENTIAL AREA
 Residential areas are usually classified as high, medium and low density depending
on the type of houses and number of people who live there
 A high density area is one where houses are close together and there are many
people. Examples include Kanyama compound
  Low density areas have spacious houses and gardens with a small population.
Examples are woodlands and Kabulonga
 Some residential areas are far away from the town centre
 In between the high and low residential area are the medium density areas.
Examples include Kabwata, Chilenje and Kamwala residential areas
AGRICULTURAL AREA
 On the outskirts of town, land is usually used for agriculture
 The most common type of farming that takes place is market gardening where a
variety of crops such as vegetables and fruits are grown all year round and are sold
in town
 An example where market gardening is taking place in Zambia is the Chilanga area
along the Lusaka – Kafue road

SECTOR MODEL

 This pattern depicts land use in sectors from the central Business District
 Well-developed routes running to the centre of the city may lead to high values as shown in
the diagram
 Some industries are located along these routes for easy accessibility. Some residential areas
may also be found along the developed routes
 Due to the differences in land value, land use patterns have cut across the rings around the
city
URBAN SPRAWL (URBAN SPREAD)
 This is unplanned urban spread OR mushrooming of townships, sub – urban settlements