Editing Economy of Zambia (section)

=== Economic policies soon after independence (1964–1967) ===
[[File:GDP per capita development of Zambia.svg|thumb|GDP per capita development of Zambia, since 1950]]
The [[British South Africa Company]] (BSAC, originally set up by the British imperialist [[Cecil Rhodes]]) retained commercial assets and mineral rights that it acquired from a concession signed with the Litunga of Barotseland in 1892 (the [[Lochner Concession]]). Only by threatening to expropriate the BSAC, on the eve of independence, did the incoming Zambian government manage to get the BSAC to relinquish the mineral rights. The Federation's government assigned roles to each of the three territories: Southern Rhodesia was assigned the responsibility of providing managerial and administrative skills; Northern Rhodesia provided copper revenues; and Nyasaland provided the Black labour.

After independence, Zambia instituted a program of national development plans, under the direction of a National Commission for Development Planning: the Transitional Development Plan (1964–66) was followed by the First National Development Plan (1966–71). These two plans, which provided for major investment in infrastructure and manufacturing, were largely implemented and were generally successful. This was not true for subsequent plans.