Zambia is a landlocked country in southern Africa home to diverse wildlife and rugged terrain, with numerous safari areas and parks. The national currency and official legal tender of the Republic of Zambia is the Zambian kwacha (ZMK), which is issued by the Bank of Zambia, the country's central bank. The kwacha got its name from the Nyanja language's word for "dawn." The currency is subdivided into 100 ngwee but due to steady inflation, the ngwee and lower denominations of kwacha were made virtually worthless.
The British colony of Northern Rhodesia announced its independence in 1964 and changed its name to the Republic of Zambia. Also in 1964, the Bank of Zambia issued a Zambian variant of the pound. The Currency Act of 1967 formally instituted the Zambian kwacha, replacing the Zambian pound at an exchange rate of 1 kwacha to 0.5 pounds. The Zambian pounds remained in circulation beside the kwacha until 1974. Through the years, the Zambian kwacha suffered high rates of inflation and forced the Bank of Zambia to establish high-value denominations in 2003, which includes 20,000 and 50,000 kwacha bills to help facilitate transactions. A new, redenominated kwacha was introduced in 2013. The value of the currency has continued to fall since its redenomination.
