Chipata

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title: "Chipata" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["populated-places-in-eastern-province,-zambia", "capitals-of-former-nations", "provincial-capitals-in-zambia", "chipata-district"] topic_path: "general/populated-places-in-eastern-province-zambia" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chipata" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

Field	Value
	official_name
native_name
settlement_type	City
image_skyline	Chipata View.jpg
image_seal	Chipata Coat of Arms.jpg
pushpin_map	Zambia
pushpin_label_position	left
pushpin_map_caption	Location in Zambia
subdivision_type	Country
subdivision_name	[[Image:Flag of Zambia.svg
subdivision_type1	Province
subdivision_name1	Eastern Province
subdivision_type2	District
subdivision_name2	Chipata District
government_type	Local Government
leader_title	Mayor
leader_name	George Mwanza
leader_title1
established_title	Founded
established_date
established_title2	City status
established_date2	2017
established_title3
unit_pref	Imperial
area_total_km2
area_land_km2
area_urban_km2	153.94
population_as_of	2022
population_total	327,059
population_density_km2	193.4
population_blank1_title	Ethnicities
population_blank2_title	Religions
timezone	CAT
utc_offset	+2
coordinates
elevation_footnotes
elevation_m	1181
postal_code_type
postal_code	51
area_code	+260 216
blank_name	Climate
blank_info	Aw
name	Chipata
::

Chipata is a city and administrative centre of the Eastern Province of Zambia and Chipata District. It was declared the 5th city of the country, after Lusaka, Ndola, Kitwe and Livingstone, by President Edgar Lungu on 24 February 2017. The city has undergone rapid economic and infrastructure growth in the years, leading up to city status.

Location

Chipata is located on the Great East Road, approximately 570 km east of Lusaka, the capital city of Zambia. This is about 150 km west of Lilongwe, the capital city of Malawi. The geographical coordinates of Chipata are 13°38′43.0″S, 32°38′47.0″E. The average elevation of Chipata is 1181 m, above sea level.

Overview

Having a modern market, a central hospital, shopping malls, a university, some colleges and a number of schools, Chipata is the business and administrative hub of the region. The town boasts a four star hotel, a golf course, an airport, and a "welcome arch". Developed areas includes Kalongwezi, Moth, and Little Bombay.

Chipata is the regional head of the Ngoni of Zambia. The Ngoni adopted the languages of the tribes they conquered, so Chewa and Nsenga are the principal languages, although Tumbuka and English are widely spoken, plus some Indian languages, as a large number of Zambian Indians live in the town. It is located near the border with Malawi, and lies on the Great East Road which connects the capitals Lilongwe 150 km to the east, and Lusaka 570 km to the west. It is a popular access point for the South Luangwa National Park, which is 100 km to the north-west.

History

Chipata's name comes from the Chewa word "Chimpata" meaning "large space", in reference to the town's situation in a shallow valley between hills. The name of the central neighbourhood of Kapata, the original centre of town, comes from the Chewa word meaning "small space."

Chipata was formerly known as Fort Jameson (and informally as "Fort Jimmy"), being named after Sir Leander Starr Jameson, the 19th-century British politician and adventurer. Even during the colonial period, few supported that Jameson, who is mainly known for his part in the infamous Jameson Raid, fully deserved the honour of having any town named after him. Like 'Fort Manning' and 'Fort Rosebery', Fort Jameson was called a "fort" because the local government offices, or "Boma", were once fortified.

Fort Jameson was the capital of the British protectorate of North-Eastern Rhodesia between 1900 and 1911.

During World War II, 80 Polish refugees escaping from German- and Soviet-occupied Poland, were admitted in Fort Jameson in 1941.

Government

The mayor of the city of Chipata is the head of the city government.

Population

With a population of about 327,059 in 2022, Chipata District is believed to be the 8th largest district of the country. The city of Chipata had 193,288 inhabitants in 2022. The predominant ethnic groups in the city are the Chewa, Tumbuka, Ngoni and Nsenga.

Economy

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Chipata_side_street.JPG" caption="Saturday Market in Chipata"] ::

Chipata is the primary transport hub for trade between Zambia and Malawi. "Down Shops" is Chipata's bustling down-town area, most shops and other businesses having proprietors of Indian origin.

Tourism

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8b/Ackson.jpg" caption="Ngoni Worriers During the Nc'wala Ceremony."] ::

The Nc'wala ceremony of the Ngoni people takes place at Mutenguleni on the outskirts of Chipata. The ceremony celebrates the first fruits harvest and is usually held at the end of February.

Transport

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/A_Bus_and_Taxi_Stop_Shelter.jpg" caption="Bus and taxi stop shelter on Great East Road"] ::

Rail

An extension of the Sena railway, connecting the city of Chipata to the territory of Malawi (via Mchinji) was opened in August 2011. Since then, Chipata acts as the Zambian railhead and entry point from Malawi and beyond. In the pipeline since 1982, the short link, about 35 km, provides a through-route for rail traffic from Zambia via Malawi to the Indian Ocean deep-water port at Nacala in Mozambique. The route and alignment of the line has been laid out, including the site of Chipata station and the basic station building.

The route provides an alternative to two existing rail routes to the Indian Ocean, at Dar es Salaam and Beira. In 2015 it was proposed to build a rail link from Chipata through Petauke to Serenje, a town on the TAZARA Railway line.

Road

The T4 road (Great East Road) connects Chipata with Lusaka to the west (570 kilometres away) and the Mwami border with Malawi to the east (20 kilometres away).

The M12 road connects Chipata with Lundazi to the north (180 kilometres away). The D104 road connects Chipata with its airport (12 kilometers away) as well as to Mfuwe and the South Luangwa National Park to the north-west (100 kilometres away). The D128 road connects Chipata with Chadiza to the south-west (65 kilometres away). The D804 road connects Chipata with Vubwi to the south-east (60 kilometres away).

Rivers

Chipata has four major streams pouring into the Luangwa river. The Luangwa river rises in the Lilonda and Mafinga Hills in north-east Zambia at an elevation of around 1500 meters near the border with Tanzania and Malawi, and flows in a southwesterly direction through a broad valley. The water from the streams and the Luangwa river is used for farming by the inhabitants around the district.

Soil and vegetation

There are three main soil types: acrisols, fersiallitic soils, and lithosols. There are four vegetation types, the main one being the brachystegia (miombo) woodland and munga vegetation types.

Climate

Chipata features a tropical savanna climate (Köppen: Aw) with wet and dry seasons. Summers are characterized by warm to hot temperatures, reaching peak values in October and November. Winters are milder, with July being the coolest month. The wet season, from November to March, experiences high humidity and significant rainfall. The dry season, from May to October, is marked by minimal precipitation.

| width = auto | collapsed = | metric first = yes | single line = yes | location = Chipata (Msekera Research Station) (1991–2020, extremes 1961–2020) | Jan record high C = 36.1 | Feb record high C = 39.2 | Mar record high C = 34.0 | Apr record high C = 35.3 | May record high C = 33.2 | Jun record high C = 32.2 | Jul record high C = 32.2 | Aug record high C = 34.9 | Sep record high C = 39.4 | Oct record high C = 40.0 | Nov record high C = 39.5 | Dec record high C = 39.0 | year record high C = | Jan high C = 28.5 | Feb high C = 29.0 | Mar high C = 29.0 | Apr high C = 29.0 | May high C = 28.4 | Jun high C = 27.0 | Jul high C = 26.6 | Aug high C = 28.8 | Sep high C = 32.1 | Oct high C = 33.5 | Nov high C = 33.4 | Dec high C = 30.2 | year high C = 29.6 | Jan mean C = 23.7 | Feb mean C = 23.8 | Mar mean C = 23.6 | Apr mean C = 22.8 | May mean C = 21.3 | Jun mean C = 19.6 | Jul mean C = 18.9 | Aug mean C = 21.1 | Sep mean C = 24.4 | Oct mean C = 26.4 | Nov mean C = 26.8 | Dec mean C = 24.7 | year mean C = 23.1 | Jan low C = 18.9 | Feb low C = 18.6 | Mar low C = 18.2 | Apr low C = 16.6 | May low C = 14.2 | Jun low C = 12.2 | Jul low C = 11.2 | Aug low C = 13.4 | Sep low C = 16.7 | Oct low C = 19.3 | Nov low C = 20.2 | Dec low C = 19.2 | year low C = 16.6 | Jan record low C = 12.8 | Feb record low C = 13.2 | Mar record low C = 11.8 | Apr record low C = 9.7 | May record low C = 5.8 | Jun record low C = 3.3 | Jul record low C = 4.0 | Aug record low C = 3.7 | Sep record low C = 7.2 | Oct record low C = 11.3 | Nov record low C = 12.8 | Dec record low C = 13.3 | year record low C = 3.3 | precipitation colour = green | Jan precipitation mm = 268.0 | Feb precipitation mm = 226.3 | Mar precipitation mm = 209.5 | Apr precipitation mm = 32.3 | May precipitation mm = 5.8 | Jun precipitation mm = 0.0 | Jul precipitation mm = 0.0 | Aug precipitation mm = 0.2 | Sep precipitation mm = 0.1 | Oct precipitation mm = 17.3 | Nov precipitation mm = 80.9 | Dec precipitation mm = 248.3 | year precipitation mm = 1088.6 |Jan humidity = 80.7 |Feb humidity = 81.5 |Mar humidity = 78.8 |Apr humidity = 72.1 |May humidity = 64.4 |Jun humidity = 59.8 |Jul humidity = 55.9 |Aug humidity = 48.9 |Sep humidity = 42.7 |Oct humidity = 45.2 |Nov humidity = 56.6 |Dec humidity = 75.4 |year humidity = 63.5 |Jan sun = 158.1 |Feb sun = 148.4 |Mar sun = 201.5 |Apr sun = 234.0 |May sun = 266.6 |Jun sun = 258.0 |Jul sun = 260.4 |Aug sun = 275.9 |Sep sun = 276.0 |Oct sun = 269.7 |Nov sun = 216.0 |Dec sun = 167.4 |year sun = 2732.0 | source 1 = NOAA (humidity, sun 1961–1990){{cite web |url = https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/2.2/data/0-data/Region-1-WMO-Normals-9120/Zambia/CSV/Msekera_67580.csv |title = World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991-2020 — Msekera |publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |access-date = January 24, 2024}}{{cite web | url = ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG__I/ZA/67581.TXT | title = Chipata MET Climate Normals 1961–1990 | publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200725212148/ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG__I/ZA/67581.TXT | archive-date = 2020-07-25 | url-status = dead | access-date = March 8, 2015}}

Suburbs

Kalongwezi
Kalongwezi Extension
Kapata
Umodzi
Moth
Muchini
Nabvutika
Little Bombay
Mchenga
Damview
Old Gym
New Gym
Chimwemwe
Magazine
Eastrise
Walela
Chawama
Munga
Chipata Motel
Nadalitsika
Katopola
Maferendum
Rose
Hillview
Gash
Msekera
Messengers
David Kaunda area
Hollywood
Kalongola site and service
Hillview
Chimzere
Gondar Barracks
Highlands
Aslot

References

Mwendabai, Darlington. (25 February 2017). "Chipata: Newest city on the hills". [[Zambia Daily Mail]].
(2020-05-30). "Times of Zambia".
(2017-02-24). "Zambia : Chipata meets the these[sic] requisites required to be called a City-President Lungu".
(22 November 2018). "Distance between Lusaka, Zambia and Chipata, Zambia". Globefeed.com.
(September 2015). "Traveling through Zambia with backpack. Chipata to Lilongwe (it´s only 150 km)". Nomad-as.com.
"Location of Chipata, Zambia".
(22 November 2018). "Elevation of Chipata, Zambia". Floodmap.net.
Wróbel, Janusz. (2003). "Uchodźcy polscy ze Związku Sowieckiego 1942–1950". [[Institute of National Remembrance.
[https://www.ilo.org/sites/default/files/wcmsp5/groups/public/@africa/@ro-abidjan/@ilo-lusaka/documents/genericdocument/wcms_888660.pdf 2022 Census of Population and Housing - Preliminary Report] (PDF)
[http://citypopulation.de/Zambia-Cities.html Largest cities of Zambia] retrieved 20 June 2019
"Study in Chipata (Oriental province, Zambia)".
(21 September 2011). "Zambia, Malawi finally connected by rail". Afrol.com.
(26 August 2007). "New rail link to boost Southern African trade". [[Mail and Guardian.
(2017-04-25). "Zambia : Government completes assessment for the construction of the Serenje-Petauke-Chipata green field railway line".
(3 August 2017). "Chipata-Tazara railway project hits a snag". Breeze FM Chipata.
"Roads and Road Traffic Act".
"Luangwa River In Zambia".
(23 October 2023). "Table 1 Overview of the Köppen-Geiger climate classes including the defining criteria.". Nature.

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