Zambia’s electricity access rose to 53.6% of population in 2024.

Higher is better. A higher share is better because each added person with power can use electric light, refrigeration, phone charging and machinery, and can use cleaner energy than fuel burned indoors. Zambia's latest figure, for 2024, is 53.6% of population, up from 51.1% of population a year earlier, a gain of 2.5 percentage points. Since 2015 the series has ranged from a low of 31.1% of population in 2015 to a high of 53.6% of population in 2024. The latest reading is therefore the highest in that span.

Why it matters. At 53.6% of population, a little over half of Zambians live in a household with electricity. The rest depend on fuels such as wood, charcoal or paraffin for cooking and light, and on daytime hours for study and work. Firms outside the connected areas have to run on generators or manual methods, which raises their costs. The state has to keep extending the grid and off-grid supply to reach the remaining households, and the 2024 figure shows that extension still continuing.