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View of Kariba Damwith 4 gates open.
The Zambian flag blowing in the wind with the Kariba Dam in
the background.
Building the dam wall began in the late 1950s, bring-
ing in well over a million cubic metres of concrete to
form the 36.6 metre high wall with a thickness of over
twenty four metres to sustain the pressure of nearly
ten million litres of water passing through each gate
of the spillway per second. The amount of concrete
used to construct the dam is said to have been equal
to or greater than the amount needed to pave a road
all the way from Lusaka in Zambia to Cairo in Egypt.
A Station was set up in Chirundu to provide hydro-
electric power to Zambia, the Dam itself however
produces power for Zimbabwe. Nevertheless a new
Zesco Hydroelectric project is underway to further
increase the capacity of generating power from the
dam fed directly to Zambia.
The Displaced Tribe
Within the area, now covered by Lake Kariba, lived
over fifty thousand people, mostly belonging to
the Batonga tribe. Although land was set aside for
them further up the valley, they were reluctant to
leave their tribal lands. Eventually, when the trucks
moved in to relocate them, they conceded, having
little choice. Ceremonies were held to honour their
gods and the journey to new lands began. Schools
and clinics were built in some of the new areas and
wells were also installed upon their arrival. Some
new villages that were relocated close to the water’s
edge have prospered with the new fishing opportu-
nities that emerged for the inhabitants on the lake.
However, many mourned the loss of the rich alluvial
river soil and battle to produce crops in the higher
sandier areas. For the most part, the move was a
severe disruption of way of life of these peoples, who
received minimal compensation, for their relocation
at best.
Operation Noah
As the dam began to fill, it became evident that thou-
sands of animals stranded on islands were going to
drown. Appeals were made and money was raised
to buy boats and equipment for their rescue and re-
location. This project became known as Operation
Noah. It was a mammoth task. Submerged trees
and stumps threatened the hulls of the boats. On the
islands themselves, there were huge concentrations
of snakes including the deadly black mamba, mak-
ing the retrieval of animals even more treacherous.
Even so, thousands of animals were successfully
rescued thanks to the effort and will of a few dedi-
cated individuals.
Fishing
The conditions that had made life difficult for animals
and man also conspired to produce an instant para-
dise for fish of the newly created lake. The rich fer-
tilizing effect of the chemicals from the clearance of
vegetation facilitated the growth of aquatic species
in the lake. The introduction of kapenta, tiny sardine-
like fish, has proved very successful. Large schools
of fish were also airlifted from Lake Tanganyika to
Lake Kariba in 1967.
HOW TO GET THERE
From Lusaka, it’s an approximate 2.5-hour drive to
Siavonga through the scenic Zambezi Rift Valley, on
one of Zambia’s best roads. In Lusaka, take the Ka-
fue road to Chirundu and turn right onto the M15, 18
km before the Zimbabwe border.
WHERE TO STAY
The tourism industry on the Zambian side of Lake
Kariba is still in its infancy, however but you can find
incredible resorts and extremely very comfortable
hotel accommodation all around Siavonga, which is
about 7 Km from the dam wall, and other areas of
the lakeshore.