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‘A river that forgets its source will soon dry out’
This African proverb epitomises the dangers the legendary river faces today. JOHN GREEN recommends a book that tells its story
RIVER CUT IN HALF: Opened in 1959 the Kariba Dam on the Zambezi stands 128 metres (420 ft) tall and 579 metres (1,900 ft) long and forms a bridge between Zambia and Zimbabwe
[Dave Cross/flickr/CC]
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The Zambezi – A History
By Malyn Newitt
Hurst £25
WE OFTEN think of rivers as unchanging and ancient as the hills and valleys that encircle them, but in very recent times human beings have challenged such views by playing god with these torrential beasts.
The Zambezi — “Great River” in the language of the Tonga nation — is Africa’s fourth longest river and one of the continent’s principal arteries of movement, migration, conquest and commerce, had its first bridge built only in 1905 and, since 1959, three enormous dams, transforming its behaviour from a wild and often magnificent, raging torrent to a largely tamed, placidly flowing stream; modern steamers now transport people and commodities.
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