Kitwe

Sister cities

• Sheffield
• Detroit
• Bor
• Ponta Grossa
• Baia Mare

History

Kitwe was founded in 1936 in north-central Zambia as the railway was being built by Cecil Rhodes' company. It was first established as an adjunct, non-mining-related but supportive part of an expanding copper-mining centre at Nkana. The expanding copper mines at Nkana made it the dominant centre in the region and Kitwe started building up its size and significance over the years, finally surpassing Nkana as the main centre. The Rhodesia Railways main line reached the town in 1937, providing passenger services as far south as Bulawayo in today's Zimbabwe, with connections to Cape Town in today's South Africa. A branch line was created from Ndola into DR Congo, and from there eventually linked to the Benguela Railway to the Atlantic port of Lobito in Angola, which used to take some of Zambia's copper exports. With the upsurge of copper prices in the 1950s Kitwe developed from a small township to the second largest city in Zambia, obtaining city status in 1966. It then developed as an industrial and commercial area and later an important agricultural area.

Most-observed species

• Common Bulbul

  Pycnonotus barbatus (Desfontaines, 1789) · Aves
  85
• Pied Crow

  Corvus albus Statius Muller, 1776 · Aves
  68
• Bronze mannikin

  Lonchura cucullata (Swainson, 1837) · Aves
  63
• Black-backed Puffback

  Dryoscopus cubla (Latham, 1802) · Aves
  61
• African Pied Wagtail

  Motacilla aguimp Temminck, 1820 · Aves
  61
• African Black-headed Oriole

  Oriolus larvatus Lichtenstein, 1823 · Aves
  52
• Tawny-flanked Prinia

  Prinia subflava (Gmelin, 1789) · Aves
  52
• Black-collared Barbet

  Lybius torquatus (Dumont, 1805) · Aves
  50