The research reported in this dissertation was conducted in Kalomo district, a rural district
in Southern Province, Zambia. The country is a sub-Saharan African country located in
Southern Africa, covering an area of 752, 612 km². It lies between latitude 8o and 18o south,
and longitude 20o and 35o east. The country has a tropical climate with three seasons:
cool dry winter (May to July), hot dry season (August to October) and rainy hot season
(November to April). The annual rainfall varies from 600 mm to 1100 mm with periodic
dry spells in the south and river valleys. The average temperatures range between 21oC
and 32oC during the hot season and 13oC and 21oC during the cold season. The country is
administratively divided into 10 provinces and 105 districts. Ithas an estimated population
of 14 million, with an annual growth rate of 3% (CSO, 2014). Most of the population lives
in rural areas, with 38% living in urban areas; the population density is 17 per km² (CSO,
2014). The country has a total fertility rate of 5.9 (CSO, 2014). Zambia is a low middle
income country with a gross domestic product (GDP) of $27.07 billion and a GDP per capita
of $1,721.6 million (CSO, 2016).