A Tour of Garden Compound: Lusaka, Zambia

6th September 2006
by The Editors

Photography and photostory production by Anayawa Sililo

1 of 15: Island is a resident of Garden Compound – a high density area in Lusaka Zambia – who operates guided tours of the Compound. Island’s mother died when he was quite young, which forced him to live on the streets of Lusaka for several years. When Island was a teenager he cam into contact with the charity ‘Barefeet’, who helped him to find work.

2 of 15: Island now lives in Garden Compound with his wife and son – also called Island – in a small house with one room, which measures approximately 12 square metres.

3 of 15: Garden Compound is a large settlement in Zambia’s capital, Lusaka. It is one of the largest compounds in the city, with somewhere between 40,000 to 60,000 inhabitants. The area is densely populated and has limited sanitation. The residents here are extremely poor.

4 of 15: A group of young me pictured in the local cinema. For a small entrance fee they can watch DVDs, such as ‘The Lord of the Rings’ (pictured).

5 of 15: Pictured here is one of the restaurants in Garden Compound. Island explains that many people – in particular single men – don’t cook or own any cooking utensils, so they go to eat at a local restaurant such as this one.

6 of 15: The restaurants in Lusaka’s compounds serve a variety of foods, such as pork, chicken, fish, and offal with vegetables. All are typically served with the local staple food, ‘Nshima’, mae from pounded maize known as ‘Mealie Meal.

7 of 15: Many Garden residents buy maize directly from farmers and then bring it to this mill where it is ground into a flour. The flour can then be prepared as Nshima, a kind of maize-based dough that is the staple of the Zambian diet.

8 of 15: Also made from maize is the local non-alcoholic drink, ‘Munkoyo’. Above, a woman prepares a batch of Munkoyo. The maize is fermented in small, egg-shaped drums until it is ready to drink. It has a tart flavour, not unlike vinegar.

9 of 15: For those interested in a more serious drink, ‘Shake Shake’ is an alcoholic drink. It is very popular in Garden Compound. Like Munkoyo, it it is also made from fermented maize. Island explains that there is a problem with alcoholism in the compound, with some of the residents ‘drinking from dawn to dusk’. A home-brewed drink called ‘Kachasu’ is also very popular, as it is cheap and very strong.

10 of 15: Charcoal is a necessity in Garden compound and throughout Zambia. People need charcoal to cook, heat water for washing, medical care etc. Picture above are bails of charcoal for sale at the local market in Garden. Production, transportation and sale of charcoal can be relatively profitable business for some Zambians.

11 of 15: Next stop is the local barber. A friend of Island’s runs a local barbershop. He is pictured above with a customer.

12 of 15: Next door is the local hair salon, which is owned by Island’s sister. The salon is busy today!

13 of 15: David (above) helps out at the Yosofo Children’s Home, which offers refuge to homeless or orphaned children in order to try to keep them off the streets. David came to Lusaka from the northern city of Ndola, following the death of his parents when he was 12 years old. Since then he has lived in Garden Compound.

14 of 15: Some of the children at the Yosofo home are playing a game with discarded mobile phone cards. The aim of the game is to flip over 2 cards at a time to see if they match. The person with the most matches at the end wins.

15 of 15: Some of the children from Yosofo perform a dance while Island and David play the drums.

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