Public holidays in Zambia 2026

There are 19 public holidays in 2026. 14 of them fall on a working day.

Download calendar file (.ics) For Outlook, Google Calendar and Apple Calendar; all-day events.

All 19 public holidays in Zambia 2026

DateWeekdayHolidayCountdown
ThursdayNew Year's Day
SundayInternational Women's Day
MondayInternational Women's Day (observed)
ThursdayYouth Day
FridayGood Friday
SaturdayHoly Saturday
SundayEaster Sunday
MondayEaster Monday
TuesdayKenneth Kaunda Day
FridayLabour Day
MondayAfrica Freedom Day
MondayHeroes' Day
TuesdayUnity Day
MondayFarmers' Day
ThursdayGeneral Election Day
SundayNational Prayer Day
MondayNational Prayer Day (observed)
SaturdayIndependence Day
FridayChristmas Day

Days marked "observed" are substitute days off when a holiday falls on a weekend. Holidays based on a lunar calendar can shift by a day once the official announcement is made.

Long weekends 2026

15 times a public holiday lies close to a weekend – with a little leave it becomes a long weekend:

Take leaveOffDays of leaveDays offRatioOccasion
Fri 2 Jan1 Jan – 4 Jan 2026144New Year's Day
Tue 10 Mar, Wed 11 Mar7 Mar – 12 Mar 2026263International Women's Day, International Women's Day (observed), Youth Day
Fri 13 Mar12 Mar – 15 Mar 2026144Youth Day
Mon 30 Mar, Tue 31 Mar, Wed 1 Apr, Thu 2 Apr28 Mar – 6 Apr 20264102.5Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Easter Sunday, Easter Monday
Tue 7 Apr, Wed 8 Apr, Thu 9 Apr, Fri 10 Apr3 Apr – 12 Apr 20264102.5Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Easter Sunday, Easter Monday
Mon 27 Apr25 Apr – 28 Apr 2026144Kenneth Kaunda Day
Wed 29 Apr, Thu 30 Apr28 Apr – 3 May 2026263Kenneth Kaunda Day, Labour Day
Tue 26 May, Wed 27 May, Thu 28 May, Fri 29 May23 May – 31 May 2026492.3Africa Freedom Day
Wed 8 Jul, Thu 9 Jul, Fri 10 Jul4 Jul – 12 Jul 2026393Heroes' Day, Unity Day
Tue 4 Aug, Wed 5 Aug, Thu 6 Aug, Fri 7 Aug1 Aug – 9 Aug 2026492.3Farmers' Day
Mon 10 Aug, Tue 11 Aug, Wed 12 Aug8 Aug – 13 Aug 2026362General Election Day
Fri 14 Aug13 Aug – 16 Aug 2026144General Election Day
Tue 20 Oct, Wed 21 Oct, Thu 22 Oct, Fri 23 Oct17 Oct – 25 Oct 2026492.3National Prayer Day, National Prayer Day (observed), Independence Day
Mon 21 Dec, Tue 22 Dec, Wed 23 Dec, Thu 24 Dec19 Dec – 27 Dec 2026492.3Christmas Day
Mon 28 Dec, Tue 29 Dec, Wed 30 Dec, Thu 31 Dec25 Dec – 3 Jan 20274102.5Christmas Day, New Year's Day

Counted are gaps of up to four working days between a public holiday and the weekend or another public holiday. "Ratio" = days off per day of leave. Weekends follow the local working week.

Dates are generated from the open-source library python-holidays and automatically cross-checked against Nager.Date and the public Google Calendar holiday calendars; every holiday on a working day must be confirmed by a second source. Official announcements take precedence, especially for holidays that depend on the moon or are declared at short notice.

Frequently asked questions

How many public holidays does Zambia have in 2026?

19 public holidays. 5 of them fall on a weekend in 2026.

What is the next public holiday in Zambia?

As of 9 Nov 2026, the next holiday is Christmas Day on Friday, 25 Dec 2026.

Which public holiday gives the best long weekend in 2026?

New Year's Day: take 1 day of leave (2 Jan) and you get 4 days off in a row, 1 Jan – 4 Jan 2026.

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