He steadied the economy, but can he steady the politics? Zambia’s Hakainde Hichilema is back for term tw,o and it is anything but a quiet return.

Zambia’s President Hakainde Hichilema is due to take the oath for a second five-year term this Tuesday at the National Heroes Stadium in Lusaka alongside his running mate Mutale Nalumango. Presidents from Kenya, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Tanzania are expected to attend.

Hichilema swept to victory on 13 August with 60 percent of the vote according to official results, leaving main rival Brian Mundubile on 38 percent. Mundubile says the outcome was tampered with, but he was unable to mount a legal challenge as the courts were sealed off last week on the final day a case could be filed.

Election observers said polling day was largely peaceful, but questions remain over tallying. European Union observers noted staff in many tallying centres did not record results on tally sheets as soon as they were announced and cited weak verification between digital entries and paper records, with returning officers frequently pausing proceedings while awaiting instructions from headquarters.

The day after the poll, security forces raided a property in Lusaka linked to Mundubile, killing a former cabinet minister and arresting several opposition politicians. Authorities accused the opposition of planning an armed insurrection, which they denied. Mundubile and his running mate Makebi Zulu went into hiding. They were detained last week and charged at the weekend.

When Hichilema, the former businessman known as H,H finally won in 2021 after five previous attempt,s he inherited what he himself described as a broken-down country. Zambia had just become the first African nation to default on its international debt during the Covid era in 2020.

Annual inflation was above 24 percent the kwacha was under severe pressure, and youth unemployment was widespread.

His first term focused on repair work. His government negotiated a major restructuring of external debt,t rebuilt relations with foreign creditors and completed a 1.7 billion dollar programme backed by the International Monetary Fund.

Inflation came down sharply to 6.8 per cent in April this year, according to the Zambia Statistics Agency. The currency strengthened,d and the administration set an ambitious 2031 target to triple copper production, which is vital for Zambia and for the global green energy transition. The Fund says Zambia made substantial progress in restoring macroeconomic stability, with growth now projected at 4.5 percent in 2025 and 5.5 percent in 2026.

Yet many Zambians say daily life still feels tough. Food, fuel and electricity prices remain high, and unemployment sits around 10 percent with poverty still widespread. That gap between macro stability and household pressure is exactly what this second term will be judged on.

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