eSIM and SIM cards in Zambia

The eSIM you were going to buy from home does not exist here

• MTN Zambia states it plainly: there is no self eSIM payment process, no self-registration and no self-SIM swap. The existing SIM registration process is used instead.
• Both SIM registration and eSIM swap require you to be physically present for a live facial capture. Nobody can do it for you and no portal will do it remotely.
• Prepaid customers must visit a store, and MTN's eSIM route assumes an existing contract. Activation takes 2 to 5 minutes and needs wifi, because your physical SIM is disconnected from the network during the swap.
• The practical consequence: plan a shop visit on the arrival day, or land with international roaming already working.

What to bring to the counter

• Registration happens at an MTN store or an authorised SIM registration point, in person.
• The identification MTN lists for a non-Zambian is a foreign passport with a valid visa or permit attached, or a refugee or asylum certificate. That wording is worth reading twice if you are arriving visa-free, because the published list assumes a visa or a permit is in the passport. Take the physical passport and the entry stamp, and expect the entry stamp to be what is scanned.

Assume the power will go off

• Zambia runs on hydropower and the drought has meant prolonged, scheduled outages affecting telecommunications, banks and ATMs as well as lighting. Carry a charged power bank from the airport, not from the second day.