Zambian acting President Rupiah Banda was elected as president of the ruling party -- the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) on Friday.
The successor to party boss and republican President Levy Mwanawasa, who died in Paris after suffering a stroke, will run ona MMD ticket for the republican presidency in a by-election to be called within three months' time.
Here is a profile of Rupiah Banda:
Rupiah Banda, born on February 19, 1937, was handpicked by Mwanawasa as vice president in October, 2006, replacing Lupando Mwape who lost his seat in the parliamentary.
Banda stepped into politics when he joined the youth wing of the United National Independence Party (UNIP) in 1960.
Between the late 1960s and early 1970s, Banda held several diplomatic posts, including Zambia's representative to the United Nations.
He was later appointed Foreign Minister by Zambia's founding president Kenneth Kaunda.
In 1978, Banda was elected as a Member of Parliament and served in the National Assembly until 1991 when the Kaunda regime lost its power in Zambia's first multi-party elections.
The 71-year-old, with a degree in economics, is also a business-savvy. He steered a couple of then state-owned agriculture companies between 1968 and 1972.
He is married to Hope Mwansa Makulu and a father of five.
Source:Xinhua
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