Zambia Grants State Funeral for Former Acting President Guy Scott

President Hakainde Hichilema has accorded a state funeral to former acting president Guy Scott, who died on July 15, 2026, at the age of 82. Scott passed away following an illness at his farm in the Leopards Hill area of Lusaka.

A Cambridge-educated economist, Scott entered parliament in 1991 and served as agriculture minister before becoming vice president under Michael Sata from 2011 to 2014. Following Sata's death in October 2014, Scott served as acting head of state for approximately three months until January 2015. This tenure made him the first white head of state in Africa in two decades, the first since South Africa's F.W. de Klerk left office in 1994.

Despite his leadership role, Scott was constitutionally barred from running in the subsequent presidential election because both of his parents were born outside of Zambia. In his later political career, he supported the United Party for National Development. Cabinet Secretary Patrick Kangwa signed the official statement announcing the death, and the state funeral was granted in recognition of Scott's professional and political contributions to the nation.