Lieutenant General Ronnie Shikapwasha (born December 25, 1948) is the Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services of Zambia

Zambia

Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....

. He has held that post since 2008. A retired Lt General of the Zambia Air Force, he was previously the home affairs minister of Zambia, from February 9, 2003 until January 2005, when he switched positions with Kalombo Mwansa

Kalombo Mwansa

Kalombo Mwansa is the Defense minister of Zambia.- Political career :Kalombo Mwansa became Zambia's Defense Minister on July 9, 2009...

 in a cabinet reshuffle and became foreign minister

Foreign minister

A Minister of Foreign Affairs, or foreign minister, is a cabinet minister who helps form the foreign policy of a sovereign state. The foreign minister is often regarded as the most senior ministerial position below that of the head of government . It is often granted to the deputy prime minister in...

. He served as foreign minister for nearly two years, until another cabinet reshuffle in October 2006 which occurred after Levy Mwanawasa

Levy Mwanawasa

Levy Patrick Mwanawasa was the third President of Zambia. He ruled the country from January 2002 until his death in August 2008. He is credited for having initiated a campaign to rid the country of corruption...

’s election to a second term as president. Shikapwasha returned to the position of home affairs minister and was replaced as foreign minister by agriculture minister Mundia Sikatana

Mundia Sikatana

-Career:In 2002, Siktana was appointed as the agriculture minister. He and his government faced widescale media condemnation for banning genetically modified maize donations during a widescale famine in 2002. Upon the re-election of President Levy Mwanawasa in 2006, Sikatana was appointed foreign...

. Shikapwasha hails from Zambia's Central Province and is believed to be a relative to the former First Lady, Maureen Kakubo Mwanawasa. Gen Shikapwasha is a staunch Christian.

Before becoming Air Force Commander in 1991, Shikapwasha served as a diplomat and defence attache to Tanzania but fell out of favour with former president Kenneth Kaunda. During his tenure, former president Kaunda had the General investigated and found no wrongdoings. It is believed that he was sent back to Zambia where he was supposed to face charges but there was nothing to charge him on.

Shikapwasha served as the Zambia Air Force Commander under former president Frederick T. Chiluba. He was subsequently relieved from his duties while lying in a hospital in South Africa on the verge of death. Some believe that Chiluba decided to retire the general because he refused to join in Chiluba's corrupt practices and other believe that Chiluba wanted to blame certain corrupt practices on Shikapwasha if he had died. There were several articles published by Amos Mapulanga via one world newspaper insinuating the above.

His highest education attended is grade 12 (last level of high school in Zambia).