Lusaka - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the availability and cost of household help, and what types of help are typically employed by expatriates?
Household help is plentiful and high-quality. Due to the closure of USAID, there is no shortage of great helpers looking for work. The cost has increased signficantly though, due to the weakening dollar and inflation. We have a full-time nanny, a full-time cook/housekeeper, and a full-time gardener (all employed when we were both working full-time and the kids were younger; this staff ratio is a bit ridiculous now that I'm unemployed and the kids are a little older). Some also employ drivers or chefs. The cost per month was $900 for all three when we arrived in 2023, and now that's closer to $1500 a month. That doesn't include the random payouts, like educational reimbursements (we offer 17,500 kwacaha per year per employee), or their weekly groceries (we provide all breakfast/lunch/tea supplies), or funeral expenses when a relative dies, or medical expenses, or annual vacation day payouts, or the 13th month, or the severance costs. We also pay for their cell phones, uniforms, transportation, and retirement (NAPSA). We set aside about $200 a month on top of regular salaries to cover all of this. Even with this comprehensive salary package, our staff frequently request loans and are almost always in a state of payback. They have never missed a payment, and they've used these loans to build a house, purchase mosquito netting, install solar in their homes, cover extra school fees, etc. That said, it's a lot more expensive than we anticipated. I think we pay around 25k per year on staff, which is nuts when you remember our kids are in school until 4pm every day. We are extremely lucky that our helpers both drive, which makes the shopping and general kid runs much, much easier. A previous employer paid for them to go to driving school and take swim lessons, and we've paid for both our helpers to attend cooking school and get their Level 1 certifications. Our family reaps the benefits of these professional investments, but it's another expense to consider. Our helpers work incredibly hard, and they make our lives easier in a thousand ways. They more than earn their salaries. That said, it's been a big adjustment to have extra people in our house...all the time. It's a bit hard for me to relax on our back porch or to try to do a workout out there (for example), because our gardener is there from 8 - 5:30 every day, or the guards are walking through to the bathroom facilities out back. Our helpers are always cooking large meals during the day for themselves, or working incredibly hard to keep up with the dust and general kid chaos inside, so as a former work-from-home EFM, I often find myself hiding out in the bedroom. I long for the day when I can have a "sick day" and watch TV in my living room while the kids are at school, or to randomly decide to bake something midday, but I never feel comfortable doing that because of my "roommates". For example, when my helpers make lunch, they use 47 pots and are usually gutting a fish in the kitchen sink, so it's not like I can just walk into my kitchen and decide to fry an egg or something. I microwave some leftovers, wave, and go back to my room. We've had helpers in Latin America, but this is a whole other level, and I'm not sure it's for us. I wish I had set things up differently at the start to provide slightly clearer boundaries and more private family time. - Feb 2026
Housekeepers, gardeners, nannies and drivers are all common place. Full time employment is around $200 month depending on the hours and role. - Apr 2025
Inexpensive and plentiful, gardeners, drivers, housekeepers and nannies. Many households with young kids will have all of the above. - Mar 2022
Household help is plentiful and inexpensive. It's common for expats to have gardeners, housekeepers, cooks, and/or nannies or some combination thereof. You should be prepared to give very specific instructions and train your staff, as they may not know intuitively what your preferences are or they may have different practices to which they are accustomed. - Dec 2021
We have a nanny that we pay about $300 a month and she is fabulous. I think that's a pretty standard wage, at least within the US community. - Feb 2018
Household help is very inexpensive ($1-$2 per hour). We have a gardener, because our yard is the size of a small city park. Everyone is required to have a guard, but the embassy pays for the guards. We have a housekeeper that comes once a week. Quality really varies. - Nov 2017
Household help is readily available. Housekeepers, nannies, and gardeners tend to be professional and hard-working, though there are a few bad eggs here and there. It helps to set priorities early on and to suggest work improvements throughout. Salaries are quite low (around $100-$150/month). Add-ons like transport, meal supplements, and even school fees bring the price up, but still keep help very affordable. Being compassionate and engaged with household staff greatly improves communication and quality of work. - Jan 2017
Help here is cheap. A live-in maid may be anywhere from 1000 - 1500 kwacha ($100 - $150) monthly. Live-out help may be about $150 to $250 monthly, and you are expected to pay transport. Transport is about 60 kwacha ($6) a month, but some people will try to claim it's more. It's not a requirement, though, so it doesn't have to be offered. Some people pay school fees (or a portion of it) for staff with receipts. Help is mediocre at best. Zambians do not like confrontation, so they will say they understand your requests when they don't, and do the wrong thing, which is frustrating. Also, do not assume that they know how to do something. You must be specific. Their living conditions are different from ours, so what might be obvious to you is foreign to them. - Jun 2016
Widely available and fairly cheap. Full-time housekeepers and gardeners charge anywhere from $150-250 per month. - May 2016
Most people have at least part-time domestic help and many have full-time help, especially if childcare is a factor. Not so many people have cooks, but gardeners are needed, either full-time, if you have a big yard, or part-time if you are on a compound/sharing. Domestic help and gardeners are inexpensive in Lusaka. - Mar 2015
Widely available and is about US$200/month if they are experienced with American families. - Aug 2014
Less than US$200 a month. Don't be like other Americans and not train them, they become lazy (I once found mine asleep on the couch, she's no longer with us) and make comments about how their last employer didn't make them do that. - Jan 2014
Domestic help is widely available and very reasonably priced. - Apr 2013
Available, though of variable abilities and english skills. Check around first and have a probationary period with a signed contract to prevent unhappy recriminations if termination needed. About $100 - $150/month for housekeepers, gardeners and nannies. - Jul 2010
Domestic help is easy and relatively cheap--about US$150/month. - Mar 2009
US$150-200. - Mar 2009
No problem. About US$100 a month will get you someone. - Oct 2008
Very available, costs about US$150/month for good help. You can find experienced staff through the U.S. embassy newsletter or via the CLO. - Aug 2008
Skill levels vary widely, but there are plenty of people willing to work in your home. You can get decent household help for around US$175 - $200/month. - May 2008
