Zambia women’s senior national team were crowned champions at the Women's IHF Nations Trophy – Africa Zone VI, which they hosted in capital Lusaka, between 15 to 19 September 2026.

Eight teams lined up at the start, with the sides divided into two groups of four teams each, with the top two sides in each group progressing to the semi-finals.

In Group A, hosts Zambia dominated the proceedings, posting the second-best attacking display from the participating teams and the best defensive output, throwing off wit a 29:17 win against South Africa and following up with a 51:9 win over Eswatini.

They completed the sweep of their opponents with a 40:10 win against Namibia, leaving the other three sides to fight for the second place.

After their maiden loss in the preliminary round against the hosts, South Africa bounced back and beat Namibia, 37:17, and Eswatini, 34:17, to secure the second place and progress for the semi-finals.

In Group B, Mozambique were the dominating force, starting with a fast-paced win against Malawi, 39:32, following up with a 37:27 win against Zimbabwe, before dominating Lesotho, 58:18.

Zimbabwe finished second, opening their account with a 63:7 win over Lesotho and defeating Malawi in the decider, 32:24, to seal their tickets for the semi-finals.

The two semi-finals had no history, with the group winners progressing steadily to the final. Mozambique rode a fantastic attacking performance, backed by 11 goals from Angelina Matuca and eight goals from Albertina Mbofana to secure a 48:22 win over South Africa.

And hosts Zambia had 11 different players score against Zimbabwe, in a match which they controlled from start to finish, to secure a 36:24 win.

However, the final was more closer than the semi-finals. Mozambique only took a brief lead, 2:1, after three minutes, but Zambia roared back and used a 6:0 run to establish dominance and take the score to 9:3, after the match was tied.

From that moment on, there was no looking back, irrespective of how much Mozambique tried to bounce back, cutting the gap to two goals late in the first half and to only three goals in the 52nd minute.

Esther Nalwimba scored seven, and Charity Phiri added five for Zambia, which pushed again towards the end to secure a 26:19 win and clinch the title at the Women's IHF Nations Trophy – Africa Zone VI.

Zimbabwe finished third, with a 31:9 win over South Africa in the bronze medal match, while Malawi ended up fifth, with a 36:15 win over Namibia. Lesotho beat Eswatini, 21:18, in the battle for the seventh place.

Malawi's Tendai Ndhlovu was the top scorer of the competition, with 48 goals, while Grace Mkwanda finished second, with 43 goals. Namibia's Toini Hinamunhu was the third best scorer of the competition, with 40 goals.

Zambia will now qualify for the 2026 CAHB Africa Women’s Handball Championship, as all zone winners of the Women's IHF Nations Trophy – Africa secure their tickets for the continental championship.