Levy Mwanawasa, president of Zambia, died after suffering a stroke nearly two months ago.

Mr Mwanawasa fell ill in late June at an African Union summit in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, Zambian officials said at the time.

Mr Mwanawasa's death "is a great loss for the Zambian people who respected and had great affection for him," according to a statement from French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

"It's a great loss for the African continent as a whole, which appreciated his political courage," Sarkozy's statement said. "It's a big loss for democracy, for which he was an ardent defender his whole life.

The Zambian leader was taken from a hospital in Egypt to an intensive care unit in Paris in June, but initial reports that he died days later turned out to be false.