| Background: |
After the British
seized the Cape of Good Hope area in 1806, many of the Dutch
settlers (the Boers) trekked north to found their own
republics. The discovery of diamonds (1867) and gold (1886)
spurred wealth and immigration and intensified the
subjugation of the native inhabitants. The Boers resisted
British encroachments, but were defeated in the Boer War
(1899-1902). The resulting Union of South Africa operated
under a policy of apartheid - the separate development of
the races. The 1990s brought an end to apartheid politically
and ushered in black majority rule. |
| Location: |
Southern Africa,
at the southern tip of the continent of Africa |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
29 00 S, 24 00 E |
| Area: |
total:
1,219,912 sq km
land: 1,219,912 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion
Island and Prince Edward Island) |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly less
than twice the size of Texas |
| Land
boundaries: |
total:
4,750 km
border countries: Botswana 1,840 km, Lesotho
909 km, Mozambique 491 km, Namibia 855 km, Swaziland 430 km,
Zimbabwe 225 km |
| Maritime
claims: |
contiguous
zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth
of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Climate: |
mostly semiarid;
subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights |
| Terrain: |
vast interior
plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Njesuthi 3,408 m |
| Natural
resources: |
gold, chromium,
antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates,
tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium,
salt, natural gas |
| Land
use: |
arable land:
10%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 67%
forests and woodland: 7%
other: 15% (1993 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
12,700 sq km
(1993 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
prolonged
droughts |
| Environment
- current issues: |
lack of important
arterial rivers or lakes requires extensive water
conservation and control measures; growth in water usage
threatens to outpace supply; pollution of rivers from
agricultural runoff and urban discharge; air pollution
resulting in acid rain; soil erosion; desertification |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living
Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine
Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection,
Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements |
| Geography
- note: |
South Africa
completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds
Swaziland |
| Population: |
43,586,097
note: South Africa took a census October 1996
which showed a population of 40,583,611 (after an official
adjustment for a 6.8% underenumeration based on a
postenumeration survey); estimates for this country
explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality
due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy,
higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population
and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of
population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected
(July 2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
32.01% (male 7,023,639; female 6,928,559)
15-64 years: 63.11% (male 13,264,654; female
14,244,484)
65 years and over: 4.88% (male 798,914; female
1,325,847) (2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
0.26% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
21.12
births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
16.77
deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
-1.73 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female
total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
60.33
deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 48.09 years
male: 47.64 years
female: 48.56 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
2.43 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
19.94% (1999
est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
4.2 million (1999
est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
250,000 (1999
est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun:
South African(s)
adjective: South African |
| Ethnic
groups: |
black 75.2%,
white 13.6%, Colored 8.6%, Indian 2.6% |
| Religions: |
Christian 68%
(includes most whites and Coloreds, about 60% of blacks and
about 40% of Indians), Muslim 2%, Hindu 1.5% (60% of
Indians), indigenous beliefs and animist 28.5% |
| Languages: |
11 official
languages, including Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Pedi,
Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 81.8%
male: 81.9%
female: 81.7% (1995 est.) |
| Country
name: |
conventional
long form: Republic of South Africa
conventional short form: South Africa
former: Union of South Africa
abbreviation: RSA |
| Government
type: |
republic |
| Capital: |
Pretoria; note -
Cape Town is the legislative center and Bloemfontein the
judicial center |
| Administrative
divisions: |
9 provinces;
Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga,
North-West, Northern Cape, Northern Province, Western Cape |
| Independence: |
31 May 1910 (from
UK) |
| National
holiday: |
Freedom Day, 27
April (1994) |
| Constitution: |
10 December 1996;
this new constitution was certified by the Constitutional
Court on 4 December 1996, was signed by then President
MANDELA on 10 December 1996, and entered into effect on 3
February 1997; it is being implemented in phases |
| Legal
system: |
based on
Roman-Dutch law and English common law; accepts compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
| Suffrage: |
18 years of age;
universal |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of
state: President Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999);
Executive Deputy President Jacob ZUMA (since 17 June 1999);
note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
head of government: President Thabo MBEKI
(since 16 June 1999); Executive Deputy President Jacob ZUMA
(since 17 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief
of state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president elected by the National
Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 2 June
1999 (next scheduled for sometime between May and July 2004)
election results: Thabo MBEKI elected
president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100% (by
acclamation)
note: ANC-IFP governing coalition |
| Legislative
branch: |
bicameral
parliament consisting of the National Assembly (400 seats;
members are elected by popular vote under a system of
proportional representation to serve five-year terms) and
the National Council of Provinces (90 seats, 10 members
elected by each of the nine provincial legislatures for
five-year terms; has special powers to protect regional
interests, including the safeguarding of cultural and
linguistic traditions among ethnic minorities); note -
following the implementation of the new constitution on 3
February 1997 the former Senate was disbanded and replaced
by the National Council of Provinces with essentially no
change in membership and party affiliations, although the
new institution's responsibilities have been changed
somewhat by the new constitution
elections: National Assembly and National
Council of Provinces - last held 2 June 1999 (next to be
held NA 2004)
election results: National Assembly - percent
of vote by party - ANC 66.4%, DP 9.6%, IFP 8.6%, NP 6.9%,
UDM 3.4%, ACDP 1.4%, FF 0.8%, other 2.9%; seats by party -
ANC 266, DP 38, IFP 34, NP 28, UDM 14, ACDP 6, FF 3, other
11; National Council of Provinces - percent of vote by party
- NA%; seats by party - ANC 61, NP 17, FF 4, IFP 5, DP 3 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Constitutional
Court; Supreme Court of Appeals; High Courts; Magistrate
Courts |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
African Christian
Democratic Party or ACDP [Kenneth MESHOE, president];
African National Congress or ANC [Thabo MBEKI, president];
Democratic Alliance (formed from the merger of the
Democratic Party or DP and the New National Party or NP)
[Anthony LEON, leader]; Freedom Front or FF [Constand
VILJOEN, president]; Inkatha Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu
BUTHELEZI, president]; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC
[Stanley MOGOBA, president]; United Democratic Movement or
UDM [Bantu HOLOMISA] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
Congress of South
African Trade Unions or COSATU [Zwelinzima VAVI, general
secretary]; South African Communist Party or SACP [Blade
NZIMANDE, general secretary]; South African National Civics
Organization or SANCO [Mlungisi HLONGWANE, national
president]; note - COSATU and SACP are in a formal alliance
with the ANC |
| International
organization participation: |
ACP, AfDB, BIS,
C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM,
IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat,
Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM, NSG, OAU,
OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO,
UNITAR, UNMEE, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO,
ZC |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Makate Sheila SISULU
chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 232-4400
FAX: [1] (202) 265-1607
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and
New York |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Delano E. LEWIS, Sr.
embassy: 877 Pretorius Street, Pretoria
mailing address: P. O. Box 9536, Pretoria 0001
telephone: [27] (12) 342-1048
FAX: [27] (12) 342-2244
consulate(s) general: Cape Town, Durban,
Johannesburg |
| Flag
description: |
two equal width
horizontal bands of red (top) and blue separated by a
central green band which splits into a horizontal Y, the
arms of which end at the corners of the hoist side; the Y
embraces a black isosceles triangle from which the arms are
separated by narrow yellow bands; the red and blue bands are
separated from the green band and its arms by narrow white
stripes
note: prior to 26 April 1994, the flag was
actually four flags in one - three miniature flags
reproduced in the center of the white band of the former
flag of the Netherlands, which had three equal horizontal
bands of orange (top), white, and blue; the miniature flags
were a vertically hanging flag of the old Orange Free State
with a horizontal flag of the UK adjoining on the hoist side
and a horizontal flag of the old Transvaal Republic
adjoining on the other side |
| Economy
- overview: |
South Africa is a
middle-income, developing country with an abundant supply of
resources, well-developed financial, legal, communications,
energy, and transport sectors, a stock exchange that ranks
among the 10 largest in the world, and a modern
infrastructure supporting an efficient distribution of goods
to major urban centers throughout the region. However,
growth has not been strong enough to cut into the 30%
unemployment, and daunting economic problems remain from the
apartheid era, especially the problems of poverty and lack
of economic empowerment among the disadvantaged groups.
Other problems are crime, corruption, and HIV/AIDS. At the
start of 2000, President MBEKI vowed to promote economic
growth and foreign investment, and to reduce poverty by
relaxing restrictive labor laws, stepping up the pace of
privatization, and cutting unneeded governmental spending. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $369 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
3% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $8,500 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
5%
industry: 30%
services: 65% (1999 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
50% (2000 est.) |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
1.1%
highest 10%: 45.9% (1994) |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
5.3% (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
17 million
economically active (2000) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture 30%,
industry 25%, services 45% (1999 est.) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
30% (2000 est.) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$31.1 billion
expenditures: $34.4 billion, including capital
expenditures of $NA billion (FY01/02) |
| Industries: |
mining (world's
largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium), automobile
assembly, metalworking, machinery, textile, iron and steel,
chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
2.4% (2000 est.) |
| Electricity
- production: |
186.903 billion
kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
92.74%
hydro: 0.39%
nuclear: 6.87%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
172.393 billion
kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
3.884 billion kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
2.457 billion kWh
(1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
corn, wheat,
sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton, wool,
dairy products |
| Exports: |
$30.8 billion
(f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
gold, diamonds,
other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment |
| Exports
- partners: |
UK, Italy, Japan,
US, Germany |
| Imports: |
$27.6 billion
(f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
machinery,
foodstuffs and equipment, chemicals, petroleum products,
scientific instruments |
| Imports
- partners: |
Germany, US, UK,
Japan |
| Debt
- external: |
$25.6 billion
(2000 est.) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$676.3 million |
| Exchange
rates: |
rand per US
dollar - 7.60 (March 2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999),
5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997), 4.29935 (1996) |
| Fiscal
year: |
1 April - 31
March |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
5.075 million
(1999) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
over 2,000,000
(1999) |
| Telephone
system: |
general
assessment: the system is the best developed and
most modern in Africa
domestic: consists of carrier-equipped
open-wire lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay
links, fiber-optic cable, radiotelephone communication
stations, and wireless local loops; key centers are
Bloemfontein, Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Port
Elizabeth, and Pretoria
international: 2 submarine cables; satellite
earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic
Ocean) |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 14, FM 347
(plus 243 repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Radios: |
13.75 million
(1997) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
556 (plus 144
network repeaters) (1997) |
| Televisions: |
5.2 million
(1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.za |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
44 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
1.82 million
(2000) |
| Railways: |
total:
21,431 km
narrow gauge: 20,995 km 1.067-m gauge (9,087 km
electrified); 436 km 0.610-m gauge (1995) |
| Highways: |
total:
358,596 km
paved: 59,753 km (including 1927 km of
expressways)
unpaved: 298,843 km (1996) |
| Pipelines: |
crude oil 931 km;
petroleum products 1,748 km; natural gas 322 km |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Cape Town,
Durban, East London, Mosselbaai, Port Elizabeth, Richards
Bay, Saldanha |
| Merchant
marine: |
total:
8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 271,650 GRT/268,604 DWT
ships by type: container 6, petroleum tanker 2
(2000 est.) |
| Airports: |
741 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
142
over 3,047 m: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 47
914 to 1,523 m: 71
under 914 m: 10 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total:
599
1,524 to 2,437 m: 33
914 to 1,523 m: 304
under 914 m: 262 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
South African
National Defense Force or SANDF (includes Army, Navy, Air
Force, and Medical Services), South African Police Service
or SAPS |
| Military
manpower - military age: |
18 years of age |
| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age
15-49: 11,469,812 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age
15-49: 6,977,328 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - reaching military age annually: |
males:
466,399 (2001 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$2 billion
(FY00/01) |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
1.5% (FY99/00) |
| Military
- note: |
the National
Defense Force continues to integrate former military, black
homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces |
| Disputes
- international: |
Swaziland has
asked South Africa to open negotiations on reincorporating
some nearby South African territories that are populated by
ethnic Swazis or that were long ago part of the Swazi
Kingdom |
| Illicit
drugs: |
transshipment
center for heroin, hashish, marijuana, and possibly cocaine;
cocaine consumption on the rise; world's largest market for
illicit methaqualone, usually imported illegally from India
through various east African countries; illicit cultivation
of marijuana |
|
