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South Africa
Background :
Dutch traders landed at the southern tip of modern day South Africa in 1652 and established a stopover point on the spice route between the Netherlands and the Far East, founding the city of Cape Town. 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); however, the British and the Afrikaners, as the Boers became known, ruled together beginning in 1910 under the Union of South Africa, which became a republic in 1961 after a whites-only referendum. In 1948, the National Party was voted into power and instituted a policy of apartheid - the separate development of the races - which favored the white minority at the expense of the black majority. The African National Congress (ANC) led the opposition to apartheid and many top ANC leaders, such as Nelson MANDELA, spent decades in South Africa's prisons. Internal protests and insurgency, as well as boycotts by some Western nations and institutions, led to the regime's eventual willingness to negotiate a peaceful transition to majority rule. The first multi-racial elections in 1994 brought an end to apartheid and ushered in majority rule under an ANC-led government. South Africa since then has struggled to address apartheid-era imbalances in decent housing, education, and health care. ANC infighting, which has grown in recent years, came to a head in September 2008 when President Thabo MBEKI resigned, and Kgalema MOTLANTHE, the party's General-Secretary, succeeded him as interim president. Jacob ZUMA became president after the ANC won general elections in April 2009.
Location :
Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa
Geographic Coordinates Center :
29 00 S, 24 00 E (Latitude, Longtitude)
Geographic Coordinates Rectangle :
| West | 16.46 |
| North | -22.13 |
| East | 32.90 |
| South | -34.84 |
Map references :
Africa
Area :
| total | 1 219 090 | square km |
| land | 1 214 470 | square km |
| water | 4 620 | square km |
Land boundaries :
| total | 4 862 | km |
| Botswana (bw) | 1 840 | km |
| Lesotho (ls) | 909 | km |
| Mozambique (mz) | 491 | km |
| Namibia (na) | 967 | km |
| Swaziland (sz) | 430 | km |
| Zimbabwe (zw) | 225 | km |
Coastline :
2798.00 km
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 | 0 | metres |
| highest point | 3 408 | metres |
Natural resources :
| antimony | chromium |
| coal | copper |
| gem diamonds | gold |
| iron ore | manganese |
| natural gas | nickel |
| phosphates | platinum |
| salt | tin |
| uranium | vanadium |
Land use :
| arable land | 12.10 | % |
| permanent crops | 0.79 | % |
| other | 87.11 | % |
Irrigated land :
14 980 square km
Total renewable water resources :
50 cubic km
Natural hazards :
| droughts |
current issues :
lack of important arterial rivers or lakes requires extensive water conservation and control measures; growth in water usage outpacing supply; pollution of rivers from agricultural runoff and urban discharge; air pollution resulting in acid rain; soil erosion; desertification
international agreements :
| Antarctic Seals | Antarctic Treaty |
| Antarctic-Environmental Protocol | Antarctic-Marine Living Resources |
| Biodiversity | Climate Change |
| Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol | Desertification |
| Endangered Species | Hazardous Wastes |
| Law of the Sea | Marine Dumping |
| Marine Life Conservation | Ozone Layer Protection |
| Ship Pollution | Wetlands |
| Whaling |
Population :
49 052 489
Indicators :
| Growth rate | 0.28 | % |
| Birth rate | 19.93 | births/1,000 population |
| Total fertility rate | 2.38 | children born/woman |
| Death rate | 16.99 | deaths/1,000 population |
| Net migration rate | -0.13 | migrant(s)/1,000 population |
Age structure :
| 0-14 years | 28.90 | % |
| 15-64 years | 65.80 | % |
| 65 years and over | 5.40 | % |
Median age :
| total | 24.40 | years |
| male | 24.10 | years |
| female | 24.80 | years |
Sex ratio :
| at birth | 1.02 | male(s)/female |
| under 15 years | 1.00 | male(s)/female |
| 15-64 years | 1.02 | male(s)/female |
| 65 years and over | 0.69 | male(s)/female |
| total population | 0.99 | male(s)/female |
Health :
| Infant mortality rate | 44.42 | deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life expectancy at birth - total population | 48.98 | years |
| Life expectancy at birth - male | 49.81 | years |
| Life expectancy at birth - female | 48.13 | years |
| HIV-AIDS adult prevalence rate | 18.10 | % |
| HIV-AIDS people living with HIV-AIDS | 5 700 000 | |
| HIV-AIDS deaths | 350 000 |
Religions :
| Zion Christian | 11.10 | % |
| Pentecostal | 8.20 | % |
| Catholic | 7.10 | % |
| Methodist | 6.80 | % |
| Dutch Reformed | 6.70 | % |
| Anglican | 3.80 | % |
| Muslim | 1.50 | % |
| other Christian | 36.00 | % |
| other | 2.30 | % |
| unspecified | 1.40 | % |
| none | 15.10 | % |
Languages :
| IsiZulu | 23.80 | % |
| IsiXhosa | 17.60 | % |
| Afrikaans | 13.30 | % |
| Sepedi | 9.40 | % |
| English | 8.20 | % |
| Setswana | 8.20 | % |
| Sesotho | 7.90 | % |
| Xitsonga | 4.40 | % |
Literacy :
| total population | 86.40 | % |
| male | 87.00 | % |
| female | 85.70 | % |
Country name :
| conventional long form | Republic of South Africa |
| conventional short form | South Africa |
| former | Union of South Africa |
Country Codes :
| ISO 3166 | ZA |
| ISO Numeric | 710 |
| ISO3 | ZAF |
| FIPS | SF |
| ccTLD | za |
| English | South Africa |
Administrative divisions :
9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North-West, Western Cape
Capital :
| name | Pretoria |
| geographic coordinates | 25 42 S, 28 13 E |
| time difference | 2.00 |
International organization participation :
| ACP | AU |
| AfDB | BIS |
| C | FAO |
| FATF | G-20 |
| G-24 | G-77 |
| IAEA | IBRD |
| ICAO | ICC |
| ICCt | ICRM |
| IDA | IFAD |
| IFC | IFRCS |
| IHO | ILO |
| IMF | IMO |
| IMSO | IOC |
| IOM | IPU |
| ISO | ITSO |
| ITU | ITUC |
| Interpol | MIGA |
| MONUC | NAM |
| NSG | OPCW |
| PCA | Paris Club (associate) |
| SACU | SADC |
| UN | UNAMID |
| UNCTAD | UNESCO |
| UNHCR | UNIDO |
| UNITAR | UNWTO |
| UPU | WCO |
| WFTU | WHO |
| WIPO | WMO |
| WTO | ZC |
Independence :
1910-05-31
National holiday :
Freedom Day
1994-04-27
Executive branch :
| President Jacob ZUMA |
Legislative branch :
| NA; seats by party - NA; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - ANC | 65.90 | % |
| DA | 16.70 | % |
| COPE | 7.40 | % |
| IFP | 4.60 | % |
| other | 5.40 | % |
GDP - Gross Domestic product :
| PPP - Purchasing Power Parity | 488 600 000 000 | $ |
| Official Exchange Rate | 277 400 000 000 | |
| RGR - Real Growth rate | -1.90 | % |
| PPP - per capita | 10 000 | $ |
GDP Composition by sector :
| agriculture | 3.50 | % |
| industry | 32.10 | % |
| services | 64.40 | % |
Labor force - by occupation :
| agriculture | 9.00 | % |
| industry | 26.00 | % |
| services | 65.00 | % |
Other Indicators :
| Labor force | 17 320 000 | people |
| Unemployment rate | 24.00 | % |
| Population below poverty line | 50.00 | % |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index | 65.00 | |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.20 | % |
| Investment (gross fixed) | 20.60 | % of GDP |
| Current account balance | - 15 600 000 000 | $ |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | 37 410 000 000 | $ |
| Debt external | 73 840 000 000 | $ |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad | 65 069 999 999 | $ |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - at home | 125 700 000 000 | $ |
| Market value of publicly traded shares | 491 300 000 000 | $ |
| Military expenditures | 1.70 | % of GDP |
| Public debt | 35.70 | % of GDP |
Household income or consumption by percentage share :
| lowest 10% | 1.30 | % |
| highest 10% | 44.70 | % |
Budget :
| revenues | 74 920 000 000 | $ |
| expenditures | 86 260 000 000 | $ |
Agriculture - products :
| beef | corn |
| dairy | fruits |
| mutton | poultry |
| sugarcane | vegetables |
| wheat | wool |
Industries :
| car assembly | chemicals |
| chromium | commercial ship repair |
| fertilizer | foodstuffs |
| gold | iron |
| machinery | metalworking |
| mining | steel |
| textiles | tin of platinum |
Energy :
| Electricity Production | 240 300 000 000 | kWh |
| Electricity Consumption | 215 100 000 000 | kWh |
| Electricity Exports | 14 160 000 000 | kWh |
| Electricity Imports | 10 570 000 000 | kWh |
| Oil Production | 195 000 | bbl/day |
| Oil Consumption | 583 000 | bbl/day |
| Oil Exports | 128 500 | bbl/day |
| Oil Imports | 490 500 | bbl/day |
| Oil Proved reserves | 15 000 000 | bbl |
| Natural gas Production | 3 250 000 000 | cubic metres |
| Natural gas Consumption | 6 450 000 000 | cubic metres |
| Natural gas Imports | 3 200 000 000 | cubic metres |
| Electricity Exports | 27 160 000 | cubic metres |
Value :
67 930 000 000 $
Partners :
| Japan (jp) | 11.10 | % |
| United States (us) | 11.10 | % |
| Germany (de) | 8.00 | % |
| United Kingdom (gb) | 6.80 | % |
| China (cn) | 6.00 | % |
| Netherlands (nl) | 5.20 | % |
Commodities :
| diamonds | gold |
| machinery and equipment | metals and minerals |
| platinum |
Value :
70 240 000 000 $
Partners :
| Germany (de) | 11.20 | % |
| China (cn) | 11.00 | % |
| United States (us) | 7.80 | % |
| Saudi Arabia (sa) | 6.20 | % |
| Japan (jp) | 5.50 | % |
Commodities :
| chemicals | foodstuffs |
| machinery and equipment | petroleum products |
| scientific instruments |
Currency-code :
ZAR
Currency-name :
rand
Communications :
| Telephons Main lines in use | 4 425 000 | |
| Telephons Mobile, Cellular | 45 000 000 | |
| FM Radio broadcast stations | 347 | |
| Television broadcast stations | 556 | |
| Internet Country code (ccTLD) | za | |
| Internet Hosts | 1 730 000 | |
| Internet Users | 4 187 000 |
Transportation :
| Airports with paved runways | 148 | |
| Heliports | 1 | |
| Pipelines - gas | 908 | km |
| Pipelines - oil | 980 | km |
| Pipelines - condensate | 11 | km |
| Pipelines - refined products | 1 379 | km |
| Roadways - total | 362 099 | km |
| Roadways - expressways | 239 | km |
| Roadways - paved | 73 506 | km |
| Roadways - unpaved | 288 593 | km |
| Railways | 20 872 | km |
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