1.
[syn: South Africa, Republic of South Africa]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
South Africa
n 1: a republic at the southernmost part of Africa; achieved
independence from the United Kingdom in 1910; first
European settlers were Dutch (known as Boers) [syn: South
Africa, Republic of South Africa]
CIA World Factbook 2002:
South Africa
Introduction South Africa
-------------------------
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.
Geography South Africa
----------------------
Location: Southern Africa, at the southern tip
of the continent of Africa
Geographic coordinates: 29 00 S, 24 00 E
Map references: Africa
Area: total: 1,219,912 sq km
land: 1,219,912 sq km
note: includes Prince Edward Islands
(Marion Island and Prince Edward
Island)
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly less than twice the size of
Texas
Land boundaries: total: 4,862 km
border countries: Botswana 1,840 km,
Lesotho 909 km, Mozambique 491 km,
Namibia 967 km, Swaziland 430 km,
Zimbabwe 225 km
Coastline: 2,798 km
Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 24 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to edge
of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 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: 12.13%
permanent crops: 0.77%
other: 87.1% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: 13,500 sq km (1998 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 outpacing
supply; pollution of rivers from
agricultural runoff and urban
discharge; air pollution resulting
in acid rain; soil erosion;
desertification
Environment - international party to: Antarctic-Environmental
agreements: 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
People South Africa
-------------------
Population: 43,647,658
note: South Africa took a census
October 1996 that 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 2002 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 31.6% (male 6,943,761;
female 6,849,745)
15-64 years: 63.4% (male 13,377,011;
female 14,300,850)
65 years and over: 5% (male 816,222;
female 1,360,069) (2002 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.02% (2002 est.)
Birth rate: 20.63 births/1,000 population (2002
est.)
Death rate: 18.86 deaths/1,000 population (2002
est.)
Net migration rate: -1.56 migrant(s)/1,000 population
(2002 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/
female
total population: 0.94 male(s)/
female (2002 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 61.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2002
est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 45.43 years
female: 45.68 years (2002 est.)
male: 45.19 years
Total fertility rate: 2.38 children born/woman (2002 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 19.94% (2000 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/ 5.2 million (2000 est.)
AIDS:
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 300,000 (2000 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: 85%
male: 86%
female: 85% (2000 est.)
Government South Africa
-----------------------
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 (may have
become Limpopo), 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
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)
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
election results: Thabo MBEKI
elected president; percent of
National Assembly vote - 100% (by
acclamation)
note: ANC-IFP is the 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 by
2 August 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; note - NP
split from DP in 2001) [Anthony
LEON]; Freedom Front or FF [Dr.
Pieter MULDER, president]; Inkatha
Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu
BUTHELEZI, president]; New National
Party or NP [Marthinus VAN
SCHALKWYK]; Pan-Africanist Congress
or PAC [Stanley MOGOBA, president];
United Democratic Movement or UDM
[Bantu HOLOMISA]
Political pressure groups and Congress of South African Trade
leaders: 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 ACP, AfDB, BIS, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-
participation: 24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC,
ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, 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
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los
Angeles, and New York
FAX: [1] (202) 265-1607
telephone: [1] (202) 232-4400
chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue
NW, Washington, DC 20008
Diplomatic representation from the chief of mission: Ambassador Cameron
US: H. HUME
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 South Africa
--------------------
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 high
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. The economy
slowed in 2001, largely the result
of the slowing of the international
economy.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $412
billion (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2.6% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $9,400
(2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 3%
industry: 31%
services: 66% (2000 est.)
Population below poverty line: 50% (2000 est.)
Household income or consumption by lowest 10%: 1.1%
percentage share: highest 10%: 45.9% (1994)
Distribution of family income - Gini 59.3 (1993-94)
index:
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.8% (2001 est.)
Labor force: 17 million economically active
(2000)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 30%, industry 25%,
services 45% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: 37% (2001 est.)
Budget: revenues: $22.6 billion
expenditures: $24.7 billion,
including capital expenditures of
$NA billion (FY02/03)
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: 7% (2001 est.)
Electricity - production: 194.383 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 92.62%
hydro: 0.69%
other: 0% (2000)
nuclear: 6.69%
Electricity - consumption: 181.521 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports: 4.549 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports: 5.294 billion kWh (2000)
Agriculture - products: corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits,
vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton,
wool, dairy products
Exports: $32.3 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
Exports - commodities: gold, diamonds, platinum, other
metals and minerals, machinery and
equipment
Exports - partners: EU 33%, US 20%, Japan 6%, Mozambique
2.5% (2001 est.)
Imports: $28.1 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery, foodstuffs and equipment,
chemicals, petroleum products,
scientific instruments
Imports - partners: EU 41%, US 11.4%, Saudi Arabia 7.3%,
Japan 7% (2001 est.)
Debt - external: $25.5 billion (2001 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $539 million (1999)
Currency: rand (ZAR)
Currency code: ZAR
Exchange rates: rand per US dollar - 11.58786
(January 2002), 8.60918 (2001),
6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999),
5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
Communications South Africa
---------------------------
Telephones - main lines in use: more than 5 million (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 7.06 million (2001)
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: 17 million (2001)
Television broadcast stations: 556 (plus 144 network repeaters)
(1997)
Televisions: 6 million (2000)
Internet country code: .za
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 150 (2001)
Internet users: 2.4 million (2001)
Transportation South Africa
---------------------------
Railways: total: 20,384 km
narrow gauge: 20,070 km 1.067-
m gauge (9,090 km electrified); 314
km 0.610-m gauge
note: in addition, South Africa has
an electrified 1.065-m gauge
commuter rail system, with a total
length of 1,254 km, which serves
Johannesburg-Pretoria, Cape Town,
Durban, East London, and Port
Elizabeth (2001)
Highways: total: 358,596 km
paved: 59,753 km (including 1,927 km
of expressways)
unpaved: 298,843 km (1996)
Waterways: NA
Pipelines: crude oil 931 km; petroleum products
1,748 km; natural gas 322 km
Ports and harbors: Cape Town, Durban, East London,
Mossel Bay, Port Elizabeth, Richards
Bay, Saldanha
Merchant marine: total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over)
totaling 271,650 GRT/268,604 DWT
note: includes some foreign-owned
ships registered here as a flag of
convenience: Denmark 3, Netherlands
1 (2002 est.)
ships by type: container 6,
petroleum tanker 2
Airports: 740 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 144
over 3,047 m: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 47
914 to 1,523 m: 72
under 914 m: 11 (2001)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 596
1,524 to 2,437 m: 34
914 to 1,523 m: 304
under 914 m: 258 (2001)
Military South Africa
---------------------
Military branches: South African National Defense Force
(including Army, Navy, Air Force,
and Medical Services), South African
Police Service
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 11,557,242 (2002
est.)
Military manpower - fit for military males age 15-49: 7,031,337 (2002
service: est.)
Military manpower - reaching males: 466,399 (2002 est.)
military age annually:
Military expenditures - dollar $1.79 billion (FY01)
figure:
Military expenditures - percent of 1.6% (FY01)
GDP:
Military - note: the National Defense Force continues
to integrate former military, black
homelands forces, and ex-opposition
forces
Transnational Issues South Africa
---------------------------------
Disputes - international: Swaziland continues to press South
Africa into ceding ethnic Swazi
lands in Kangwane region of KwaZulu-
Natal province, 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