| Introduction :: South Africa |
Background:
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| 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 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 under the Union of South Africa. In 1948, the National Party was voted into power and instituted a policy of apartheid - the separate development of the races. The first multi-racial elections in 1994 brought an end to apartheid and ushered in black majority rule under the African National Congress (ANC). ANC infighting, which has grown in recent years, came to a head in September 2008 after President Thabo MBEKI resigned. Kgalema MOTLANTHE, the party's General-Secretary, succeeded as interim president until general elections scheduled for 2009. |
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| Geography :: South Africa |
Location:
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| Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa
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Geographic coordinates:
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29 00 S, 24 00 E
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Map references:
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Area:
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total: 1,219,090 sq km
country comparison to the world: 32
land:
1,214,470 sq km
water:
4,620 sq km
note:
includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and Prince Edward Island)
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Area - comparative:
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slightly less than twice the size of Texas
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Land boundaries:
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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
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Coastline:
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2,798 km
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Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone:
24 nm
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
continental shelf:
200 nm or to edge of the continental margin
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Climate:
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mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights
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Terrain:
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vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point:
Njesuthi 3,408 m
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Natural resources:
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gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas
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Land use:
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arable land: 12.1%
permanent crops:
0.79%
other:
87.11% (2005)
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Irrigated land:
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14,980 sq km (2003)
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Total renewable water resources:
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50 cu km (1990)
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Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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total: 12.5 cu km/yr (31%/6%/63%)
per capita:
264 cu m/yr (2000)
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Natural hazards:
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prolonged droughts
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Environment - current issues:
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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
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, 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
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
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Geography - note:
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South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds Swaziland |
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Population:
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| 49,052,489
country comparison to the world: 25
note:
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, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2009 est.)
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 28.9% (male 7,093,328/female 7,061,579)
15-64 years:
65.8% (male 16,275,424/female 15,984,181)
65 years and over:
5.4% (male 1,075,117/female 1,562,860) (2009 est.)
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Median age:
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total: 24.4 years
male:
24.1 years
female:
24.8 years (2009 est.)
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Population growth rate:
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0.281% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 173
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Birth rate:
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19.93 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 99
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Death rate:
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16.99 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 12
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Net migration rate:
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-0.13 migrant(s)/1,000 population
country comparison to the world: 96
note:
there is an increasing flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa and Botswana in search of better economic opportunities (2009 est.)
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Urbanization:
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urban population: 61% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization:
1.4% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1 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 (2009 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 44.42 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 59
male:
48.66 deaths/1,000 live births
female:
40.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 48.98 years
country comparison to the world: 209
male:
49.81 years
female:
48.13 years (2009 est.)
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Total fertility rate:
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2.38 children born/woman (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 105
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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18.1% (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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5.7 million (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 2
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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350,000 (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 1
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Major infectious diseases:
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degree of risk: intermediate
food or waterborne diseases:
bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
water contact disease:
schistosomiasis (2009)
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Nationality:
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noun: South African(s)
adjective:
South African
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Ethnic groups:
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black African 79%, white 9.6%, colored 8.9%, Indian/Asian 2.5% (2001 census)
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Religions:
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Zion Christian 11.1%, Pentecostal/Charismatic 8.2%, Catholic 7.1%, Methodist 6.8%, Dutch Reformed 6.7%, Anglican 3.8%, Muslim 1.5%, other Christian 36%, other 2.3%, unspecified 1.4%, none 15.1% (2001 census)
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Languages:
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IsiZulu 23.8%, IsiXhosa 17.6%, Afrikaans 13.3%, Sepedi 9.4%, English 8.2%, Setswana 8.2%, Sesotho 7.9%, Xitsonga 4.4%, other 7.2% (2001 census)
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population:
86.4%
male:
87%
female:
85.7% (2003 est.)
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School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
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total: 13 years
male:
13 years
female:
13 years (2004)
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Education expenditures:
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5.4% of GDP (2006)
country comparison to the world: 53
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