SOUTH AFRICA
Geography People Government Economy Transportation Communications Defense Forces
SOUTH AFRICA @South Africa:Geography Location: Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa Map references: Africa Area: total area: 1,219,912 sq km land area: 1,219,912 sq km comparative area: slightly less than twice the size of Texas note: includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and Prince Edward Island) Land boundaries: total 4,750 km, Botswana 1,840 km, Lesotho 909 km, Mozambique 491 km, Namibia 855 km, Swaziland 430 km, Zimbabwe 225 km Coastline: 2,798 km Maritime claims: continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm International disputes: 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; Climate: mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights Terrain: vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain 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% meadows and pastures: 65% forest and woodland: 3% other: 21% Irrigated land: 11,280 sq km (1989 est.) 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 natural hazards: prolonged droughts international agreements: party to - Antarctic Treaty, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Law of the Sea Note: South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds Swaziland @South Africa:People Population: total: 45,095,459 (July 1995 est.) Age structure: 0-14 years: 40% (female 8,842,764; male 9,091,722) 15-64 years: 56% (female 12,825,617; male 12,508,039) 65 years and over: 4% (female 1,047,285; male 780,032) (July 1995 est.) Population growth rate: total: 2.61% (1995 est.) Birth rate: 33.39 births/1,000 population (1995 est.) Death rate: 7.42 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.) Net migration rate: 0.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.) Infant mortality rate: 45.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 65.42 years male: 62.68 years female: 68.25 years (1995 est.) Total fertility rate: 4.35 children born/woman (1995 est.) Nationality: noun: South African(s) adjective: South African Ethnic divisions: black 75.2%, white 13.6%, Colored 8.6%, Indian 2.6% Religions: Christian (most whites and Coloreds and about 60% of blacks), Hindu (60% of Indians), Muslim 2% Languages: eleven official languages, including Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1980) total population: 76% male: 78% female: 75% Labor force: 13.4 million economically active (1990) by occupation: services 35%, agriculture 30%, industry 20%, mining 9%, other 6% @South Africa:Government Names: conventional long form: Republic of South Africa conventional short form: South Africa Abbreviation: RSA Digraph: SF Type: republic Capital: Pretoria (administrative); Cape Town (legislative); Bloemfontein (judicial) Administrative divisions: 9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Eastern Transvaal, KwaZulu/Natal, Northern Cape, Northern Transvaal, Northwest, Orange Free State, Gauteng, Western Cape Independence: 31 May 1910 (from UK) National holiday: Freedom Day, 27 April (1994) Constitution: 27 April 1994 (interim constitution, replacing the constitution of 3 September 1984) 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 and head of government: Executive President Nelson MANDELA (since 10 May 1994); Deputy Executive President Thabo MBEKI (since 10 May 1994); Deputy Executive President Frederik W. DE KLERK (since 10 May 1994) note: any political party that wins 20% or more of the National Assembly votes in a general election is entitled to name a Deputy Executive President cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the Executive President Legislative branch: bicameral National Assembly: elections last held 26-29 April 1994 (next to be held NA); results - ANC 62.6%, NP 20.4%, IFP 10.5%, FF 2.2%, DP 1.7%, PAC 1.2%, ACDP 0.5%, other 0.9%; seats - (400 total) ANC 252, NP 82, IFP 43, FF 9, DP 7, PAC 5, ACDP 2 Senate: the Senate is composed of members who are nominated by the nine provincial parliaments (which are elected in parallel with the National Assembly) and has special powers to protect regional interests, including the right to limited self-determination for ethnic minorities; seats - (90 total) ANC 61, NP 17, FF 4, IFP 5, DP 3 note: when the National Assembly meets in joint session with the Senate to consider the provisions of the constitution, the combined group is referred to as the Constitutional Assembly Judicial branch: Supreme Court Political parties and leaders: African National Congress (ANC), Nelson MANDELA, president; National Party (NP), Frederik W. DE KLERK, president; Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI, president; Freedom Front (FF), Constand VILJOEN, president; Democratic Party (DP); Pan Africanist Congress (PAC), Clarence MAKWETU, president; African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP), leader NA note: in addition to these seven parties which received seats in the National Assembly, twelve other parties won votes in the national elections in April 1994 Other political or pressure groups: NA;; Member of: BIS, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAU, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, ZC Diplomatic representation in US: chief of mission: Ambassador Franklin SONN chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-4400 consulate(s) general: Beverly Hills (California), Chicago, and New York US diplomatic representation: chief of mission: Ambassador Princeton N. LYMAN embassy: 877 Pretorius St., Arcadia 0083 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: two equal width horizontal bands of red (top) and blue separated by a central green band which splits into a horozontal Y, the arms of which end at the corners of the hoist side, embracing a black isoceles 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 has three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and blue; the miniature flags are 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: Many of the white one-seventh of the South African population enjoy incomes, material comforts, and health and educational standards equal to those of Western Europe. In contrast, most of the remaining population suffers from the poverty patterns of the Third World, including unemployment and lack of job skills. The main strength of the economy lies in its rich mineral resources, which provide two-thirds of exports. Economic developments for the remainder of the 1990s will be driven largely by the new government's attempts to improve black living conditions, to set the country on an aggressive export-led growth path, and to cut back the enormous numbers of unemployed. The economy in recent years has absorbed less than 5% of the more than 300,000 workers entering the labor force annually. Local economists estimate that the economy must grow between 5% and 6% in real terms annually to absorb all of the new entrants, much less reduce the accumulated total. National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $194.3 billion (1994 est.) National product real growth rate: 2% (1994 est.) National product per capita: $4,420 (1994 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 9% (1994 est.) Unemployment rate: 32.6% (1994 est.); an additional 11% underemployment Budget: revenues: $26.3 billion expenditures: $34 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.5 billion (FY93/94 est.) Exports: $25.3 billion (f.o.b., 1994) commodities: gold 27%, other minerals and metals 20%-25%, food 5%, chemicals 3% partners: Italy, Japan, US, Germany, UK, other EU countries, Hong Kong Imports: $21.4 billion (f.o.b., 1994) commodities: machinery 32%, transport equipment 15%, chemicals 11%, oil, textiles, scientific instruments partners: Germany, US, Japan, UK, Italy External debt: $18 billion (1994 est.) Industrial production: growth rate NA%; accounts for about 40% of GDP Electricity: capacity: 39,750,000 kW production: 163 billion kWh consumption per capita: 3,482 kWh (1993) Industries: mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textile, iron and steel, chemical, fertilizer, foodstuffs Agriculture: accounts for about 5% of GDP and 30% of labor force; diversified agriculture, with emphasis on livestock; products - cattle, poultry, sheep, wool, milk, beef, corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; self-sufficient in food Illicit drugs: transshipment center for heroin and cocaine; cocaine consumption on the rise; world's largest market for illicit methaqualone, usually imported illegally from India through various east African countries Economic aid: many aid packages for the new government are still being prepared; current aid pledges include US $600 million over 3 years; UK $150 million over 3 years; Australia $21 million over 3 years; Japan $1.3 billion over 2 years Currency: 1 rand (R) = 100 cents Exchange rates: rand (R) per US$1 - 3.5389 (January 1995), 3.5490 (1994), 3.2636 (1993), 2.8497 (1992), 2.7563 (1991), 2.5863 (1990) Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March @South Africa:Transportation Railroads: total: 20,638 km narrow gauge: 20,324 km 1.067-m gauge (substantial electrification); 314 km 0.610-m gauge Highways: total: 188,309 km paved: 54,013 km unpaved: crushed stone, gravel, improved earth 134,296 km Pipelines: crude oil 931 km; petroleum products 1,748 km; natural gas 322 km Ports: Cape Town, Durban, East London, Mosselbaai, Port Elizabeth, Richards Bay, Saldanha Merchant marine: total: 4 container ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 211,276 GRT/198,602 DWT Airports: total: 853 with paved runways over 3,047 m: 9 with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 47 with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 72 with paved runways under 914 m: 327 with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 39 with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 354 @South Africa:Communications Telephone system: over 4,500,000 telephones; the system is the best developed, most modern, and has the highest capacity in Africa local: NA intercity: consists of carrier-equipped open-wire lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay links, fiber optic cable, and radiocommunication stations; key centers are Bloemfontein, Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth, and Pretoria international: 1 submarine cable; 3 INTELSAT (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean) earth stations Radio: broadcast stations: AM 14, FM 286, shortwave 0 radios: NA Television: broadcast stations: 67 televisions: NA @South Africa:Defense Forces Branches: South African National Defence Force (SANDF; includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Medical Services), South African Police Service (SAPS) Manpower availability: males age 15-49 10,830,079; males fit for military service 6,601,323; males reach military age (18) annually 439,793 (1995 est.) Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $3.2 billion, 2.8% of GDP (FY93/94) ________________________________________________________________________