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.

Geographic coordinates: 29 00 S, 24 00 E

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 1,219,912 km²
Land: 1,219,912 km²
Water: 0 km²
Note: includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and Prince Edward Island)
Comparative: slightly less than twice the size of Texas

Land boundaries
Total: 4,750 km
Border countries: (6) 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 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
Extremes 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 km² (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: prolonged droughts

Geography
Note: South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds Swaziland

Population: 42,327,458 (July 1997 est.)
Growth rate: 1.51% (1997 est.)

Nationality
Noun: South African(s)
Adjective: South African

Ethnic groups: black 75.2%, white 13.6%, Colored 8.6%, Indian 2.6%

Languages: 11 official languages, including Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu

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), traditional and animistic 28.5%

Age structure
0-14 years: 35% (male 7,470,444; female 7,340,734)
15-64 years: 61% (male 12,729,753; female 12,891,969)
65 years and over: 4% (male 762,041; female 1,132,517) (July 1997 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.51% (1997 est.)

Birth rate: 26.89 births/1000 population (1997 est.)

Death rate: 11.89 deaths/1000 population (1997 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.09 migrant(s)/1000 population (1997 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

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
Under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (1997 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 53.2 deaths/1000 live births (1997 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 56.29 years
Male: 54.4 years
Female: 58.23 years (1997 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.22 children born/woman (1997 est.)

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
Abbreviation: RSA

Government type: republic

Capital: Pretoria (administrative; Cape Town (legislative; Bloemfontein (judicial)

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 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 Nelson MANDELA (since 10 May 1994); Deputy Executive President Thabo MBEKI (since 10 May 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Nelson MANDELA (since 10 May 1994); Deputy Executive President Thabo MBEKI (since 10 May 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
Elections: president and deputy executive presidents elected by the National Assembly; election last held 9 May 1994 (next to be held in April 1999)
Election results: Nelson MANDELA elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100% (by acclamation); Thabo MBEKI and Frederik W. DE KLERK elected deputy executive presidents; percent of National Assembly vote - 100% (by acclamation)
Note: the initial governing coalition, made up of the ANC, the IFP, and the NP, which constituted a Government of National Unity or GNU, no longer includes the NP which was withdrawn by DE KLERK on 30 June 1996 when he voluntarily gave up his position as deputy executive president and distanced himself from the programs of the ANC

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, ten 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 Senate - last held 26-29 April 1994 (next to be held NA April 1999); note - the Senate was disbanded and replaced by the National Council of Provinces on 6 February 1997
Election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - 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 by party - ANC 252, NP 82, IFP 43, FF 9, DP 7, PAC 5, ACDP 2; Senate - 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

International organization participation: 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 (observer), ISO, ITU, MTCR, NAM, OAU, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Franklin SONN
In the us chancery: 3,051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 232-4,400
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 265-1607
In the us consulates general: Beverly Hills (California), Chicago, and New York
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador James A. JOSEPH
From the us embassy: 877 Pretorius St., Arcadia 0083
From the us mailing address: P.O. Box 9,536, Pretoria 0001
From the us telephone: [27] (12) 342-1048
From the us FAX: [27] (12) 342-2,244
From the us consulates 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, embracing 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 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: Despite the efforts of South Africa's first majority-run government, income inequality remains among the world's most extreme. 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, lack of job skills, and bleak living conditions. 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 standards, to set the country on a steady 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 at least 5% in real terms annually to absorb all of the new entrants, much less reduce the accumulated total.

Real gdp growth rate: 3% (1996 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $5,400 (1996 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 5%
Industry: 37%
Services: 58% (1995 est.)

Agriculture products: corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products

Industries: mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textile, iron and steel, chemical, fertilizer, foodstuffs

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Labor force
Total: 14.2 million economically active (1996)
By occupation services: 35%
By occupation agriculture: 30%
By occupation industry: 20%
By occupation mining: 9%
By occupation other: 6%

Unemployment rate: 34% (1996 est.), note - an additional 11% of the workforce is underemployed

Budget
Revenues: $30.5 billion
Expenditures: $38 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.6 billion (FY94/95 est.)

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Exports
Total value: $29.2 billion (f.o.b., 1996)
Commodities: gold 27%, other minerals and metals 20%-25%, food 5%, chemicals 3% (1994)
Partners: Italy, Japan, US, Germany, UK, other EU countries, Hong Kong

Imports
Total value: $26.9 billion (f.o.b., 1996)
Commodities: machinery 32%, transport equipment 15%, chemicals 11%, petroleum products, textiles, scientific instruments (1994)
Partners: Germany, US, Japan, UK, Italy

Debt external: $30 billion (1996 est.)

Exchange rates: rand (R) per US$1 - 4.6410 (January 1997), 4.2706 (1996), 3.6266 (1995), 3.5490 (1994), 3.2636 (1993), 2.8497 (1992)

Electricity
Capacity: 34.57 million kW (1994)
Production: 158.78 billion kWh (1994)
Consumption per capita: 3,305 kWh (1995 est.)

Telephones: 5,206,235 (1993 est.)

Telephone system: the system is the best developed, most modern, and has the highest capacity in Africa
Domestic: consists of carrier-equipped open-wire lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay links, fiber-optic cable, and radiotelephone communication stations; key centers are Bloemfontein, Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth, and Pretoria
International: 1 submarine cable; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean)

Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $2.9 billion (FY95/96)
Percent of gdp: 2.2% (FY95/96)

Airports: 662 (1996 est.)
With paved runways total: 351
With paved runways over 3047 m: 10
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 4
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 43
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 74
With paved runways under 914 m: 220 (1996 est.)
With unpaved runways total: 311
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 33
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 278 (1996 est.)

Pipelines: crude oil 931 km; petroleum products 1,748 km; natural gas 322 km

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)

Merchant marine
Total: 7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 270,848 GRT/266,029 DWT
Ships by type: container 6, oil tanker 1 (1996 est.)

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 and 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