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: 4,862 km
Border countries: (6) 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
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin

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: 12.08%
Permanent crops: 0.79%
Other: 87.13% (2001)

Irrigated land: 13,500 km² (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: prolonged droughts

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

Population
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 2004 est.)
Growth rate: -0.25% (2004 est.)
Below poverty line: 50% (2000 est.)

Nationality
Noun: South African
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) indigenous beliefs and animist 28.5%

Age structure
0-14 years: 29.5% (male 6,337,468; female 6,254,925)
15-64 years: 65.3% (male 13,898,269; female 14,017,559)
65 years and over: 5.2% (male 886,801; female 1,323,508) (2004 est.)

Median age
Total: 24.7 years
Male: 24.2 years
Female: 25.3 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate: -0.25% (2004 est.)

Birth rate: 18.38 births/1000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate: 20.54 deaths/1000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.29 migrant(s)/1000 population (2004 est.)

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
International agreements 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
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.02 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.01 male/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male/female
65 years and over: 0.67 male/female
Total population: 0.98 male/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 62.18 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 65.87 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 58.4 deaths/1000 live births (2004 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 44.19 years
Male: 44.39 years
Female: 43.98 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.18 children born/woman (2004 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 21.5% (2003 est.)
People living with hivaids: 5.3 million (2003 est.)
Deaths: 370,000 (2003 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 86.4%
Male: 87%
Female: 85.7% (2003 est.)

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 Limpopo Mpumalanga North-West Northern Cape Western Cape

Independence: 31 May 1910 (from UK); note - South Africa became a republic in 1961 following an October 1960 referendum

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
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
Elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 2 June 1999 (next to be held 24 April 2004)
Election results: Thabo MBEKI elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100% (by acclamation)
Note: ANC-IFP is the governing coalition

Legislative branch
Elections: National Assembly and National Council of Provinces - last held 14 April 2004 (next to be held NA 2009)
Election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - ANC 69.7%, DA 12.4%, IFP 7%, UDM 2.3%, NNP 1.7%, ACDP 1.6%, other 5.3%; seats by party - ANC 279, DA 50, IFP 28, UDM 9, NNP 7, ACDP 6, other 21; National Council of Provinces - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA

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 or DA (formed from the merger of the Democratic Party or DP and the Freedom Alliance or FA) [Anthony LEON]; Inkatha Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI president]; New National Party or NNP [Marthinus VAN SCHALKWYK]; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC [Stanley MOGOBA president]; United Democratic Movement or UDM [Bantu HOLOMISA]

International organization participation: ACP AfDB AU BIS C FAO G-24 G-77 IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC ICCt ICFTU ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS IHO ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC IOM ISO ITU MIGA MONUC NAM NSG ONUB OPCW PCA SACU SADC UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UNITAR UNMEE UNMIL UPU WCL WCO WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTO ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Barbara Joyce Mosima MASEKELA
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: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Cameron H. HUME
From the us embassy: 877 Pretorius Street, Pretoria
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; 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

Economy overview: South Africa is a middle-income emerging market with an abundant supply of natural 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 lower South Africa's high unemployment rate; and daunting economic problems remain from the apartheid era especially poverty and lack of economic empowerment among the disadvantaged groups. High crime and HIV/AIDS infection rates also deter investment. South African economic policy is fiscally conservative but pragmatic focusing on targeting inflation and liberalizing trade as means to increase job growth and household income.

Real gdp growth rate: 1.9% (2003 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $10,700 (2003 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 3.8%
Industry: 31%
Services: 65.2% (2003)

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 chemicals fertilizer foodstuffs

Industrial production growth rate: 5% (2003 est.)

Labor force: 16.35 million economically active (2003)
By occupation agriculture: 30%
By occupation industry: 25%
By occupation services: 45% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate: 31% (includes workers no longer looking for employment) (2003 est.)

Population below poverty line: 50% (2000 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 1.1%
Highest 10: 45.9% (1994)

Distribution of family income gini index: 59.3 (1993-94)

Budget
Revenues: $37.48 billion
Expenditures: $41.46 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA billion (2003)

Public debt: 38.2% of GDP (2003)

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Inflation rate consumer prices: 5.9% (2003 est.)

Current account balance: $-1.234 billion (2003)

Exports: $36.77 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
Commodities: gold diamonds platinum other metals and minerals machinery and equipment (1998 est.)
Partners: UK 12.6% US 12.4% Japan 9.2% Germany 8.1% China 4.7% Italy 4.4% (2003)

Imports: $33.89 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
Commodities: machinery and equipment chemicals petroleum products scientific instruments foodstuffs (2000 est.)
Partners: Germany 16.6% UK 8.5% US 8.2% Japan 5.9% China 5.9% Saudi Arabia 5.2% France 5% (2003)

Debt external: $25.9 billion (2003 est.)

Exchange rates: rand per US dollar - 7.5648 (2003) 10.5407 (2002) 8.6092 (2001) 6.9398 (2000) 6.1095 (1999)

Electricity
Production: 195.6 billion kWh (2001)
Consumption: 181.2 billion kWh (2001)
Exports: 6.91 billion kWh (2001)
Imports: 6.2 billion kWh (2001)

Natural gas
Production: 1.8 billion m³ (2001 est.)
Consumption: 1.8 billion m³ (2001 est.)
Exports: 0 m³ (2001 est.)
Imports: 0 m³ (2001 est.)
Proven reserves: 14.16 billion m³ (1 January 2002)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 4.844 million (2002)
Mobile cellular: 16.86 million (2003)

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: country code - 27; 2 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean)

Internet
Country code: .za
Hosts: 288,633 (2003)
Users: 3.1 million (2002)

Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $2,653 million (2003)
Percent of gdp: 1.7% (2003)

Airports: 728 (2003 est.)
With paved runways total: 144
With paved runways over 3047 m: 10
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 5
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 51
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 67
With paved runways under 914 m: 11 (2004 est.)
With unpaved runways total: 584
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 34
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 300
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 250 (2004 est.)

Pipelines: condensate 100 km; gas 1052 km; oil 847 km; refined products 1354 km (2004)

Railways
Total: 22,298 km
Narrow gauge: 21,984 km 1.065-m gauge (10,436 km electrified); 314 km 0.610-m gauge
Note: includes a 2,228 km commuter rail system (2003)

Merchant marine
Total: 4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 31,505 GRT/37,091 DWT
By type: container 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 2
Foreign owned: Denmark 1, Netherlands 1
Registered in other countries: 7 (2004 est.)

Disputes international: managed dispute with Namibia over the location of the boundary in the Orange River

Illicit drugs: transshipment center for heroin hashish marijuana 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; attractive venue for money launderers given the increasing level of organized criminal and narcotics activity in the region