Background: 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 Far 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 beginning in 1910 under the Union of South Africa which became a republic in 1961 after a whites-only referendum. In 1948 the National Party was voted into power and instituted a policy of apartheid - the separate development of the races - which favored the white minority at the expense of the black majority. The African National Congress (ANC) led the opposition to apartheid and many top ANC leaders such as Nelson MANDELA spent decades in South Africa's prisons. Internal protests and insurgency as well as boycotts by some Western nations and institutions led to the regime's eventual willingness to negotiate a peaceful transition to majority rule. The first multi-racial elections in 1994 brought an end to apartheid and ushered in majority rule under an ANC-led government. South Africa since then has struggled to address apartheid-era imbalances in decent housing education and health care. ANC infighting which has grown in recent years came to a head in September 2008 when President Thabo MBEKI resigned and Kgalema MOTLANTHE the party's General-Secretary succeeded him as interim president. Jacob ZUMA became president after the ANC won general elections in April 2009. In January 2011 South Africa assumed a nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2011-12 term.

Geographic coordinates: 29 00 S 24 00 E

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 1,219,090 km²
Rank: 25
Land: 1,214,470 km²
Water: 4,620 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 1840 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 rare earth elements uranium gem diamonds platinum copper vanadium salt natural gas

Land use
Arable land: 12.1%
Permanent crops: 0.79%
Other: 87.11% (2005)

Irrigated land: 14,980 km² (2003)

Total renewable water resources: 50 km³ (1990)

Natural hazards: prolonged droughts
Volcanism: the volcano forming Marion Island in the Prince Edward Islands which last erupted in 2004 is South Africa's only active volcano

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

Population: 49,109,107
Rank: 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 2010 est.)
Growth rate: -0.051% (2010 est.)
Growth rate rank: 202
Below poverty line: 50% (2000 est.)

Nationality
Noun: South African
Adjective: South African

Ethnic groups: black African 79% white 9.6% colored 8.9% Indian/Asian 2.5% (2001 census)

Languages: IsiZulu (official) 23.8% IsiXhosa (official) 17.6% Afrikaans (official) 13.3% Sepedi (offcial) 9.4% English (official) 8.2% Setswana (official) 8.2% Sesotho (official) 7.9% Xitsonga (official) 4.4% other 7.2% isiNdebele (official) Tshivenda (official) siSwati (official) (2001 census)

Religions: 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)

Age structure
0-14 years: 28.9%
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) (2010 est.)

Median age
Total: 24.7 years
Male: 24.4 years
Female: 25 years (2010 est.)

Population growth rate: -0.051% (2010 est.)
Rank: 202

Birth rate: 19.61 births/1000 population (2010 est.)
Rank: 97

Death rate: 16.99 deaths/1000 population (July 2010 est.)
Rank: 4

Net migration rate: -3.13 migrant(s)/1000 population
Rank: 185
Note: there is an increasing flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa and Botswana in search of better economic opportunities (2010 est.)

Urbanization
Urban population: 61% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 1.4% annual rate of change (2005-10 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 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2010 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 43.78 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 61
Male: 47.88 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 39.59 deaths/1000 live births (2010 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 49.2 years
Rank: 215
Male: 50.08 years
Female: 48.29 years (2010 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.33 children born/woman (2010 est.)
Rank: 102

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 18.1% (2007 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 4
People living with hivaids: 5.7 million (2007 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 2
Deaths: 350,000 (2007 est.)
Deaths rank: 1

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: intermediate
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea hepatitis A and typhoid fever
Water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2009)

Education expenditures: 5.4% of GDP (2009)
Rank: 49

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

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 13 years
Male: 13 years
Female: 13 years (2004)

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
Name: Pretoria
Geographic coordinates: 25 42 S 28 13 E
Time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington DC during Standard Time)
Note: Cape Town (legislative capital); Bloemfontein (judicial capital)

Administrative divisions: 9 provinces; Eastern Cape Free State Gauteng KwaZulu-Natal Limpopo Mpumalanga Northern Cape North-West Western Cape

Independence: 31 May 1910 (Union of South Africa formed from four British colonies: Cape Colony Natal Transvaal and Orange Free State); 31 May 1961 (republic declared); 27 April 1994 (majority rule)

National holiday: Freedom Day 27 April (1994)

Constitution: 10 December 1996; note - certified by the Constitutional Court on 4 December 1996; was signed by then President MANDELA on 10 December 1996; and entered into effect on 4 February 1997

Legal system: based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Jacob ZUMA ; Executive Deputy President Kgalema MOTLANTHE (since 11 May 2009); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Jacob ZUMA (since 9 May 2009); Executive Deputy President Kgalema MOTLANTHE (since 11 May 2009)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
Elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 6 May 2009 (next to be held in 2014)
Election results: Jacob ZUMA elected president; National Assembly vote - Jacob ZUMA 277 Mvume DANDALA 47 other 76

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consisting of 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) and the National Assembly (400 seats; members elected by popular vote under a system of proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
Elections: National Assembly and National Council of Provinces - last held on 22 April 2009 (next to be held in April 2014)
Election results: National Council of Provinces - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - ANC 65.9% DA 16.7% COPE 7.4% IFP 4.6% other 5.4%; seats by party - ANC 264 DA 67 COPE 30 IFP 18 other 21

Judicial branch: Constitutional Court; Supreme Court of Appeals; High Courts; Magistrate Courts

Political parties and leaders: African Christian Democratic Party or ACDP [Kenneth MESHOE]; African National Congress or ANC [Jacob ZUMA]; Congress of the People or COPE [Mosiuoa LEKOTA]; Democratic Alliance or DA [Helen ZILLE]; Freedom Front Plus or FF+ [Pieter MULDER]; Independent Democrats or ID [Patricia DE LILLE]; Inkatha Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI]; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC [Motsoko PHEKO]; United Christian Democratic Party or UCDP [Lucas MANGOPE]; United Democratic Movement or UDM [Bantu HOLOMISA]

International organization participation: ACP AfDB AU BIS C CD FAO FATF G-20 G-24 G-77 IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC ICCt ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS IHO ILO IMF IMO IMSO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ISO ITSO ITU ITUC MIGA MONUSCO NAM NSG OPCW Paris Club (associate) PCA SACU SADC UN UN Security Council (temporary) UNAMID UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UNITAR UNWTO UPU WCO WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WTO ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Ebrahim RASOOL
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 consulate general: Chicago Los Angeles New York
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Donald H. GIPS
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) 431-4,000
From the us fax: [27] (12) 342-2,299
From the us consulate general: Cape Town Durban Johannesburg

Flag description: two equal width horizontal bands of red (top) and blue separated by a central green band that 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; the flag colors do not have any official symbolism but the Y stands for the 'convergence of diverse elements within South African society taking the road ahead in unity'; black yellow and green are found on the flag of the African National Congress while red white and blue are the colors in the flags of the Netherlands and the UK whose settlers ruled South Africa during the colonial era
Note: the South African flag is the only national flag to display six colors as part of its primary design

National anthem
Name: 'National Anthem of South Africa'
Lyricsmusic: Enoch SONTONGA and Cornelius Jacob LANGENHOVEN/Enoch SONTONGA and Marthinus LOURENS de Villiers
Note: adopted 1994; the anthem is a combination of 'N'kosi Sikelel' iAfrica' (God Bless Africa) and 'Die Stem van Suid Afrika' (The Call of South Africa) which were respectively the anthems of the non-white and white communities under apartheid; the official lyrics contain a mixture of Xhosa Zulu Sesotho Afrikaans and English; the music incorporates the melody used in the Tanzanian and Zambian anthems

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 is the 18th largest in the world; and modern infrastructure supporting a relatively efficient distribution of goods to major urban centers throughout the region. At the end of 2007 South Africa began to experience an electricity crisis. State power supplier Eskom encountered problems with aged plants necessitating 'load-shedding' cuts to residents and businesses in the major cities. Growth was robust from 2004 to 2007 as South Africa reaped the benefits of macroeconomic stability and a global commodities boom but began to slow in the second half of 2007 due to the electricity crisis and the subsequent global financial crisis' impact on commodity prices and demand. GDP fell nearly 2% in 2009. Unemployment remains high and outdated infrastructure has constrained growth. Daunting economic problems remain from the apartheid era - especially poverty lack of economic empowerment among the disadvantaged groups and a shortage of public transportation. South Africa's former economic policy was fiscally conservative focusing on controlling inflation and attaining a budget surplus. The current government largely follows the same prudent policies but must contend with the impact of the global crisis and is facing growing pressure from special interest groups to use state-owned enterprises to deliver basic services to low-income areas and to increase job growth. More than one-quarter of South Africa's population currently receives social grants.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Rank: 26
Note: data are in 2010 US dollars

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 124

Real gdp per capita:
Rank: 105
Note: data are in 2010 US dollars

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 3%
Industry: 31.2%
Services: 65.8% (2010 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 textiles iron and steel chemicals fertilizer foodstuffs commercial ship repair

Industrial production growth rate: 3% (2010 est.)
Rank: 109

Labor force: 17.32 million economically active (2010 est.)
Rank: 34
By occupation agriculture: 9%
By occupation industry: 26%
By occupation services: 65% (2007 est.)

Unemployment rate: 24% (2009 est.)
Rank: 173

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

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 1.3%
Highest 10: 44.7% (2000)

Distribution of family income gini index: 59.3 (1994)
Rank: 2

Public debt: 29.7% of GDP (2009 est.)
Rank: 85

Inflation rate consumer prices: 7.2% (2009 est.)
Rank: 131

Central bank discount rate: 11.5% (31 December 2008)
Rank: 37

Commercial bank prime lending rate: 15.13% (31 December 2008 est.)
Rank: 44

Stock of narrow money: $52.04 billion (31 December 2009 est)
Rank: 41

Stock of broad money: $199.8 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 34

Stock of domestic credit: $255.2 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 32

Market value of publicly traded shares:
Rank: 18

Current account balance: -$11.3 billion (2009 est.)
Rank: 178

Exports: $66.54 billion (2009 est.)
Rank: 38
Commodities: gold diamonds platinum other metals and minerals machinery and equipment
Partners: China 10.34% US 9.19% Japan 7.59% Germany 7.01% UK 5.54% Switzerland 4.72% (2009)

Imports: $66.01 billion (2009 est.)
Rank: 36
Commodities: machinery and equipment chemicals petroleum products scientific instruments foodstuffs
Partners: China 17.21% Germany 11.24% US 7.38% Saudi Arabia 4.87% Japan 4.67% Iran 3.95% (2009)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $39.68 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 25

Debt external: $73.84 billion (30 June 2009)
Rank: 43

Stock of direct foreign investment at home: $73.61 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 40

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad: $51.58 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 32

Exchange rates: rand (ZAR) per US dollar - 7.38 (2010) 8.4234 (2009) 7.9576 (2008) 7.05 (2007) 6.7649 (2006)

Electricity
Production: 240.3 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Production rank: 16
Consumption: 215.1 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Consumption rank: 17
Exports: 14.16 billion kWh (2008 est.)
Imports: 10.57 billion kWh (2008 est.)

Natural gas
Production: 3.25 billion m³ (2008 est.)
Production rank: 53
Consumption: 6.45 billion m³ (2008 est.)
Consumption rank: 55
Exports: 0 m³ (2008 est.)
Exports rank: 121
Imports: 3.2 billion m³ (2008 est.)
Imports rank: 40
Proven reserves: 27.16 million m³ (1 January 2006 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 102

Telephones
Main lines in use: 4.32 million (2009)
Main lines in use rank: 33
Mobile cellular: 46.436 million (2009)
Mobile cellular rank: 26

Telephone system
General assessment: the system is the best developed and most modern in Africa
Domestic: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity roughly 105 telephones per 100 persons; 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; the SAT-3/WASC and SAFE fiber optic cable systems connect South Africa to Europe and Asia; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean)

Broadcast media: the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) operates 4 TV stations 3 are free-to-air and 1 is pay TV; e.tv a private station is accessible to more than half the population; multiple subscription TV services provide a mix of local and international channels; well developed mix of public and private radio stations at the national regional and local levels; the SABC radio network state-owned and controlled but nominally independent operates 18 stations one for each of the 11 official languages 4 community stations and 3 commercial stations; more than 100 community-based stations extend coverage to rural areas (2007)

Internet
Country code: .za
Hosts: 3.751 million (2010)
Hosts rank: 24
Users: 4.42 million (2009)
Users rank: 54

Military expenditures: 1.7% of GDP (2006)
Rank: 92

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for voluntary military service; women are eligible to serve in noncombat roles; 2-year service obligation (2007)

Airports: 578 (2010)
Rank: 11
With paved runways total: 147
With paved runways over 3047 m: 11
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 6
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 53
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 67
With paved runways under 914 m: 10 (2010)
With unpaved runways total: 431
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 32
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 261
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 137 (2010)

Heliports: 1 (2010)

Pipelines: condensate 11 km; gas 908 km; oil 980 km; refined products 1379 km (2009)

Railways
Total: 20,872 km
Rank: 14
Narrow gauge: 20,436 km 1.065-m gauge (8,271 km electrified); 436 km 0.610-m gauge (2008)

Roadways
Total: 362,099 km
Rank: 18
Paved: 73,506 km (includes 239 km of expressways)
Unpaved: 288,593 km (2002)

Merchant marine
Total: 4
Rank: 133
By type: container 1 petroleum tanker 3
Foreign owned: 1 (Denmark 1)
Registered in other countries: 11 (Mexico 1 NZ 1 Seychelles 1 Singapore 3 UK 5) (2010)

Ports and terminals: Cape Town Durban Port Elizabeth Richards Bay Saldanha Bay

Disputes international: South Africa has placed military along the border to apprehend the thousands of Zimbabweans fleeing economic dysfunction and political persecution; as of January 2007 South Africa also supports large numbers of refugees and asylum seekers from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (33,000) Somalia (20,000) Burundi (6,500) and other states in Africa (26,000); managed dispute with Namibia over the location of the boundary in the Orange River; in 2006 Swazi king advocates resort to ICJ to claim parts of Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal from South Africa

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees: 10,772 (Democratic Republic of Congo); 7,818 (Somalia); 5,759 (Angola) (2007)

Illicit drugs: transshipment center for heroin hashish and cocaine as well as a major cultivator of marijuana in its own right; cocaine and heroin consumption on the rise; world's largest market for illicit methaqualone usually imported illegally from India through various east African countries but increasingly producing its own synthetic drugs for domestic consumption; attractive venue for money launderers given the increasing level of organized criminal and narcotics activity in the reg