|
Home
Missions
Ministries
Bible
Institute & School
Contact
Us
Careers,
Opportunities in Ministry
|
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. |
|
Location:
|
Southern Africa,
at the southern tip of the continent of Africa |
|
Map references:
|
Africa |
|
Area:
|
total:
1,219,912 sq km
land: 1,219,912 sq km
note: includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and
Prince Edward Island)
water: 0 sq km |
|
Area - comparative:
|
slightly less
than twice the size of Texas |
|
Land boundaries:
|
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 |
|
Coastline:
|
2,798 km |
|
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
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:
12.13%
permanent crops: 0.77%
other: 87.1% (1998 est.) |
|
Irrigated land:
|
13,500 sq km
(1998 est.) |
|
Natural hazards:
|
prolonged
droughts |
|
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 |
|
Environment - 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
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements |
|
Geography - note:
|
South Africa
completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds
Swaziland |
|
Population:
|
42,718,530
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.) |
|
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/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
|
Death rate:
|
20.54
deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
|
Net migration rate:
|
-0.29 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
|
Sex ratio:
|
at birth:
1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 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 (2004 est.) |
|
Infant mortality rate:
|
total:
62.18 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 58.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 65.87 deaths/1,000 live births |
|
Life expectancy at birth:
|
total
population: 44.19 years
male: 44.39 years
female: 43.98 years (2004 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
|
20.1% (2001 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
|
5 million (2001
est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
|
360,000 (2001
est.) |
|
Nationality:
|
noun:
South African(s)
adjective: South African |
|
Ethnic groups:
|
black 75.2%,
white 13.6%, Colored 8.6%, Indian 2.6% |
|
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% |
|
Languages:
|
11 official
languages, including Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho,
Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu |
|
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 |
|
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
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)
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
election results: Thabo MBEKI elected president;
percent of National Assembly vote - 100% (by acclamation)
note: ANC-IFP is the governing coalition |
|
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, 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); 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 National Council of
Provinces - last held 2 June 1999 (next to be held 14 April
2004)
election results: National Assembly - percent of vote
by party - ANC 66.4%, DP 9.6%, IFP 8.6%, NNP 6.9%, UDM 3.4%,
ACDP 1.4%, FF 0.8%, other 2.9%; seats by party - ANC 266, DP
38, IFP 34, NNP 28, UDM 14, ACDP 6, FF 3, other 11; National
Council of Provinces - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats
by party - ANC 61, NNP 17, FF 4, IFP 5, DP 3 |
|
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 (formed from the merger of the Democratic Party or DP
and the New National Party or NNP; note - NNP split from DP in
2001) [Anthony LEON]; Freedom Front or FF [Dr. Pieter MULDER,
president]; 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] |
|
Political pressure groups and leaders:
|
Congress of South
African Trade Unions or COSATU [Zwelinzima VAVI, general
secretary]; South African Communist Party or SACP [Blade
NZIMANDE, general secretary]; South African National Civics
Organization or SANCO [Mlungisi HLONGWANE, national
president]; note - COSATU and SACP are in a formal alliance
with the ANC |
|
Diplomatic representation in the US:
|
chief of
mission: Ambassador Barbara Joyce Mosima MASEKELA
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New
York
FAX: [1] (202) 265-1607
telephone: [1] (202) 232-4400
chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20008 |
|
Diplomatic representation from the US:
|
chief of
mission: Ambassador Cameron H. HUME
embassy: 877 Pretorius Street, Pretoria
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 |
|
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. |
|
GDP:
|
purchasing power
parity - $456.7 billion (2003 est.) |
|
GDP - real growth rate:
|
1.9% (2003 est.) |
|
GDP - per capita:
|
purchasing power
parity - $10,700 (2003 est.) |
|
GDP - composition by sector:
|
agriculture:
4.4%
industry: 28.9%
services: 66.7% (2001) |
|
Population below poverty line:
|
50% (2000 est.) |
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
|
9.9% (2002 est.) |
|
Labor force:
|
17 million
economically active (1998 est.) |
|
Labor force - by occupation:
|
agriculture 30%,
industry 25%, services 45% (1999 est.) |
|
Unemployment rate:
|
37% (includes
workers no longer looking for employment) (2001 est.) |
|
Budget:
|
revenues:
$22.6 billion
expenditures: $24.7 billion, including capital
expenditures of $NA billion (FY02/03) |
|
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:
|
3% (2002 est.) |
|
Electricity - production:
|
195.6 billion kWh
(2001) |
|
Electricity - production by source:
|
fossil fuel:
93.5%
hydro: 1.1%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 5.5% |
|
Electricity - consumption:
|
181.2 billion kWh
(2001) |
|
Oil - production:
|
196,200 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
|
Oil - consumption:
|
460,000 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
|
Natural gas - production:
|
1.8 billion cu m
(2001 est.) |
|
Natural gas - consumption:
|
1.8 billion cu m
(2001 est.) |
|
Agriculture - products:
|
corn, wheat,
sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton, wool,
dairy products |
|
Exports:
|
$36.77 billion
f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
|
Exports - commodities:
|
gold, diamonds,
platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment
(1998 est.) |
|
Exports - partners:
|
UK 12.8%, US
12.7%, Germany 9.3%, Japan 8.9%, Italy 5.8% (2002) |
|
Imports:
|
$33.89 billion
f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
|
Imports - commodities:
|
machinery and
equipment, chemicals, petroleum products, scientific
instruments, foodstuffs (2000 est.) |
|
Imports - partners:
|
Germany 15.5%, US
9.5%, UK 9.1%, Japan 5.8%, Saudi Arabia 5.3%, France 5%, China
4.9% (2002) |
|
Debt - external:
|
$24.7 billion
(2002 est.) |
|
Economic aid - recipient:
|
$487.5 million
(2000) |
|
Currency:
|
rand (ZAR) |
|
Currency code:
|
ZAR |
|
Exchange rates:
|
rand per US
dollar - 7.56 (2003), 10.54 (2002), 8.61 (2001), 6.94 (2000),
6.11 (1999) |
|
Fiscal year:
|
1 April - 31
March |
|
Telephones - main lines in use:
|
4.844 million
(2002) |
|
Telephones - mobile cellular:
|
13.814 million
(2002) |
|
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) |
|
Radio broadcast stations:
|
AM 14, FM 347
(plus 243 repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) |
|
Television broadcast stations:
|
556 (plus 144
network repeaters) (1997) |
|
Internet country code:
|
.za |
|
Internet hosts:
|
198,853 (2002) |
|
Internet users:
|
3.1 million
(2002) |
|
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 (2002) |
|
Highways:
|
total:
362,099 km
paved: 73,506 km (including 2,032 km of expressways)
unpaved: 288,593 km (2000) |
|
Waterways:
|
NA |
|
Pipelines:
|
condensate 100
km; gas 741 km; oil 847 km; refined products 1,354 km (2003) |
|
Ports and harbors:
|
Cape Town,
Durban, East London, Mossel Bay, Port Elizabeth, Richards Bay,
Saldanha |
|
Merchant marine:
|
total: 4
ships (1,000 GRT or over) 31,505 GRT/37,091 DWT
foreign-owned: Denmark 1, Netherlands 1
registered in other countries: 7 (2003 est.)
by type: container 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker
2 |
|
Airports:
|
728 (2003 est.) |
|
Airports - with paved runways:
|
total: 145
over 3,047 m: 10
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 51
914 to 1,523 m: 68
under 914 m: 11 (2003 est.) |
|
Airports - with unpaved runways:
|
total: 583
1,524 to 2,437 m: 34
914 to 1,523 m: 299
under 914 m: 250 (2003 est.) |
|
Military branches:
|
South African
National Defense Force: Army, Navy, Air Force, and Medical
Services |
|
Military manpower - military age:
|
18 years of age
(2004 est.) |
|
Military manpower - availability:
|
males age
15-49: 11,924,500 (2004 est.) |
|
Military manpower - fit for military service:
|
males age
15-49: 7,247,696 (2004 est.) |
|
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
|
males:
471,221 (2004 est.) |
|
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
|
$2,653.4 million
(2003) |
|
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
|
1.7% (2003) |
|
Military - note:
|
with the end of
apartheid and the establishment of majority rule, former
military, black homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces
were integrated into the South African National Defense Force
(SANDF); as of 2003 the integration process was considered
complete |
|
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 |
This page was last updated on 11 May, 2004
|