The 1996 CIA World Factbook page on South Africa

From: The CIA'sTHE WORLD FACTBOOK 1996

[Factbook 1996 Home] [Gov Docs Home] [Libraries Home] [UM-St. Louis Home]

South Africa

(½" Thumbnail of Flag)

Map

Location: 29 00 S, 24 00 E -- Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa

|| View GIF from CIA (25 KB) || Download TIFF from CIA (388 KB) || Download PDF from CIA (37 KB) ||

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 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

½" Thumbnails

|| View GIF from CIA (1 KB) |

| Download TIFF from CIA (6 KB) ||

View GIF from CIA (1 KB) || Download TIFF from CIA (6 KB)

3" Full Size

|| View GIF from CIA (6 KB) |

| Download TIFF from CIA (405 KB) ||

View GIF from CIA (6 KB) || Download TIFF from CIA (405 KB)

Geography

Location: Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa
Geographic coordinates: 29 00 S, 24 00 E
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
border countries: 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
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: 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-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea
Geographic note: South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds Swaziland

People

Population: 41,743,459 (July 1996 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 36% (male 7,578,639; female 7,428,123)
15-64 years: 60% (male 12,356,753; female 12,516,467)
65 years and over: 4% (male 744,806; female 1,118,671) (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.76% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 27.91 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 10.32 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
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
all ages: 0.98 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 48.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 59.47 years
male: 57.21 years
female: 61.8 years (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate: 3.43 children born/woman (1996 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: 11 official languages, including Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)
total population: 81.8%
male: 81.9%
female: 81.7%

Government

Name of country:
conventional long form: Republic of South Africa
conventional short form: South Africa
abbreviation: RSA
Data code: SF
Type of government: 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: 27 April 1994 (interim constitution, replacing the constitution of 3 September 1984); note - on 8 May 1996, the Constitutional Assembly voted 421 to two to pass a new constitution which, after certification by the Constitutional Court, will gradually go into effect over a three-year period and come into full force with the next national elections in April 1999
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: President Nelson MANDELA (since 10 May 1994); Deputy Executive Presidents Thabo MBEKI (since 10 May 1994) and Frederik W. DE KLERK (since 10 May 1994) were elected by the National Assembly
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; moreover, any party that wins 20 or more seats in the National Assembly is entitled to become a member of the governing coalition; currently, the ANC, the IFP, and the NP constitute a Government of National Unity (GNU)
cabinet: Cabinet was appointed by the president
Legislative branch: bicameral
National Assembly: elections last held 26-29 April 1994 (next to be held NA April 1999); 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), Tony LEON, president; Pan-Africanist Congress (PAC), Clarence MAKWETU, president; African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP), Kenneth MESHOE, president
note: in addition to these seven parties which received seats in the National Assembly, 11 other parties won votes in the national elections in April 1994
Other political or pressure groups: NA
International organization participation: BIS, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MTCR, NAM, OAU, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, 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 James A. JOSEPH
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 horizontal 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

Economic 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 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 between 5% and 6% in real terms annually to absorb all of the new entrants, much less reduce the accumulated total.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $215 billion (1995 est.)
GDP real growth rate: 3.3% (1995 est.)
GDP per capita: $4,800 (1995 est.)
GDP composition by sector:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 8.7% (1995)
Labor force: 14.2 million economically active (1996)
by occupation: services 35%, agriculture 30%, industry 20%, mining 9%, other 6%
Unemployment rate: 32.6% (1996 est.); an additional 11% underemployment
Budget:
revenues: $30.5 billion
expenditures: $38 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.6 billion (FY94/95 est.)
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%
Electricity:
capacity: 39,750,000 kW
production: 163 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 3,482 kWh (1993)
Agriculture: corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; cattle, poultry, sheep, wool, milk, beef
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
Exports: $27.9 billion (f.o.b., 1995)
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: $27 billion (f.o.b., 1995)
commodities: machinery 32%, transport equipment 15%, chemicals 11%, oil, textiles, scientific instruments (1994)
partners: Germany, US, Japan, UK, Italy
External debt: $22 billion (1995 est.)
Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $NA
note: current aid pledges include US $600 million over three years ending in 1996; UK $150 million over three years; Australia $21 million over three years; Japan $1.3 billion over two years ending in 1996; EU $833 million over five years
Currency: 1 rand (R) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: rand (R) per US$1 - 3.6417 (January 1996), 3.6266 (1995), 3.5490 (1994), 3.2636 (1993), 2.8497 (1992), 2.7563 (1991)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Transportation

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)
Highways:
total: 182,329 km
paved: 55,428 km (including 2,040 km of expressways)
unpaved: 126,901 km (1991 est.)
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 (1995 est.)
Airports:
total: 667
with paved runways over 3 047 m: 10
with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m: 4
with paved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 44
with paved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 75
with paved runways under 914 m: 221
with unpaved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 33
with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 280 (1995 est.)

Communications

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)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 14, FM 286, shortwave 0
Radios: 12.1 million (1992 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 67 (1987 est.)
Televisions: 3.45 million (1990 est.)

Defense

Branches: South African National Defense Force (SANDF; includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Medical Services), South African Police Service (SAPS)
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49: 10,686,976
males fit for military service: 6,502,265
males reach military age (18) annually: 424,854 (1996 est.)
Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $2.9 billion, 2.2% of GDP (FY95/96)

South Africa

Original publicaton at http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/nsolo/wfb-all.htm (June 17, 1997).