Political parties and leaders:
none
Political pressure groups and leaders:
other: numerous clan and sub-clan factions exist both in support and in opposition to the transitional government
International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA,IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU,ITSO, ITU, LAS, NAM, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU,WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
Somalia does not have an embassy in the US (ceased operations on 8 May 1991); note - the TFG is represented in the United States through its Permanent Mission to the United Nations
Diplomatic representation from the US:
the US does not have an embassy in Somalia; US interests are represented by the US Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya at United Nations Avenue, Nairobi; mailing address: Unit 64100, Nairobi; APO AE 09831; telephone: [254] (20) 363-6000; FAX [254] (20) 363-6157
Flag description:
light blue with a large white five-pointed star in the center; blue field influenced by the flag of the UN
Government - note:
although an interim government was created in 2004, other regional and local governing bodies continue to exist and control various regions of the country, including the self-declared Republic of Somaliland in northwestern Somalia and the semi-autonomous State of Puntland in northeastern Somalia
EconomySomalia
Economy - overview:
Despite the lack of effective national governance, Somalia has maintained a healthy informal economy, largely based on livestock, remittance/money transfer companies, and telecommunications. Agriculture is the most important sector, with livestock normally accounting for about 40% of GDP and about 65% of export earnings. Nomads and semi-pastoralists, who are dependent upon livestock for their livelihood, make up a large portion of the population. Livestock, hides, fish, charcoal, and bananas are Somalia's principal exports, while sugar, sorghum, corn, qat, and machined goods are the principal imports. Somalia's small industrial sector, based on the processing of agricultural products, has largely been looted and sold as scrap metal. Somalia's service sector also has grown. Telecommunication firms provide wireless services in most major cities and offer the lowest international call rates on the continent. In the absence of a formal banking sector, money exchange services have sprouted throughout the country, handling between $500 million and $1 billion in remittances annually. Mogadishu's main market offers a variety of goods from food to the newest electronic gadgets. Hotels continue to operate and are supported with private-security militias. Somalia's arrears to the IMF continued to grow in 2006-07. Statistics on Somalia's GDP, growth, per capita income, and inflation should be viewed skeptically. In late December 2004, a major tsunami caused an estimated 150 deaths and resulted in destruction of property in coastal areas.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$5.387 billion (2007 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$2.509 billion (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
2.6% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$600 (2007 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 65% industry: 10% services: 25% (2000 est.)
Labor force:
3.7 million (few skilled laborers) (1975)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 71% industry and services: 29% (1975)
Unemployment rate:
Population below poverty line:
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Budget:
revenues: $NA expenditures: $NA
Fiscal year:
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
NA%; note - businesses print their own money, so inflation rates cannot be easily determined
Agriculture - products:
bananas, sorghum, corn, coconuts, rice, sugarcane, mangoes, sesame seeds, beans; cattle, sheep, goats; fish
Industries:
a few light industries, including sugar refining, textiles, wireless communication
Industrial production growth rate:
Electricity - production:
280 million kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - consumption:
260.4 million kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption:
5,040 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports:
0 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - imports:
4,772 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - proved reserves:
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
5.663 billion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)
Exports:
$300 million f.o.b. (2006)
Exports - commodities:
livestock, bananas, hides, fish, charcoal, scrap metal
Exports - partners:
UAE 50.7%, Yemen 21%, Oman 6.1% (2007)
Imports:
$798 million f.o.b. (2006)
Imports - commodities:
manufactures, petroleum products, foodstuffs, construction materials, qat
Imports - partners:
Djibouti 34.4%, India 9.1%, Kenya 9%, Oman 6%, UAE 5.6%, Yemen 5.5% (2007)
Economic aid - recipient:
$236.4 million (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$3 billion (2001 est.)
Currency (code):
Somali shilling (SOS)
Currency code:
Exchange rates:
Somali shillings (SOS) per US dollar - NA (2007), 1,438.3 (2006) official rate; the unofficial black market rate was about 23,000 shillings per dollar as of February 2007 note: the Republic of Somaliland, a self-declared independent country not recognized by any foreign government, issues its own currency, the Somaliland shilling
CommunicationsSomalia
Telephones - main lines in use:
100,000 (2007)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
600,000 (2007)
Telephone system:
general assessment: the public telecommunications system was almost completely destroyed or dismantled during the civil war; private wireless companies offer service in most major cities and charge the lowest international rates on the continent domestic: local cellular telephone systems have been established in Mogadishu and in several other population centers international: country code - 252; international connections are available from Mogadishu by satellite (2001)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 0, FM 11 (also 1 station each in Puntland and Somaliland), shortwave 1 (in Mogadishu) (2001)
Radios:
470,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
4 (2 in Mogadishu and 2 in Hargeisa) (2001)
Televisions:
135,000 (1997)
Internet country code:
.so
Internet hosts:
1 (2008)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
3 (one each in Boosaaso, Hargeisa, and Mogadishu) (2000)
Internet users:
98,000 (2007)
TransportationSomalia
Airports:
67 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 7 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 60 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 20 914 to 1,523 m: 29 under 914 m: 7 (2007)
Roadways:
total: 22,100 km paved: 2,608 km unpaved: 19,492 km (2000)
Merchant marine:
total: 1 by type: cargo 1 foreign-owned: 1 (UAE 1) (2008)
Ports and terminals:
Berbera, Kismaayo
Transportation - note:
the International Maritime Bureau reports the territorial and offshore waters in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean are high risk for piracy and armed robbery against ships; numerous vessels, including commercial shipping and pleasure craft, have been attacked and hijacked both at anchor and while underway; crew, passengers, and cargo are held for ransom
MilitarySomalia
Military branches:
no national-level armed forces (2008)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 2,181,050 females age 16-49: 2,125,558 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 1,274,783 females age 16-49: 1,317,991 (2008 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 95,446 female: 95,339 (2008 est.)
Military expenditures:
0.9% of GDP (2005 est.)
Transnational IssuesSomalia
Disputes - international:
Ethiopian forces invaded southern Somalia and routed Islamist Courts from Mogadishu in January 2007; "Somaliland" secessionists provide port facilities in Berbera to landlocked Ethiopia and have established commercial ties with other regional states; "Puntland" and "Somaliland" "governments" seek international support in their secessionist aspirations and overlapping border claims; the undemarcated former British administrative line has little meaning as a political separation to rival clans within Ethiopia's Ogaden and southern Somalia's Oromo region; Kenya works hard to prevent the clan and militia fighting in Somalia from spreading south across the border, which has long been open to nomadic pastoralists
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
IDPs: 1.1 million (civil war since 1988, clan-based competition for resources) (2007)
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008
======================================================================
@South Africa
IntroductionSouth Africa
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 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 under the Union of South Africa. In 1948, the National Party was voted into power and instituted a policy of apartheid - the separate development of the races. The first multi-racial elections in 1994 brought an end to apartheid and ushered in black majority rule.
GeographySouth Africa
Location:
Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa
Geographic coordinates:
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 1,219,912 sq km land: 1,219,912 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and Prince Edward Island)
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
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 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: 12.1% permanent crops: 0.79% other: 87.11% (2005)
Irrigated land:
14,980 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
50 cu km (1990)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 12.5 cu km/yr (31%/6%/63%) per capita: 264 cu m/yr (2000)
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
PeopleSouth Africa
Population:
48,782,756 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 2008 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 29.2% (male 7,147,151/female 7,120,183) 15-64 years: 65.5% (male 16,057,340/female 15,889,750) 65 years and over: 5.3% (male 1,050,287/female 1,518,044) (2008 est.)
Median age:
total: 24.2 years male: 23.8 years female: 24.6 years (2008 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.828% (2008 est.)
Birth rate:
20.23 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate:
16.94 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate:
4.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: there is an increasing flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa and Botswana in search of better economic opportunities (2008 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2008 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 45.11 deaths/1,000 live births male: 49.47 deaths/1,000 live births female: 40.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 48.89 years male: 49.63 years female: 48.15 years (2008 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.43 children born/woman (2008 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
21.5% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
5.3 million (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
370,000 (2003 est.)
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: intermediate food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne disease: Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever and malaria water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2008)
Nationality:
noun: South African(s) adjective: South African
Ethnic groups:
black African 79%, white 9.6%, colored 8.9%, Indian/Asian 2.5% (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)
Languages:
IsiZulu 23.8%, IsiXhosa 17.6%, Afrikaans 13.3%, Sepedi 9.4%, English 8.2%, Setswana 8.2%, Sesotho 7.9%, Xitsonga 4.4%, other 7.2% (2001 census)
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)
Education expenditures:
5.4% of GDP (2006)
GovernmentSouth Africa
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 (administrative capital) 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; this new constitution was certified by theConstitutional Court on 4 December 1996, was signed by thenPresident MANDELA on 10 December 1996, and entered into effect on 4February 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 Kgalema MOTLANTHE (since 25 September 2008); Executive Deputy President Baleka MBETE (since 25 September 2008); note - Thabo MBEKI resigned as president effective 25 September 2008; the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Kgalema MOTLANTHE (since 25 September 2008); Executive Deputy President Baleka MBETE (since 25 September 2008) 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 25 September 2008 (next to be held in April 2009); note - Kgalema MOTLANTHE is serving out the term of Thabo MBEKI election results: Kgalema MOTLANTHE elected president; National Assembly vote - Kgalema MOTLANTHE 269, Joe SEREMANE 50, other 41; note - Thabo MBEKI resigned as president effective 25 September 2008, Kgalema MOTLANTHE is serving the remainder of his term
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 4 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 on 14 April 2004 (next to be held in 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]; AfricanNational Congress or ANC [Jacob ZUMA]; Democratic Alliance or DA[Helen ZILLE]; Freedom Front Plus or FF+ [Pieter MULDER]; InkathaFreedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI]; New National Party orNNP; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC [Motsoko PHEKO]; UnitedDemocratic 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: note - COSATU and SACP are in a formal alliance with the ANC
International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AU, BIS, C, FAO, 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, MONUC, NAM, NSG, OPCW,PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNAMID,UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU,WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Welile Augustine NHLAPO chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-4400 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1607 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Eric BOST embassy: 877 Pretorius Street, Pretoria mailing address: P. O. Box 9536, Pretoria 0001 telephone: [27] (12) 431-4000 FAX: [27] (12) 342-2299 consulate(s) 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
EconomySouth Africa
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 17th largest in the world; and modern infrastructure supporting an efficient distribution of goods to major urban centers throughout the region. Growth has been robust since 2004, as South Africa has reaped the benefits of macroeconomic stability and a global commodities boom. However, unemployment remains high and outdated infrastructure has constrained growth. At the end of 2007, South Africa began to experience an electricity crisis because state power supplier Eskom suffered supply problems with aged plants, necessitating "load-shedding" cuts to residents and businesses in the major cities. 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 African economic policy is fiscally conservative but pragmatic, focusing on controlling inflation, maintaining a budget surplus, and using state-owned enterprises to deliver basic services to low-income areas as a means to increase job growth and household income.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$467.8 billion (2007 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$282.6 billion (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
5.1% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$9,700 (2007 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 3.2% industry: 31.3% services: 65.5% (2007 est.)
Labor force:
20.49 million economically active (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 9% industry: 26% services: 65% (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate:
24.3% (2007 est.)
Population below poverty line:
50% (2000 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.4% highest 10%: 44.7% (2000)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
65 (2005)
Investment (gross fixed):
20.6% of GDP (2007 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $83.47 billion expenditures: $82.02 billion (2007 est.)
Fiscal year:
1 April - 31 March
Public debt:
31.3% of GDP (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
6.5% (2007 est.)
Central bank discount rate:
11% (31 December 2007)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
13.17% (31 December 2007)
Stock of money:
$58.49 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money:
$141.9 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit:
$254.9 billion (31 December 2007)
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:
4.4% (2007 est.)
Electricity - production:
264 billion kWh (2007)
Electricity - consumption:
241.4 billion kWh (2007)
Electricity - exports:
13.77 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - imports:
11.32 billion kWh (2007)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 93.5% hydro: 1.1% nuclear: 5.5% other: 0% (2001)
Oil - production:
199,100 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption:
504,900 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports:
267,700 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - imports:
319,000 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - proved reserves:
15 million bbl (1 January 2008 est.)
Natural gas - production:
2.9 billion cu m (2006 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
3.1 billion cu m (2006 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2005)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
27.16 million cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
Current account balance:
-$20.63 billion (2007 est.)
Exports:
$76.19 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities:
gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment
Exports - partners:
US 11.9%, Japan 11.1%, Germany 8%, UK 7.7%, China 6.6%, Netherlands 4.5% (2007)
Imports:
$81.89 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum products, scientific instruments, foodstuffs
Imports - partners:
Germany 10.9%, China 10%, Spain 8.2%, US 7.2%, Japan 6.1%, UK 4.5%,Saudi Arabia 4.2% (2007)
Economic aid - recipient:
$700 million (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$32.94 billion (31 December 2007)
Debt - external:
$39.78 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$93.51 billion (2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$53.98 billion (2007 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$842 billion (January 2008)
Currency (code):
rand (ZAR)
Currency code:
Exchange rates:
rand (ZAR) per US dollar - 7.05 (2007), 6.7649 (2006), 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003)
CommunicationsSouth Africa
Telephones - main lines in use:
4.642 million (2007)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
42.3 million (2007)
Telephone system:
general assessment: the system is the best developed and most modern in Africa domestic: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity is nearly 110 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)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 14, FM 347 (plus 243 repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios:
17 million (2001)
Television broadcast stations:
556 (plus 144 network repeaters) (1997)
Televisions:
6 million (2000)
Internet country code:
.za
Internet hosts:
1.297 million (2008)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
150 (2001)
Internet users:
5.1 million (2005)
TransportationSouth Africa
Airports:
728 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 146 over 3,047 m: 10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 51 914 to 1,523 m: 67 under 914 m: 13 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 582 1,524 to 2,437 m: 34 914 to 1,523 m: 300 under 914 m: 248 (2007)
Heliports:
1 (2007)
Pipelines:
condensate 100 km; gas 1,177 km; oil 992 km; refined products 1,379 km (2007)
Railways:
total: 20,872 km narrow gauge: 20,436 km 1.065-m gauge (8,931 km electrified); 436 km 0.610-m gauge (2006)
Roadways:
total: 362,099 km paved: 73,506 km (includes 239 km of expressways) unpaved: 288,593 km (2002)
Merchant marine:
total: 3 by type: container 1, petroleum tanker 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Denmark 1) registered in other countries: 8 (Bahamas 1, Nigeria 1, NZ 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, Seychelles 1, UK 3) (2008)
Ports and terminals:
Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Richards Bay, Saldanha Bay
MilitarySouth Africa
Military branches:
South African National Defense Force (SANDF): South African Army,South African Navy (SAN), South African Air Force (SAAF), JointOperations Command, Military Intelligence, Military Health Services(2008)
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for voluntary military service; women have a long history of military service in noncombat roles dating back to World War I (2004)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 11,622,507 females age 16-49: 11,501,537 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 6,042,498 females age 16-49: 5,471,103 (2008 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 529,201 female: 522,678 (2008 est.)
Military expenditures:
1.7% of GDP (2006)
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
Transnational IssuesSouth Africa
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 (country of origin): 10,772 (Democratic Republic of Congo); 7,818 (Somalia); 5,759 (Angola) (2007)
Trafficking in persons:
current situation: South Africa is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for forced labor and sexual exploitation; women and girls are trafficked internally - and occasionally to European and Asian countries - for sexual exploitation; women from other African countries are trafficked to South Africa and, less frequently, onward to Europe for sexual exploitation; men and boys are trafficked from neighboring countries for forced agricultural labor; Asian and Eastern European women are trafficked to South Africa for debt-bonded sexual exploitation tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - South Africa is on the Tier 2 Watch List for a fourth consecutive year for its failure to show increasing efforts to address trafficking; the government provided inadequate data in 2007 on trafficking crimes investigated or prosecuted, or on resulting convictions or sentences; it also did not provide information on its efforts to protect victims of trafficking; the country continues to deport and/or prosecute suspected foreign victims without providing appropriate protective services (2008)
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 region and the size of the South African economy
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008
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@Southern Ocean
IntroductionSouthern Ocean
Background:
A large body of recent oceanographic research has shown that the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC), an ocean current that flows from west to east around Antarctica, plays a crucial role in global ocean circulation. The region where the cold waters of the ACC meet and mingle with the warmer waters of the north defines a distinct border - the Antarctic Convergence - which fluctuates with the seasons, but which encompasses a discrete body of water and a unique ecologic region. The Convergence concentrates nutrients, which promotes marine plant life, and which in turn allows for a greater abundance of animal life. In the spring of 2000, the International Hydrographic Organization decided to delimit the waters within the Convergence as a fifth world ocean - the Southern Ocean - by combining the southern portions of the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Pacific Ocean. The Southern Ocean extends from the coast of Antarctica north to 60 degrees south latitude, which coincides with the Antarctic Treaty Limit and which approximates the extent of the Antarctic Convergence. As such, the Southern Ocean is now the fourth largest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, and Indian Ocean, but larger than the Arctic Ocean). It should be noted that inclusion of the Southern Ocean does not imply recognition of this feature as one of the world's primary oceans by the US Government.
GeographySouthern Ocean
Location:
body of water between 60 degrees south latitude and Antarctica
Geographic coordinates:
60 00 S, 90 00 E (nominally), but the Southern Ocean has the unique distinction of being a large circumpolar body of water totally encircling the continent of Antarctica; this ring of water lies between 60 degrees south latitude and the coast of Antarctica and encompasses 360 degrees of longitude
Map references:
Antarctic Region
Area:
total: 20.327 million sq km note: includes Amundsen Sea, Bellingshausen Sea, part of the Drake Passage, Ross Sea, a small part of the Scotia Sea, Weddell Sea, and other tributary water bodies
Area - comparative:
slightly more than twice the size of the US
Coastline:
17,968 km
Climate:
sea temperatures vary from about 10 degrees Celsius to -2 degrees Celsius; cyclonic storms travel eastward around the continent and frequently are intense because of the temperature contrast between ice and open ocean; the ocean area from about latitude 40 south to the Antarctic Circle has the strongest average winds found anywhere on Earth; in winter the ocean freezes outward to 65 degrees south latitude in the Pacific sector and 55 degrees south latitude in the Atlantic sector, lowering surface temperatures well below 0 degrees Celsius; at some coastal points intense persistent drainage winds from the interior keep the shoreline ice-free throughout the winter
Terrain:
the Southern Ocean is deep, 4,000 to 5,000 m over most of its extent with only limited areas of shallow water; the Antarctic continental shelf is generally narrow and unusually deep, its edge lying at depths of 400 to 800 m (the global mean is 133 m); the Antarctic icepack grows from an average minimum of 2.6 million sq km in March to about 18.8 million sq km in September, better than a sixfold increase in area; the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (21,000 km in length) moves perpetually eastward; it is the world's largest ocean current, transporting 130 million cubic meters of water per second - 100 times the flow of all the world's rivers
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: -7,235 m at the southern end of the South Sandwich Trench highest point: sea level 0 m
Natural resources:
probable large and possible giant oil and gas fields on the continental margin; manganese nodules, possible placer deposits, sand and gravel, fresh water as icebergs; squid, whales, and seals - none exploited; krill, fish
Natural hazards:
huge icebergs with drafts up to several hundred meters; smaller bergs and iceberg fragments; sea ice (generally 0.5 to 1 m thick) with sometimes dynamic short-term variations and with large annual and interannual variations; deep continental shelf floored by glacial deposits varying widely over short distances; high winds and large waves much of the year; ship icing, especially May-October; most of region is remote from sources of search and rescue
Environment - current issues:
increased solar ultraviolet radiation resulting from the Antarctic ozone hole in recent years, reducing marine primary productivity (phytoplankton) by as much as 15% and damaging the DNA of some fish; illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing in recent years, especially the landing of an estimated five to six times more Patagonian toothfish than the regulated fishery, which is likely to affect the sustainability of the stock; large amount of incidental mortality of seabirds resulting from long-line fishing for toothfish note: the now-protected fur seal population is making a strong comeback after severe overexploitation in the 18th and 19th centuries
Environment - international agreements:
the Southern Ocean is subject to all international agreements regarding the world's oceans; in addition, it is subject to these agreements specific to the Antarctic region: International Whaling Commission (prohibits commercial whaling south of 40 degrees south [south of 60 degrees south between 50 degrees and 130 degrees west]); Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (limits sealing); Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (regulates fishing) note: many nations (including the US) prohibit mineral resource exploration and exploitation south of the fluctuating Polar Front (Antarctic Convergence), which is in the middle of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and serves as the dividing line between the cold polar surface waters to the south and the warmer waters to the north
Geography - note:
the major chokepoint is the Drake Passage between South America and Antarctica; the Polar Front (Antarctic Convergence) is the best natural definition of the northern extent of the Southern Ocean; it is a distinct region at the middle of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current that separates the cold polar surface waters to the south from the warmer waters to the north; the Front and the Current extend entirely around Antarctica, reaching south of 60 degrees south near New Zealand and near 48 degrees south in the far South Atlantic coinciding with the path of the maximum westerly winds
EconomySouthern Ocean
Economy - overview:
Fisheries in 2005-06 landed 128,081 metric tons, of which 83% (106,591 tons) was krill (Euphausia superba) and 9.7% (12,364 tons) Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides), compared to 147,506 tons in 2004-05 of which 86% (127,035 tons) was krill and 8% (11,821 tons) Patagonian toothfish (estimated fishing from the area covered by the Convention of the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), which extends slightly beyond the Southern Ocean area). International agreements were adopted in late 1999 to reduce illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, which in the 2000-01 season landed, by one estimate, 8,376 metric tons of Patagonian and Antarctic toothfish. In the 2006-07 Antarctic summer, 35,552 tourists visited the Southern Ocean, compared to 29,799 in 2005-2006 (estimates provided to the Antarctic Treaty by the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO), and does not include passengers on overflights and those flying directly in and out of Antarctica).
TransportationSouthern Ocean
Ports and terminals:
McMurdo, Palmer, and offshore anchorages in Antarctica note: few ports or harbors exist on southern side of Southern Ocean; ice conditions limit use of most to short periods in midsummer; even then some cannot be entered without icebreaker escort; most Antarctic ports are operated by government research stations and, except in an emergency, are not open to commercial or private vessels; vessels in any port south of 60 degrees south are subject to inspection by observers under Article 7 of the Antarctic Treaty; The Hydrographic Committee on Antarctica (HCA), a special hydrographic commission of International Hydrographic Organization (IHO), is responsible for hydrographic surveying and nautical charting matters in Antarctic Treaty area; it coordinates and facilitates provision of accurate and appropriate charts and other aids to navigation in support of safety of navigation in region; membership of HCA is open to any IHO Member State whose government has acceded to the Antarctic Treaty and which contributes resources and/or data to IHO Chart coverage of the area; members of HCA are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, China, Ecuador, France, Germany, Greece, India, Italy, NZ, Norway, Russia, South Africa, Spain, UK, and US (2007)
Transportation - note:
Drake Passage offers alternative to transit through the Panama Canal
Transnational IssuesSouthern Ocean
Disputes - international:
Antarctic Treaty defers claims (see Antarctica entry), but Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, NZ, Norway, and UK assert claims (some overlapping), including the continental shelf in the Southern Ocean; several states have expressed an interest in extending those continental shelf claims under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to include undersea ridges; the US and most other states do not recognize the land or maritime claims of other states and have made no claims themselves (the US and Russia have reserved the right to do so); no formal claims exist in the waters in the sector between 90 degrees west and 150 degrees west
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008
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@South Georgia and the South Sandwich
IntroductionSouth Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Background:
The islands, which have large bird and seal populations, lie approximately 1,000 km east of the Falkland Islands and have been under British administration since 1908 - except for a brief period in 1982 when Argentina occupied them. Grytviken, on South Georgia, was a 19th and early 20th century whaling station. Famed explorer Ernest SHACKLETON stopped there in 1914 en route to his ill-fated attempt to cross Antarctica on foot. He returned some 20 months later with a few companions in a small boat and arranged a successful rescue for the rest of his crew, stranded off the Antarctic Peninsula. He died in 1922 on a subsequent expedition and is buried in Grytviken. Today, the station houses scientists from the British Antarctic Survey. Recognizing the importance of preserving the marine stocks in adjacent waters, the UK, in 1993, extended the exclusive fishing zone from 12 nm to 200 nm around each island.
GeographySouth Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Location:
Southern South America, islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, east of the tip of South America
Geographic coordinates:
Map references:
Antarctic Region
Area:
total: 3,903 sq km land: 3,903 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Shag Rocks, Black Rock, Clerke Rocks, South Georgia Island, Bird Island, and the South Sandwich Islands, which consist of 11 islands
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than Rhode Island
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
NA km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Climate:
variable, with mostly westerly winds throughout the year interspersed with periods of calm; nearly all precipitation falls as snow
Terrain:
most of the islands, rising steeply from the sea, are rugged and mountainous; South Georgia is largely barren and has steep, glacier-covered mountains; the South Sandwich Islands are of volcanic origin with some active volcanoes
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Paget (South Georgia) 2,934 m
Natural resources:
fish
Land use:
arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (largely covered by permanent ice and snow with some sparse vegetation consisting of grass, moss, and lichen) (2005)
Irrigated land:
0 sq km
Natural hazards: