Namibia

republicIndependence 21 March 1990 (from South African mandate)

Namibia as the 1992 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 71 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalWindhoek

Area824,290 km2

Populationas each edition published it

1.57 million July 1992 · 1.45m in 1990

Population growth% a year

Not in this edition 3.46% in 1993

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 18.3 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

Not in this edition 61.2 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

6.5 children per woman 1992 · 6.6 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

66 deaths per 1,000 live births 1992 · 71 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

Not in this edition $1,300 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

Not in this edition 2% in 1993

Geography

13 fields

Total area

824,290km2

Comparative area: slightly more than half the size of Alaska

Coastline

1,489km

Exclusive economic zone: 200 nmTerritorial sea: 12 nm

Land boundaries

3,935km total

Angola 1,376 km, Botswana 1,360 km, South Africa 966 km, Zambia 233 km

Disputes

short section of boundary with Botswana is indefinite;
disputed island with Botswana in the Chobe River;
quadripoint with Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe is in disagreement;
claim by Namibia to Walvis Bay and 12 offshore islands administered by South Africa;
Namibia and South Africa have agreed to jointly administer the area for an interim period;
the terms and dates to be covered by joint administration arrangements have not been established at this time, and Namibia will continue to maintain a claim to sovereignty over the entire area;
recent dispute with Botswana over uninhabited Sidudu Island in the Linyanti River

Climate

desert;
hot, dry;
rainfall sparse and erratic

Terrain

mostly high plateau;
Namib Desert along coast;
Kalahari Desert in east

Natural resources

diamonds, copper, uranium, gold, lead, tin, lithium, cadmium, zinc, salt, vanadium, natural gas, fish;
suspected deposits of oil, natural gas, coal, and iron ore

Land use

arable land 1%;
permanent crops NEGL%;
meadows and pastures 64%;
forest and woodland 22%;
other 13%;
includes irrigated NEGL%

Environment

inhospitable with very limited natural water resources; desertification

Note

Walvis Bay area is an exclave of South Africa in Namibia

People

14 fields

Population

1,574,927

(July 1992), growth rate 3.5% (1992)

Per 1,000 population(1992)

Birth

45Death

9Net migration

Literacy

38%

(male 45%, female 31%) age 15 and over can read and write (1960)

Nationality

noun - Namibian(s); adjective - Namibian

Ethnic divisions

black 86%, white 6.6%, mixed 7.4%; about 50% of the population belong to the Ovambo tribe and 9% from the Kavangos tribe

Languages

English is official language;
Afrikaans is common language of most of population and about 60% of white population, German 32%, English 7%;
several indigenous languages

Labor force

500,000; agriculture 60%, industry and commerce 19%, services 8%, government 7%, mining 6% (1981 est.)

Organized labor

20 trade unions representing about 90,000 workers

Government

Republic

19 fields

Administrative divisions

the former administrative structure of 26 districts has been abolished and 14 temporary regions are still being determined;
note - the 26 districts were Bethanien, Boesmanland, Caprivi Oos, Damaraland, Gobabis, Grootfontein, Hereroland Oos, Hereroland Wes, Kaokoland, Karasburg, Karibib, Kavango, Keetmanshoop, Luderitz, Maltahohe, Mariental, Namaland, Okahandja, Omaruru, Otjiwarongo, Outjo, Owambo, Rehoboth, Swakopmund, Tsumeb, Windhoek

Independence

21 March 1990 (from South African mandate)

Legal system

based on Roman-Dutch law and 1990 constitution

Legislative branch

bicameral;
House of Review (upper house, to be established with elections in late 1992 by planned new regional authorities);
National Assembly (lower house elected by universal suffrage)

Leaders

Chief of State and Head of Government: President Sam NUJOMA (since 21 March 1990)

Political parties and leaders

South-West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO), Sam NUJOMA;
Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA), Dirk MUDGE;
United Democratic Front (UDF), Justus GAROEB;
Action Christian National (ACN), Kosie PRETORIUS;
National Patriotic Front (NPF), Moses KATJIUONGUA;
Federal Convention of Namibia (FCN), Hans DIERGAARDT;
Namibia National Front (NNF), Vekuii RUKORO

Elections

President:: last held 16 February 1990 (next to be held March 1995); results - Sam NUJOMA was elected president by the Constituent Assembly (now the National Assembly)
National Assembly:: last held on 7-11 November 1989 (next to be held by November 1994);
results - percent of vote by party NA;
seats - (72 total) SWAPO 41, DTA 21, UDF 4, ACN 3, NNF 1, FCN 1, NPF 1

Other political or pressure groups

Member of

ACP, AfDB, CECA (associate), ECA, FAO, FLS, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ILO, IMF, ITU, NAM, SACU, SADCC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, WCL, WFTU, WHO

Diplomatic representation

Ambassador Tuliameni KALOMOH; Chancery at 1605 New Hampshire Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20009 (mailing address is PO Box 34738, Washington, DC 20043); telephone (202) 986-0540

US:: Ambassador Genta Hawkins HOLMES;
Embassy at Ausplan Building, 14 Lossen St., Windhoek (mailing address is P. O. Box 9890, Windhoek 9000, Namibia);
telephone [264] (61) 221-601, 222-675, 222-680;
FAX [264] (61) 229-792

Flag

a large blue triangle with a yellow sunburst fills the upper left section, and an equal green triangle (solid) fills the lower right section;
the triangles are separated by a red stripe that is contrasted by two narrow white-edge borders

Economy

The economy is heavily dependent on the mining industry to extract and | process minerals for export.

16 fields

Inflation, consumer prices

17%

(1991 - Windhoek)

Unemployment rate

25%

over · (1991)

External debt

$250million

about · under a 1971 International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling, Namibia may not be liable for debt incurred during its colonial period

Budget

Revenues

$864 millionExpenditures

$1,112 million

expenditures, including capital expenditures of $144 million (FY 92)

The economy is heavily dependent on the mining industry to extract and process minerals for export. Mining accounts for almost 25% of GDP. Namibia is the fourth-largest exporter of nonfuel minerals in Africa and the world's fifth-largest producer of uranium. Alluvial diamond deposits are among the richest in the world, making Namibia a primary source for gem-quality diamonds.

Namibia also produces large quantities of lead, zinc, tin, silver, and tungsten, and it has substantial resources of coal. More than half the population depends on agriculture (largely subsistence agriculture) for its livelihood.

GDP

exchange rate conversion - $2 billion, per capita $1,400; real growth rate 5.1% (1991 est.)

Exports

$1,021 million (f.o.b., 1989)

commodities:: uranium, diamonds, zinc, copper, cattle, processed fish, karakul skins
partners:: Switzerland, South Africa, FRG, Japan

Imports

$894 million (f.o.b., 1989)

commodities:: foodstuffs, petroleum products and fuel, machinery and equipment
partners:: South Africa, FRG, US, Switzerland

Industrial production

growth rate - 6% (1990 est.); accounts for 35% of GDP, including mining

Electricity

490,000 kW capacity; 1,290 million kWh produced, 850 kWh per capita (1991)

Industries

meatpacking, fish processing, dairy products, mining (copper, lead, zinc, diamond, uranium)

Agriculture

mostly subsistence farming;
livestock raising major source of cash income;
crops - millet, sorghum, peanuts;
fish catch potential of over 1 million metric tons not being fulfilled, 1988 catch reaching only 384,000 metric tons;
not self-sufficient in food