Namibia

Republic of Namibia

republicIndependence 21 March 1990 (from South African mandate)

Namibia as the 1993 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 75 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

LocationSouthern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean between Angola and South

Populationas each edition published it

1.54 million July 1993 est. · 1.45m in 1990

Population growth% a year

3.46% 1993 est. · 1.76% in 2025

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 18.3 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

61.2 years 1993 est. · 65.9 yrs in 2025

Fertility ratechildren per woman

6.46 children per woman 1993 est. · 6.6 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

63.8 deaths per 1,000 live births 1993 est. · 71 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$1,300 1992 est. · $10,300 in 2025

GDP real growth% a year

2% 1992 est. · 3.7% in 2025

Geography

Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean between Angola and South | Africa

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Land useshare of 824,290 km2

arable land 1%permanent crops 0%meadows and pastures 64%forest and woodland 22%other 13%irrigated 40 km2 (1989 est.)

Area

824,290km2

land area: 823,290 km2comparative area: slightly more than half the size of Alaska

Coastline

1,489km

contiguous zone: 24 nmexclusive 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

Location

Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean between Angola and South Africa

Map references

Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World

International 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 Kasikili (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, iron ore

Environment

inhospitable with very limited natural water resources; desertification

Note

Walvis Bay area is an exclave of South Africa in Namibia

People

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Population

1,541,321

(July 1993 est.)growth rate: 3.46% (1993 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1993 est.)

Birth

43.77Death

9.13Net migration

Male · female(1993 est.)

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years61.2

58.57 · 63.91

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy38%

45% · 31%

MaleFemaleLiteracy age 15 and over can read and write (1960)

Ethnic divisions

black 86%white 6.6%mixed 7.4%note: about 50% of the population belong to the Ovambo tribe and 9% to the Kavangos tribe

Labor force

500,000

by occupation: agriculture 60%, industry and commerce 19%, services 8%, government 7%, mining 6% (1981 est.)

Infant mortality rate

63.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)

Nationality

noun:: Namibian(s)
adjective:: Namibian

Languages

English 7% (official), Afrikaans common language of most of the population and about 60% of the white population, German 32%, indigenous languages

Government

Republic

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Names

conventional long form:: Republic of Namibia
conventional short form:: Namibia

Administrative divisions

13 districts; Erango, Hardap, Karas, Khomas, Kunene, Liambezi, Ohanguena, Okarango, Omaheke, Omusat, Oshana, Oshikoto, Otjozondjupa

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

Political parties and leaders

South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO), Sam NUJOMA;
DTA of Namibia (DTA; formerly Democratic Turnhalle Alliance of Namibia), 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

Other political or pressure groups

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
National Council:: last held 30 November-3 December 1992 (next to be held by December 1998); seats - (26 total) SWAPO 19, DTA 6, UDF 1

Legislative branch

bicameral legislature consists of an upper house or National Council and a lower house or National Assembly

Leaders

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

Member of

ACP, C, ECA, FAO, FLS, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OAU, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission:: Ambassador Tuliameni KALOMOH
chancery:: 1605 New Hampshire Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20009 (mailing address is PO Box 34738, Washington, DC 20043)
telephone:: (202) 986-0540

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission:: Charge d'Affaires Marshall MCCAULEY
embassy:: Ausplan Building, 14 Lossen St., Windhoek
mailing address:: P. O. Box 9890, Windhoek 9000
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.

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GDP per capita, PPP

$1,300

(1992 est.)

Real growth rate

(1992 est.)industrial production growth: growth rate 4.9% (1991); accounts for 35% of GDP, including mining

Inflation, consumer prices

10%

(1992) in urban area

External debt

$220million

about · (1992 est.)

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. More than half the population depends on agriculture (largely subsistence agriculture) for its livelihood.

National product

GDP - exchange rate conversion - $2 billion (1992 est.)

Unemployment rate

25-35% (1992)

Exports

$1.184 billion (f.o.b., 1991)

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

Imports

$1.238 billion (f.o.b., 1991)

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

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

accounts for 15% of GDP;
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