Namibia

Republic of Namibia

republicIndependence 21 March 1990 (from South African mandate)

Namibia as the 2000 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 103 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

Position22 00 S, 17 00 E

Area825,418 sq km

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

Populationas each edition published it

1.77 million July 2000 est. · 1.45m in 1990

Population growth% a year

1.57% 2000 est. · 3.46% in 1993

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 18.3 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

42.46 years 2000 est. · 61.2 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

4.89 children per woman 2000 est. · 6.6 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

70.88 deaths per 1,000 live births 2000 est. · 71 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$4,300 1999 est. · $1,300 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

3% 1999 est. · 2% in 1993

Introduction

1 field

Background

South Africa occupied the German colony of Sud-West Afrika during World War I and administered it as a mandate until after World War II when it annexed the territory. In 1966 the Marxist South-West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) guerrilla group launched a war of independence for the area that was soon named Namibia, but it was not until 1988 that South Africa agreed to end its administration in accordance with a UN peace plan for the entire region. Independence came in 1990.

Geography

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

17 fields

Land useshare of 825,418 sq km

arable land 1%permanent crops 0%permanent pastures 46%forests and woodland 22%other 31% (1993 est.)irrigated 60 sq km (1993 est.)

Area

825,418sq km

land: 825,418 sq kmwater: 0 sq kmslightly more than half the size of Alaska

Coastline

1,572km

contiguous zone: 24 nmexclusive economic zone: 200 nmterritorial sea: 12 nm

Highest point

2,606m

Konigsteinlowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m

Land boundaries

3,824km

border countries: Angola 1,376 km, Botswana 1,360 km, South Africa 855 km, Zambia 233 km

Location

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

Geographic coordinates

22 00 S, 17 00 E

Map references

Africa

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, hydropower, fish note: suspected deposits of oil, coal, and iron ore

Natural hazards

prolonged periods of drought

Environment - current issues

very limited natural fresh water resources; desertification

Environment - international agreements

party to:: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified:: none of the selected agreements

People

15 fields

Population

1,771,327

growth rate: 1.57% (2000 est.)

Note

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 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 2000 est.)

Per 1,000 population(2000 est.)

Birth

35.23Death

19.49Net migration

Male · female

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years (2000 est.)42.46

44.33 · 40.53

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy (1960 est.)38%

45% · 31%

MaleFemaleLiteracy definition: age 15 and over can read and write

Ethnic groups

black 87.5%white 6%mixed 6.5%note: about 50% of the population belong to the Ovambo tribe and 9% to the Kavangos tribe; other ethnic groups are: Herero 7%, Damara 7%, Nama 5%, Caprivian 4%, Bushmen 3%, Baster 2%, Tswana 0.5%

Age structure

0-14 years:: 43% (male 384,900; female 375,282)
15-64 years:: 53% (male 468,942; female 475,504)
65 years and over:: 4% (male 28,905; female 37,794) (2000 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth:: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years:: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years:: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over:: 0.76 male(s)/female
total population:: 0.99 male(s)/female (2000 est.)

Infant mortality rate

70.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)

Total fertility rate

4.89 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Nationality

noun:: Namibian(s)
adjective:: Namibian

Religions

Christian 80% to 90% (Lutheran 50% at least), indigenous beliefs 10% to 20%

Languages

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

Government

Republic; President Samuel NUJOMA (since 21 March 1990); President Samuel NUJOMA (since 21 March 1990)

18 fields

National Council, 72 seatsone dot, one seat

SWAPO 55COD 7DTA 7UDF 2MAG 1,

Country name

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

Data code

Government type

republic

Capital

Windhoek

Administrative divisions

13 regions; Caprivi, Erongo, Hardap, Karas, Khomas, Kunene, Ohangwena, Okavango, Omaheke, Omusati, Oshana, Oshikoto, Otjozondjupa

Independence

21 March 1990 (from South African mandate)

National holiday

Independence Day, 21 March (1990)

Constitution

ratified 9 February 1990; effective 12 March 1990

Legal system

based on Roman-Dutch law and 1990 constitution

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

chief of state:: President Samuel NUJOMA (since 21 March 1990); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government:: President Samuel NUJOMA (since 21 March 1990); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet:: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly
elections:: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 30 November-1 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004)
election results:: Samuel NUJOMA elected president; percent of vote - Samuel NUJOMA 77%

Legislative branch

bicameral legislature consists of the National Council (26 seats; two members are chosen from each regional council to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly (72 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

elections:: National Council - elections for regional councils, to determine members of the National Council, held 30 November-1 December 1998 (next to be held by December 2004);
National Assembly - last held 30 November-1 December 1999 (next to be held by December 2004)
election results:: National Council - percent of vote by party - NA;
seats by party - SWAPO 21, DTA 4, UDF 1;
National Assembly - percent of vote by party - SWAPO 77%, COD 10%, DTA 9%, UDF 3%, MAG 1%;
seats by party - SWAPO 55, COD 7, DTA 7, UDF 2, MAG 1,

note: the National Council is a purely advisory body

Judicial branch

Supreme Court, judges appointed by the president

Political parties and leaders

Congress of Democrats or COD [Ben ULENGA];
Democratic Turnhalle Alliance of Namibia or DTA [Katuutire KAURA, president];
Monitor Action Group or MAG [Kosie PRETORIUS];
South West Africa People's Organization or SWAPO [Sam NUJOMA];
United Democratic Front or UDF [Justus GAROEB]

International organization participation

ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission:: Ambassador Leonard Nangolo IIPUMBU
chancery:: 1605 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone:: [1] (202) 986-0540
FAX:: [1] (202) 986-0443

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission:: Ambassador Jeffrey A. BADER
embassy:: Ausplan Building, 14 Lossen Street, Private Bag 12029 Ausspannplatz, Windhoek
mailing address:: use embassy street address
telephone:: [264] (61) 221601
FAX:: [264] (61) 229792

Flag description

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 extraction and processing of minerals for export.

31 fields

Real growth rate

(1999 est.)industrial production growth: 10% (1994)

Inflation, consumer prices

8.5%

(1999)

Unemployment rate

30%

to 40%, including underemployment (1997 est.)

Labor force

500,000

GDP - composition by sector(1998 est.)

agriculture 12%industry 30%services 58% (1998 est.)

Budget

Revenues

$883 millionExpenditures

$950 million (1998)

expenditures including capital expenditures of $NA

Electricity

fossil fuel 2%hydro 98%nuclear 0% · other 0%

Electricity production

1.198 billion (1999)Electricity consumption

1.81 billion (1999)Electricity exports

56 million (1999)Electricity imports

890 million (1999)

Economy - overview

The economy is heavily dependent on the extraction and processing of minerals for export. Mining accounts for 20% of GDP. Namibia is the fourth-largest exporter of nonfuel minerals in Africa and the world's fifth-largest producer of uranium. Rich alluvial diamond deposits make Namibia a primary source for gem-quality diamonds.

Namibia also produces large quantities of lead, zinc, tin, silver, and tungsten. Half of the population depends on agriculture (largely subsistence agriculture) for its livelihood. Namibia must import some of its food. Although per capita GDP is four times the per capita GDP of Africa's poorer countries, the majority of Namibia's people live in pronounced poverty because of large-scale unemployment, the great inequality of income distribution, and the large amount of wealth going to foreigners.

The Namibian economy has close links to South Africa. GDP growth should improve in 2000-01, because of gains in the diamond and fish sectors. Agreement has been reached on the privatization of several more enterprises in coming years, which should stimulate long-run foreign investment.

GDP

purchasing power parity - $7.1 billion (1999 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $4,300 (1999 est.)

Population below poverty line

NA%

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture 47%, industry 25%, services 28% (1999 est.)

Industries

meat packing, fish processing, dairy products; mining (diamond, lead, zinc, tin, silver, tungsten, uranium, copper)

Agriculture - products

millet, sorghum, peanuts;
livestock;
fish

Exports

$1.4 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)

Exports - commodities

diamonds, copper, gold, zinc, lead, uranium; cattle, processed fish, karakul skins

Exports - partners

UK 43%, South Africa 26%, Spain 14%, France 8%, Japan (1998 est.)

Imports

$1.5 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)

Imports - commodities

foodstuffs; petroleum products and fuel, machinery and equipment, chemicals

Imports - partners

South Africa 84%, Germany, US, Japan (1995 est.)

Debt - external

$159 million (1999 est.)

Economic aid - recipient

$127 million (1998)

Currency

1 Namibian dollar (N$) = 100 cents

Exchange rates

Namibian dollars (N$) per US$1 - 6.12439 (January 2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997), 4.29935 (1996), 3.62709 (1995)

Fiscal year

1 April - 31 March

Communications

8 fields

Mobile cellular

20,000

(1998)

Internet users

(1999)

Fixed lines

100,848

(1997)

Telephone system

domestic:: good urban services;
fair rural service;
microwave radio relay links major towns;
connections to other populated places are by open wire;
100% digital
international:: fiber-optic cable to South Africa, microwave radio relay link to Botswana, direct links to other neighboring countries;
connected to Africa ONE and South African Far East (SAFE) submarine cables through South Africa;
satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat

Radio broadcast stations

AM 2, FM 34, shortwave 5 (1998)

Radios

232,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations

8 (plus about 20 low-power repeaters) (1997)

Televisions

60,000 (1997)

Transportation

7 fields

Airports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right

over 3,047 m

2,438 to 3,047 m

1,524 to 2,437 m

914 to 1,523 m

under 914 m

Paved 22Unpaved 113

Networkskm

Highways

63,258Railways

2,382

Highways: paved: 5,250 km · unpaved: 58,008 km (1997 est.) · Railways: narrow gauge: 2,382 km 1.067-m gauge; single track (1995)

Railways

total:: 2,382 km
narrow gauge:: 2,382 km 1.067-m gauge; single track (1995)

Highways

total:: 63,258 km
paved:: 5,250 km
unpaved:: 58,008 km (1997 est.)

Military

National Defense Force (Army), Police

5 fields

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

2.6%

(FY97/98)

Transnational Issues