South Africa
Republic of South Africa
republicIndependence 31 May 1910 (from UK)
South Africa as the 2000 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 110 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.
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Introduction
1 fieldBackground
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). The resulting Union of South Africa operated under a policy of apartheid - the separate development of the races. The 1990s brought an end to apartheid politically and ushered in black majority rule.
Geography
Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa
18 fieldsLand useshare of 1,219,912 sq km
Natural resources
gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas
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
Environment - international agreements
- party to:
- Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
- signed, but not ratified:
- none of the selected agreements
People
15 fieldsNote
Per 1,000 population(2000 est.)
Male · female
Age structure
- 0-14 years:
- 32.46% (male 7,094,756; female 6,999,009)
- 15-64 years:
- 62.76% (male 13,111,457; female 14,139,372)
- 65 years and over:
- 4.78% (male 782,397; female 1,294,030) (2000 est.)
Sex ratio
- at birth:
- 1.02 male(s)/female
- under 15 years:
- 1.01 male(s)/female
- 15-64 years:
- 0.93 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over:
- 0.61 male(s)/female
- total population:
- 0.94 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Languages
11 official languages, including Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu
Government
Republic; President Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999); President Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999)
19 fieldsNational Assembly, 90 seatsone dot, one seat
Country name
- conventional long form:
- Republic of South Africa
- conventional short form:
- South Africa
- abbreviation:
- RSA
Administrative divisions
9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, North-West, Northern Cape, Northern Province, Western Cape
Constitution
- 10 December 1996;
- this new constitution was certified by the Constitutional Court on 4 December 1996, was signed by then President MANDELA on 10 December 1996, and entered into effect on 3 February 1997;
- it is being implemented in phases
Legal system
based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Executive branch
- chief of state:
- President Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999);
- Executive Deputy President Jacob ZUMA (since 17 June 1999);
- note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
- head of government:
- President Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999);
- Executive Deputy President Jacob ZUMA (since 17 June 1999);
- note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
- cabinet:
- Cabinet appointed by the president
- elections:
- president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 2 June 1999 (next scheduled for sometime between May and July 2004)
- election results:
- Thabo MBEKI elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100% (by acclamation)
note: ANC-IFP governing coalition
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 3 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 2 June 1999 (next to be held NA 2004)
- election results:
- National Assembly - percent of vote by party - ANC 66.4%, DP 9.6%, IFP 8.6%, NP 6.9%, UDM 3.4, FF 0.8%, other 4.3%;
- seats by party - ANC 266, DP 38, IFP 34, NP 28, UDM 14, FF 3, other 17;
- National Council of Provinces - percent of vote by party - NA;
- seats by party - ANC 61, NP 17, FF 4, IFP 5, DP 3
Political parties and leaders
- African Christian Democratic Party or ACDP [Kenneth MESHOE, president];
- African National Congress or ANC [Thabo MBEKI, president];
- Democratic Party or DP [Tony LEON, president];
- Freedom Front or FF [Constand VILJOEN, president];
- Inkatha Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI, president];
- National Party (now the New National Party) or NP [Marthinus VAN SCHALKWYK, executive director];
- Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC [Stanley MOGOBA, president];
- United Democratic 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 - COSATU and SACP are in a formal alliance with the ANC
International organization participation
ACP, AfDB, BIS, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM, NSG, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNITAR, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Makate Sheila SISULU
- chancery:
- 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
- telephone:
- [1] (202) 232-4400
- FAX:
- [1] (202) 265-1607
- consulate(s) general:
- Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York
Diplomatic representation from the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Delano E. LEWIS
- embassy:
- 877 Pretorius Street, 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 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;
- 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
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
31 fieldsGDP - composition by sector(1999 est.)
Electricity
Economy - overview
South Africa is a middle-income, developing country with an abundant supply of resources, well-developed financial, legal, communications, energy, and transport sectors, a stock exchange that ranks among the 10 largest in the world, and a modern infrastructure supporting an efficient distribution of goods to major urban centers throughout the region.
However, growth has not been strong enough to cut into the 30% unemployment, and daunting economic problems remain from the apartheid era, especially the problems of poverty and lack of economic empowerment among the disadvantaged groups. Other problems are crime, corruption, and HIV/AIDS. At the start of 2000, President MBEKI vowed to promote economic growth and foreign investment by relaxing restrictive labor laws, stepping up the pace of privatization, and cutting unneeded governmental spending. His policies face strong opposition from organized labor.
Industries
mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textile, iron and steel, chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs
Agriculture - products
corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products
Imports - commodities
machinery, foodstuffs and equipment, chemicals, petroleum products, scientific instruments
Exchange rates
rand (R) per US$1 - 6.12439 (January 2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997), 4.29935 (1996), 3.62709 (1995)
Communications
8 fieldsTelephone system
the system is the best developed and most modern in Africa
- domestic:
- 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:
- 2 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean)
Transportation
8 fieldsAirports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right
Networkskm
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:
- 534,131 km
- paved:
- 63,027 km (including 2,032 km of expressways)
- unpaved:
- 471,104 km (1998 est.)
Merchant marine
- total:
- 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 274,797 GRT/270,837 DWT
- ships by type:
- container 6, petroleum tanker 2, roll-on/roll-off 1 (1999 est.)
Military
South African National Defense Force or SANDF (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Medical Services), South African Police Service or SAPS
8 fieldsMilitary branches
South African National Defense Force or SANDF (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Medical Services), South African Police Service or SAPS
Military - note
the National Defense Force continues to integrate former military, black homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces
Transnational Issues
2 fieldsDisputes - international
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
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 [Country Listing] [ The World Factbook Home]
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “South Africa.” The World Factbook 2000. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/south-africa/2000.