South Africa
South Africa is a republic at the southern tip of Africa. It is bordered to the north by Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, to the north-east by Mozambique and Swaziland. Lesotho is contained entirely inside the borders of South Africa.
South Africa is one of the most ethnically diverse countries in Africa, and has the largest white population on the continent. Racial and ethnic strife has played a large role in much of the country's history and politics.
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| National motto: !ke e: ǀxarra ǁke (Khoisan of the /Xam: diverse people unite) [1] | |||||
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| Official languages | Afrikaans, English, Zulu, Xhosa, Swazi, Ndebele, Southern Sotho, Northern Sotho, Tsonga, Tswana and Venda | ||||
| Capitals | Cape Town (legislative) Pretoria (administrative) Bloemfontein (judicial) | ||||
| Largest City | Cape Town (1991 census) | ||||
| President | Thabo Mbeki | ||||
| Area - Total - % water | Ranked 24th 1,219,912 km² Negligible | ||||
| Population
- Density | Ranked 26th
36/km² | ||||
| Independence -Date1 | |||||
| Currency | Rand | ||||
| Time zone | UTC +2 | ||||
| National anthem | Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika (God Bless Africa) | ||||
| Internet TLD | .ZA | ||||
| Calling Code | 27 | ||||
| (1) Formed as Union of South Africa. Name changed to the Republic of South Africa on May 31, 1961. | |||||
Other names
South Africa has 11 official languages, the most of any country on Earth. As as result, there are many acceptable official names for the country. They are: IRiphabliki yeSewula Afrika (Ndebele), Rephaboliki ya Afrika-Borwa (Pedi), Rephaboliki ya Afrika Borwa (Sotho),IRiphabhulikhi yeNingizimu Afrika (Swati), Riphabliki ra Afrika Dzonga (Tsonga), Rephaboliki ya Aforika Borwa (Tswana), Riphabuḽiki ya Afurika Tshipembe (Venda), IRiphabliki yaseMzantsi Afrika (Xhosa)
History
Main article: History of South Africa
South Africa is one of the oldest nation-states in Africa. South Africa was inhabited by the Khoi, San, Xhosa, Zulu and various other native tribes, when Dutch settlers arrived in 1652. Great Britain progressively encroached, leading to the Anglo-Dutch War and the two Boer wars. In 1910 the four main republics in the region united as the Union of South Africa. In 1931 South Africa became a fully sovereign and self-governing dominion under the British crown. In 1961 it became a republic.
The descendants of the white settlers remained a minority among the black native Africans. The whites were able to maintain their rule by implementing Apartheid, a series of harsh laws segregating the country along racial lines. The Apartheid system became increasingly controversial in the late 20th century, leading to widespread sanctions and growing unrest and oppression by the National Party government. It was that same government, in 1990, that took the first step towards negotiating itself out of power, when it lifted the ban on the African National Congress and other leftwing political organisations, and released Nelson Mandela from prison after 27 years. Apartheid legislation was gradually scrapped from the statute books, and the first multiracial elections were held in 1994. The ANC won by an overwhelming majority, and has been in power ever since. Control of the country is now largely in the hands of the black majority, who are trying to reconcile the past through the enforcement of (amongst others) Employment Equity, although the white minority is still highly active and influential in the business sector.
Politics
Main article: Politics of South Africa
South Africa's government operates under a parliamentary system, although the President of South Africa, is Head of State as well as Head of Government. The President is elected by a joint sitting of the bicameral Parliament, consisting of a National Assembly or lower house, and a National Council of Provinces, or upper house.
The National Assembly has 400 members, elected by proportional representation. The National Council of Provinces (NCoP), which replaced the Senate in 1997 is made up of 90 members representing each South Africa's nine provinces as well as the large cities.
Each province of South Africa has a unicameral Provincial Legislature, and an Executive Council headed by a Premier.
Provinces
Main article: Provinces of South Africa
South Africa is divided into nine provinces: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Northern Cape, North West and Western Cape.
Geography
Main article: Geography of South Africa
Economy
Main article: Economy of South Africa
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, although growth has been positive for ten consecutive years, it has not 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 Thabo Mbeki vowed to promote economic growth and foreign investment by relaxing restrictive labour laws, stepping up the pace of privatization, and cutting unneeded governmental spending. His policies face strong opposition from organized labour.
South Africa has an estimated 4.79 million HIV infections. The government has recently, after much delay, devoted substantial resources to fighting the epidemic. A recent study (from the African Journal of Aids Research, Thomas Rehle and Olive Shisana) showed the infection rate starting to level off, (from 4.2% to 1.7% infection rate for 15-49 year olds), and AIDS deaths peaking at 487 320 in 2008.
Since South Africa opened its borders after the demise of Apartheid, international crime syndicates have penetrated the country, and much of the world's drug trade flows through its borders. South Africa is also the fourth-largest producer of marijuana in the world.
The volatility of the rand has affected economic activity, with the rand plummeting during 2001 (hitting an historic low of 13.85 to the dollar, raising fears of inflation, and causing the reserve bank to increase interest rates), but since dramatically recovering, trading at under 7 in October 2003, leading to a recovery in inflation, and the reserve bank to drop rates, but exporters threatening to cut jobs.
Demographics
Main article: Demographics of South Africa
Culture
Main article: Culture of South Africa
| Date | Name |
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| 1 January | New Year's Day |
| March 21 | Human Rights Day |
| The Friday before Easter Sunday | Good Friday |
| The day after Easter Sunday | Easter Monday |
| April 27 | Freedom Day |
| 1 May | Labour Day |
| June 16 | Youth Day |
| August 9 | National Women's Day |
| September 24 | Heritage Day |
| December 16 | Day of Reconciliation |
| December 25 | Christmas Day |
| December 26 | Day of Goodwill |
The Public Holidays Act (Act No 36 of 1994) determines whenever any public holiday falls on a Sunday, the Monday following on it shall be a public holiday
Miscellaneous topics
- List of South Africa-related topics
- Communications in South Africa
- Transportation in South Africa
- Military of South Africa
- Foreign relations of South Africa
- List of South Africans
- List of South African post codes
Former national symbols
Flag
The national flag of South Africa between 1927 and 1994 featured the old Dutch Prinsenvlag, with the flags of the Transvaal and the Orange Free State, together with the Union Jack representing the former British colonies of the Cape Province and Natal. It remained unchanged when South Africa became a republic in 1961, although some Afrikaner Nationalists advocated the introduction of a new flag without the Union Jack in the centre. (Prior to 1958, the Union Jack had equal status with the South African flag, as did God Save the Queen.)
Coat of arms
The coat of arms, dating from 1910, continued in use until 2000. The four quarters of the shield represent the four provinces of the Union of South Africa, and remained unchanged following the proclamation of the Republic of South Africa in 1961. The motto in Latin, Ex Unitate Vires or 'Unity is Strength', was a translation of the Dutch motto of the old South African Republic Eendracht Maakt Macht.
External links
- South Africa Government Online
- South African coats of arms A look at South Africa's history and geography, and how they are reflected in the evolving State coats of arms.
- Worldwide Press Freedom Index Rank 21 out of 166 (3-way tie) (26 out of 139 countries - 2002)
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