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 have 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 kmò Negligible | ||||
| Population
- Total (2002) - Density | Ranked 26th
43,647,658 36/km² | ||||
| Independence -Date1 |
From the UK: May 31, 1910 | ||||
| Currency | Rand | ||||
| Time zone | UTC +2 | ||||
| National anthem | Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika (God Bless Africa)/Die Stem van Suid-Afrika (The Call of South 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. | |||||
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| Table of contents |
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2 History 3 Politics 4 Provinces 5 Geography 6 Economy 7 Demographics 8 Culture 9 Miscellaneous topics 10 Former national symbols 11 External links |
Other names
South Africa has 11 official languages, which is second only to India. As a result, there are many acceptable official names for the country. They are:
Republiek van Suid-Afrika (Afrikaans),
Republic of South Africa (English),
IRiphabliki yeSewula Afrika (IsiNdebele),
IRiphabliki yaseMzantsi Afrika (IsiXhosa),
IRiphabliki yaseNingizimu Afrika (IsiZulu),
Rephaboliki ya Afrika-Borwa (Sepedi),
Rephaboliki ya Afrika Borwa (Sesotho),
Rephaboliki ya Aforika Borwa (Setswana),
IRiphabhulikhi yeNingizimu Afrika (SiSwati),
Riphabuḽiki ya Afurika Tshipembe (Tshivenda) and
Riphabliki ra Afrika Dzonga (Xitsonga). It also recognises 8 non-official languages (Fanagalo, Lobedu, Northern Ndebele, Phuthi, Sign Language, Khoe, Nama and San).
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. After the Second World War 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. In 1990, after a long period of resistance by various anti-apartheid movements, above all the African National Congress, the National Party government 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, which makes up roughly 80 percent of the population. The government is trying to reconcile the past through, among other things, the Employment Equity Act, as the white minority still, after 10 years of democracy, continues to dominate the economy.
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.
South Africa is divided into nine provinces: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Northern Cape, North West and Western Cape.
South Africa is located at the southern tip of the continent of 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.
History
Main article: History of South AfricaPolitics
Main article: Politics of South AfricaProvinces
Main article: Provinces of South AfricaGeography
Main article: Geography of South AfricaEconomy
Main article: Economy of South AfricaDemographics
Main article: Demographics of South AfricaCulture
Main article: Culture of South Africa
| Date | Name |
|---|---|
| 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
The previous national anthem of South Africa, Die Stem van Suid-Afrika was first used in 1928, later being translated into English as The Call of South Africa in 1952. It officially replaced God Save the Queen in 1957. It was retained after the adoption of the first non-racial constitution in 1994, having equal status with Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika, until the two were combined to form the present anthem in 1997.
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.
Miscellaneous topics
Former national symbols
Flag
National Anthem
Coat of arms
External links
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