South Africa, or more accurately, the Republic of South Africa, is that beautiful, famed, loved, sometimes controversial, and even notorious country, located at the southern tip of the African continent. The countries of Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Swaziland and Lesotho are South Africa's immediate neighbours.
Geography And Climate
South Africa has a long coastline that stretches more than 2,500 km and across two oceans (the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean) AND the climate to make this some very popular real estate.
South Africa is classified as a semi-arid region, but there is a considerable variation in climate as well as topography in various places in South Africa. There are a great variety of climate zones, from the extreme desert of the Kalahari, near Namibia in the northwest, to the lush subtropical climate along the northern border with Mozambique, and almost every climatic variation in-between!
The southern coast has a climate remarkably similar to that of the Mediterranean with wet winters and hot, dry summers. Much of South Africa's wine is produced in this area. The wind, blowing intermittently almost half the year in this region, is notorious. Passing around the Cape of Good Hope can be particularly treacherous for sailors because of these winds. Many a shipwreck has been the result of the winds that hound the southern coast of South Africa.
A large part of the interior of South Africa is a sparsely populated scrubland Karoo plateau, which becomes super-dry towards the northwest along the Kalahari Desert.
The Free State is a particularly flat area in central South Africa. Some people say it is due to this or due to that, but I say God made the Free State flat, so that we can appreciate how big He created the sky. (And so people who hate jogging or cycling up-hill could have a place to call home!)
After that bit of humour, it must be said that the Free State is not all flat! The areas near Lesotho are quite mountainous with remarkable koppies and sandstone formations.
The Free State has, what I call, an immoderate climate. On summer days when there is no breeze to cool one's brow, the dry heat can become an overpowering force. But in winter, in the early morning, the icy, dry cold often burst unsuspecting water pipes and makes it very hard to forsake the warm comfort of your bed! For the rest of the time, as far as I know, the climate doesn't bother anybody, except for a little banter about the possibility of rain, caused by a gathering of clouds on the horizon.
The northeastern coastline of South Africa is a lush and well-watered area, with a climate similar to the tropics. The climate changes quickly from semi tropical in the east, to a drier, sunny climate prone to thunderstorms and lightning, as the altitude rises over the mountainous escarpment, known as the Drakensberg, towards the interior plateau, known as the Highveld.
The high Drakensberg Mountains, which form the eastern escarpment of the Highveld, offer limited skiing opportunities in winter, and good hiking the rest of the year.
North of the Vaal River, the Highveld is one of the better-watered areas in central South Africa, but does not experience subtropical humidity. Johannesburg, in the centre of the Highveld, is at 1,740 m and receives an average annual rainfall of 760 mm. Winters in this region are cold, but snow is rare.
To the north and east of Johannesburg, the altitude drops beyond the Highveld's escarpment, and turns into the Lowveld. The Lowveld experiences particularly high temperatures, but as the old saying goes, "If you can't stand the heat, get out of the nature reserve!"
The coldest place in South Africa is Sutherland in the western Roggeveld Mountains, where midwinter temperatures can reach as low as ?15 degrees Celsius. The deep interior has the hottest temperatures: A temperature of 51.7 °C was officially recorded in 1948 in the Northern Cape Kalahari near Upington.
Flora and fauna
South Africa has more than 20,000 different indigenous plants. That is about 10 percent of all the known plant species on earth!
The Fynbos Biome, one of the six floral kingdoms, is located in a small region of the Western Cape and contains more than 9,000 of those species. The Fynbos Biome is what makes the Western Cape one of the greenest places on earth. The majority of fynbos plants are evergreen, hard-leaf plants with fine, needle-like leaves.
The Protea, one of the Fynbos plants and the national flower, is a truly South African plant. 130 different species of protea have been recorded in South Africa.
Despite South Africa's wealth in flowering plants, it is poor in forests. Only 1 percent of South Africa is covered in forest. These forest areas are almost exclusively in the humid coastal plain along the Indian Ocean in KwaZulu-Natal.
Plantations of imported eucalyptus and pine trees are predominant in the southern and eastern coastal regions, and the Lowveld. The original temperate forest that met the first European settlers to South Africa, were ruthlessly exploited, until only small patches remained. South African hardwood trees like Real Yellowwood (Podocarpus latifolius), stinkwood (Ocotea bullata), and South African Black Ironwood (Olea laurifolia), are now under the constant supervision and protection of the environmental agencies instituted by government.
Most of South Africa is covered in grassland. On the Highveld, different grasses, low shrubs, and acacia trees, mainly camel-thorn and whitethorn, dominate the plant cover.
Vegetation becomes even sparser in the low rainfall areas towards the northwest. Several species of water-storing succulents, like aloes and euphorbia, prevail in the very hot and dry Namaqualand area.
The grass and thorn savannah turns slowly into a bush savannah towards the northeast of the country, with more dense growth. There are significant numbers of baobab trees in this area, near the northern end of Kruger National Park.
One cannot talk about Lowveld plants, without mentioning the "Broodboom", which can be found in this area. It is a highly protected indigenous plant that seems to be a lone survivor from the pre-historic era.
South African Economy
The South African economy of is the largest and most developed African economy, with valuable modern infrastructure throughout the country. It is estimated that South Africa accounts for up to 30 percent of the gross domestic product of the entire African continent!
The JSE Securities Exchange, South Africa's stock exchange, ranks among the 10 largest in the world. South Africa is the continent's largest energy producer and consumer. Durban, a famous resort city on the Indian Ocean coast, is the site of the largest commercial port in Africa. Modern infrastructure and an efficient transport industry facilitate the distribution of goods to major urban centres throughout the southern African region.
South Africa is a major fresh fruit and wine producer, and everyone knows that some of the best vineyards in the world lies in valleys around Stellenbosch, Franschoek and Paarl, but some people are surprised to find excellent vineyards near Upington or Groblersdal!
South Africa is a middle-income, developed country with an abundant supply of resources, well-developed financial, legal, communications, energy, and transport sectors. The economy has enjoyed positive growth for ten consecutive years, but this has unfortunately not been enough to make inroads into the 40 percent unemployment South Africans reportedly experience.
Restrictive labour laws, the slow rate of privatization of government-run institutions and industries, notably in the communications sector, and inefficient governmental spending are factors that impede economic growth and foreign investment in South Africa. Suggestions and policies aimed at changing the labour laws in South Africa face strong opposition from organized labour.
Tourism has emerged as the highest growth industry in South Africa. Various initiatives have been implemented to ensure that previously disadvantaged South Africans can take full advantage of the growth in this sector of the economy.
Some daunting economic problems still remain to be addressed, especially the problems of poverty and lack of economic empowerment among previously disadvantaged groups. Crime, corruption, and HIV/AIDS are other pressing problems with and economic impact.
Interest rates, a very important factor for real estate, have been cut to their lowest levels in more than two decades. The interest rate cuts fuelled economic growth, with South Africa recording 5.6 percent economic growth in the third quarter of 2004, the highest quarterly growth reported since 1996. Many economists feel that the country is entering a period of strong growth and may achieve sustained annual growth of 5 percent or more.
South African Population
South Africa is one of the most ethnically diverse countries on the African continent. This is due to many factors, of which the wealth of natural resources to be found in South Africa is probably the most important. All the cultural, racial and ethnical groups in South Africa currently live, grow and flourish in harmony under a democratically elected government, although this hasn't always been the case.
South African Democracy
The initiative displayed by the former South African presidents, F.W. de Klerk and Nelson Mandela, who started the process that would bring about a democratically elected government in South Africa, and ensure that South Africa remains one of the few countries in Africa never to have had a coup d'état, earned them the Nobel Piece Prize. After the 1994 democratic South African election, many South Africans were for the first time represented in the national government, and received privileges, rights and responsibilities they were previously denied.
Regular free and fair elections have been held in South Africa since 1994, making South Africa a regional power, and among the most stable and liberal democracies in Africa.
South African Languages
South Africa has 11 official languages: Afrikaans, English, Zulu, Xhosa, Swati, Ndebele, Southern Sotho, Northern Sotho, Tsonga, Tswana, and Venda. Only India has more official languages than South Africa! As a result of the language diversity, there are 11 official names for the country.
South Africa also recognises eight non-official languages: Fanagalo, Lobedu, Northern Ndebele, Phuthi, South African Sign Language, Khoe, Nama and San. These non-official languages may also be used for certain official purposes in some areas where these languages are prevalent. The populations that speak these languages are not widespread enough to warrant nationwide implementation as official languages.
Many South Africans also speak European and Asian languages, such as Portuguese, German, and Greek, Gujarati and Telugu.
All languages are technically equal, but English is regarded as the most widely spoken language across ethnic, racial and cultural barriers. English is not the most widely spoken language by population, though. The use of Afrikaans has been reigned in, to promote the use of other official languages. The reigning trend in all areas of public services points towards the continued promotion of English as the preferred language.
Demographics
South Africa is a nation of 44.8 million people of diverse origins, cultures, languages, and beliefs. According to the 2001 Statistics South Africa census, people could classify themselves as:
- 79.0 percent African/Black
- 9.6 percent White
- 8.9 percent Coloured
- 2.5 percent Indian/Asian
Because of their past, South Africans have a healthy disregard for being racially classified, which makes such statistics rather dubious, in my opinion...
In terms of religious affiliation, about three-quarters of South Africans are Christian, mainly Protestant. Christian South Africans belong to a variety of churches, including many that combine Christian and traditional African beliefs. Most of the non-Christian population holds traditional African religious beliefs. Minority religions include Islam, Hinduism, Judaism and Buddhism.
Culture
There is no single culture of South Africa. South Africa is blessed with a diversity of cultures, because of its ethnic diversity. Each racial and language group in South Africa has its own cultural identity. These different cultures are expressed in the rich diversity of food, music, religion, arts and dance.
Despite their differences, South African cultures share some unifying traits. For instance: South African cuisine, I'm glad to report, is heavily meat-based. This gave birth to the distinctively South African social gathering known as a braai.
South Africans, as a whole, also love their music and dance. South African music offers great diversity.
There has been a major awakening and awareness of South African music since the early ninety's. South African consumers have ensured the growth of the South African music industry by supporting music that incorporate South African languages. A uniquely South African style of music has consequently emerged, called Kwaito.
Some very special, and other very horrible, things have happened in South Africa's past, and in the spirit of truth and forgiveness, South Africans want to remember. The many South African museums ensure that the story of South Africa is conserved for future generations.
South African Government
The Republic of South Africa is a constitutional democracy with a three-tiered system of government and an independent judiciary, operating under a parliamentary system. South Africa has a decentralised government: the national, provincial, and local levels of government all have legislative and executive authority in their own spheres. The President is both the Head of State and the Head of Government, unlike republics with Westminster-style parliamentary systems.
The national legislature is the bicameral Parliament, and consists of the National Assembly (the lower house) with 400 members and the National Council of Provinces (the upper house) with 90 members, which replaced the Senate in 1997. Members of the lower house are elected on a population basis, by proportional representation: half of the members are elected from national lists and half are elected from provincial lists. Ten members from each province are elected to the National Council of Provinces, regardless of the population of the province.
Elections for both chambers are held every five years. The government is formed in the lower house, and the leader of the majority party in the National Assembly is the President. The minimum age for voting in South Africa is 18, and permanent residents to South Africa, as well as South African citizens are allowed to vote.
Each province has a Provincial Legislature, from which a Premier is elected. The Premier appoints an Executive Council.
The constitution is the supreme law in South Africa. The judiciary consists of the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court of Appeal, and the High Court.
The Council of Traditional Leaders is a national advisory body to government, consisting of South Africa's traditional leaders. Each province, except the Western Cape and Northern Cape, also has a House of Traditional Leaders. These advisory bodies are an implementation of the constitutional intention that South Africa should be run as a system of cooperative governance.
Provinces
When the formerly independent and semi-independent Bantustans from the previous dispensation had to be integrated into the political structure of South Africa, the South African government abolished the four former provinces of South Africa (Cape Province, Natal, Orange Free State, and Transvaal) and replaced them with nine fully integrated provinces.
The new provinces are much smaller than the former provinces, which would theoretically give local governments more resources to distribute over smaller areas. The new provinces are:
- Eastern Cape (previously part of the Cape Province, as well as the Transkei and Ciskei bantustans)
- Free State (Orange Free State)
- Gauteng (Transvaal)
- KwaZulu-Natal (Natal)
- Limpopo (Transvaal and the Venda bantustan)
- Mpumalanga (Transvaal)
- Northern Cape (Cape Province)
- North West (Transvaal, Cape Province, and the Bophuthatswana bantustan)
- Western Cape (Cape Province)
Crime
Crime is a major problem in South Africa. According to a survey for the period 1998 - 2000 compiled by the United Nations, South Africa is ranked first in the world, for murder by firearm, manslaughter, rape, and assault. (Not the stuff that makes us proud.) South Africa ranks number two for murder, and number four for robbery, according to these results. South Africa also has a bad record for car hijackings, although the risk is greatest in the Gauteng area.
Crime has had a pronounced effect on society: many wealthier South Africans moved into gated communities, abandoning the central business districts of some cities for the relative security of suburbs. This effect is most pronounced in big cities like Johannesburg, but the trend is noticeable in smaller cities and towns as well. Many emigrants from South Africa also state that crime was a big motivator for them to leave.
The government initiated a widely publicised gun amnesty programme to recall the many weapons floating around since the days of the armed struggle during the apartheid era and wars in neighbouring countries like Mozambique. This initiative was met with reasonable success.
Military
South Africa's armed forces are known as the South African National Defense Force (SANDF). The SANDF was formed from the old South African Defense forces, the Mkonto weSizwe (MK), Apla and the TBVC states' defense forces, in 1994 following South Africa's first democratic national elections and the adoption of a new constitution. Today the SANDF comprises four branches: The Army, Navy, Air Force and Military Health services. South Africans remain proud of our men and women in uniform.
Media
South Africa has a large, free, and active press that regularly challenges policies, actions and blunders by the government.
Press reporting has caused major scandals and resulted in charges and convictions for corruption. The corruption case of Schabir Shaik, in which then deputy president Jacob Zuma was implicated, and the corruption allegations that led to the dismissal of Winnie Mandela from parliament, are examples of such reporting. The government's stances on 2005 Zimbabwean parliamentary elections and AIDS in South Africa have also attracted plenty of media coverage and criticism.
South Africa has the most sophisticated media network in Africa, even though it was one of the last countries in the world to allow the introduction of television. Television broadcast networks have covered all urban areas and some less populated areas since before 1994, while radio broadcast networks had by then covered almost all of the country.
The first African language TV channel was introduced in 1981, by the SABC. In 1986, the SABC's monopoly of television broadcasting in South Africa was finally broken, when, M-Net, the first privately owned television network was launched.
South Africa currently has three domestic television networks, as well as access to satellite television.
South Africa
I love this country, and this is my summary of what South Africa is like. But it is only my opinion, and being South African, I might be a bit partial, so feel free to have a look at some other reports on South Africa:
