Head of state: Queen Elizabeth II, represented by a governor
President: Jacob Zuma
Population
109,011
48,810,427
Life Expectancy
73.300 years
49.410 years
Capital City
Pretoria (administrative capital)
Largest city
Saint George's (population: 7,500)
Cape Town (population: 3,433,440)
Human Development Index
0.774
0.67
GDP per capita
$11,100 US
Literacy Rate
96%
86.4%
Corruption Perception Index
NA
4.9
Percentage of Women in Parliament
21.4%
33.9%
Wealthiest Citizens
NA
Nicky Oppenheimer & family ($5.0bn US)
Unemployment Rate
24.900%
Death Penalty
Abolished in practice
Abolished
Political System
parliamentary democracy
republic
Independence date
31 May 1910 (Union of South Africa formed from four British colonies: Cape Colony, Natal, Transvaal, and Orange Free State); 31 May 1961 (republic declared) 27 April 1994 (majority rule)
Religions
Roman Catholic 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant 33.2%
Zion Christian 11.1%, Pentecostal/Charismatic 8.2%, Catholic 7.1%, Methodist 6.8%, Dutch Reformed 6.7%, Anglican 3.8%, Muslim 1.5%, other Christian 36%, other 2.3%, unspecified 1.4%, none 15.1% (2001 census)
Languages
English (official), French patois
IsiZulu 23.8%, IsiXhosa 17.6%, Afrikaans 13.3%, Sepedi 9.4%, English 8.2%, Setswana 8.2%, Sesotho 7.9%, Xitsonga 4.4%, other 7.2% (2001 census)
Exports
gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment
External Debt
$46,070,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
rand (ZAR) per US dollar - 7.9576 (2008 est.), 7.05 (2007), 6.7649 (2006), 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
1.700%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
0
1
Location
Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago
Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa
Area
344 km sq
1,219,090 km sq
Coastline
121 km
2,798 km
Climate
tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds
mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights
