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Compare Lesotho (2002) - South Africa (2008)

Compare Lesotho (2002) z South Africa (2008)

 Lesotho (2002)South Africa (2008)
 LesothoSouth Africa
Administrative divisions 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka 9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North-West, Western Cape
Age structure 0-14 years: 39% (male 433,229; female 427,926)


15-64 years: 56.3% (male 600,476; female 642,538)


65 years and over: 4.7% (male 43,691; female 60,094) (2002 est.)
0-14 years: 29.1% (male 6,447,623/female 6,370,909)


15-64 years: 65.5% (male 14,040,210/female 14,761,179)


65 years and over: 5.4% (male 917,227/female 1,460,680) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products
Airports 28 (2001) 728 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total: 4


over 3,047 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 2 (2002)
total: 146


over 3,047 m: 10


2,438 to 3,047 m: 5


1,524 to 2,437 m: 51


914 to 1,523 m: 67


under 914 m: 13 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 24


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 20 (2002)
total: 582


1,524 to 2,437 m: 34


914 to 1,523 m: 300


under 914 m: 248 (2007)
Area total: 30,355 sq km


land: 30,355 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 1,219,912 sq km


land: 1,219,912 sq km


water: 0 sq km


note: includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and Prince Edward Island)
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Maryland slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Background Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule. Dutch traders landed at the southern tip of modern day South Africa in 1652 and established a stopover point on the spice route between the Netherlands and the East, founding the city of Cape Town. 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); however, the British and the Afrikaners, as the Boers became known, ruled together under the Union of South Africa. In 1948, the National Party was voted into power and instituted a policy of apartheid - the separate development of the races. The first multi-racial elections in 1994 brought an end to apartheid and ushered in black majority rule.
Birth rate 30.72 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) 17.94 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $76 million


expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million
revenues: $68.2 billion


expenditures: $66.7 billion (2007 est.)
Capital Maseru name: Pretoria (administrative capital)


geographic coordinates: 25 42 S, 28 13 E


time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


note: Cape Town (legislative capital); Bloemfontein (judicial capital)
Climate temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 2,798 km
Constitution 2 April 1993 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 4 February 1997; it is being implemented in phases
Country name conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho


conventional short form: Lesotho


former: Basutoland
conventional long form: Republic of South Africa


conventional short form: South Africa


former: Union of South Africa


abbreviation: RSA
Currency loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) -
Death rate 16.81 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) 22.45 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $715 million (2001 est.) $64.8 billion (30 September 2007)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Robert G. LOFTIS


embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section)


mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho


telephone: [266] 312666


FAX: [266] 310116
chief of mission: Ambassador Eric BOST


embassy: 877 Pretorius Street, Pretoria


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
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Lebohang Kenneth MOLEKO


chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536


FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815
chief of mission: Ambassador Welile Augustine NHLAPO


chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 232-4400


FAX: [1] (202) 265-1607


consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
Disputes - international none South Africa has placed military along the border to apprehend the thousands of Zimbabweans fleeing economic dysfunction and political persecution; as of January 2007, South Africa also supports large numbers of refugees and asylum seekers from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (33,000), Somalia (20,000), Burundi (6,500), and other states in Africa (26,000); managed dispute with Namibia over the location of the boundary in the Orange River; in 2006, Swazi king advocates resort to ICJ to claim parts of Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal from South Africa
Economic aid - recipient $123.7 million (1995) (1995) $700 million (2005)
Economy - overview Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho's primary natural resource is water. Its economy is based on subsistence agriculture, livestock, remittances from miners employed in South Africa, and a rapidly growing apparel-assembly sector. The number of mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years. A small manufacturing base depends largely on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries. Agricultural products are exported primarily to South Africa. Proceeds from membership in a common customs union with South Africa form the majority of government revenue. Although drought has decreased agricultural activity over the past few years, completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa, generating royalties for Lesotho. The pace of privatization has increased in recent years. In December 1999, the government embarked on a nine-month IMF staff-monitored program aimed at structural adjustment and stabilization of macroeconomic fundamentals. The government is in the process of applying for a three-year successor program with the IMF under its Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility. Lesotho has a marked inequality in income distribution and serious unemployment/underemployment problems that will not yield to short-run solutions. South Africa is a middle-income, emerging market with an abundant supply of natural resources; well-developed financial, legal, communications, energy, and transport sectors; a stock exchange that is 17th largest in the world; and modern infrastructure supporting an efficient distribution of goods to major urban centers throughout the region. Growth has been robust since 2004, as South Africa has reaped the benefits of macroeconomic stability and a global commodities boom. However, unemployment remains high and outdated infrastructure has constrained growth. At the end of 2007, South Africa began to experience an electricity crisis because state power supplier Eskom suffered supply problems with aged plants, necessitating "load-shedding" cuts to residents and businesses in the major cities. Daunting economic problems remain from the apartheid era - especially poverty, lack of economic empowerment among the disadvantaged groups, and a shortage of public transportation. South African economic policy is fiscally conservative but pragmatic, focusing on controlling inflation, maintaining a budget surplus, and using state-owned enterprises to deliver basic services to low-income areas as a means to increase job growth and household income.
Electricity - consumption 100 million kWh (2000) 241.4 billion kWh (2007)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2000) 13.42 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 100 million kWh


note: electricity supplied by South Africa (2000)
11.32 billion kWh (2007)
Electricity - production 0 kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2000) 264 billion kWh (2007)
Elevation extremes lowest point: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m


highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Njesuthi 3,408 m
Environment - current issues population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, and soil exhaustion; desertification; Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa lack of important arterial rivers or lakes requires extensive water conservation and control measures; growth in water usage outpacing supply; pollution of rivers from agricultural runoff and urban discharge; air pollution resulting in acid rain; soil erosion; desertification
Environment - international agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection


signed, but not ratified: Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, black African 79%, white 9.6%, colored 8.9%, Indian/Asian 2.5% (2001 census)
Exchange rates maloti per US dollar - 11.58786 (January 2002), 8.60918 (2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997); note - the Lesotho loti is at par with the South African rand which is also legal tender; maloti is the plural form of loti rand per US dollar - 7.05 (2007), 6.7649 (2006), 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003)
Executive branch chief of state: King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); note - King LETSIE III formerly occupied the throne from November 1990 to February 1995, while his father was in exile


head of government: Prime Minister Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998)


cabinet: Cabinet


elections: none; according to the constitution, the leader of the majority party in the Assembly automatically becomes prime minister; the monarch is hereditary, but, under the terms of the constitution which came into effect after the March 1993 election, the monarch is a "living symbol of national unity" with no executive or legislative powers; under traditional law the college of chiefs has the power to determine who is next in the line of succession, who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age, and may even depose the monarch
chief of state: President Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999); Executive Deputy President Phumzile MLAMBO-NGCUKA (since 23 June 2005); 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 Phumzile MLAMBO-NGCUKA (since 23 June 2005)


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president


elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 24 April 2004 (next to be held in April 2009)


election results: Thabo MBEKI elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100% (by acclamation)
Exports $250 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) 217,700 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment
Exports - partners South African Customs Union 53.9%, North America 45.6% (1999) Japan 12.1%, US 11.8%, UK 9%, Germany 7.6%, Netherlands 5.3%, China 4% (2006)
Fiscal year 1 April - 31 March 1 April - 31 March
Flag description divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; the upper half is white, bearing the brown silhouette of a large shield with crossed spear and club; the lower half is a diagonal blue band with a green triangle in the corner 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
GDP purchasing power parity - $5.3 billion (2001 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 18%


industry: 38%


services: 44% (2001)
agriculture: 2.2%


industry: 27%


services: 70.9% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $2,450 (2001 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 2.6% (2001 est.) 5% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates 29 30 S, 28 30 E 29 00 S, 24 00 E
Geography - note landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds Swaziland
Heliports - 1 (2007)
Highways total: 4,955 km


paved: 887 km


unpaved: 4,068 km (1996)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 1%


highest 10%: 43% (1986-87)
lowest 10%: 1.4%


highest 10%: 44.7% (2000)
Illicit drugs - transshipment center for heroin, hashish, and cocaine, as well as a major cultivator of marijuana in its own right; cocaine and heroin consumption on the rise; world's largest market for illicit methaqualone, usually imported illegally from India through various east African countries, but increasingly producing its own synthetic drugs for domestic consumption; attractive venue for money launderers given the increasing level of organized criminal and narcotics activity in the region and the size of the South African economy
Imports $720 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) 319,000 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Imports - commodities food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum products, scientific instruments, foodstuffs
Imports - partners South African Customs Union 89.5%, Asia 7% (1999) Germany 12.6%, China 10%, US 7.6%, Japan 6.6%, Saudi Arabia 5.3%, UK 5% (2006)
Independence 4 October 1966 (from UK) 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)
Industrial production growth rate 15.5% (1999 est.) 6.2% (2007 est.)
Industries food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textiles, iron and steel, chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs, commercial ship repair
Infant mortality rate 82.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) total: 59.44 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 62.95 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 55.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 6.9% (2001 est.) 6.5% (2007 est.)
International organization participation ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO ACP, AfDB, AU, BIS, C, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, NSG, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 1 (2000) -
Irrigated land 10 sq km (1998 est.) 14,980 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court Constitutional Court; Supreme Court of Appeals; High Courts; Magistrate Courts
Labor force 700,000 economically active 20.49 million economically active (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa agriculture: 9%


industry: 26%


services: 65% (2007 est.)
Land boundaries total: 909 km


border countries: South Africa 909 km
total: 4,862 km


border countries: Botswana 1,840 km, Lesotho 909 km, Mozambique 491 km, Namibia 967 km, Swaziland 430 km, Zimbabwe 225 km
Land use arable land: 10.71%


permanent crops: 0%


other: 89.29% (1998 est.)
arable land: 12.1%


permanent crops: 0.79%


other: 87.11% (2005)
Languages Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa 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)
Legal system based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law
Legislative branch bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (120 seats, 80 by direct popular vote and 40 by proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms); note - number of seats in the Assembly rose from 80 to 120 in the May 2002 election


elections: last held 25 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007)


election results: percent of vote by party - LCD 54%, BNP 21%, LPC 7%, other 18%; seats by party - LCD 76, BNP 21, LPC 5, other 18
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 4 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 on 14 April 2004 (next to be held in 2009)


election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - ANC 69.7%, DA 12.4%, IFP 7%, UDM 2.3%, NNP 1.7%, ACDP 1.6%, other 5.3%; seats by party - ANC 279, DA 50, IFP 28, UDM 9, NNP 7, ACDP 6, other 21; National Council of Provinces - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA
Life expectancy at birth total population: 47 years


male: 46.3 years


female: 47.8 years (2002 est.)
total population: 42.45 years


male: 43.21 years


female: 41.66 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 83%


male: 72%


female: 93% (1999 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 86.4%


male: 87%


female: 85.7% (2003 est.)
Location Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa
Map references Africa Africa
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine - total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 28,722 GRT/32,226 DWT


by type: container 1, petroleum tanker 1


foreign-owned: 1 (Denmark 1)


registered in other countries: 6 (Bahamas 1, Seychelles 1, UK 4, unknown 1) (2007)
Military - note The Lesotho Government in 1999 began an open debate on the future structure, size, and role of the armed forces, especially considering the Lesotho Defense Force's (LDF) history of intervening in political affairs. with the end of apartheid and the establishment of majority rule, former military, black homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces were integrated into the South African National Defense Force (SANDF); as of 2003 the integration process was considered complete
Military branches Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; including Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police South African National Defense Force (SANDF): South African Army, South African Navy (SAN), South African Air Force (SAAF), Joint Operations Command, Joint Support Command, Military Intelligence, Military Health Service (2007)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $34 million (1999) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA% 1.7% (2006)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 526,332 (2002 est.) -
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 283,203 (2002 est.) -
National holiday Independence Day, 4 October (1966) Freedom Day, 27 April (1994)
Nationality noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)


adjective: Basotho
noun: South African(s)


adjective: South African
Natural hazards periodic droughts prolonged droughts
Natural resources water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas
Net migration rate -0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) -0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population


note: there is an increasing flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa and Botswana in search of better economic opportunities (2007 est.)
Pipelines - condensate 100 km; gas 1,177 km; oil 992 km; refined products 1,379 km (2007)
Political parties and leaders Basotho Congress Party or BCP [Tseliso MAKHAKHE]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justine Metsing LEKHANYA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD [Phebe MOTEBANO, chairwoman; Pakalitha MOSISILI, leader] - the governing party; Lesotho People's Congress or LPC [Kelebone MAOPE]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Charles MOFELI]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP and Setlamo Alliance [Vincent MALEBO]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Chief Peete Nkoebe PEETE]; Sefate Democratic Party or SDP [Bofihla NKUEBE] African Christian Democratic Party or ACDP [Kenneth MESHOE]; African National Congress or ANC [Jacob ZUMA]; Democratic Alliance or DA [Helen ZILLE]; Freedom Front Plus or FF+ [Pieter MULDER]; Inkatha Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI]; New National Party or NNP; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC [Motsoko PHEKO]; United Democratic Movement or UDM [Bantu HOLOMISA]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA 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
Population 2,207,954


note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.)
43,997,828


note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line 49% (1999 est.) 50% (2000 est.)
Population growth rate 1.33% (2002 est.) -0.46% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors none -
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 14, FM 347 (plus 243 repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios NA (2002) -
Railways total: 2.6 km; note - owned by, operated by, and included in the statistics of South Africa


narrow gauge: 2.6 km 1.067-m gauge (1995)
total: 20,872 km


narrow gauge: 20,436 km 1.065-m gauge (8,931 km electrified); 436 km 0.610-m gauge (2006)
Religions Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% 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)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female


total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.012 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.951 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.628 male(s)/female


total population: 0.947 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: rudimentary system


domestic: consists of a few landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a minor radiotelephone communication system; a cellular mobile telephone system is growing


international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
general assessment: the system is the best developed and most modern in Africa


domestic: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity roughly 100 telephones per 100 persons; 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: country code - 27; the SAT-3/WASC and SAFE fiber optic cable systems connect in South Africa providing connectivity to Europe and Asia; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use 22,200 (2000) 4.729 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular 21,600 (2000) 39.66 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations 1 (2000) 556 (plus 144 network repeaters) (1997)
Terrain mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain
Total fertility rate 4.01 children born/woman (2002 est.) 2.16 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 45% (2000 est.) 24.2% (2007 est.)
Waterways none -
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