Oman (2003) | South Africa (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 regions (mintaqat, singular - mintaqah) and 2 governorates* (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah) Ad Dakhiliyah, Al Batinah, Al Wusta, Ash Sharqiyah, Az Zahirah, Masqat, Musandam*, Zufar*; note - the US Embassy in Oman reports that Masqat is a governorate, but this has not been confirmed by the US Board on Geographic Names (BGN) | 9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, North-West, Northern Cape, Northern Province, Western Cape |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 42.2% (male 603,664; female 580,469)
15-64 years: 55.4% (male 934,621; female 620,158) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 36,504; female 31,709) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years:
32.01% (male 7,023,639; female 6,928,559) 15-64 years: 63.11% (male 13,264,654; female 14,244,484) 65 years and over: 4.88% (male 798,914; female 1,325,847) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | dates, limes, bananas, alfalfa, vegetables; camels, cattle; fish | corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products |
Airports | 139 (2002) | 741 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 6
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
142 over 3,047 m: 9 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 47 914 to 1,523 m: 71 under 914 m: 10 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 133
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 55 914 to 1,523 m: 37 under 914 m: 32 (2002) |
total:
599 1,524 to 2,437 m: 33 914 to 1,523 m: 304 under 914 m: 262 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 212,460 sq km
land: 212,460 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 Kansas | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
Background | In 1970, QABOOS bin Said Al Said ousted his father and has ruled as sultan ever since. His extensive modernization program has opened the country to the outside world and has preserved a long-standing political and military relationship with the UK. Oman's moderate, independent foreign policy has sought to maintain good relations with all Middle Eastern countries. | 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). The resulting Union of South Africa operated under a policy of apartheid - the separate development of the races. The 1990s brought an end to apartheid politically and ushered in black majority rule. |
Birth rate | 37.47 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 21.12 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $9.2 billion
expenditures: $6.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$31.1 billion expenditures: $34.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA billion (FY01/02) |
Capital | Muscat | Pretoria; note - Cape Town is the legislative center and Bloemfontein the judicial center |
Climate | dry desert; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strong southwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south | mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights |
Coastline | 2,092 km | 2,798 km |
Constitution | none; note - on 6 November 1996, Sultan QABOOS issued a royal decree promulgating a new basic law which, among other things, clarifies the royal succession, provides for a prime minister, bars ministers from holding interests in companies doing business with the government, establishes a bicameral legislature, and guarantees basic civil liberties for Omani citizens | 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 3 February 1997; it is being implemented in phases |
Country name | conventional long form: Sultanate of Oman
conventional short form: Oman local long form: Saltanat Uman local short form: Uman former: Muscat and Oman |
conventional long form:
Republic of South Africa conventional short form: South Africa former: Union of South Africa abbreviation: RSA |
Currency | Omani rial (OMR) | rand (ZAR) |
Death rate | 3.97 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 16.77 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $5.7 billion (2002 est.) | $25.6 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Richard Lewis BALTIMORE III
embassy: Jameat A'Duwal Al Arabiya Street, Al Khuwair area, Muscat mailing address: P. O. Box 202, P.C. 115, Madinat Al-Sultan Qaboos, Muscat telephone: [968] 698989, extension 203 FAX: [968] 699771 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Delano E. LEWIS, Sr. 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 Muhammad bin Ali bin Thani AL-KHUSSAIBY
chancery: 2535 Belmont Road, NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-1980 through 1981, 1988 FAX: [1] (202) 745-4933 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Makate Sheila SISULU chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-4400 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1607 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York |
Disputes - international | boundary agreement signed and ratified with UAE in 2003 for entire border, including Oman's Musandam Peninsula and Al Madhah enclaves | Swaziland has asked South Africa to open negotiations on reincorporating some nearby South African territories that are populated by ethnic Swazis or that were long ago part of the Swazi Kingdom |
Economic aid - recipient | $76.4 million (1995) | $676.3 million |
Economy - overview | Oman's economic performance improved significantly in 2000 due largely to the upturn in oil prices. The government is moving ahead with privatization of its utilities, the development of a body of commercial law to facilitate foreign investment, and increased budgetary outlays. Oman continues to liberalize its markets and joined the World Trade Organization (WTrO) in November 2000. GDP growth improved in 2001 despite the global slowdown and then fell back to 2.2% in 2002. In order to reduce unemployment, the government is trying to replace expatriate workers with local workers. Another government objective is the development of the nation's gas resources. | 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, growth has not been strong enough to 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 MBEKI vowed to promote economic growth and foreign investment, and to reduce poverty by relaxing restrictive labor laws, stepping up the pace of privatization, and cutting unneeded governmental spending. |
Electricity - consumption | 8.625 billion kWh (2001) | 172.393 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 3.884 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 2.457 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 9.274 billion kWh (2001) | 186.903 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel:
92.74% hydro: 0.39% nuclear: 6.87% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m
highest point: Jabal Shams 2,980 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Njesuthi 3,408 m |
Environment - current issues | rising soil salinity; beach pollution from oil spills; very limited natural fresh water resources | lack of important arterial rivers or lakes requires extensive water conservation and control measures; growth in water usage threatens to outpace 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, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Arab, Baluchi, South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi), African | black 75.2%, white 13.6%, Colored 8.6%, Indian 2.6% |
Exchange rates | Omani rials per US dollar - 0.38 (2002), 0.38 (2001), 0.38 (2000), 0.38 (1999), 0.38 (1998) | rand per US dollar - 7.60 (March 2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997), 4.29935 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary |
chief of state:
President Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999); Executive Deputy President Jacob ZUMA (since 17 June 1999); 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 Jacob ZUMA (since 17 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 2 June 1999 (next scheduled for sometime between May and July 2004) election results: Thabo MBEKI elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100% (by acclamation) note: ANC-IFP governing coalition |
Exports | NA (2001) | $30.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, reexports, fish, metals, textiles | gold, diamonds, other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment |
Exports - partners | Japan 20.5%, South Korea 18.5%, China 14.1%, Thailand 11.7%, UAE 9.2%, Singapore 4.3%, US 4.1% (2002) | UK, Italy, Japan, US, Germany |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of white, red, and green of equal width with a broad, vertical, red band on the hoist side; the national emblem (a khanjar dagger in its sheath superimposed on two crossed swords in scabbards) in white is centered near the top of the vertical band | 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
note: prior to 26 April 1994, the flag was actually four flags in one - three miniature flags reproduced in the center of the white band of the former flag of the Netherlands, which had three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and blue; the miniature flags were a vertically hanging flag of the old Orange Free State with a horizontal flag of the UK adjoining on the hoist side and a horizontal flag of the old Transvaal Republic adjoining on the other side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $22.4 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $369 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3%
industry: 55% services: 42% (2001 est.) |
agriculture:
5% industry: 30% services: 65% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $8,300 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.2% (2002 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 21 00 N, 57 00 E | 29 00 S, 24 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location on Musandam Peninsula adjacent to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil | South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds Swaziland |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 34,965 km
paved: 9,673 km (including 550 km of expressways) unpaved: 25,292 km (2001) |
total:
358,596 km paved: 59,753 km (including 1927 km of expressways) unpaved: 298,843 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
1.1% highest 10%: 45.9% (1994) |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment center for heroin, hashish, marijuana, and possibly cocaine; cocaine consumption on the rise; world's largest market for illicit methaqualone, usually imported illegally from India through various east African countries; illicit cultivation of marijuana |
Imports | NA (2001) | $27.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, livestock, lubricants | machinery, foodstuffs and equipment, chemicals, petroleum products, scientific instruments |
Imports - partners | UAE 27.5%, Japan 16.7%, UK 7.4%, US 6.9%, Germany 5% (2002) | Germany, US, UK, Japan |
Independence | 1650 (expulsion of the Portuguese) | 31 May 1910 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (2000 est.) | 2.4% (2000 est.) |
Industries | crude oil production and refining, natural gas production, construction, cement, copper | mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textile, iron and steel, chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs |
Infant mortality rate | total: 21.01 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 24.03 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
60.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.5% (2002 est.) | 5.3% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACP, AfDB, BIS, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM, NSG, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 44 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 620 sq km (1998 est.) | 12,700 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court
note: the nascent civil court system, administered by region, has non-Islamic judges as well as traditional Islamic judges |
Constitutional Court; Supreme Court of Appeals; High Courts; Magistrate Courts |
Labor force | 920,000 (2002 est.) | 17 million economically active (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,374 km
border countries: Saudi Arabia 676 km, UAE 410 km, Yemen 288 km |
total:
4,750 km border countries: Botswana 1,840 km, Lesotho 909 km, Mozambique 491 km, Namibia 855 km, Swaziland 430 km, Zimbabwe 225 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.08%
permanent crops: 0.22% other: 99.7% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
10% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 67% forests and woodland: 7% other: 15% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects | 11 official languages, including Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu |
Legal system | based on English common law and Islamic law; ultimate appeal to the monarch; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | bicameral Majlis Oman consists of an upper chamber or Majlis al-Dawla (48 seats; members appointed by the monarch; has advisory powers only) and a lower chamber or Majlis al-Shura (83 seats; members elected by limited suffrage for three-year term, however, the monarch makes final selections and can negate election results; body has some limited power to propose legislation, but otherwise has only advisory powers)
elections: last held 4 October 2003 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: NA |
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 3 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 2 June 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - ANC 66.4%, DP 9.6%, IFP 8.6%, NP 6.9%, UDM 3.4%, ACDP 1.4%, FF 0.8%, other 2.9%; seats by party - ANC 266, DP 38, IFP 34, NP 28, UDM 14, ACDP 6, FF 3, other 11; National Council of Provinces - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ANC 61, NP 17, FF 4, IFP 5, DP 3 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.58 years
male: 70.4 years female: 74.86 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
48.09 years male: 47.64 years female: 48.56 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: 75.8% male: 83.1% female: 67.2% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 81.8% male: 81.9% female: 81.7% (1995 est.) |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and Persian Gulf, between Yemen and UAE | Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa |
Map references | Middle East | Africa |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 17,291 GRT/9,457 DWT
ships by type: container 1, passenger 2 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Singapore 1 (2002 est.) |
total:
8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 271,650 GRT/268,604 DWT ships by type: container 6, petroleum tanker 2 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | the National Defense Force continues to integrate former military, black homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces |
Military branches | Royal Omani Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Royal Omani Police | South African National Defense Force or SANDF (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Medical Services), South African Police Service or SAPS |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $2.424 billion (FY01) | $2 billion (FY00/01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 12.2% (FY01) | 1.5% (FY99/00) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 788,429 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
11,469,812 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 438,326 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
6,977,328 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 14 years of age (2003 est.) | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 29,485 (2003 est.) | males:
466,399 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Birthday of Sultan QABOOS, 18 November (1940) | Freedom Day, 27 April (1994) |
Nationality | noun: Omani(s)
adjective: Omani |
noun:
South African(s) adjective: South African |
Natural hazards | summer winds often raise large sandstorms and dust storms in interior; periodic droughts | prolonged droughts |
Natural resources | petroleum, copper, asbestos, some marble, limestone, chromium, gypsum, natural gas | gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas |
Net migration rate | 0.29 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -1.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 3,599 km; oil 3,187 km (2003) | crude oil 931 km; petroleum products 1,748 km; natural gas 322 km |
Political parties and leaders | none | African Christian Democratic Party or ACDP [Kenneth MESHOE, president]; African National Congress or ANC [Thabo MBEKI, president]; Democratic Alliance (formed from the merger of the Democratic Party or DP and the New National Party or NP) [Anthony LEON, leader]; Freedom Front or FF [Constand VILJOEN, president]; Inkatha Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI, president]; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC [Stanley MOGOBA, president]; United Democratic Movement or UDM [Bantu HOLOMISA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | 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 | 2,807,125
note: includes 577,293 non-nationals (July 2003 est.) |
43,586,097
note: South Africa took a census October 1996 which showed a population of 40,583,611 (after an official adjustment for a 6.8% underenumeration based on a postenumeration survey); 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 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 50% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 3.38% (2003 est.) | 0.26% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Matrah, Mina' al Fahl, Mina' Raysut | Cape Town, Durban, East London, Mosselbaai, Port Elizabeth, Richards Bay, Saldanha |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999) | AM 14, FM 347 (plus 243 repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 13.75 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total:
21,431 km narrow gauge: 20,995 km 1.067-m gauge (9,087 km electrified); 436 km 0.610-m gauge (1995) |
Religions | Ibadhi Muslim 75%, Sunni Muslim, Shi'a Muslim, Hindu | Christian 68% (includes most whites and Coloreds, about 60% of blacks and about 40% of Indians), Muslim 2%, Hindu 1.5% (60% of Indians), indigenous beliefs and animist 28.5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.51 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.15 male(s)/female total population: 1.28 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth:
1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | in Oman's most recent elections in 2000, limited to approximately 175,000 Omanis chosen by the government to vote in elections for the Majlis al-Shura | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern system consisting of open-wire, microwave, and radiotelephone communication stations; limited coaxial cable
domestic: open-wire, microwave, radiotelephone communications, and a domestic satellite system with 8 earth stations international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat |
general assessment:
the system is the best developed and most modern in Africa domestic: 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: 2 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 201,000 (1997) | 5.075 million (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 59,822 (1997) | over 2,000,000 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 13 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1999) | 556 (plus 144 network repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | central desert plain, rugged mountains in north and south | vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain |
Total fertility rate | 5.94 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.43 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 30% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | none | NA |