South Africa (2002) | Kiribati (2003) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North-West, Northern Cape, Western Cape | 3 units; Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands; note - in addition, there are 6 districts (Banaba, Central Gilberts, Line Islands, Northern Gilberts, Southern Gilberts, Tarawa) and 21 island councils - one for each of the inhabited islands (Abaiang, Abemama, Aranuka, Arorae, Banaba, Beru, Butaritari, Kanton, Kiritimati, Kuria, Maiana, Makin, Marakei, Nikunau, Nonouti, Onotoa, Tabiteuea, Tabuaeran, Tamana, Tarawa, Teraina) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 31.6% (male 6,943,761; female 6,849,745)
15-64 years: 63.4% (male 13,377,011; female 14,300,850) 65 years and over: 5% (male 816,222; female 1,360,069) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 39.7% (male 19,839; female 19,333)
15-64 years: 57% (male 27,705; female 28,438) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 1,385; female 1,849) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish |
Airports | 740 (2001) | 20 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 143
over 3,047 m: 10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 50 914 to 1,523 m: 67 under 914 m: 11 (2002) |
total: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 584
1,524 to 2,437 m: 34 914 to 1,523 m: 298 under 914 m: 252 (2002) |
total: 16
914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 4 (2002) |
Area | 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) |
total: 811 sq km
land: 811 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | 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. | The Gilbert Islands were granted self-rule by the UK in 1971 and complete independence in 1979 under the new name of Kiribati. The US relinquished all claims to the sparsely inhabited Phoenix and Line Island groups in a 1979 treaty of friendship with Kiribati. |
Birth rate | 20.63 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 31.24 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $22.6 billion
expenditures: $24.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA billion (FY02/03 ) |
revenues: $28.4 million
expenditures: $37.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Pretoria; note - Cape Town is the legislative center and Bloemfontein the judicial center | Tarawa |
Climate | mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds |
Coastline | 2,798 km | 1,143 km |
Constitution | 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 | 12 July 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of South Africa
conventional short form: South Africa former: Union of South Africa abbreviation: RSA |
conventional long form: Republic of Kiribati
conventional short form: Kiribati note: pronounced keer-ree-bahss former: Gilbert Islands |
Currency | rand (ZAR) | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 18.86 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 8.63 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $25.5 billion (2001 est.) | $10 million (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Cameron H. HUME
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 |
the US does not have an embassy in Kiribati; the ambassador to the Marshall Islands is accredited to Kiribati |
Diplomatic representation in the US | 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 |
Kiribati does not have an embassy in the US; there is an honorary consulate in Honolulu |
Disputes - international | Swaziland continues to press South Africa into ceding ethnic Swazi lands in Kangwane region of KwaZulu-Natal province, that were long ago part of the Swazi Kingdom | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $539 million (1999) | $15.5 million largely from UK and Japan (1995) |
Economy - overview | 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 high 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. The economy slowed in 2001, largely the result of the slowing of the international economy. | A remote country of 33 scattered coral atolls, Kiribati has few natural resources. Commercially viable phosphate deposits were exhausted at the time of independence from the UK in 1979. Copra and fish now represent the bulk of production and exports. The economy has fluctuated widely in recent years. Economic development is constrained by a shortage of skilled workers, weak infrastructure, and remoteness from international markets. Tourism provides more than one-fifth of GDP. The financial sector is at an early stage of development as is the expansion of private sector initiatives. Foreign financial aid from UK, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and China is a critical supplement to GDP, equal to 25%-50% of GDP in recent years. Remittances from workers abroad account for more than $5 million each year. |
Electricity - consumption | 181.52 billion kWh (2000) | 6.51 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 4.549 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 5.294 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 194.38 billion kWh (2000) | 7 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 93%
hydro: 1% nuclear: 7% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Njesuthi 3,408 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
Environment - current issues | 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 | heavy pollution in lagoon of south Tarawa atoll due to heavy migration mixed with traditional practices such as lagoon latrines and open-pit dumping; ground water at risk |
Environment - international 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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black 75.2%, white 13.6%, Colored 8.6%, Indian 2.6% | predominantly Micronesian with some Polynesian |
Exchange rates | rand per US dollar - 11.58786 (January 2002), 8.60918 (2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.84 (2002), 1.93 (2001), 1.72 (2000), 1.55 (1999), 1.59 (1998) |
Executive branch | 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 is the governing coalition |
chief of state: President Anote TONG (since 10 July 2003); Vice President NA; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Anote TONG (since 10 July 2003); Vice President NA; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: 12-member Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the House of Parliament elections: the House of Parliament chooses the presidential candidates from among their members and then those candidates compete in a general election; president is elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 4 July 2003 (next to be held not later than July 2007); vice president appointed by the president election results: Anote TONG 47.4%, Harry TONG 43.5%, Banuera BERINA 9.1% |
Exports | $32.3 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish |
Exports - partners | EU 33%, US 20%, Japan 6%, Mozambique 2.5% (2001 est.) | Japan 56.7%, Thailand 16.6%, South Korea 16.3% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | NA |
Flag description | 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 |
the upper half is red with a yellow frigate bird flying over a yellow rising sun, and the lower half is blue with three horizontal wavy white stripes to represent the ocean |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $412 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $79 million - supplemented by a nearly equal amount from external sources (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3%
industry: 31% services: 66% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 30%
industry: 7% services: 63% (1998 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $9,400 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $800 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.6% (2001 est.) | 1.5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 29 00 S, 24 00 E | 1 25 N, 173 00 E |
Geography - note | South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds Swaziland | 21 of the 33 islands are inhabited; Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Makatea in French Polynesia, and Nauru |
Highways | total: 358,596 km
paved: 59,753 km (including 1,927 km of expressways) unpaved: 298,843 km (1996) |
total: 670 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 46% (1994) (1994) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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; attractive venue for money launderers given the increasing level of organized criminal and narcotics activity in the region | - |
Imports | $28.1 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, foodstuffs and equipment, chemicals, petroleum products, scientific instruments | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel |
Imports - partners | EU 41%, US 11.4%, Saudi Arabia 7.3%, Japan 7% (2001 est.) | France 28.7%, Australia 26.3%, Fiji 12.5%, Japan 9.5%, Latvia 5.4%, US 4.6%, New Zealand 4% (2002) |
Independence | 31 May 1910 (from UK) | 12 July 1979 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7% (2001 est.) | 0.7% (1991 est.) |
Industries | mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textile, iron and steel, chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs | fishing, handicrafts |
Infant mortality rate | 61.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 51.26 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 56.45 deaths/1,000 live births female: 45.82 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.8% (2001 est.) | 2.5% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, BIS, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, 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 | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WTrO (applicant) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 150 (2001) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 13,500 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Constitutional Court; Supreme Court of Appeals; High Courts; Magistrate Courts | Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president |
Labor force | 17 million economically active (2000) | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45% (1999 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | 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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 12.13%
permanent crops: 0.77% other: 87.1% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 50.68% other: 49.32% (1998 est.) |
Languages | 11 official languages, including Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu | I-Kiribati, English (official) |
Legal system | based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | NA |
Legislative branch | 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 by 2 August 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 |
unicameral House of Parliament or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (42 seats; 39 elected by popular vote, one ex officio member - the attorney general, one appointed to represent Banaba, and one other; members serve four-year terms)
elections: first round elections last held 29 November 2002; second round elections held 6 December 2002 (next to be held by November 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - BTK 17, MTM 16, independents 7, other 2 (includes attorney general) note: new legislative elections were held in two rounds - the first round on 9 May 2003 and the second round on 14 May 2003 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 45.43 years
male: 45.19 years female: 45.68 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 60.93 years
male: 57.97 years female: 64.03 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 85% male: 86% female: 85% (2000 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa | Oceania, group of 33 coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the equator; the capital Tarawa is about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia; note - on 1 January 1995, Kiribati proclaimed that all of its territory lies in the same time zone as its Gilbert Islands group (GMT +12) even though the Phoenix Islands and the Line Islands under its jurisdiction lie on the other side of the International Date Line |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 271,650 GRT/268,604 DWT
ships by type: container 6, petroleum tanker 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Denmark 3, Netherlands 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) 1,291 GRT/1,295 DWT
ships by type: passenger/cargo 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | the National Defense Force continues to integrate former military, black homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces | Kiribati does not have military forces; defense assistance is provided by Australia and NZ |
Military branches | South African National Defense Force (including Army, Navy, Air Force, and Medical Services), South African Police Service | no regular military forces; Police Force (carries out law enforcement functions and paramilitary duties; small police posts are on all islands) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $1.79 billion (FY01) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.6% (FY01) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 11,557,242 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 7,031,337 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 466,399 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Freedom Day, 27 April (1994) | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) |
Nationality | noun: South African(s)
adjective: South African |
noun: I-Kiribati (singular and plural)
adjective: I-Kiribati |
Natural hazards | prolonged droughts | typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to March; occasional tornadoes; low level of some of the islands make them very sensitive to changes in sea level |
Natural resources | gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) |
Net migration rate | -1.56 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 931 km; petroleum products 1,748 km; natural gas 322 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | 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; note - NP split from DP in 2001) [Anthony LEON]; Freedom Front or FF [Dr. Pieter MULDER, president]; Inkatha Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI, president]; New National Party or NP [Marthinus VAN SCHALKWYK]; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC [Stanley MOGOBA, president]; United Democratic Movement or UDM [Bantu HOLOMISA] | Boutokaan Te Koaua Party or BTK [Taberannang TIMEON]; Maneaban Te Mauri Party or MTM [Teburoro TITO]; Maurin Kiribati Pati or MKP [leader NA]; National Progressive Party or NPP [Dr. Harry TONG]
note: there is no tradition of formally organized political parties in Kiribati; they more closely resemble factions or interest groups because they have no party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures |
Political pressure groups and leaders | 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 | NA |
Population | 43,647,658
note: South Africa took a census October 1996 that 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 2002 est.) |
98,549 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 50% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.02% (2002 est.) | 2.26% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cape Town, Durban, East London, Mossel Bay, Port Elizabeth, Richards Bay, Saldanha | Banaba, Betio, English Harbour, Kanton |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 14, FM 347 (plus 243 repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1
note: the shortwave station may be inactive (2002) |
Radios | 17 million (2001) | - |
Railways | total: 20,384 km
narrow gauge: 20,070 km 1.067-m gauge (9,090 km electrified); 314 km 0.610-m gauge note: in addition, South Africa has an electrified 1.065-m gauge commuter rail system, with a total length of 1,254 km, which serves Johannesburg-Pretoria, Cape Town, Durban, East London, and Port Elizabeth (2001) |
0 km |
Religions | 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% | Roman Catholic 52%, Protestant (Congregational) 40%, some Seventh-Day Adventist, Muslim, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, and Church of God (1999) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | 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) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) note: Kiribati is being linked to the Pacific Ocean Cooperative Telecommunications Network, which should improve telephone service |
Telephones - main lines in use | more than 5 million (2001) | 3,800 (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 7.06 million (2001) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 556 (plus 144 network repeaters) (1997) | 1 (not reported to be active) (2002) |
Terrain | vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs |
Total fertility rate | 2.38 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 4.28 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 37% (2001 est.) | 2%; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) |
Waterways | NA | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) |