Compare South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (2008) - South Africa (2006)

Compare South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (2008) z South Africa (2006)

	South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (2008)	South Africa (2006)

Administrative divisions	-	9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North-West, Northern Cape, Western Cape
Age structure	-	0-14 years: 29.7% (male 6,603,220/female 6,525,810) 15-64 years: 65% (male 13,955,950/female 14,766,843) 65 years and over: 5.3% (male 905,870/female 1,429,944) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	-	corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products
Airports	-	731 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	-	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 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 585 1,524 to 2,437 m: 34 914 to 1,523 m: 302 under 914 m: 249 (2006)
Area	total: 3,903 sq km land: 3,903 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Shag Rocks, Black Rock, Clerke Rocks, South Georgia Island, Bird Island, and the South Sandwich Islands, which consist of 11 islands	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 larger than Rhode Island	slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Background	The islands, which have large bird and seal populations, lie approximately 1,000 km east of the Falkland Islands and have been under British administration since 1908 - except for a brief period in 1982 when Argentina occupied them. Grytviken, on South Georgia, was a 19th and early 20th century whaling station. Famed explorer Ernest SHACKLETON stopped there in 1914 en route to his ill-fated attempt to cross Antarctica on foot. He returned some 20 months later with a few companions in a small boat and arranged a successful rescue for the rest of his crew, stranded off the Antarctic Peninsula. He died in 1922 on a subsequent expedition and is buried in Grytviken. Today, the station houses scientists from the British Antarctic Survey. Recognizing the importance of preserving the marine stocks in adjacent waters, the UK, in 1993, extended the exclusive fishing zone from 12 nm to 200 nm around each island.	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	-	18.2 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	-	revenues: $65.91 billion expenditures: $70.62 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)
Capital	-	name: Pretoria (administrative capital) geographic coordinates: 29 12 S, 28 10 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Cape Town (legislative capital); Bloemfontein (judicial capital)
Climate	variable, with mostly westerly winds throughout the year interspersed with periods of calm; nearly all precipitation falls as snow	mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights
Coastline	NA km	2,798 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
Country name	conventional long form: South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands conventional short form: none abbreviation: SGSSI	conventional long form: Republic of South Africa conventional short form: South Africa former: Union of South Africa abbreviation: RSA
Death rate	-	22 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	-	$29.97 billion (2005 est.)
Dependency status	overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina; administered from the Falkland Islands by a commissioner, who is concurrently governor of the Falkland Islands, representing Queen ELIZABETH II	-
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina)	chief of mission: Ambassador Jendayi E. FRAZER 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	none (overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina)	chief of mission: Ambassador Barbara Joyce Mosima MASEKELA 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	Argentina, which claims the islands in its constitution and briefly occupied them by force in 1982, agreed in 1995 to no longer seek settlement by force	South Africa has placed military along the border to stem the thousands of Zimbabweans fleeing to find work and escape political persecution; managed dispute with Namibia over the location of the boundary in the Orange River
Economic aid - recipient	-	$487.5 million (2000)
Economy - overview	Some fishing takes place in adjacent waters. There is a potential source of income from harvesting finfish and krill. The islands receive income from postage stamps produced in the UK, sale of fishing licenses, and harbor and landing fees from tourist vessels. Tourism from specialized cruise ships is increasing rapidly.	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 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 lower South Africa's high unemployment rate, and daunting economic problems remain from the apartheid era - especially poverty and lack of economic empowerment among the disadvantaged groups. South African economic policy is fiscally conservative, but pragmatic, focusing on targeting inflation and liberalizing trade as means to increase job growth and household income.
Electricity - consumption	-	197.4 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	-	10.14 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	-	6.739 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	-	215.9 billion kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Paget (South Georgia) 2,934 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Njesuthi 3,408 m
Environment - current issues	NA	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: 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	-	black African 79%, white 9.6%, colored 8.9%, Indian/Asian 2.5% (2001 census)
Exchange rates	-	rand per US dollar - 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001)
Executive branch	-	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); 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 (eligible for a second term); election last held 24 April 2004 (next to be held April 2009) election results: Thabo MBEKI elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100% (by acclamation)
Exports	-	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	-	gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment
Exports - partners	-	UK 11.1%, US 9.1%, Japan 8.3%, Germany 6.3%, China 5.2%, Italy 4.5% (2005)
Fiscal year	-	1 April - 31 March
Flag description	blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands coat of arms centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms features a shield with a golden lion centered; the shield is supported by a fur seal on the left and a penguin on the right; a reindeer appears above the shield, and below it on a scroll is the motto LEO TERRAM PROPRIAM PROTEGAT (Let the Lion Protect its Own Land)	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 - composition by sector	-	agriculture: 2.5% industry: 30.3% services: 67.1% (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-	4.9% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	54 30 S, 37 00 W	29 00 S, 24 00 E
Geography - note	the north coast of South Georgia has several large bays, which provide good anchorage; reindeer, introduced early in the 20th century, live on South Georgia	South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds Swaziland
Household income or consumption by percentage share	-	lowest 10%: 1.1% highest 10%: 45.9% (1994)
Illicit drugs	-	transshipment center for heroin, hashish, marijuana, and 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	-	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	-	machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum products, scientific instruments, foodstuffs
Imports - partners	-	Germany 14.9%, US 7%, China 6.9%, UK 6.8%, Saudi Arabia 6.5%, Japan 5.9%, Iran 5.8%, France 4.3% (2005)
Independence	-	31 May 1910 (from UK); note - South Africa became a republic in 1961 following an October 1960 referendum
Industrial production growth rate	-	3.6% (2005 est.)
Industries	-	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	-	total: 60.66 deaths/1,000 live births male: 64.31 deaths/1,000 live births female: 56.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	-	4% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	-	ACP, AfDB, AU, BIS, C, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, NSG, ONUB, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land	0 sq km	14,980 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	-	Constitutional Court; Supreme Court of Appeals; High Courts; Magistrate Courts
Labor force	-	15.23 million economically active (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture: 30% industry: 25% services: 45% (1999 est.)
Land boundaries	0 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: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (largely covered by permanent ice and snow with some sparse vegetation consisting of grass, moss, and lichen) (2005)	arable land: 12.1% permanent crops: 0.79% other: 87.11% (2005)
Languages	-	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	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply; the senior magistrate from the Falkland Islands presides over the Magistrates Court	based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law
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 14 April 2004 (next to be held NA 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: 42.73 years male: 43.25 years female: 42.19 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	-	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 86.4% male: 87% female: 85.7% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern South America, islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, east of the tip of South America	Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa
Map references	Antarctic Region	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm	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: 3 ships (1000 GRT or over) 32,815 GRT/39,295 DWT by type: container 1, petroleum tanker 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Denmark 1) registered in other countries: 8 (Panama 3, UK 5) (2006)
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the UK	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	-	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 (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$3.55 billion (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	-	1.5% (2005 est.)
National holiday	-	Freedom Day, 27 April (1994)
Nationality	-	noun: South African(s) adjective: South African
Natural hazards	the South Sandwich Islands have prevailing weather conditions that generally make them difficult to approach by ship; they are also subject to active volcanism	prolonged droughts
Natural resources	fish	gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas
Net migration rate	-	-0.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: there is an increasing flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa and Botswana in search of better economic opportunities (2006 est.)
Pipelines	-	condensate 100 km; gas 1,062 km; oil 966 km; refined products 1,354 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	-	African Christian Democratic Party or ACDP [Kenneth MESHOE, president]; African National Congress or ANC [Thabo MBEKI, president]; Democratic Alliance or DA [Anthony LEON] (formed from the merger of the Democratic Party or DP and the Freedom Alliance or FA); Inkatha Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI, president]; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC [Stanley MOGOBA, president]; New National Party or NNP; United Democratic Movement or UDM [Bantu HOLOMISA]
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
Population	no indigenous inhabitants note: the small military garrison on South Georgia withdrew in March 2001 replaced by a permanent group of scientists of the British Antarctic Survey, which also has a biological station on Bird Island; the South Sandwich Islands are uninhabited	44,187,637 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 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	-	50% (2000 est.)
Population growth rate	-	-0.4% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	0 (2003)	AM 14, FM 347 (plus 243 repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998)
Railways	-	total: 20,872 km narrow gauge: 20,436 km 1.065-m gauge (8,868 km electrified); 436 km 0.610-m gauge (2005)
Religions	-	Zion Christian 11.1%, Pentecostal/Charismatic 8.2%, Catholic 7.1%, Methodist 6.8%, Dutch Reformed 6.7%, Anglican 3.8%, other Christian 36%, Islam 1.5%, other 2.3%, unspecified 1.4%, none 15.1% (2001 census)
Sex ratio	-	at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	-	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: coastal radiotelephone station at Grytviken	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: country code - 27; 2 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	-	4.729 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	-	33.96 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	0 (2003)	556 (plus 144 network repeaters) (1997)
Terrain	most of the islands, rising steeply from the sea, are rugged and mountainous; South Georgia is largely barren and has steep, glacier-covered mountains; the South Sandwich Islands are of volcanic origin with some active volcanoes	vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain
Total fertility rate	-	2.2 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	-	26.6% (2005 est.)

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