national government, most regions have reverted to Islamic law with a
provision for appeal of all sentences
Political parties and leaders: none
Political pressure groups and leaders: numerous clan and subclan
factions are currently vying for power
International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF,
CAEU, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU,
NAM, OAU, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO,
WMO, WTrO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US: Somalia does not have an embassy
in the US (ceased operations on 8 May 1991)
Diplomatic representation from the US: the US does not have an embassy
in Somalia; US interests are represented by the US Embassy in Nairobi
at Moi Avenue and Haile Selassie Avenue; mail address: P. O. Box
30137, Unit 64100, Nairobi; APO AE 09831; telephone: (2) 334141;
FAX (2) 340838
Flag description: light blue with a large white five-pointed star in
the center; design based on the flag of the UN (Italian Somaliland was
a UN trust territory)
Government - note: While chaos and clan fighting continue in most of
Somalia, some orderly government has been established in the northern
part. In May 1991, the elders of clans in former British Somaliland
established the independent Republic of Somaliland, which, although
not recognized by any government, maintains a stable existence, aided
by the overwhelming dominance of the ruling clan and the economic
infrastructure left behind by British, Russian, and American military
assistance programs. Neighboring Puntland has also made strides
towards reconstructing legitimate, representative government. In
February 1996, the EU agreed to finance the reconstruction of the port
of Berbera; since then, other aid projects have been assumed by the EU
and by a non-governmental Italian organization.
@Somalia:Economy
Economy - overview: One of the world's poorest and least developed
countries, Somalia has few resources. Moreover, much of the economy
has been devastated by the civil war. Agriculture is the most
important sector, with livestock accounting for about 40% of GDP and
about 65% of export earnings. Nomads and semi-nomads, who are
dependent upon livestock for their livelihood, make up a large portion
of the population. After livestock, bananas are the principal export;
sugar, sorghum, corn, and fish are products for the domestic market.
The small industrial sector, based on the processing of agricultural
products, accounts for 10% of GDP; most facilities have been shut down
because of the civil strife. Moreover, in 1999, ongoing civil
disturbances in Mogadishu and outlying areas interfered with any
substantial economic advance and with international aid arrangements.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $4.3 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: NA%
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $600 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 59%
industry: 10%
services: 31% (1995 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%
Labor force: 3.7 million (very few are skilled laborers)(1993 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture (mostly pastoral nomadism)
71%, industry and services 29%
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget:
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Industries: a few small industries, including sugar refining,
textiles, petroleum refining (mostly shut down)
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity - production: 265 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 246 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: bananas, sorghum, corn, sugarcane, mangoes,
sesame seeds, beans; cattle, sheep, goats; fish
Exports: $187 million (f.o.b., 1998 est.)
Exports - commodities: livestock, bananas, hides, fish (1997)
Exports - partners: Saudi Arabia 57%, UAE 15%, Italy 12%, Yemen 8%
(1997)
Imports: $327 million (f.o.b., 1998 est.)
Imports - commodities: manufactures, petroleum products, foodstuffs,
construction materials (1995)
Imports - partners: Djibouti 20%, Kenya 11%, Belarus 11%, India 10%,
Saudi Arabia 9%, Brazil 9% (1997)
Debt - external: $2.6 billion (1997 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $191.5 million (1995)
Currency: 1 Somali shilling (So. Sh.) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: Somali shillings (So. Sh.) per US$1 - 2,620 (January
1999), 7,500 (November 1997 est.), 7,000 (January 1996 est.), 5,000 (1
January 1995), 2,616 (1 July 1993), 4,200 (December 1992)
note: the Republic of Somaliland, a self-declared independent country
not recognized by any foreign government, issues its own currency, the
Somaliland shilling (So. Sh.)
Fiscal year: NA
@Somalia:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: NA
Telephones - mobile cellular: NA
Telephone system: the public telecommunications system was completely
destroyed or dismantled by the civil war factions; all relief
organizations depend on their own private systems
domestic: recently, local cellular telephone systems have been
established in Mogadishu and in several other population centers
international: international connections are available from Mogadishu
by satellite
Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 0, shortwave 4 (1988)
Radios: 470,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 1 (1997)
Televisions: 135,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@Somalia:Transportation
Railways: 0 km
Highways:
total: 22,100 km
paved: 2,608 km
unpaved: 19,492 km (1996 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 15 km
Ports and harbors: Bender Cassim (Boosaaso), Berbera, Chisimayu
(Kismaayo), Merca, Mogadishu
Merchant marine: none (1999 est.)
Airports: 61 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 7
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 54
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 12
914 to 1,523 m: 29
under 914 m: 10 (1999 est.)
@Somalia:Military
Military branches: no functioning central government military forces;
clan militias continue to battle for control of key economic or
political prizes
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 1,772,631 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 984,103 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA%
@Somalia:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: most of the southern half of the boundary
with Ethiopia is a Provisional Administrative Line; territorial
dispute with Ethiopia over the Ogaden
______________________________________________________________________
SOUTH AFRICA
@South Africa:Introduction
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.
@South Africa:Geography
Location: Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of
Africa
Geographic coordinates: 29 00 S, 24 00 E
Map references: Africa
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)
Area - comparative: slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
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
Coastline: 2,798 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days,
cool nights
Terrain: vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow
coastal plain
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Njesuthi 3,408 m
Natural resources: gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore,
manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum,
copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas
Land use:
arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 67%
forests and woodland: 7%
other: 15% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 12,700 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: prolonged droughts
Environment - current issues: 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: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, 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
Geography - note: South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost
completely surrounds Swaziland
@South Africa:People
Population: 43,421,021
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 post-enumeration 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 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 32.46% (male 7,094,756; female 6,999,009)
15-64 years: 62.76% (male 13,111,457; female 14,139,372)
65 years and over: 4.78% (male 782,397; female 1,294,030) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.5% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 24.56 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 14.69 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -1.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
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: 0.61 male(s)/female
total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 58.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 51.1 years
male: 50.41 years
female: 51.81 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.47 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: South African(s)
adjective: South African
Ethnic groups: black 75.2%, white 13.6%, Colored 8.6%, Indian 2.6%
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%
Languages: 11 official languages, including Afrikaans, English,
Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 81.8%
male: 81.9%
female: 81.7% (1995 est.)
@South Africa:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of South Africa
conventional short form: South Africa
abbreviation: RSA
Data code: SF
Government type: republic
Capital: Pretoria; note - Cape Town is the legislative center and
Bloemfontein the judicial center
Administrative divisions: 9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State,
Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, North-West, Northern Cape,
Northern Province, Western Cape
Independence: 31 May 1910 (from UK)
National holiday: Freedom Day, 27 April (1994)
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
Legal system: based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
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 governing coalition
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 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, FF 0.8%, other 4.3%; seats
by party - ANC 266, DP 38, IFP 34, NP 28, UDM 14, FF 3, other 17;
National Council of Provinces - percent of vote by party - NA; seats
by party - ANC 61, NP 17, FF 4, IFP 5, DP 3
Judicial branch: Constitutional Court; Supreme Court of Appeals; High
Courts; Magistrate Courts
Political parties and leaders: African Christian Democratic Party or
ACDP ; African National Congress or ANC
; Democratic Party or DP [Tony LEON,
president]; Freedom Front or FF ; Inkatha
Freedom Party or IFP ; National Party
(now the New National Party) or NP [Marthinus VAN SCHALKWYK, executive
director]; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC ;
United Democratic Movement or UDM
Political pressure groups and leaders: Congress of South African Trade
Unions or COSATU ; South African
Communist Party or SACP ; South
African National Civics Organization or SANCO [Mlungisi HLONGWANE,
national president]; note - COSATU and SACP are in a formal alliance
with the ANC
International organization participation: 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, UNITAR, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Makate Sheila SISULU
chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: (202) 232-4400
FAX: (202) 265-1607
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Delano E. LEWIS
embassy: 877 Pretorius Street, Arcadia 0083
mailing address: P. O. Box 9536, Pretoria 0001
telephone: (12) 342-1048
FAX: (12) 342-2244
consulate(s) general: Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg
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 has three equal horizontal
bands of orange (top), white, and blue; the miniature flags are 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
@South Africa:Economy
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 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 by relaxing restrictive labor
laws, stepping up the pace of privatization, and cutting unneeded
governmental spending. His policies face strong opposition from
organized labor.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $296.1 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 0.6% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $6,900 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 5%
industry: 35%
services: 60% (1999 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.4%
highest 10%: 47.3% (1993)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.5% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 15 million economically active (1997)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services
45% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: 30% (1999 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $30.5 billion
expenditures: $38 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.6
billion (FY94/95 est.)
Industries: mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold,
chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textile, iron
and steel, chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs
Industrial production growth rate: -5% (1998 est.)
Electricity - production: 192.015 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 92.09%
hydro: 0.83%
nuclear: 7.08%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 174.486 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 4.093 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 5 million kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables;
beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products
Exports: $28 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: gold, diamonds, other metals and minerals,
machinery and equipment
Exports - partners: UK, Italy, Japan, US, Germany (1997)
Imports: $26 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery, foodstuffs and equipment, chemicals,
petroleum products, scientific instruments
Imports - partners: Germany, US, UK, Japan
Debt - external: $25.7 billion (1998 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $676.3 million
Currency: 1 rand (R) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: rand (R) per US$1 - 6.12439 (January 2000), 6.10948
(1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997), 4.29935 (1996), 3.62709 (1995)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
@South Africa:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 5.075 million (1999)
Telephones - mobile cellular: over 2,000,000 (1999)
Telephone system: 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)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 14, FM 347 (plus 243 repeaters),
shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: 13.75 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 556 (plus 144 network repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: 5.2 million (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 58 (1999)
@South Africa:Transportation
Railways:
total: 21,431 km
narrow gauge: 20,995 km 1.067-m gauge (9,087 km electrified); 436 km
0.610-m gauge (1995)
Highways:
total: 534,131 km
paved: 63,027 km (including 2,032 km of expressways)
unpaved: 471,104 km (1998 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 931 km; petroleum products 1,748 km; natural gas
322 km
Ports and harbors: Cape Town, Durban, East London, Mosselbaai, Port
Elizabeth, Richards Bay, Saldanha
Merchant marine:
total: 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 274,797 GRT/270,837 DWT
ships by type: container 6, petroleum tanker 2, roll-on/roll-off 1
(1999 est.)
Airports: 744 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 143
over 3,047 m: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 46
914 to 1,523 m: 73
under 914 m: 11 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 601
1,524 to 2,437 m: 33
914 to 1,523 m: 303
under 914 m: 265 (1999 est.)
@South Africa:Military
Military branches: South African National Defense Force or SANDF
(includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Medical Services), South African
Police Service or SAPS
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 11,345,031 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 6,901,252 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 460,917 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $2 billion (FY99/00)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.5% (FY99/00)
Military - note: the National Defense Force continues to integrate
former military, black homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces
@South Africa:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: 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
Illicit drugs: transshipment center for heroin 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
______________________________________________________________________
SOUTHERN OCEAN
@Southern Ocean:Introduction
Background: A spring 2000 decision by the International Hydrographic
Organization delimited a fifth world ocean from the southern portions
of the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Pacific Ocean. The new ocean
extends from the coast of Antarctica north to 60 degrees south
latitude which coincides with the Antarctic Treaty Limit. The Southern
Ocean is now the fourth-largest of the world's five oceans (after the
Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, and Indian Ocean but larger than the
Arctic Ocean).
@Southern Ocean:Geography