namibia

=Namibia=

__Fast facts__
Population: 2,031,000 Size: 825, 418 km2 Capital City: Windhoek Language: English 7% (official), Afrikaans 60%, German 32% Currency: Namibian Dollar (NAD) Head of Country: President Hifikepunye Pohamba and Prime Minister Nahas Angula

__Location__
Namibia covers 825, 418 km2 and is in the Southern Hemisphere in Africa. Namibia's geographical co-ordinates are 22 00 S, 17 00 E. It is situated between Angola and South Africa. Namibia is east from Australia and northeast from Asia. It is situated on the southwestern coast of the African sub continent.

Namibia shares borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east, and South Africa to the south. With a coastline of 1, 572 km some bordering ocean include the South Atlantic Ocean.

__Geographical Features__
Namibia is mostly high plateaus with the Namib Desert along the coast and the Kalahari Desert in the east. The main reason behind it being so dry with semi-desert conditions is because of the scarcity of water. Main Rivers in Namibia is the Orange River in the south, the Kunene River, Okavango River and Zambesi River in the north which are only dry rivers in Namibia.

Namibia can be divided into four geographical parts. In the west is the Namib Desert with hardly any vegetation, inland is the Escarpment made up of mountain walls where the highest mountain Brandberg is located which is 2, 579 metres high. After the Escarpment is the Central Plateau which slowly ends in the east with the majority of cities, towns and the capital of Namibia Windhoek is located in this plateau. Farther in to the east is the Kalahari Basin also part of the Central Plateau which is a wide and sandy plain with dunes. Another geographical area in the northwest is the Caprivi region which is bushland.

__Climate__
Namibia's climate is semi-desert terrain with hot days and cool nights. The coastal areas are cooled by the the Benguela Current which causes fog and rainfall. The Central Plateau has higher temperatures. On average Namibia has 300 sunny days a year, which makes it a very sunny place. During November to February rainfall occurs but mostly as heavy thunderstorms. All of the dry river beds now become full in a very short amount of time. It is during now that sun-scorched Namibia becomes a vast colorful horizon.

Summer is from October to April and temperatures can reach 40º C and decrease at night to cooler temperatures. Daily temperatures range from 24º C to 34º C. Winter is from May to September with warm days and very cold nights when temperatures often drop below freezing temperatures.

__Economy__
The Namibian economy relies heavily on the extraction and processing of minerals for exporting. Namibia's exporting is closely tied to South Africa's due to the shared history.Mining in Namibia accounts for 20% of its GDP. Rich alluvial diamond deposits make Namibia a primary source for good quality diamonds. Namibia is the fourth largest exporter of non fuels in Africa, the worlds fifth largest producer of uranium and the producer of large quantities of of lead, tin, zinc, silver and tungsten. Namibia exports about 50% of its cereal requirements.

Namibia's GDP is $15.14 billion and a GDP per capita of $7, 478. Import partners include South Africa and the United States. Importing goods include foods, petroleum products, fuel, chemicals, machinery and equipment. Exporting partners include South Africa and the United States. Exporting goods include diamonds, copper, gold, zinc, lead, uranium, cattle, processed fish and karakul skins.

__Government__
Namibia is a republic with Windhoek as its capital and has 13 provinces. On the 21st of March 1990, Namibia became independent from South Africa. On the 9 of February 1990 the constitution was ratified and became effective on the 12 of March 1990. The legal system is based on the Roman-Dutch law and the 1990 constitution. Suffrage in Namibia is 18 years universal.

The head of state is President Hifikepunye Pohamba since the 21st of March 2005 and the head of the government is Prime Minister Nahas Angula. The Cabinet is appointed by the President. The President is elected by popular vote for a five year term and is eligible for a second term. Namibia is bicameral with the National Council and the National Assembly. The National Council has 26 seats with two members from each regional council for a 6 year term. The National Assembly has 72 seats and members are elected by popular vote for a 5 year term.

__History__
Namibia was inhabited since early times by Bushman, Damara, Namaqua and since about the fourteenth century AD. The region was not extensively explored my Europeans until the 19th century, when the land came under German control and was called South-West Africa apart from Walvis Bay which was under British control. South Africa occupied the colony during World War I.

In 1966 the South-West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) guerrilla group launched a war of independence. It was not until 1988 that South Africa agreed to end the administration of Namibia and in accordance with the United Nations peace plan for the entire region. Independence came in 1990, and Walvis Bay was ceded to Namibia in 1994.